Good Morning Wake Up Call: Grace Part 4

A Story by Gabby

Grace has some alone time, but at the end of the day she finds herself with having some party plans.

           My stay at the beach was longer than usual today, after completing my mandated writing assignment I just sat in the sand watching the ocean come in and out, over and over again. At one point I found myself staring at my bare feat being lightly tickled by the clear, crisp water. Bubbles rising out of the foam and disappearing in the fine sand. These are the moments when I can really just forget about everything. The moments when Grace is just my name, my family are just people, and my mind is absent, blank, content. It is when I’m not thinking of Daniel’s death, or if Dylan will ever be the person he used to be, if my mom will ever stop crying, or if my dad will ever smile again. On the beach it's just me being me, the slight breeze, and the calm ocean.
            The bike ride home was warmer then this morning considering the storm worthy conditions had come and gone. When I reached the house it was nine thirty, and walking through the front door still felt as foreign as the first time I had done it. The thing is that none of my family has comfortably accepted the fact that we abandoned the very house I was raised in with my other three siblings. Things changed very suddenly after Daniel's funeral and the abrupt new life still has yet to prove that it could bring some kind of clarity.
            With it being Saturday I know mom is out at work trying to avoid being in the house, dad's fishing, and Dylan is wasting away at football practice. Sometimes I go and watch him tackle and run alongside the other boys who roam the halls of our high school. He has friends... well more like people who attached themselves to him and he just accepts it, shrugs it off because he knows that they decided he would be that one popular kid they fed off of in order to remain within the social hierarchy of high school. But today I don't feel like watching a validated group of agitators and jocks. Instead I settle on sulking in my room, aging with every troubling or complicated thought that crosses my mind.

             Staring at my ceiling, wishing that some miracle would happen helps pass the time when I’m alone in this huge house. Which is almost everyday, but I do wish to have my life back instead of having to stay in this depressing s**t hole I live in. "DING." The familiar alert tone of my computer snaps me out of my deep thought. I walk over and see there's an email from May. I immediately think she's finished reviewing my essay. Rushing to the illuminated screen I open the email, but it's not about the essay.


               From: May Johnson 10:15 AM
               I thought you should know...

               To: Grace Williams [email protected]

                Here is the abyss. Here is the frustration. Here is the stress and the pain.

                Welcome to your failure.

                Take the blank paper and write, or stare and get angry because I could care less.
                You better wake up and do something, or do nothing and let that s**t pile up.
                Because there is a fun part of reality that’s about to bite you in the a*s.
                WAKE UP.

                            -Sincerely, May

"What the f**k?" I start to respond typing... If it's not to rude May, what the hell is this?? I click send but find myself waiting for twenty minutes before I give up waiting for a response. Before I can open my door to roam the house for something to do I hear the front door slam and a hard thud shakes the walls. I thought Dylan must be back.
     "I would man, but my mom has this mandatory dinner thing tonight." No she doesn't. "Yeah… Oh I get it it's just I can't miss it. Maybe the next party. Okay, see you later." I open the door and rush down the stairs stopping Dylan at the bottom. "What the hell? Mom doesn't need us at a dinner. Why don't you want to go?" All I get is a sympathetic look like I wouldn't… no, can’t understand, and I don't. "First of all, don't eavesdrop. Second Grace, you don't get it. These parties are crazy and I'm already exhausted."
        Dylan pats my shoulder and walks past me to put his shoes away. What he doesn't know is that I'm trying to hint at something else. While watching him I try and think of an easy way to tell him I would like to have a fun night, just one night to finally feel happy. "What if I want to go?" This stops Dylan in his tracks half way up the stairs and he turns, a grin spread across his face. "Why would you want to go to a party at Ethan Frazer's house?" This is turning into a dare, but the best part is I'm getting a glimpse of the old Dylan. The Dylan who wanted me to above all live life and have fun.
         With that I think I if I could get him to a party he would loosen up, maybe he would remove this hard protective shell he’s built. So, why not? "Well... I've never been. To a party I mean, and I honestly need more friends." Dylan looks towards the top of the stairs, then back at me. He decides to come back down. "Why don't you invite that May girl, and then you can get ready." My first thought is how does he know May, but that immediately vacates my thoughts when the reality sets in. "Wait! Really?" He nods his head and I make a mad dash for my room but stop at the top of the stairs and turn towards my brother. "What about mom and dad?" I didn't get an answer, just a shrug. But that was the least of my worries. Tonight I'm going to have fun, and best of all get to be normal.