literature

Innocence - Chapter One

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“See ya Mike!” I yelled as I got out of his car before he drove away.

He gave me a little wave and zoomed off. I slowly made my way up the long driveway leading to my house.

Mike has been my best friend since elementary school. He has always been, and always will be, the most uncoordinated person I know. He is almost 7 feet tall and has the longest legs. His hair is shaggy and red, which covers his eyes, it is a shame. His eyes are the most beautiful eyes you will ever see. They are ice blue and very gentle. They look so sweet and innocent. I hope they stay that way forever.

When I got to my house, I was immediately greeted by my mother’s voice from the kitchen, “I packed most of your clothes away. I left a pair of pajamas and a couple outfits in your closet. Everything else is in the hallway.”

“Thanks mom.” I said with a little anger in my voice, closing the door behind me.

“Is everything all right sweetie?” she asked, sounding a little worried.

“Just fine.” I said as I walked up the stairs. We were moving, and I didn’t like it. Why do we have to move? Why can’t we just stay here? We have gotten along just fine without my dad for 2 years. We survived without him, so why go to him now?

I went into my room, planning on e-mailing Mike to get my mind off of moving and onto anything else. I was sadly disappointed. When my mom said everything, she meant everything. My desk was bare; no computer in sight. I looked in my closet, and on a few hangers were exactly what she said; a few outfits and a pair of pajamas.

“Well, don’t I get any underwear?” I asked the room at large. I looked all around and noticed that all of my pictures, my posters, my rugs, and anything else that would make me feel at home were gone.

My mom packed it all away.

“I hate this.” I whispered, sweeping out of the room pulling out my phone and texted Mike:

Meet at park in 30 min.
C

I went down the winding staircase to the front door and slipped on my shoes.

“Candace? Where are you going?” my mom asked, still in the kitchen.
“Park.” I said simply, shutting the door behind me.

I shut the door behind me and started to walk toward the park. It wasn’t that far away, maybe five minutes or so. I just needed some time to think before I met up with Mike. I promised myself I would tell him today; I swore I would.

He had no idea what I was keeping from him these past few weeks, but he knew it was something. He knows me so well. I needed to figure out a way to tell Mike that I was moving, that I wouldn’t be able to come back for awhile. How could I do that? How could I tell him I wouldn’t even be able to see my one and only friend for more than a year?

That is why I kept putting it off.

In no time I was at the small park behind the elementary school. It was covered in little pebbles and woodchips. The whole thing was about the size of a basketball court. Three swings were lining the back with two slides in front of them.

I think that is why Mike and I liked it so much. We go there about four times a week to just hang-out since no one else goes there.

I went to the middle swing and sat down hardly swinging back and forth. I tried to rack my brain for something that I could tell Mike, but my mind was blank. I don’t know how long I was there, but I must have zoned out.

Before I knew it Mike was behind me pushing the swing.

“So why the sudden meeting? You were just in my car you know.” Mike said, grabbing the swing to stop it and poking his head around my back to smile brightly. “No…. I’m just kidding. I had nothing to do any way.”

When I didn’t answer, he walked over to the swing on my right and sat down. I slowly started to rock myself back and forth with my feet on the hard rocks barely moving.

“What is it Candace?” Mike said, now serious.

I could feel his piercing eyes on me. I couldn’t pick up the courage to look at him.

“I have something to tell you.” I said, staring at the ground.

What was I going to say? I didn’t come up with anything in the last half hour. I was going to have to wing it.

“I’m listening.” He said, shuffling slightly at my tone of voice. He put his hand in his pocket clearly holding something.

“I don’t know….how to…” I tried to spit out the words but nothing came. Mike didn’t say anything, waiting for me to go on.

“You know my dad left 2 years ago…” I said, pausing to see if Mike would answer. He didn’t so I continued. “Well, he found a job and is apparently bathing in all this fame and glory. My mom says he has got a pretty large amount of money from being a producer. She wants us to go live with him.”

“That is good isn’t it? You could see your dad again.” He was trying to lighten the moment, but it wasn’t working.

“Yeah, I guess.” I said, still looking at the ground. “I won’t be able to see you though.”

“Of course you will, you can come visit me, or I can come visit you.” His eyes were still piercing me.

“No we can’t Mike.” I said finally looking into his eyes. They weren’t like they usually were. They were cold and harsh. They even looked a little pained.

“What do you mean?” He asked, his voice cracking.

“My dad found a job in Maine.” My voice cracked as well. Tears were welling up in my eyes now, slowly flowing down my cheek.

Mike didn’t answer for a moment and just stared at the ground. Then he said,
”So when are you going?”

I flinched. The question I dreaded had come up at last. “Two days.”

Mike got up and stood in front of me. I looked into his eyes. The innocence was now gone; which was replaced by rage. “How could you not tell me this?” He said angrily, glaring at me.

“I…I…” I stammered, stunned by his glare.

“Do you know what I have been through these past couple of weeks? You, sulking around, avoiding me, not talking to me! I thought I had done something that offended you. I stayed away from you, not wanting to upset you further. I thought you would get over it and tell me on your time what was on your mind! We tell each other everything! How could you!” He finished by kicking the rocks up into the air, and started toward the neighborhood.

He took the thing he was holding in his pocket, and chucked it in the rocks.

“Mike!” I screamed after him, “Mike, please!”

He didn’t turn around to acknowledge that I was yelling after him.

I stood up.

I didn’t know what to do. I had never seen him so mad before. I hadn’t really seen him mad at all. He was the type of person that was always happy.

When he disappeared out of sight, I walked over to the place where the thing he had thrown laid. The tears were like a waterfall now, flowing out of my eyes so fast I could barely see. It was a blue box, about the size of a ring box.

As a matter of fact, it was a ring box. Inside was a small gold band, simple and elegant. I took it out and examined it. There was an inscription on the inside of it. It read:

We will always be together.

I didn’t think it was possible, but the tears came faster and harder than ever. Was this for me? Did Mike really buy this for me? I had no idea what this meant. I put the ring back in the box and put it in my pants pocket.

The tears still streaming down my face, I headed home. The walk was longer than I thought it would be. Mike lives two doors down from me so I was dreading seeing him there.

When I entered the street, there was no sign of him. That was a very good thing and a very bad thing. The good thing about it was that I didn’t have to see Mike. He was so angry and hurt by what I had done to him.

The bad thing about it was I couldn’t see Mike. I needed to talk to him, to explain myself to him. I didn’t want to have him mad at me forever.

I walked to the front door and swung it open, stepping over the threshold.

“Honey?” My mom called, still in the kitchen, “What do want for dinner?”

“Don’t care.” I said trying to hide my anguish. I wiped my tears on my arm and headed for the stairs.

“Where are you going?” she asked, popping her head out of the kitchen.

With my back to her, I said, “Shower.”

“Well hurry up. I need help packing up the dishes.” She said turning around to go back into the kitchen.

I didn’t answer. I just went into the bathroom and turned on the shower. I stayed in there till the hot water was gone. How could this have happened? What does the ring mean? Does he like me, like me, or does he just like me as a friend and meant it as a friendly gesture? I was so confused and I wanted answers.

When I got out of the shower, I got the ring out of my pants pocket and went to my room across the hall. I got into the sweats that were laid out on my bed. I then put the ring on my desk.

I decided I would call Mike so I dialed his number and got his answering machine. I didn’t want to leave a message, so instead, I text him.

I’m so srry I didn’t tell u.
I wish I had. Please talk 2 me.
C

I knew he wouldn’t reply, but I knew he would get it. I looked at my alarm clock sitting on the floor now because my end table was now gone, and it said 8:02. I curled up in a ball under my covers and lay wide awake for a few hours, thinking of Mike. I knew I needed to talk to him at school so he wouldn’t just walk away from me. I hate myself for doing this to him.



I got up earlier than usual the next morning. This was my last day of school, and it might be my last time to talk to Mike. I needed to get there early.

I got dressed, combed my hair, and rushed out the door.

Mike was my usual ride, but I assumed he would even bother picking me up today, so I walked.

When I got to school, I didn’t see Mike’s car in the parking lot. He also wasn’t in any of his classes or at lunch. I was ready to talk to him, but he wasn’t ready to talk to me.

I couldn’t wait much longer because I was leaving tomorrow morning.

I decided I would try one more time to talk to him. At lunch I took out my cell phone and texted Mike:

Where are you? I need to
talk to you. Please.
C

After school was over I drove home and went inside. I threw my shoes off and slumped on the couch. My mother’s voice carried from the top of the stairs saying, “Everything from your room is now in boxes. Could you please take them outside?”

“Sure mom.” I said.

I wanted to be outside anyways. I wanted to watch Mike’s house; I needed to know if he was home. If he was, I was going to go over there and talk to him face to face.

I walked to the big stack of boxes and started to bring them out to the moving van now in our driveway. It arrived this morning before I left for school. Every trip back up to the house, I would look at Mike’s house and see his bedroom curtains closed. On the last trip I looked on my way to the truck and for a second I saw Mike staring at me.

I put the box in the back of the truck and started to walk towards his house. I could no longer see him in his window but I knew he was there.

I walked to their door and knocked. His mother answered. She looked just like Mike. Her hair was red and she was pretty tall, but her eyes were a dull brown.

“Hi Marsha. Can I talk to Mike?” I asked sweetly.

“He isn’t feeling very well.” She said frowning at me.

“Oh. Well, can you tell him I really need to talk to him?” I asked, frowning as well.

“Yes.” She said blankly.

“Thank You.” I said.

On my way to my house I took out my phone and tried Mike’s cell. It rang but he didn’t pick up so I left him a message:

“I am so, so, so sorry Mike. I know you are mad at me, but I really need to talk to you. I need to talk to you about the ring. I am leaving tomorrow at 7:00. I won’t be at school so…” I trailed off and paused for a minute.

The tears were welling up in my eyes as they usually did when I get mad or a little upset. “I’ll miss you.” I said in a whisper and hung up.

I stopped right outside the door to my house so I could try to relax and look casual. I had to make sure I didn’t look like I had been crying.

I went inside and heard the TV going so I went upstairs to take a shower.

I stayed in there until the hot water was gone again, but this time I was crying. I couldn’t stop no matter how hard I tried. When the hot water was gone I got out and wrapped a towel around myself.

I turned to the mirror and gazed at myself. I looked horrible. My hair was in light brown strands and dripping on my shoulders. My eyes were puffy and swollen from crying for so long, and I had goose pimples all over my body.

I got dressed in a big blue T-shirt and wrapped the towel around my head. As I walked down the hall to my room, I could still hear the TV so I went straight to my room.

Instead of thinking of Mike at the moment, I thought of my dad. He left about 2 ½ years ago to Maine to go be a movie producer. He told us he would come back when he got some money; never seen him since.

He abandoned us.

My mom didn’t know, but she wasn’t the only women in his life. Now my mom wants to go live with him. She says he is doing really well and has a great job but I don’t care.

He is dead to me.

I laid on my bed, eyes wide open, not able to sleep. For the second night in a row, I wouldn't be able to sleep. It was all because of Mike. Not that I was blaming him, but it really was because of Mike. He wouldn't talk to me, he wouldn't even see me. I was so stress and worried, I couldn't sleep.

When I woke up at 6:00, I didn’t go back to sleep. I remembered I still hadn’t talked to Mike. I got up to check my phone and still no reply from him.

I started to feel empty inside, like something was missing. I needed to shake this feeling so I went down stairs to get a bowl of cereal and watch cartoons. I stared at the TV, not really watching it, and crunched on my cereal, waiting for the phone to ring.

It didn’t.

I sat there for half an hour before I started to realize that he wasn’t going to reply. Then I went upstairs to get dressed.

When I came back down, my mom was up talking to a guy about new cell phones on the phone. She saw I was holding my phone and said, “That phone won’t work up there you know. We will get you a new one.”

I looked down at my cell phone. I got it freshman year at high school and it still worked like a brand new one. If I got a new phone up there, it wouldn’t work to call all the way down to Georgia. I wouldn’t be able to talk to Mike; not that he would ever talk to me any way.

“Are you ready to go?” My mom asked, hanging up the phone.

“I just have to go grab something, and then we can go.” I said. I ran up the steps to my bedroom. I stopped short in front of my desk and took the ring. I didn’t put it on, but I held the box in my hands and ran back down the stairs, out the door.

I got in the back seat of the van next to a box of my personal things I would want right away when we got to the new house.

We were driving to Tennessee then catching a flight to Maine. My mom just started the engine when I buckled my seatbelt. We were going to pass Mike’s house.

I watched his house as we drove passed. He was in his bedroom window staring down at me. His eyes had the usual innocence of them. I was glad to see it, but I never got to talk to him. He gave a little wave and I saw he was crying.

I waved backed, but a little to late. He didn’t see.

I whipped my phone out and opened it to call him. The screen said NO SERVICE.

“Mom! My phone doesn’t have service!” I yelled looking around the seat to face my mom.

“Well sweetie, I told you, you weren’t going to have service up there, so I shut our phones off this morning. We will get new ones, don’t worry.”

“Mom!” I yelled, furious. The tears were coming again.

“What? You will get a new one tomorrow.” She said plainly, not fazed by my fury.

“I wanted to talk to someone!” I said, still yelling.

She didn’t answer me.

I felt so mad. I thought for sure that Mike would have talked to me; told me to stay…something.

I leaned back in my seat and picked up the ring box off of my lap. I opened it, took out the gold band and slipped it on my finger.

Mike does love me.
This was the first ever story i wrote. I was about thirteen I do believe. I didn't change the mistakes and all that stuff because I like it how it is.

Even if it is crappy writing, it was my first one. I din't wnat to take the 'magic' away from it.
© 2008 - 2024 nighthunter098
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mirrored-disgrace's avatar
This is really, really great.
I'm sure if the rest of them are this good (and at 13 !? WOW), then you'll have gained a serious reader :P

:clap: I'm really impressed that you came up with this at such a young age, though I know what it's like cause I was writing stories at that age too. Mine weren't nearly this good haha.

:+favlove: