Blinded Love
Okay, I've been toying with this idea for a while now, and I decided to write it down. I hope you like it!
Disclaimer: I own zip.
Laura's POV
I woke up to yet another day of a dark world. Dark, because I couldn't see; because I was blind. Five years ago, I had enjoyed beauty in its every form. Nature mainly. I would enjoy many a day just laying in the garden, surrounded by my flowers, my personal heaven. But then disaster struck.
Flashback
My brother, bless his heart, had cooked us all cookies. I munched on one in my bed, and lay down. My life could not be more perfect. I grabbed my sketchbook, and drew out my garden, adorning it with a multitude of colours. Little did I know that would be the last picture I would draw. Content with my work, I switched my light off, and drifted into a deep slumber. I woke to the screams of my family. I jumped up, and the smoke was everywhere. I recalled not checking whether my brother had turned off the cooker. I ran downstairs, and the smoke filled my eyes, blinding me. I ran towards the sound of my brother, and pulled him into my arms. I yelled for my parents to run, but I could no longer hear their screams above the sound of burning timber. I felt my way to my brother's room. Thomas was whimpering in my arms. He was only five.
"Shhh. Its going to be okay, just tell me where the window is. I can't see." I told my baby brother, and his cries grew louder.
"Thomas, you have to tell me, or we might not make it. Thomas, tell me quick!" I said, as I hear some more crashes above my head.
"Just below your hand" he whispered, and I yanked the window open. Fresh air filled my needy lungs, and I started coughing as I swung my legs over the windowsill.
"Someone! Help!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, and to my utter relief, I heard the shouts of firemen.
"Don't jump! We're coming!" The men shouted, and I gripped my brother with a death grip.
"Thomas, it will be okay. I love you." I whispered to him as he cried, and I gently rocked him.
"Miss, give the boy to me." A male voice called, and I cried out in despair. I couldn't see a thing.
"I can't see anything!" I cried out, and then I felt Thomas being lifted from my arms.
"Keep him safe." I said, determined that he would be okay.
"I will. Another of my men is coming to get you in a second, just hold tight." The man said, his voice getting quieter as he descended the ladder, but then I felt the crack of timber below me. I screamed as I plummeted to the ground, and lost consciousness.
I woke up two days later in a hospital. I never saw what it looked like.
"Miss, I'm sorry. You're parents are dead, and the smoke blinded you. You're blind" A nurse told me, and I wept for my parents, my life, and my love of art, which I would never get back. That night, I decided god didn't exist. Why would god let everything I loved be taken away from me? Now, all I had was Thomas. Little Tommy. We would never be separated. Later, we got sent to a children's home. A special one because of me. I cried every night, and Thomas would crawl into my bed at night, so I could protect him from the monsters. He said they were the ones that look Mummy and Daddy.
End of flashback
I felt around for my chest of draws, and dressed. I followed the special handlebar downstairs towards the kitchen. The sound of very loud children assaulted my ears. I was jealous of deaf people, because they could draw, but Madison told me that she loved singing, and really missed it; she had lost her hearing when she was in a car crash; glass had covered every inch of her body, but she had been lucky; she had closed her eyes in time. Maddy and I were best friends, because we had both lost our parents, and our passions. We communicated by her talking, though she couldn't hear how it came out, and me signing, even though I couldn't see the hand gestures that I formed.
Today was different, because Tommy and I were going to be sent to another place, called La Push, Washington. I would miss Madison, because she was my only friend, but I hoped I would make more. I was told that someone at the school would be in most of my lessons, and would take me to each. Apparently, it would be a student that would volunteer on my first day. Brilliant. I hope they like me.
"Laura!" Thomas shouted, and I felt his comforting embrace. He didn't like how I couldn't see anymore, but he loved me just the same. He would always be a constant in my life; and he tried to protect me. He stood up to the people in my year when they picked on me, and because he was so tall, he intimidated them. He was eleven, and I was fifteen. Despite the common knowledge that brothers and sisters fought, we were stuck at the hip. He was my best friend, and I was his, because no one in his class wanted to be friends with 'the brother of the freak.' But I vowed that this school would be different. He needed to find his independence, and not always be protecting me.
"Thomas, today try and make some friends won't you?" I asked, and he sighed.
"No one likes me. Besides, you're my friend." He said.
"You know what I mean." I said, and finished my breakfast. I gripped onto his forearm, and he led me to the minibus which would take us to the next classification of hell. High School. The receptionist handed us a timetable, and I had to ask for a brail version. Immediately one was produced, and I ran my fingers across the indentations in the paper. I had English first.
"I'll take you." Thomas said, and led the way, opening doors for me.
"Bye." He whispered to me at the door, and left.
"Hello. Are you Laura Barnet?" A male voice asked
"Yeah." I said, and reached into my bag for my stick so I could feel my way across the floor.
"Well, would you introduce yourself to the class?" he asked, and instantly I didn't like this teacher.
"Well, my name's Laura, and as you can probably deduce, I'm blind. I have a brother called Thomas, and I love listening to music, and book recordings." I said. I had used to love reading, but now I only had recordings.
"What are your favourite books?" The teacher asked.
"Umm, well I like classics, and any story that's set in a historical setting." I replied.
"That's good, because this year we're doing Romeo and Juliet. Your seat is in front of you." The teacher replied, and I traced my hand across the desk round to the seat. I sat down in it, and listened to the lecture. Once the bell went, I heard quiet footsteps behind me.
"Erm, hi. I'm Jacob. Do you want me to walk you to your next lesson?" He asked, and I smiled. No one had been this nice in my last school, or maybe he was going to lead me to the wrong classroom. I hoped not, and decided to trust him.
"Okay." I said, and he took my hand. I noticed it was boiling, but passed that off as being in a stuffy room for an hour. My stick swept the ground, and I remembered a time when life was easy, and the only thing I had to worry about was homework. After the fire, I had to grow up pretty quickly, and become Thomas' second mother. He in return looked after me like a father would to me, only closer. If people saw us from afar, they wouldn't think us brother and sister, but boy and girlfriend, because of his protective stance over me, and the way I was always on his arm. But, of course, that was because I was blind.
"Here we are." He said, and held the door open for me. I walked in, and to my happiness, the teacher didn't ask for an introduction, and put me in the only spare seat; next to Jacob. He seemed thrilled, and talked non-stop for the entire lesson, till the teacher told him to be quiet. It seemed I had found a friend. I smiled. Maybe this school wouldn't be so bad after all.
So… Like it? Hate it? Tell me!