What Are The Chances?

Chapter 7: Pheonix

My body is running through a dull, misty forest. The sound of the leaves crunching and sticks broke as I turned my head around to see someone following me, but it was too dark to see their character. All I could draw was a tall, buff man holding a butcher knife, sprinting after me. I tried to scream but for some reason my voice was muted. It's like I didn't have one at all. I couldn't even see what was ahead of me, or a big fat log, sitting there.

I tripped and hit my head, knocking me almost unconscious. On the ground, Most of it was a blur after that. The man eventually caught up to me and jammed the knife in and out of my stomach. In. Out. In. Out. The sharp pain was so intense, I kept trying to move, but it's like something was holding me in place. He jammed it again, one more time into my chest and I woke up the next morning, cold. Sweaty.

The heater was blowing so loud, I could barely sleep. The sound of my mom getting ready for work and the voice of PaPa and NaNa in the living room. But all I could think about was Ellis. Ellis. Ellis. And Ellis some more. It's like I was mesmerized by him.

Last night when I got home, my mom was already up, cradling Minnie May in her hands. She was bawling her eyes out and my mother was on the phone. When I closed the door, she turned her head, and hung up. Minnie came running to me and she wrapped her arms around my legs. My mother stood up and told her to go to her room.

"Do you have any idea what time it is?" She asked, walking over to me. She pulled me by my ear and dragged me to my room where she shut the door. "I was out with a friend, mom. It wasn't supposed to be for that long..."

"I don't want to hear it mio figlio. You never sneak out and that's not like you. I thought somebody took my baby."
I took off my coat and threw it on my bed. "I'm sorry mama I was gonna tell you but it was all last minute. I was just at the park."

Her hands were on her hips and she looked at me dead in the eyes. Her short hair was in a messy bun and she was wearing a black nightgown. "Who were you with, hm? Were you smoking?"
I raised my eyebrows. "No! I wasn't smoking and I was with a friend from school." I smelled my shirt and I did indeed smell like smoke. Maybe it was because I was around Ellis. And plus, I kind of like the smell. It reminds me of him.

"Go help your sister pack," she said in a low tone before turning around and walking out of my room. I sighed and walked into Minnie's bedroom, where she was on her knees, stuffing clothes into her backpack aggressively."You don't need a lot. You're just gonna stay there for a little while. It's like a sleepover," I told her as I grabbed her favorite book and put it in her backpack. I turned and looked at her and she's not crying. There's no emotion on her face.
I looked down at my hands. "Sorry I wasn't there when you woke up," I said in a low tone. I waited a second for her to reply, but when she didn't, I continued to fold her clothes.

"It's not that," she said. "It's how you don't even want to come with me."
The sadness in her voice was like a blade, cutting right through my skin. "I have to stay here...to help mom. But Papa and Nana are super fun. When I was little, we  would bake cookies, cupcakes, and I got to choose the movie to watch even when they didn't like it."
I run my fingers through her soft blonde hair. "They'll take you to gymnastics.... Buy you all the Starbucks you want...."
A little smile grew on her face. "Even the rainbow drink?" I smiled. "Even the rainbow drink."
༶•┈┈୨♡୧┈┈•༶

After we finished packing, we brushed our teeth and I put her to bed, and that next morning, our grandparents were here to pick her up. My mom gave her a bunch of kisses and went through the house, making sure she had everything like her toothbrush, headbands and hair ties, leotard, and I pad.

I hugged her goodbye and kissed her on the cheek before they left out the door. It was still early, and the sun hadn't risen yet but it was time for me to get ready for school and for some reason I felt nervous. I still had wondered if Ellis had been playing games with me last night and that I'd get beat up as soon as I stepped foot in the school.
I didn't even want to ride the bus so I begged my mom to take me.