Generation Two - Chapter Six

One week from now, and it would be my birthday.

One more week, and I would officially be a young adult. Graduation was just around the corner now, exams had finished and all clubs were throwing leavers ceremonies. Including mine. Caelan hadn't been part of any activities, but I had been part of two, and in this last week I had award ceremonies for both.

The most exciting moment of it all was when I was debating for presidency for the debate club. Of course, the presidencies never lasted long, since I wouldn't be returning to school in the autumn, but it wasn't about that. It was about being recognised as the best skilled member, the one who could give the most convincing arguments.

I had prepared a lot for this, and it all paid off. I won the debate, and was declared the 48th president of my school's debate club. This meant that my picture was taken, and hung up amongst all the other previous presidents.

Also, I was given this trophy. I didn't have much in my room besides my bed and night table, but now my trophy was one of my few possessions. It was shiny, and looked golden (even though it probably wasn't), and I was so proud of it.

To make good things better, the "advantages" of our new home were brought before my eyes everyday. Wild horses passed through what was technically our garden twice most days. Sometimes, I got really close to one and I had a feeling that they were getting used to us, too. It was amazing to be so close to nature all the time, and I loved it. Riverview was a pretty green town anyway, with trees and flowers everywhere, hills in the background, and wildlife everywhere, but I felt like we had secured the best possible spot for ourselves.

It was one of those days when I was outside and felt almost overcome by the beauty of it all, that I thought about rebuilding the house. Not yet, of course, we hardly had the money to buy a new table and chairs, but one day. Mom had always made good money as a professional athlete, and I was going to be bigger than her. I'd earn more money, and I'd be able to transform our house into a wood cabin paradise.

In all this beauty, old habits were still coming through as well. I had only stolen once since I had taken Connor's pony, and that had only been as a test for myself, kinda like a bravery rite or somethin'.

But then, one day at school, Connor had invited me over. I eventually had to use their bathroom, and saw this beauty! The intricate design of it had me captured, and I took it.

Just two weeks later, as I was over at Leon's, I used their bathroom, and saw this cute little medicine cupboard. It belonged to his sister, Tess, but, well... I really liked it, so I took that, too. I wasn't sure if it was bathroom stuff that I liked, or some other reason, but I had never taken anything that didn't belong in the bathroom. Apart from Connor's pony, but I had been a child then.

I did feel bad though. Not two days passed and I felt guilty for taking her medicine cupboard. I bought a big box at the post office, and sent it back without my name on it. I wanted her to have it back, but I didn't want her to know that it had been me who had taken it. Things were going so well with her brother, and I didn't want to ruin it.

Connor, however, seemed to be a little pissed of with me. If he even knew, that was. One day, he invited me over after school again, but when I arrived at his place he wasn't there. Danielle and their parents were laughing and joking in the living room, and asked me to come in, but when I realised that he wasn't there I left. I wasn't sure whether he knew that I had stolen from him twice by that point, but assumed that he probably did and used this as a chance to get back at me.

I was still trying to bond with Mom. We often played chess together on our new chess table, which had been an early graduation present. She was good at it, but I was better, and usually beat her easily.

Sometimes she seemed confused when we were playing, which then in turn worried me. I knew that she knew the rules, so that couldn't have been the reason. She had told us once how she had used to hear voices when she had been younger, but, according to her, that hadn't happened for many years.

But I was worried that maybe, her health was slowly decreasing after all. One evening I was using the slip and slide, when I noticed her shouting at the bin and knocking it over on purpose. It couldn't have been an accident, because she had declared how she was "gonna show 'em" just before kicking it with her foot, which had sent it flying.

I went inside as it was getting a little cold outside, and I had started to freeze. I didn't even realise that she had stayed outside all this time, while Caelan and I were doing our last set of homework. Suddenly, the air around us went cold, and I just had this really bad feeling. Like something was wrong.

Mom had passed away.

We found her ghost in the garden, near the slip and slide. The grim reaper was easing her over to the other side, while Caelan and I couldn't help the tears from falling.

After Mom's death, things were different around the house. The walls and everything inside them was still the same, of course, but it felt different. My Momma was gone, only days before our graduation. Before our birthdays. She was going to miss out on the biggest moments of our lives. I had always expected that she wouldn't live to see our weddings, or to meet her grandchildren, but our graduation was something so different. It was so soon.

The rooms seemed empty now. Especially the kitchen/dining room/living room, since they were technically one big room, and the long corridor upstairs. It didn't seem right to enter her room, so we didn't.

As our birthdays crept closer, we decided to still celebrate, but only with a small circle of friends. Some happiness, we thought, would be good for us, and the comfort of our friends was sure to be good, too.

Still, standing in front of our cakes, waiting to blow out those candles, seemed odd without Mom. She should have been there.

All three of our guests had made it. Leon was such a welcome sight, Danielle had brought Connor, and we had decided to invite Dad. It had been years since we had last seen him. After their divorce, we had simply gone separate ways, all of us. Seeing him again now of all days was weird, but at least we had one parent there.

As Danielle was clapping excitedly, and Leon was scaring the shit out of Ted with that stupid noisy thing, I felt myself getting more thrilled for the future. Mom was gone, and we couldn't change that, but we could erect a nice family graveyard for her, to remember her. Some form of memorial, if nothing else. I was about to start my career, and who knew what was waiting for me and Leon?

Whatever it was, I was ready for it.

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R.I.P Kate Blackwood :(

Wishes fulfilled

Talk to Leon 2x
Buy something worth at least S100
Return Stolen Cowaway Cabinet
Buy a chess table
Play chess
hug Leon amorously
kiss Leon