Arisa and James Borellis grieve the sudden death of their grandfather and have no other choice but to be sent to an orphanage with very few belongings, ordered by law. When they discover that they aren't just ordinary, the Bird rescues them and brin...
| God knows what is hiding in this world of little consequence Behind the tears, inside the lies A thousand slowly dying sunsets. |
- People Help The People by Birdy
Miss Bonnie came back with a whole pizza pie laid on a tray. Pepperoni. In her other hand, a tray which carried three mugs of steamy drinks.
"Children, I am very sorry for your loss. I know you and Philip were very close." Miss Bonnie said sadly.
"Yeah ummm.... Since he died, we were supposed to be going to an orphanage.... and we uhh sorta.... ran away.... from Ms. Peterson......" I explained.
"What do we do Miss Bonnie?" Asked James.
"I'm going to need to take you to the orphanage, dears. I'm really sorry, but the laws don't allow me to care for you, as I am not family. But, if I talk to Ms. Peterson, maybe she'll allow you to stay with me." She replied, taking a sip from her mug.
I hummed and held the warm mug in both my hands, taking in the scent of hot chocolate.
"Maybe living at the orphanage is for the best." I mumbled. _ -- _
Miss Bonnie allowed us to stay in her apartment, right above her shop/café, for the night.
Jamie slept on the couch and I tried to sleep on the window seat. It takes me hours to fall asleep. Just when my eyes started to droop, my late night thoughts got the best of me.
What is Ms. Peterson going to do to us?
What is the orphanage like?
Why'd you have to leave us, Grandpa Phil?
Why is life like this?
What if me and Jamie get separated?
What am I going to do if that happens?
What are we going to do?
Just thinking of being separated from my brother brought tears to my eyes.
The lights of the city became very blurry, glinting in all directions, swirling into each other as my eyes grew weary with sadness.
"Don't cry hon, everything is gonna be just fine." Said a cheery voice from the living room. I turned around to see Miss Bonnie's concerned face. She opened her arms and I fell into them, sobbing out all my emotions.
"Hush child. Come, your grandfather wants me to show you something." She said gesturing to the balcony.
"He wants? How? He's not here, Miss Bonnie." I hiccuped.
"Yes. In fact, he is here right now."
Is it just me, or is Miss Bonnie going crazy?? He isn't here. He never will be here. He's not coming back.
"Miss Bonnie, grandpa Phil is.... dead," I said, hating the fact I had to use the word, "he was murdered by something, or someone-"
"Yes Riz, I know. And it's a shame that he is no longer with us," She replied, hints of sorrow in her voice, "He wants me to show you this," Miss Bonnie took me by the hand and led me to her balcony.
We sat down around the little table. In the center was a little box that was about the size of a laptop.
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"A box?" I asked sarcastically.
"No, not just the box, but the contents inside." Miss Bonnie replied, opening the lid.
The light was dim, so I had to peer inside. I made out the outline of photographs and small trinkets.
She reached inside and took out numerous pictures of peculiar children.
"What are you guys doing? It's like 11 o'clock," Said a groggy voice from behind.
I turned around and saw my brother, bundled in a blanket, standing under the doorway. The way he looked at us showed that he couldn't sleep either.
"Ah! James, you're up! Come, come!' Miss Bonnie said. When James took the seat next to me, I leaned over and whispered.
"She said that grandpa Phil wants her to show us something... she said it as if he was here." I mentioned, earning a nod from my brother.
"Like I said, he is here right now children." Miss Bonnie seemed to hear my thoughts to James. We looked at her with confusion.
My gaze went from Miss Bonnie, to the pictures she held in her hand. They were awfully familiar as if I'd seen them before.
"Um, Miss-" I began.
"Now dears, I know these pictures seem very familiar to you. In fact, you both have seen them before."
"I remember them!" Exclaimed James, "Sis, remember that one time when we were small, grandpa Phil took us here to Miss Bonnie's place and they showed us these pictures??"
He took the stack from Miss Bonnie's hands and began to name each of them.
"This one's Millard Nullings, the boy that was invisible," he said, gesturing towards a picture of a suit and cap...but no head, "That's Emma Bloom, the girl who could erupt flames from the palms of her hands, right Miss Bonnie?" James continued, earning a nod of approval.
As he went on and on about naming each of them, the memories began flowing into my brain.
"Oh my gosh! But aren't they... you know? Fake?" I asked, a little unsure.
Both Miss Bonnie and James gasped at my remark.
"Heavens no!" Declared Miss Bonnie, "Your grandfather and I have seen them ourselves."
| People help the people, and if you're homesick, give me your hand and I'll hold it. People help the people, nothing will drag you down |
