Here's a fact: my life is a lie. Only recently did I discover the truth. I thought my life was a fairy tale. Now this is far from the case. My life has become days of eerie quiet and nights of horrible nightmares. I hide under the covers of my bed, a blanket of desperation. Let the darkness suffocate me, consume me, and eat me whole. There is no light, no sound, no touch, no smell. There's nothing now that he's gone. What is a sister without a brother? Has a person and their significant other left? I cover my ears and let out a shrill scream, desperately trying to free myself from the eerie silence. The silence that allows me to hear my heartbreaking thoughts. I scream again. There's no one to hear me. I'm alone at home. Just me and my thoughts. I want the pain and the emptiness that gloats through the rooms to go away. But there is only staying. He didn't stay. Elijah has abandoned me. Now I'm alone. My legs are made of soft rubber as they move me almost robot-like down the driveway of my house. The sky is turning grey. I'm trampling the violets and roses that Elijah and I planted last summer. My mind doesn't even know if I'm doing it on purpose. But I trample on them, I kick them. Throwing all my emotions out. They are withering and dying, screaming in agony. I am not interested. That day, my stepmother came into my room. “Althea, I know this isn't easy,” my stepmother sits on the edge of my bed, her hand on my shoulder. I want to shake it off. and yell at her. No shit, it's not easy. My brother died and left me alone. “But could you do something else, please, besides sit here in your bed all day?” For me silence answers. A conversation followed by no response then continues for another hour. “Mrs O'Brien asked you if you wanted to babysit the twins tonight... middle of paper... Later, when I leave the house, I feel lighter. I know I won't be able to let Elijah go anytime soon, but all journeys have a beginning. I feel like mine has just begun. The star-studded skies open up and tell me all their secrets: of love, of happiness. The warm rain pours down and I tilt my head back, letting the droplets fall into my mouth. It has a sweet taste. I start walking towards my house and think about the time I spent with the twins today. I realize my lips are turned up. I'm smiling. Here's another fact: love has its lifeline, there is no limit. They say everything goes away in the end. It disperses in ash and dust. They are wrong. My love for my brother is immortal, indestructible, eternal. But I don't need to show it to the world in a negative way. No one can take that love away from me except me. I chose to keep it, close to my heart.