Our Sick Inheritance (editing)

Chapter 127 - Home to Less

As Jake pulled off the freeway to head towards home, he looked at the passenger seat and saw his sister Stacy sitting next to him. Jake almost put on the breaks as a rush of overwhelming emotion pushed his ribs together. Stacy smiled and put her hand on his arm as if to say everything was going to be ok. His sister faded faster than she appeared. Jake wondered if it was hallucinations from being exhausted, but he knew what he saw was real.

Tiredness was replaced with anxiety and adrenaline. Jake pulled onto the road that led to his house. Snow covered the sides of the streets, but the roads were mostly wet from the melted flakes. It was getting dark and Jake didn't see his dad's truck in the driveway. Alone on his lane, Jake pulled in front of his house.

The rest of the street was quiet even though most were inside their warm houses with their families, kids playing with their new Christmas toys, and just enjoying being together. His home looked vacant of warmth, shadowed in sadness, and void of all things bright, but there was no denying no matter what happens, there was always love inside.

He sat in truck numb, not able to think or move. After a while, Jake snapped out of his trance that lasted minutes but felt much longer. With aggression he wiped his eyes on the sleeve of his jacket and blew his nose with napkins he had left over from one of his fast food stops.

As he stepped out of his truck, Jake gripped the door for balance. He almost slipped and fell like a newborn horse trying to stand up. It took another second to steady himself. Jake felt unbalanced and strange because of the caffeine pills and sugar he had consumed for most of trip. Groans and pains escaped his mouth as his body was still bruised and beat up. He compared it to being thrown into a pit of giants that had gotten their aggression out on him as if he were as stress doll. Something to kick, slap, punch, and slam continuously against the wall. He could still smell a slight hint of skunk for his hair must have absorbed the stench to the center of each strand. For the millionth time his stomach did a flip-flop. It took several deep breaths to rid of the sensation.

With his bag in one hand and the other on the doorknob of his house, Jake closed his eyes and imagined that when he turned the knob and opened the door, Stacy would run up to him alive and well. She'd give him a big hug before stepping back to punch him in the arm. They would laugh and she'd start babbling boring stories about her friends and newest love interest. But the fantasy didn't last long as she faded, replacing the imagine with eyes full of waterworks.

Jake turned the knob until he heard a click then pushed open the door. The entrance was cooler than normal. He was sure the fireplace hadn't been started at all. Never before had his childhood home felt so empty and hallow. Nothing nor nobody made a sound, for even the house stood quiet. Jake didn't call out but stood there for a minute as a sinking feeling of dread spread through him like a title wave pulling him into the ocean. His body finally moved him through the house to the kitchen that led to their family room. He stared at the closed kitchen door where he stood listening to muffled crying. The perimeter of his vision was blurry, and his eyes were rough and swollen.

He pushed open the kitchen door which always led to warm apple cinnamon scents mixed with other fruits, and a slight woodsy smoke from the daily winter lit fires, until today. Instead Jake could see his breath that he released not realizing he was holding it. It was colder in the room than what the snow could do to bare feet outside. Jake's eyes followed the whimpering and his heart dropped into his stomach of sorrow as he stared at his strong mother who was slumped over in her chair. Her weeping face was heavy in her hands as if her soul had broken open. Darkness filled the fireplace.

Jake had a strange feeling, but it was the look on his mother's face that told him all he needed to know. He went straight into her arms and balled like a newborn baby. They cried holding each other for a long time, before parting and cleaning up their faces. Alicia sat up and was still unable to talk.