The Shades in Between [BxB]

Chapter 1

I was woken up by the sun filtering in through my window, the birds singing, children laughing as they played on the streets and the aroma of bacon, pancakes, and eggs wafting through the slightly open door.

Wrong. I was not.

I was woken up by the insistent beeping of the alarm clock, telling me to get my ass out of bed. 5:45 am was written on my clock in bright blinking red. I hate waking up this early, but it's the only way I can make it out of the house without running into my family.

My family. I'd be lying if I said I hated them, but that didn't mean I had to like them either. I had three brothers, which means every single day is absolute madness. Kieran, my younger brother, was the only one that I could actually stand to talk to.

My mother had always wanted a daughter. It was obvious to anyone with eyes. I remember her telling me that I was the closest thing she had to a daughter. I was shocked at first because I thought she had figured out I was gay, but I calmed down once I realized she meant I was the least piggish. My mom and I started getting closer, doing everything together, going everywhere together.

She'd take me with her to her special spot that nobody knew about. Not even dad! Her special spot soon became our special spot. Our spot was a small clearing in the forest behind our house. A small stream ran through the middle, and the clearing was surrounded by tall, leafy, green trees. If I had to describe it in one word: peaceful. It was like the world had stopped turning and time stood still, or as if someone had taken all the sound in the world and trapped it in a jar.

My mom once told me that if you closed your eyes and made a wish here, the trees will take a hold of it and release it into the air, making it come true. I remember making my wish. I wished for it every single time.

I wish my mom and I are together forever. And we were. Until we weren't.

July 2nd. The day she was taken away from me. My mom and dad had the brilliant idea to start a game night every Tuesday. Me, Devon, Lucas, Kieran, dad, and mom were all seated around the small coffee table in the living room. We had just finished the 2nd round of Uno when my moms eyes glazed over, and her hands started to shake. "Mom stop pretending you're dying just because you lost," I remembered Lucas say. We all snickered before we realized that she had stopped breathing.

"Kathrine? Kathrine?!" Dad had said, shaking her arm. Devon quickly took out his phone and called an ambulance. Kieran ran to the kitchen and got a glass of water and was sprinkling some on her face. Lucas tried pressing down on her chest but it was obvious he had no clue what he was doing. I just sat there dumbfounded.

The ambulance came.

I sat there.

They took mom.

I sat there.

My dad left in his car.

I sat there.

My brothers paced around the house.

I sat there.

Then the call came. My dad was calling the house. All my brothers rushed to the phone, wanting to make sure my mom was alright. She wasn't. She had died. That sprung me into action.

Before my brothers could yell in protest, I was already out the door and heading into the forest. I ran and ran and ran, not noticing that I hadn't put shoes on or the fact that I still had my Uno cards crushed in my fist. I just ran.

It was like all the colors were seeping out of the world. I ran until I finally reached our spot. The world was silent, but I was not. Grief filled sobs were tearing out of me. I was waiting for it to rain. For the world to cry with me, but the sun still shone.