Shadows of the Past: Chapter 8 (PG-13)
Posted: Sat Jan 17, 2009 7:51 pm
Disclaimer: I own no recognizable characters, sets, etc.
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mick, Beth, Josef, Simone OC
Warning: Oh, come on...if you've made it this far, you know it's contrived
Shadows of the Past
The past is our definition. We may strive, with good reason, to escape it, or to escape what is bad in it, but we will escape it only by adding something better to it. ~Wendell Berry
When Mick returned to his apartment, he was completely shaken. How could he have let this happen? How had he not noticed how upset Beth was? Her happiness meant everything to him, and he had unknowingly destroyed it. How could he fix this? All he knew was that, some way, he just had to. Lauren was still waiting for him, but upon seeing the hurt expression on his face, she quietly said, “Hey, Mick. I’ll be leaving as soon as my ride gets here….I’m so sorry.”
“No. None of this was your fault,” he replied.
“Well, whatever just happened, I obviously didn’t help any,” she explained. Mick made no comment.
“Look, as long as you’re here, you might as well tell me what you came here for,” Lauren could see he was avoiding facing the situation.
“No. Another time,” she said, “I’ll call you.”
“It’s fine,” Mick replied, “What was it?”
After a short time, Lauren answered him, “It’s just, I’ve come to a decision. I’m not going to contact my father.”
“But, I don’t understand. I thought you have always wanted to meet him,” Mick was confused by her sudden change of mind.
“I do. Nothing’s changed about that. I just don’t think it’s the right time,” she explained.
“But, your wedding. I thought it was your dream to have him there,” she was making no sense to Mick.
“Look, Mick. There’s not going to be any wedding,” her voice was soft, nervous.
“What?” Mick hadn’t expected this, “Lauren, does this have anything to do with me?”
“Oh, Mick, is that what you think?” her voice was incredulous, “I thought we were just friends.”
“That’s what I thought, too. It’s just that when you said you cancelled your wedding, I thought…” he couldn’t find the words to finish.
“I didn’t cancel my wedding,” she explained, her eyes staring intensely into his.
“I don’t understand,” Mick could see how hard this was for her.
“There never was a wedding, Mick,” Mick could see tears welling in her eyes as she spoke, “I lied to you. I’m not engaged, and I never have been. I just needed your help in finding my father.”
“You didn’t have to lie to get my help,” Mick’s voice wasn’t angry, but comforting. Something was very wrong. “So why don’t you want to find him now.”
“I don’t want to disrupt his life,” she explained tearfully, “I don’t want to hurt him…like I hurt my mother.”
Mick couldn’t shake the sense of dread he was feeling. What was this terrible thing she was hiding from him, “How did you hurt her?”
“It’s all my fault …that she fell back into her old ways. She just couldn’t take it.”
“Take what?” Mick asked, concerned and not sure he wanted to hear her reply.
“I’m dying, Mick.”
He couldn’t believe the words he was hearing. How could this young girl be dying?
“What?...How?” he was at a loss for words and this was all he could manage.
“A little over a year ago, I began having these terrible headaches. They got so bad, I couldn’t attend my classes. I went through a series of tests, and the doctors discovered that I have a brain tumor.”
“Can’t they do anything. Isn’t there some procedure?” he sounded desperate, groping for hope.
“It’s inoperable, Mick,” she explained, “There’s nothing to do but wait. Every day it’s getting worse. My vision is greatly impaired, and the doctors say I may lose it completely. And that day at the park, when I fainted…It had nothing to do with my mother. It happens often. The tumor is putting more and more pressure on my brain as it grows, and causes me to black out.”
All her peculiar ways that had seemed completely unrelated were beginning to make sense. He realized that her appreciation of life, and deep fascination with death had nothing to do with her mother, but were her way of coping with her bleak future. “Is there anything I can do, anything at all?”
“Just stay with me, Mick,” she said quietly, “You’ve become so dear to me. I found something in you… something I never expected to find. You see, I spent my entire life taking care of the people I love..my mother… my little brother. I can’t tell you how good it feels to finally feel that someone is doing the same for me. But you do. I can feel it. You watch out for me, Mick, like no one ever has before, and I am so grateful.” Her tears were flowing freely now, and Mick, sensing how she needed him at that moment, pulled her carefully into his arms and embraced her protectively. He did watch out for her. For some unexplained reason, he had always felt it was his duty, like he was, in some way, connected to this young girl. He held her until her tears subsided, but when he reluctantly let her go he heard something drop to the floor. He knelt to pick up a small, gold locket, connected to a delicate chain. He held it gently in his open hand, examining it closely. It had an intricate and all too familiar design etched into the surface.
“Where did you get this?” he sounded desperate.
Sensing the urgency in her voice, she answered him immediately, “It was my mother’s. She always wore it…for as long as I can remember. I couldn’t part with it, so I kept it. Why? What is it?”
“I just thought I had seen it before. But I guess not,“ Mick lied, and placed the locket into her outstretched hand.
“Well, my ride should be here by now,” she was intrigued by his reaction, but didn’t pry, “I’ll be seeing you, Mick.” She reached up and gave him one more quick hug before she left his apartment, leaving Mick alone. As realization dawned on him, things he had tried to forget all came rushing back. Why? Why was this happening? How could he face this...again?
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Mick, Beth, Josef, Simone OC
Warning: Oh, come on...if you've made it this far, you know it's contrived
Shadows of the Past
The past is our definition. We may strive, with good reason, to escape it, or to escape what is bad in it, but we will escape it only by adding something better to it. ~Wendell Berry
When Mick returned to his apartment, he was completely shaken. How could he have let this happen? How had he not noticed how upset Beth was? Her happiness meant everything to him, and he had unknowingly destroyed it. How could he fix this? All he knew was that, some way, he just had to. Lauren was still waiting for him, but upon seeing the hurt expression on his face, she quietly said, “Hey, Mick. I’ll be leaving as soon as my ride gets here….I’m so sorry.”
“No. None of this was your fault,” he replied.
“Well, whatever just happened, I obviously didn’t help any,” she explained. Mick made no comment.
“Look, as long as you’re here, you might as well tell me what you came here for,” Lauren could see he was avoiding facing the situation.
“No. Another time,” she said, “I’ll call you.”
“It’s fine,” Mick replied, “What was it?”
After a short time, Lauren answered him, “It’s just, I’ve come to a decision. I’m not going to contact my father.”
“But, I don’t understand. I thought you have always wanted to meet him,” Mick was confused by her sudden change of mind.
“I do. Nothing’s changed about that. I just don’t think it’s the right time,” she explained.
“But, your wedding. I thought it was your dream to have him there,” she was making no sense to Mick.
“Look, Mick. There’s not going to be any wedding,” her voice was soft, nervous.
“What?” Mick hadn’t expected this, “Lauren, does this have anything to do with me?”
“Oh, Mick, is that what you think?” her voice was incredulous, “I thought we were just friends.”
“That’s what I thought, too. It’s just that when you said you cancelled your wedding, I thought…” he couldn’t find the words to finish.
“I didn’t cancel my wedding,” she explained, her eyes staring intensely into his.
“I don’t understand,” Mick could see how hard this was for her.
“There never was a wedding, Mick,” Mick could see tears welling in her eyes as she spoke, “I lied to you. I’m not engaged, and I never have been. I just needed your help in finding my father.”
“You didn’t have to lie to get my help,” Mick’s voice wasn’t angry, but comforting. Something was very wrong. “So why don’t you want to find him now.”
“I don’t want to disrupt his life,” she explained tearfully, “I don’t want to hurt him…like I hurt my mother.”
Mick couldn’t shake the sense of dread he was feeling. What was this terrible thing she was hiding from him, “How did you hurt her?”
“It’s all my fault …that she fell back into her old ways. She just couldn’t take it.”
“Take what?” Mick asked, concerned and not sure he wanted to hear her reply.
“I’m dying, Mick.”
He couldn’t believe the words he was hearing. How could this young girl be dying?
“What?...How?” he was at a loss for words and this was all he could manage.
“A little over a year ago, I began having these terrible headaches. They got so bad, I couldn’t attend my classes. I went through a series of tests, and the doctors discovered that I have a brain tumor.”
“Can’t they do anything. Isn’t there some procedure?” he sounded desperate, groping for hope.
“It’s inoperable, Mick,” she explained, “There’s nothing to do but wait. Every day it’s getting worse. My vision is greatly impaired, and the doctors say I may lose it completely. And that day at the park, when I fainted…It had nothing to do with my mother. It happens often. The tumor is putting more and more pressure on my brain as it grows, and causes me to black out.”
All her peculiar ways that had seemed completely unrelated were beginning to make sense. He realized that her appreciation of life, and deep fascination with death had nothing to do with her mother, but were her way of coping with her bleak future. “Is there anything I can do, anything at all?”
“Just stay with me, Mick,” she said quietly, “You’ve become so dear to me. I found something in you… something I never expected to find. You see, I spent my entire life taking care of the people I love..my mother… my little brother. I can’t tell you how good it feels to finally feel that someone is doing the same for me. But you do. I can feel it. You watch out for me, Mick, like no one ever has before, and I am so grateful.” Her tears were flowing freely now, and Mick, sensing how she needed him at that moment, pulled her carefully into his arms and embraced her protectively. He did watch out for her. For some unexplained reason, he had always felt it was his duty, like he was, in some way, connected to this young girl. He held her until her tears subsided, but when he reluctantly let her go he heard something drop to the floor. He knelt to pick up a small, gold locket, connected to a delicate chain. He held it gently in his open hand, examining it closely. It had an intricate and all too familiar design etched into the surface.
“Where did you get this?” he sounded desperate.
Sensing the urgency in her voice, she answered him immediately, “It was my mother’s. She always wore it…for as long as I can remember. I couldn’t part with it, so I kept it. Why? What is it?”
“I just thought I had seen it before. But I guess not,“ Mick lied, and placed the locket into her outstretched hand.
“Well, my ride should be here by now,” she was intrigued by his reaction, but didn’t pry, “I’ll be seeing you, Mick.” She reached up and gave him one more quick hug before she left his apartment, leaving Mick alone. As realization dawned on him, things he had tried to forget all came rushing back. Why? Why was this happening? How could he face this...again?
