“Bye everyone. Thank you Mrs. Hogan.” Monique said getting out of the car. She was the last person to be dropped off. April stared out of the window for the fifteen minute ride back to her house.
“So Dad what have you been doing?” She said trying to make conversation in this awkward silence that was happening between her parents and herself.
“Oh nothing much. I’ve just been working.” Her father said glancing back at her through the mirror. She gave him one of her fake smiles and continued to stare out the window.
The car came to a stop in the family’s parking spot at their condo. She hesitated to get out, but her mother opened her door and handed her a suitcase.
“We aren’t going to carry everything in you know.” Her mother said.
“Way to perky.” April said under her breath. She got out of the car and started to walk to the back door of the complex that she had been living in since the fourth grade. “Geez what takes them so long.” She said tapping her foot waiting for her parents to get inside so they could open their door.
“April take the keys.” Her father said handing her the keys. April took the smallest key and opened the door.
“I’m going downstairs.” April said walking down the spiral staircase. Her house was shapped oddily. It was a townhouse. The bedrooms and the bathroom were downstairs and the kitchen and the living room were upstairs. April stopped in front of a door covered in Hanson posters. How am I going to get through this? She thought to herself as she opened the gold plated handle of her bedroom door. The door opened and she looked straight at her Taylor wall which was the first thing you see as you walk into her small room. Tears filled her eyes. “NO I’m not going to cry.” She wipped her tears away and started to gather the clothes that she needed to wash.
***********
“Mom I’m home.” Monique said walking into her house. It had seemed like an eternity since she had walked through that door. “MOM” she said a little bit louder.
“I’m up here in my room.” Her mother called down the stairs. Monique set her bag on the couch and walked through the kitchen and up the stairs to her mother’s bedroom. She was watching a movie.
“Hi.” Monique peeked her head into her mother’s bedroom. Her mom looked up and smiled.
“How was it?”
“Huh?”
“Don’t play dumb. How was your trip?”
“Mom it was a funeral. What do you expect me to say?” She felt her face grow red with anger. How could her mother ask her a question like that?
“Well excuse me!” Her mom said turning up the television. Monique stormed across the hall to her bedroom. Her room was filled top to bottom with Hanson posters.
“At least she didn’t do anything to my posters.” She said looking at them with tears in her eyes. Monique just stared at the posters that were on her ceiling. She held a teddy bear tightly in her arms.
***********
“Amy its great to have you back.” Her uncle said to her. She gave him a quick hug and ran off to her room. “Wait a minute young lady where do you think you’re going?”
“To my room.” Amy stopped and looked back at her uncle.
“Don’t you want to talk about it?”
“Not really. I’ve got a lot on my mind. I don’t want to talk to anyone. CAN’T EVERYONE JUST STOP ASKING ME THAT STUPID QUESTION!” She ran to her room slamming her bedroom door. Sobbing and clenching her pillow tightly to her chest she thought about the events that happened in the past three days. The agony she was going through.
What am I going to do now?
What am I going to do now?
What am I going to do now? The three girls said in unison. Even though they were apart they still were thinking the same thing. What direction were they headed in? How was this horrible experience going to affect them in their lives? Questions were the only things they had. Nobody wanted to give them an answer.
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