Fostered Hearts
KC parked his skateboard by the bicycles and stepped inside the school. He hoped that he would be able to act normal when he stepped into his Media Immersion class and took his seat across from Claire.
Claire began to study him carefully. "Are you okay KC?" She asked him softly,reaching out to touch her friend's hand.
He jumped at her gentle touch and met her eyes,plastering a fake smile on his face for her benefit. "Of course I'm alright. Why wouldn't I be?" He asked her with a laugh. She didn't need to know what had occured a year ago. He shut his eyes. He could remember that cold night clearly in his head,like it had just happened. He and his fifteen year old sister had been backseat of their parent's van----arguing as always. Their mother and father had been up front trying to get them to calm down and keep their eyes on the road at the same time. Most of all he remembered the flash of headlights beaming torward them,the screams that filled the night air,the tires screeching against the pavement and his sister jumping on him to protect him as something metal came through the window.....
"KC?" Claire asked,worried even more now when she saw how dull and sad his eyes appeared.
Her soft voice took KC by surprise and shook him from his nightmarish memory. "Huh?" He asked thickly,swallowing the lump in his throat.
"Class is over. Are you sure your okay?" She asked once more.
He stood up and began to stutter out a lame excuse about needing to use the bathroom before bustling out of the classroom. In his hurry,something fell from his stack of books and fluttered to the floor.
Claire frowned and bent to pick it up,holding it between curious hands. It was a photograph,a little torn at the edges as if it had been held and looked at alot. In the picture there was a couple in their late thirties or early forties and a younger looking KC with his arm around a girl with a similar skin tone and his hair color as well as a pair of aqua eyes. With a sigh she headed out of the classroom and around the corner. She found KC leaning against a wall beside the boys' bathroom. He had his knees up under his chin. "You left this." She said kneeling beside him on her knees and handing him the picture.
He took it in shaky hands and his finger ran over his sister's still,freeze framed face. "Thank you." He told her.
"You know,your sister's really pretty. How come you never mentioned her and why doesn't she go to Degrassi?" Claire told him.
"Was. She was pretty. Past tense Claire. And the reason I've never mentioned her? The reason I've never mentioned her is because she is dead! They all are." KC's voice broke and tears began to drip down his chin.
She looked at him in horror. "What?" She at him.
He looked at her,eyes bloodshot. "It was a year ago today. My mom and dad were taking Kayla and I out to dinner. Kayla and I were arguing over something like all siblings do and our parents were trying to calm us down and concentrate on the road. There was a flash of headlights and screaming and.....my sister saved me. If it weren't for her,I wouldn't be here." He began to sob more,his shoulders shook uncontrollably,overwhelmed by emotion.
Claire threw her arms around him and pulled his head down so that it lay on her chest,her hand ran through his hair and her own long hair tickled his face. "I'm sorry. If I had known I wouldn't have asked...."
"I just don't get it! Why did they all die but I'm still here?" He asked her.
"Because...it wasn't your time. It wasn't your fault KC. You were thirteen years old,you couldn't have stopped it." She said,kissing the top of his head as her own tears fell into his hair.
"I've been in foster care since then. I've been able to hide behind everything and keep my pain hidden. It....it feels good to finally let it all out." KC said,his arms slipping around her waist and pulling her closer.
They lay there on the floor even as the bells rang. For once since a year ago...KC felt safe and felt as if he wasn't at fault
End