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Its true what they say . . . A tower built in twenty years of hard work can be toppled by a single storm. Its always easy to imagine that when you truly love someone, anything they do or say is forgivable. Only, its easier said than done. Sometimes the doubts are hard to surpass, allowing fear, doubt and isolation to take complete control. Who is to blame then for the fallout? The protector or the one being protected?
The Simons had always had a flawless relationship and an easy going conversation but its been 48 hours since Nick busted Dana's bubble of a perfect family. Knowing that the parents she thought were hers was nothing but a safe haven just crumpled her world and brought it down to nothing but shambles. The silence and curt conversations were almost physically painful. They all had the unspoken question in their minds which Nick and Sally knew Dana was thinking about, Who are her biological parents? What tainted their souls was the fact that they were not sure of what to tell her. I'm guessing its the part where you conclude that its hard being the adult because you are presumed to have all the answers and that's exactly how Dana is feeling at the Kitchen table waiting for her mom to finish with breakfast so that Nick can finally finish his hour bathe.
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Dana
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I am still torn between a normal behaviour and the tumours I felt growing in my brain. Am I supposed to act normal? Do I want any other parents? Does it mean they never truly loved me? Heck no! They were the best but they still hid the truth from me after our sworn words of transparency but then again, I think its safe to say I have had both mom and dad walking on eggshells around me long enough. See, we are not used to this kind of coldness in our house . . . The kind where mom asks "have u seen my phone Princess" and my reply would be "yeah, ontop of the coffee table in the sitting room" and that's it. Later daddy will be in a rush trashing everything in his way in a manner that even a toddler could tell he is searching for something. Mom stops with whatever she is doing to look at him as if to say " really, Nick Simons . . . your car keys again?" Of course all that is said in silent gestures when I'm around and then she will go and take the car keys from daddy's left pocket in his suite and then they smile at each other. Even the midnight giggles that made me change my room to the last room before the staircase have turned mute. I feel bad really, but I can't seem to know the right thing to say to either of them. I'm waiting for mom to finish making breakfast because honestly, if I tried to help it will be just awkward with even the briefest contact of hands between us a perfect comparison to touching raw electricity so here I am sitting still as a statue. In my train of thoughts I found myself touching her mind again . . . that mysterious mind-reading thing. She is scared of . . . something, its too deep and eating away at her soul. She's scared of losing something precious. She is reaching for the spark at the deepest depths of her skull. Family is all that rushed to my head as I tried to figure out what is bothering her. All of this tension seems to amount to our family falling apart. The phrase as clear as though she is saying it to my ears. My poor mom. I can't help but feel responsible but what can I do . . . that's when it hit me as I revisited a memory from my childhood. I think I was 7 years when we first visited the calm lake in the middle of the woods on the left end of our house. It's preceded by the waterfall. I know for sure that our town was named after it, Mystic Falls. The water is stark white from a distance that almost looks like milk that was spilled from a jar, free-falling in a melancholic sound down to the surface of the lake. I suddenly knew just what to say to mom but well . . . she was already talking to me and that made it a lot more easier!
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Sally
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I am almost done making breakfast and I was ready to shout at Nick for being such a lady in the bathroom. He can get lost in a trance if nobody makes it their mission to drag him out of the bathroom, but today I cant blame him for having a reason to want to disappear into thin air.
*sigh*
Unfortunately for me I have my two babies to feed so no running or hiding for me. I know that his Princess's detachment left him with a bruised heart but he was trying to man up and act like it doesn't hurt that much. He said he is giving Dana the time she needs to digest all that we told her. The past 48 hours were a demonstration of all that I consider a complete, disastrous family breakdown. The two people who make up my universe have grown distant. Distant towards me and each other, like im losing everything I've remodeled all these years in a single blow. The cold replies, the silent treatment, the unspoken humor and the " I'm going about my business" attitude. . . Its killing me and it makes me feel like my family is falling apart and there seems to be no opportunity to make it right or maybe its the right words to say so we can all move on. Makes me wonder if the truth is better left unsaid. I turned around in time to see Nick standing in the steps as if observing his two favourite women for the first time in his life with the difference of a pained, almost hollow expression in his face. I'm not sure why but he just looked at Dana as if to take one more step but he halted and made that crooked smile they normally share when they're either ganging up on me or just happened to get the same idea at the same time so I turned my head to look at Dana who had an almost permanent ingenious smile plastered on her face. The kind of smile she pulls when she has a brilliant idea up her sleeves and I knew . . . I just knew everything was going to fall back to its natural order. My family was not falling apart after all. I untied the apron round my waist and went to talk to Dana
" One of you has to share the joke" I feigned a scowl. I could see she was still lost in a trance - like father like daughter- so I had to drag her back to planet Earth. Nick chuckled and I gave him a death stare. He raised both his hands and blew me a kiss. I smiled and touched Dana's shoulder to try and conceal the bubbly feeling in my stomach.
" Earth to Dana, breakfast is ready" I said to see if she will give me that puckery smile she normally makes in retaliation to a comment she considers "unnecessary" and yes . . . I got it. I have my Princess back and Nick chuckled loudly this time but for some reason unbeknownst to even myself, a single tear escaped my left eye before she wiped it off and blew me a kiss. Some traits are just hard to ignore especially when they are passed down from your very own husband right to your daughter. I felt my mind settle down and I muttered a silent thank you to devine intervention. We all sat down, held hands and said grace before digging into our breakfast. Dana was the one who broke the silence. She took a spoonful of green salad and said "you two better have no plans for today because I do"
"G R O S S!!" Nick and I said in unison. So she laughed and continued chewing on the salad in her mouth. I felt warm at heart. She borrowed Nick's car keys and my Black Card with a promise to be back soon. No details no nothing. She is a very responsible young women so I wasn't hesitant about handing her the Black Card. I was just humored that she evin asked for it, that's just so not her! You can already figure Nick is skeptical about me driving until this day but Dana would have none of the " I'll take you wherever you want to go" from daddy dearest. She preached about women being independent in the 21th century and so she got the green light. Lucky her, LOL. She didn't wait for us to rely our concerns about her being behind the steering wheel after all that she's been through. I even took a few days off from work, leaving my pharmacy in the capable hands of Drè just to be with her. What? Dont lopk at me like that, a girl rather be safe than sorry! So me and Nick decided on seeing how fast we can undo and still tidy up our bed before Dana comes back
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Dana Chanelle Princess Simons had it all figured out by the time she arrived in the Mystic Falls Mall. She had the perfect picnic picture in her head. She went around smiling all the way with her headphones curved behind her neck while Beyoncè's XO blasted her ears in maximum volume. She murmured the lyrics along with the Lady . . .
Your love is bright as ever
Even in the shadows . . .
Nobody sees what we see
They're just hopelessly gazing . . .
Your face is all that I see
I'll give you everything
Baby love me lights out . . .
Our love is like XO
You love me like XO
You kill me boy XO
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In her daze she bumped to someone she didn't recognise and almost tripped as she lost balance. "Shiit" she screamed in pain before the lady catched her in her arms and then her head started spinning . . . the lady in white . . . the women with an enormous voice . . . green pastures . . . giggles- her giggles with the lady in a thin, see-through silky white dress that flows down to her kness. It was made in a sense that it had two open lines just 3 metres away from her waist on both her thighs going down. Giving a spontaneous view of her milky legs that looked like something from outer space. An Angel, she thought! She didnt want to let go of the sight before her but for the life of her, she didn't know why. She is walking barefoot and the lady's eyes beckoning, drawing her in . . . a rough shake . . . a faint feminine voice "are you okay" ?
*fading*
She came back and registered her surroundings. Okay, she is still at the Mystic Falls. She was about to fall and the lady caught her in arms. Only then did she look at the lady's face. No, it can't be . . . the lady with beckoning eyes . . . This must be a trick. Oh please, not one of the old lady's doing. This time its really not funny!
"Are you okay" the lady repeated, her words clear now
Dana : yeah . . . yes uhm, I'm fine.
The lady figured something was up with her
so she waited until she looked less like a patient that escaped from a hospital ward after losing a lot of blood. when she felt that she could walk, she offered to walk her outside
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Dana
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Shit shit shit. Now I get why daddy normally says that, I mean. . . what in God's holy heaven just happened! I have never really seen strangers in my weird visions until this one. And that haunting women again? No I must be dehydrated. What do I tell her if she asks what's with the weird fainting??
"Can I get you anything? Are you alright? Can you see clearly? Can you walk? She asked me again though I could sense the panic subsiding from her voice
" Water" I impulsively said. God what's wrong with me? I don't even feel thirsty but then . . . what could I have said? Home, I needed to head back home and forget this strange occurance. Unfortunately the lady didn't trust me to walk to the car alone especially without drinking the water I said I needed. She gave me a bottle of water from her grocery bag and I drank it all up and tried to stand
"Sasha" she said stretching her beautiful right hand . . . she had a silky tan shade to her complexion
I'm not sure if it was the delay in returning her shake, the tight knitting of my brows or the ghost of a smile in my face that made her say,
"That's my name, Sasha"
I felt stupid to tell the truth, losing it in front of a stranger who presumably thinks I have serious health issues if not mental. I regained my composure and returned her handshake
"Dana . . . my name is Dana. Daddy likes to call me Princess though . . . my second name" oh...Kay I might be uttering gibberish for all I care because right now I feel like my nerves are tearing me in 4 quarters. She smiled.
Sasha : nice name Dana . . . I get why your dad calls you Princess. You're flawless.
I blushed
Me : thank you . . . you also have a uhm cute name
That was all I thought to say
Sasha : should I give you a ride back to your house?
Me : oh . . . no thanks - I showed her the car key- I'm sorted. I'm actually here to buy a few things then head back.
Sasha : maybe I can help you with that . . . if you don't mind that is?
Me : sure.
We made our way to Everything Picnic and she was curious, she asked about my taste in music , fashion and ambitions among other things . . . like me, she was also a fan of Beyoncè and dancing to feminine music. She thought I was going to a date and to avoid explaining myself I just played along. I figured she is from my neighbourhood so she helped me carry my stuff to the car and promised to see me around. I got in the car and she waited until the engine came to life with a purr. I was scared she already thought I am a weirdo so I restrained myself from checking her out until she started walking towards her yellow mustang. She's tall and lean. She walks like a model. I smiled to myself. Mommy always wanted me to make friends more pressingly after Dee died. Maybe this will be my friend after all. I drove home and regretted not knocking. They are half-naked and nipping each other e.v.e.r.y.w.h.e.r.e
"GROSS!!" I said to alert them to my presence and they were in stitches. They ran upstairs holding hands and giggling like teenagers. I offloaded my picnic grocery from the car and waited for them to come down. They emerged after a few minutes, dressed like adults. Mxm these two.
Mom : what took you so long darling?
Me : do you want to complain? I was giving you time to be adults - I winked-
Mom & Dad : Dana Chanelle Princess Simons
*I busted out laughing*
Are you ready to know what I have in store for you?
Dad : let's hit the road girls
Mom : am I also part of the "girls" - she quirked an eyebrow
Dad : but you agreed to being my "girl" just moments before Princess came in - he smiled
Mom : you playing dirty - she blushed and bit her bottom lip
Dad : Now who's playing dirty
Ohk I'm not gonna listen to this
Me : HALO!! PG 25
Mxm they just laughed at me . . . I can't help but join them. That's my fam everyone!
Okay, back to rules. Nick is the head of the house so he is the one leading the way as we go into the woods. The lady of the house set up the picnic and dad rolled out the camera for capturing every singe moment of it. Mom gave me a look and I knew she wanted us to go swim, or her and dad to say precisely but dad caught on to it. We had the time of our lives there with daddy warning me not to think about getting inside the water,every 5 minutes. We reminisced about the old times and well I couldn't stay away from the water and at one point I think I saw Sasha's face smiling in my reflection. Great, plus one to the women haunting my life. We headed back around 6 pm before the darkness engulfed everything. I think I'm speaking for everyone if I say we didn't realise how much we missed the woods and the lake. I was already tired by the time we got to the house so I went to freshen up and called it an early night. I thought about Sasha. Only then did I realise I didn't take her phone numbers. I got a silly idea popping in my head. I closed my eyes and concentrated on her. Her mind. I found it. I found her numbers on her head and wrote them on my screen. When I was about to call her I stopped myself. What will I say if she asks me the million dollar question , where did you get my numbers? Just like that my bubble was busted. I fell asleep and saw her in my dreams. The green pastures...a picnic . . . kisses & giggles, those beckoning eyes again. I touched her face and she closed her eyes as if to savor the sensation. She touched my hair and I closed my eyes . . . she kissed me and smiled .
"YOU ARE HERE, AT LAST"
Sasha was supposedly the one speaking but that voice, there was no more mistaking it. It was the women I have hoped to never see nor hear from. She is back. What I don't understand though is what does she have to do with Sasha . . .
"YOU ARE HOME"
Just when I was about to start my Spanish Inquisition with her, I started shaking? Or shivering?? No, someone is shaking me. Dad.
Dad : wake up sweethrt. You are shivering. Get under the covers.
Crap. I fell asleep on top of the covers. He tucked me in and switched my bedroom light off before heading to their room. What did she mean by " you are home" I'm still in the same home I used to know, my old bedroom and
same surroundings.
That's just a mystery to unravel tomorrow morning. For now, let me close my eyes and hope for the best