To Build a Home
There is a house built out of stone.
Wooden floors, walls, and window sills.
Tables and chairs worn by all of the dust.
This is a place where I don't feel alone.
This is a place where I feel at home.
It started out as an urban adventure.
I pulled up onto her driveway in my hearse. It wasn't long until she opened the front door and when she looked at me with her peircing blue eyes, I could feel the butterflies in my stomache starting to flutter. She grabbed the sides of her dress as I watched her skip down the steps and run to the car. Her dress was ocean blue, which matched her eyes. It was old looking, but it suited her well. I could tell she spent a little more time on her hair, even though some strands were sticking out in all different directions. She was wairing her white flats and the charm bracelet I gave to her for her birthday last year.
She was perfect.
I built a home.
For you.
For me.
She stopped and placed her hands on the window. Her smile grew from ear to ear, and she greeted me with a small wave. I motioned for her to get in and she quickly opened the door and hopped into the hearse. Before I could put the car in reverse, she grabbed my wrist and told me to close my eyes. I grinned and did as I was told.
"No peaking." She instructed. I smirked, then nodded and she began to put something around my wrist. It was a little heavy, and when she let go she told me to open my eyes. It was a watch, but not just any watch, it was her father's old watch. The watch was leather brown, a little worn out, but it still worked.
She leaned over and kissed my cheek.
"I want you to have it." She looked at me with those big, blue eyes and I gave her a small smile in return.
"Are you sure?" I asked. She beamed at me and nodded, then grabbed my hand.
"As sure as I'll ever be."
Until it disappeared.
From me.
From you.
And now, it's time to leave and turn to dust.
We began driving. We drove through the entire city, but we never stopped anywhere. We listened to music and goofed around, but we mostly talked. We talked about school, friends, our future...
It wasn't long until it began to turn dark, but we were so far outside of the city that if we turned back now, it would be morning by the time we arrived at her house. I pulled the hearse over to the side of the deserted highway and I looked at my new watch around my wrist. It was almost nine o'clock and she had her head up against the window, asleep. Her breathing was soft and she barely made a sound. I reached for her hand. It was cold, so I checked her cheek, which was just as freezing. She was in deep sleep, but I felt her shiver from the cold.
I turned on the heat and reached in the back for a blanket. I wrapped the blanket over her shivering body and decided it was time to turn around and take her home.
Out in the garden where we planted the seeds.
There is a tree as old as me.
I let off the break and started driving in the direction of the city. It was quiet and the only thing I could hear was the moving gravel under the tires and her soft breathing.
We were almost near the city, when I saw a dirt road, surrounded by trees. I looked over at her, still sound asleep and quickly started to press on the break. I turned into the dirt road, slowly driving into the dark tunnel of trees. We were coming upon an opening, and I held my breath. It was a field of grass that looked to be about ten or twenty acres around, surrounded by trees. I drove my hearse in the middle of the field and looked up at the sky through the window. The sky was covered in stars. It was gorgous.
I turned to her and shook her arm to wake her up. She slowly emerged from her deep sleep and looked at me.
"Are we at your house?" She questioned.
I smirked, "Better."
I pointed out the window towards the sky. She let out a small gasp and looked at me. We both knew what the other was thinking. She tapped me on the shoulder and giggled. "Tag, you're it." She whispered.
She flung open the car door and stood in front of the hearse until I hopped out and started chasing after her. We ran around for a while and before we knew it, we were both laying on top of the grass, staring up into the stary sky. She looked over at me and I leaned over to kiss her soft, pink lips.
"It would be nice to live here..." She said.
"Then let's live here." She gave me a questionable look.
"And how do you suppose we do that?"
"We run away." She giggled and pushed my arm playfully.
She looked over my shoulder and was staring at something. I turned my head to see what she was looking at, only to spot the corner of a wooden board, covered in leaves and dirt. We both walked over to it, and started uncovering the wooden sign. Leaf by leaf, we uncovered the old, dirt covered sign. When we did, we both looked at each other and smiled.
I took her hand in mine. The sign read, "For Sale."
Branches are sewn by the color of green.
Ground had arose and passed it's knees.
It's been two years, and we decided to buy the land and live there. I built a home for her, with plenty of windows to look out of, and we would plant our own flowers once in a while. A couple of months after we bought the land, I asked her to marry me. She is now a journalist, while I am a sucessful author, and we make just the right amount of money to get by.
It has been raing all day today, so we spent most of our time in our room. My head rolled it's way onto her stomache, and she would play with my hair from time to time. She looked down at me and her lips curved into a small smile, but then she grimaced.
"Are you happy here?"
The question took me back and I clasped her hand in mine.
"Of course I'm happy." Yet, she always seems to know when I'm not telling her the truth. She sighed and started to let go of my hand.
"I know when you're lying. You can tell me the truth..."
"Well, you know I love it here, and I love you. But," She stared at me with her bright blue eyes, waiting for me to continue, "I think I want to have a baby."
She smiled, "I would love to have a baby with you, Eli Goldsworthy."
I got up and leaned over and kissed her, "I love you."
She kissed me again, "I love you too."
By the cracks of the skin, I climbed to the top.
I climbed the tree to see the world.
Nine months later, we had a baby girl and we named her Julia. Our daughter never looked so much like her mother. Everything seemed perfect, until my wife became very ill.
It was Julia's fifth birthday when I heared a loud crash in the kitchen. I ran into the room and found Clare lying on the floor unconcious. I have never been so scared in my life, so I picked her up, put her in the backseat of our hearse, and started driving to the nearest hospital. When we got there, Julia and I ran in screaming for help. I told the doctors what happened and they began to check her in the next room. We were told to wait in the waiting room. It wasn't long until the doctor came in to tell us the news.
"Her heart is very weak. She needs to rest, but I'm afraid we can't do much," he pulled me to the side so Julia wouldn't hear the news, "and I think she might not make it."
"There has to be something you can do! Please."
The doctor shook his head, "I'm terribly sorry, but you may see her now."
I nodded and grabbed Julia's hand and we walked to the room. We walked through the door to find her on the bed with tubes in her arms and in her nose.
"Mommy!" Julia screamed and hopped onto the side of the bed while Clare hugged her. I also walked to the opposite side of the bed and grabbed her hand. We both looked at each other, knowing exactly what was going to happen.
"Julia, you must be hungry. The nurse over there would be happy to take you to go get some food. Ok?" I could hear her voice, which sounded weak.
She nodded, "Okay, mommy." The nurse took her hand and they both left the room.
I started to cry and I put my head on her shoulder. I squeezed her hand and lifted my head to see her sad face.
"It's going to be alright. I know you will continue to be a great father and I just want what is best for Julia. You both are my everything."
"You and Julia are also my everything. I love you so much."
She nodded in return and I layed by her side until Julia was brought back and we were asked to leave. We said our last goodbye's and left her to rest. We drove to our house in silence. I put Julia to bed early and layed in our bed, crying.
It should be me. Not her.
When the gusts came around to blow me down.
I held on as tightly as you held onto me.
I held on as tightly as you held onto me.
We would visit her everyday, but when everything seemed to be getting better, it became much worse when we recieved a call from the doctor saying that her heart gave out, and she died.
My daughter and I went to the hospital to sign the papers and the funeral came too soon. We watched as she was lowered into the ground and buried, and the whole time, my daughter never let go of my hand.
And I built a home.
For you.
For me.
Tears started to roll down my face and I've never felt so broken. Everybody started to leave, while we both stood there, waiting for a miracle. But she was gone, and I know that she will never come back.
I started to walk away when I felt Julia pull me back. She faced me, squeezed my hand, and looked at me with her mother's eyes.
"Daddy, I know mommy is still here."
I sighed and crouched down, holding her hands in mine.
"No Julia, mommy isn't here."
"Yes she is daddy," she lifted her hand from my grasp and placed it over my chest, "she will always be here. In you're heart."
I smiled and placed my hand over her hand. I looked down at my wrist, where the watch has been for as long as I can remember.
"You're right, Julia. I know she will."
I took the watch from my wrist and motioned for Julia to hold out her hand. She did, and I placed Clare's watch on her wrist. It was a bit big, but I wanted her to know that there will always be something to remind her of her mother.
I stood up, took Julia's hand in mine, and we both went home, so I can build a better home for Julia.
For Clare.
Until it disappeared.
From me.
From you.
And now, it's time to leave and turn to dust.
It started out as an urban adventure.
A/N: Thankyou for reading! Please review and tell me what you thought of the story. To tell you the truth, I cried while writing this..Haha! :) And unfortunately, this is the end of the story, but I really hope you enjoyed it.
Song: To Build a Home
Artist: The Cinematic Orchestra
I do NOT own Degrassi or the characters! Although, I wish I did!