Brooke
"Mom, wake up!" Sophia yelled while jumping on her bed and climbing on top of her.
"Sophia! You're sixteen now. Not six. Since when did you start doing this again?" I mumbled with my eyes still shut.
"Since today. Anyway, I want to see your yearbook photo. Pleaseeee. The Not Good Enough one. That was a pretty cool assignment you had back in school. I need to tell Aunt Haley to make us do that again."
"Oh yeah. Those were some scary times. This picture was taken only some time before I took off to New York actually." She replied. "Now get up!" She stated. It was then that she realised she was still up on me.
"Oh sorry sorry." She whispered before clambering off.
"Come help me." I said as I walked into my closet.
"Remember that big black box of memories that you found a year ago? The one with the Cancer letters and other memories? Well, this diary and the yearbook are inside that. I think it is time we remove it from inside the floor and you can keep it up there on the top shelf. Jude and you can browse through it anytime and even take some stuff. Get Jude here actually while I fix these boards." I replied as I took the box out of its hiding place.
It did not have dust anymore since I had removed it just yesterday. But the box was still old and rusted.
I opened the box and just went through everything inside. All my memories were in it. The good and the bad. It was like a time machine.
Five minutes later the twins walked in and Sophia brought the red diary with her.
I went to the last yearbook and opened up the the page they needed.
"Here you see. I went through all the 'Not Enough's' and sometimes I still do. People are going to label you. Its what they do. Its what they are best at. Its how you overcome those labels, thats what matters. Dear quirky, sweet, smart, wonderful young girl. Do not worry so much, or at all. About being someone else's definition of enough. This is why I'm smiling in the picture. To show. That these labels are there. The insecurities also exist, but they can't pull me down. They have no say in any matter whatsoever. They exist, but they are parallel to my being. They are always with me, but we never intersect. And thats a very important lesson to learn. You need to know kids, stand up for what you believe in. It isn't wrong to trust your gut. And one more thing. Believe in the joyous power of an unscheduled dance break." I winked.
"Mom, whats the tiara for?" Sophia asked after a few minutes of nodding and taking in my message. She them went on to browsing the contents of the box.
"I was prom queen. And before I was crowned, I was kidnapped and almost had my throat cut off." I replied in a monotone.
"Okay, should we really even ask further because that is just scary. I think we are going to let that slide." Jude replied. "T-shirt? With a flaming heart?"
"Oh yeah. That was one of my very first designs for Clothes Over Bro's. I used to make the clothes myself and sell them online. I built the entire company on a broken heart. Basically, when Lucas cheated on me the first time. So thats my heart on flames and the number 3 is his jersey number." I answered.
"Oh look, your Cancer wig. And Road mix?" He asked.
"Mouth got arrested in Honey Grove, Texas. So we drove up to save him. Had a do over prom." I casually answered.
"Have you all been arrested?" Sophia cut in.
"Yes. But you are not allowed to do that. Haley has visited that place so much, she is friends with the jailor. In fact, one of my old nicknames for her is Jailey!" I laughed it over.
"Wait till that spreads around school!" She smirked.
"Don't you dare do that. That is my sister you are talking about!" I shrieked.
"Calm down and tell us about this CD." She replied.
"Friends with Benefit. That was a benefit concert Peyton arranged to spread awareness and raise funds for Cancer research. Her biological mother Ellie suffered from it and she didn't make it. Also, this was Haley's first launch. Then you know, she went on tour with that moron, Chris Keller and ruined my poor Natey's life, until she came back and lived with me." I spoke in one breath.
"You always were a pictureholic, weren't you?" I asked her as I found not less than a hundred pictures in that box. Most were of mom with her friends and some here and there of places she visited, etc.
"Oh gag!" I exclaimed as I came across a picture of mom and Uncle Lucas kissing on the beach.
"Ah, summer." Mom replied before staring at the picture and reminiscing it. She was in a complete state of reverie.
"And letters. Lots and lots of letters!" I replied picking up a stack.
"Yeah. There are eighty-two letters that I wrote to Lucas. Fifteen for you and fifteen for Jude. And some which I wrote to Nathan, Haley and Peyton. There are also a few that Lucas wrote back to me." I answered.
"Wow." That was all Jude said.
"Yeah. These letters are crazy. They hold so much. Life did us good." I shut my eyes and spoke.
"You can take anything if you like." I replied. This box was made for you."
Jude took the Friends with Benefit CD while I picked up the diary again.
"Come on. Finish packing. We all leave for New York in two hours." She reminded us as we walked out of the door.
Ps- just a heads up, only three chapters left in this book...