a/n: well... hi everyone. it's been a long time since i've decided to write a story. i'm sorry for those who are a fan of my other story Behind Hidden Eyes that i haven't updated in forever. i have lost inspiration for it. i read through it and in in my opinion, i find that my writing for that story sounds very childish to me. maybe i'm wrong, but that's me. I may update it i may not so it's on hiatus for now. other than that... i decided to start a new story! this idea's been swimming in my head for a while but i'm warning you right now... the updates will take a LONG time. i am an extremely slow planner and getting my ideas on paper is difficult for me so dont expect speedy updates. anyways, i hope you enjoy this story! R&R
On the Borderline
Chapter One
I was not happy. I looked up at the house that was going to be my new home. The gray paint was chipping off in random areas along the front of the house and the mailbox looked as though someone had dented it with some sort of bat. Mailbox baseball, I thought. I begged my older brother, Cloud to take me once because I wanted to see what made it so great. Let me tell you, there's nothing great about it. I will never understand what it is with boys and the idea that blowing up, lighting on fire, and destroying things of any sort is so entertaining to them.
"Naminé, stop staring at that mailbox and help me carry these boxes in!" Cloud said, annoyed. I sighed and took one of the three boxes he was carrying and began walking towards my new home. I walked up the three steps that led to the front porch and followed my brother into the house. Looking around, it surprised me that the interior was in much better shape than the exterior. The hallway had a wooden floor and the walls were rusty red in color.
Walking further into the house, there was a kitchen to the right with obsidian countertops and a decent refrigerator and dishwasher. Across from the kitchen was the family room. It also had the same colored walls as the hallway and the carpet was beige. On the far wall, there was a fireplace with a mantle built above it where photos of our family will most likely be placed.
I walked further down the hall and followed Cloud up the stairs to where my and his bedrooms were.
"Cloud, which room is mine?" I asked.
"It's around the corner and to the right," he said, pointing his finger. Nodding, I followed the direction he had indicated and opened the door and let out a small gasp. My room was already furnished with my belongings; the queen-sized bed was up against the left wall with my dark blue comforter and mint green pillows and my closet on the right. Three of the walls were a pale blue and the last wall was white. What caught my attention most were the double, glass-paned doors that led to a small balcony that overlooked the petite backyard.
Walking towards the doors, I opened them and stepped out onto the small balcony. It was fashioned of dark wood and a tall tree that was excellent for climbing grew off to my right. At least I have an escape route if I ever needed to get away, I thought.
I heard footsteps behind me and turned to see Cloud walking over to join me. "I thought you would like this room," he spoke. "I know you like painting murals so I painted one of the walls white so that you could do whatever you wanted with it."
Smiling, I hugged my older brother tightly, "Thank you, Cloud."
"No problem," he smiled, hugging me back. Since our parents died in a car accident two months ago, Cloud was the only family I had since both our parents were the only child of each set of our grandparents. Cloud had just graduated from college and was planning on traveling, but then our parents were killed. Even though we were both devastated by our parents' death, I could tell he was hurting a small bit since his traveling would be postponed. But he would rather stay with me forever than travel and leave me alone with strangers. He's the best older brother you could ask for. He now works at an auto repair shop and makes deliveries on the side with good pay coming in from both jobs.
I sighed, no good in thinking about that right now, Naminé. The hurt has gotten better with time; but the pain of losing someone will never go away. I placed the box on my bed and lied down next to it staring at the ceiling. In all honesty, moving was not fun. I didn't want to leave my home back in Destiny Islands and trade it for this one here; in Twilight Town. But, at the same time, I did.
Destiny Islands is small enough to where everybody knows everyone and everything about their personal business; including the recently orphaned Strife kids. Friends, neighbors, and even the mail-man would only look at, no stare at us with expressions of pity and sympathy. There was no empathy among those 'looks,' and that was what we needed the most. It got to the point where Cloud couldn't handle another "I am so sorry that happened," "It must be terrible," and his favorite, "If you want to talk to someone, just give me/him/her a call" that he decided it would be best for the both of us if we left and got a new start somewhere else where no one would know our pasts and give us looks full of sympathy. I agree whole-heartedly with my older brother. I hated getting those looks and stares from everyone. I mean, we have close friends back home on the Islands, but they changed once we became the 'charity cases.' Cloud and I didn't want to have to go through everyday facing the people we know and love to only see them look at us with pity.
I sat up and began to unpack the box that was sitting right next to me. Opening the lid, I stared at the contents before slowly pulling them out. The first object was a glass jar a of sea shells. My mom and I scavenged for these when I was eleven years old when our family went to the beach on the other side of the island. It was our favorite beach, my family's. It was our beach. No one else ever went there and it became my, Cloud's, and our parents, special place. We went every weekend, but that all changed after the accident.
I placed my jar of shells on the nightstand next to my bed and pulled out the next object. It was a picture of our family a week before the car accident. It was the last photo of us ever taken as an entire family. It was taken before sunset at our beach by a family friend.
I was on Cloud's back, my arms wrapped loosely around his neck and his arms supporting my legs. It may seem childish for a seventeen year old girl to be on the back of her twenty-three year old brother but that's what Cloud and I are like when we are together; childish. Standing a head taller next to Cloud ruffling his already spiky hair, was Dad. Cloud's the spitting image of him, except for the fact that Dad had a darker shade of hair that's not as spiky and his eyes were green. Tucked into his side was our mom. Her blonde was hair pulled back into a ponytail to keep it out of her warm, smiling blue eyes.
I take after my mom; from her small and petite frame, to her blonde hair. Cloud and I were both blessed with her blue eyes and she always told us that if she was proud of anything that was passed down from her to us, it was the fact that we got her eyes. In our last physical evidence as a family, we all had grins painted across our faces. Now, two of them are gone forever and the other two may never come back full force.
Placing the frame with my family's photo in it on the nightstand next to my bed, I pulled out the last object and tossed the now empty box to the side. It was a stuffed animal. A bottle-nosed dolphin named Diego to be precise. Cloud got me Diego when we went to Sea World last year for 'brother-sister bonding' as Mom would have said. For Cloud and me, Sea World is our place because we both believe that it is way better than Disney World and because we both love dolphins (even if he won't admit it).
I lied down on my bed, hugging Diego tightly to my chest. Three simple objects brought so much love to me, but one also brought hurt. One, which could only be looked at now where time will remain frozen.
a/n: well, what'd you think? i hope that those who read it enjoyed and if you did, there's a little button that says 'review' so if you want, i would like to here your opinions and any feedback you have to offer. thanks again
maluka