Basehor, Kansas

2018, AD

6:55 pm

Elly laid under the soft protection of her grey blankets, her hair swirling around her pillows in slovenly ringlets of fire. Her breathing was slow and relaxed like the tranquil music she played in the background. The girls' Mother slept without noise in the next room over and she finally had a moment to think. Her green eyes drooped until her vision went black. Her imagination painted the darkness like a canvas.

Across the darkness, her subconscious painted a picture of something she knew to be impossible. She and Kai were sprawled out on her soft cream couch in each other's arms. As more than friends. A wave of her hair was wrapped around his hand as if it were a curling iron, and his eyes were full of passionate love. Their lips locked together, her hand up his shirt, moving against his skin like one. His breath was heaving but it wasn't the panting breath he was often searched for after running in gym class, it was the out of breath wheeze that sent a spark of adrenaline through the veins intertwined with desire. A buzz sent through her hips. A phone's buzz.

Moving her hands, with her eyes still closed, Elly found her phone in her jean's back pocket. Her eyes squinted open and looked at the bright screen.

Kai🌵
U up

Elly☀️
Yeah, why?

Kai🌵
I'm scared

Elly☀️
About what?

Kai🌵
Mino said I could break bones. What if I hurt someone? You saw Helani. She couldn't control her power

Elly☀️
You won't. I don't know how to explain it but you won't

Kai🌵
You can't know for sure!

Elly☀️
Kai, you need to see the light in the world, otherwise you'll see nothing other than the dark. Stay positive for me, okay?

Kai🌵
I'll try, only for you. Thanks

Elly☀️

You're welcome

Read at 7:02 pm

The redhead sat staring at her illuminated phone waiting for a reply. Should she text again? No, that could make her seem desperate. Maybe he's just trying to sort his thoughts out? Elly decided that is what her answer was. He was sorting his thoughts out and was just taking a long time to reply.

From the room next to hers, the thump of a body against the floor could be heard. Elly bolted up with the worst possible outcome in mind as she entered her Mother's room. On the carpeted floor next to her bed Elly's Mother laid on the floor.

"Mom?" She asked with fearful tears in her earthy eyes. The girl ran to her side and checked her Mother's palse. It was shaky and faint, as usual, but still there. Elly sighed from relief and wiped her tears away with one hand as the other lightly shook her Mother awake.

"Wha...?" Her Mother groaned as she fluttered her eyes.

"It's okay, Mom. I think you just fell off the bed," Elly rubbed the older woman's back. The small comforting pat turned into a hug as Elly realized what she truly almost lost.

"I'm fine, Elly."

"But one of these days you won't be," Elly explained, "and I don't want that day to ever come."

"We can't ignore the inevitable, sweetheart. And when that day does come I want you to remember something. Grief is a difficult thing that you are going to feel many times in you're life. You can close your eyes to things you don't want to see, but you can't close your heart to things you don't want to feel," Emilia's voice quivered, "Promise me that you won't keep secrets from those close to you, alright?"

Elly stumbled over her words and finally mumbled an uncertain promise to her Mother that she couldn't bring herself to have allegiance to. She trudged back to her room with light steps that seemed heavy to her. The legato song she had listened too earlier had reached its end and switched to another. Elly listened to the distant sound of singing and steadied her breath. Her thoughts followed soon after.

She thought of her promise which eventually led to the secrets she already had. If she were to open up too Kai, Nalani, and Lacie about them now it would make Elly look like she didn't trust them. And Elly did trust them. She just knew she could trust herself more.