Date: Sat, 1 Sep 2007 22:20:44 -0700 (PDT) From: Ben Poosniffin Subject: Blue and Yellow : Chapter 1 - Haunting Memories I awoke in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. I sat up. 'Just a bad dream...' I thought to myself as I fumbled in the dark for my cell phone, which had been next to my pillow just before hitting the sack. I discovered it had fallen off my bed sometime during the night. Finally locating it, I flipped it open. Blinded by the sudden light in my eyes, I waited a moment before looking back at the screen. 3:30 AM. I sighed. Just then, my cell phone started to vibrate. I looked at the screen of my new Motorola KRZR. 1 New Text Message From: Jessica Since I more or less got it less than 12 hours ago, it took me a minute to be able to open the message. From: Jessica @ 3:00:41 AM hey joey... u up sweetie? I smiled. Jessica knew me all too well. How she always knew the right time to say or do anything, I'll never know. Moving the hair from my eyes, which was dark brown and down to the bottom of my nose, i opened up a blank message. To: Jessica @ 3:01:27 AM ya, i am, but more importantly, wat r u doin up? I hit send, closed the phone, and fell back onto my pillow. 'She's never up this late. Is something wrong?' A million questions raced through my mind as I waited for a response. After what seemed like eternity, I felt the phone vibrate once again in my hand. I quickly flinged it open and opened the message. From: Jessica @ 3:04:09 AM worryin bout u.. tht look on ur face when you left my house.. i knew u wernt doing good.. it dsnt matr that ur 10 miles away now, im here 4 u, no matr wat. ur my bst friend. movin's hard, i know, but ull be jst fine. i knw. so, how R u holdin up? Tears started to form in my eyes, and began to run down my cheeks. I fought them back, thinking of much of a baby i was, crying over something so.. dumb. Instead of texting her back, i went to the address book on my phone and called her. She answered on the first ring. I wasn't surprised one bit, and neither was she. "I knew you'd do that," she said in a hushed tone. It was 3 AM, after all. "I don't deserve a friend like you.." I whispered in a raspy voice. "Joesph Michael, don't talk about yourself like that! You're a great person, you just need someone there for you, that's all. So in the mean time, you have me, and right now, I'm here and that's that! ...Now, come on, spill, is it that bad there?" I turned on the lamp lying on the floor next to my bed. Well, it was just a mattress on the floor for now. I looked around my new bedroom. The only things that were in here were my mattress, my lamp, and 3 boxes that had a few items in it. I was supposed to have had them unpacked already, but I was in a sour mood, so I left them there out of spite. "I don't know, it's just strange. I'm just on the other side of town, but I feel like I'm in a whole different world. My room is now twice the size it was, plus a master bath and a walk-in closet. It just doesn't feel like.." "Your room," she finished my sentence for me. "Ugh, why did mom have to get that STUPID promotion?" I fumed into the phone. She had just gotten promoted to manager of a really upscale hotel/restaurant, and had to switch locations. "I still don't understand why we had to move." "Maybe it's to help your mom. She does work awfully hard, you know. Picking up the slack your dad leaves and all.." she got quiet for a minute. "I'm sorry, I have to go, my parents are up. Musta woken them... I'll talk to you tomorrow sweetie. And please, promise me you won't do anything stupid.." I laughed. "Jess, I'm only 14. And it's 3 in the morning. What could I possibly do?" "I think we both know.." she said in a stern, but hushed tone. "Let's not get into that right now, Joey. Just promise me you-" "Alright, I promise! Geez, it was one time, are you ever gonna let it go?" I was getting agitated. "No, i won't. Something had happened, which you still haven't told me what it was, by the way. All i know is you decided to take some of your mom's pills, and ran away. You had her worried sick!" "That was a year ago, ok? My dad did something, and I flipped out, and was gonna go to your house, but whatever it was that I had taken had really messed me up, and next thing I know, I wake up and I'm like 5 miles from home. Trust me, I think I'll stay away from her pills." "Well, please, just don't run away again, ok?" she pleaded. "I promise I won't tonight, ok? But I can't promise for the future," I said, calming back down. "..Ok, I understand. 'Night Joey." "G'Night." And with that, I closed my phone, layed back, and looked up at the ceiling. I was fighting, trying not to think about that night, but I couldn't stop thinking about it now. Well, here's what happened: My dad had come home drunk again that night. He had been layed off, and I guess the drinking was "helping" him cope. But he seemed more out of it that night, stumbling, knocking stuff over, bumping into anything and everything. My mom came in to the living room, where he had finally sat down, and told him that he should maybe get to bed. "Fuck you, bitch!" he growled at her. "Sam, seriously, you need to get to bed. I don't want Joey to see you like this.." "Blah blah blah, Jewel, it's always about little precious Joey! What about me, huh? You're assistant manager of a big fuckin' hotel, and what am I? Ya, that's right, I'm layed off!" I walked in from the hallway as the last sentence was said. My mom looked directed her attention to me, telling me to go back to my room. She then focused on him again, tears forming in her eyes.. "Sam-" she pleaded. "YOU KNOW WHAT?! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! YOU AND YOUR FANCY FUCKIN' JOB! FUCK YOU!" and with that, he stood up, stumbled, and fell back down on the couch. "FUCKIN' BITCH!" By now, he was screaming, and I started to walk over towards my mom, trying to get her to walk away and leave him alone. But as I stepped forward, he started screaming at me. "AND YOU, YOU LITTLE BASTARD! YOU RUINED MY LIFE! I WAS DOING FINE UNTIL YOU CAME ALONG! GREAT JOB, GREAT EVERYTHING! BUT NO! YOU HAD TO BE BORN!" As he said this, he stood up, caught his balance, and started storming toward me. I froze, not knowing what to do. As he got nearer, my mom grabbed a hold of him by the arm, and started pulling with all her strength. "SAM! Sam, no! leave him alone!" she sobbed. "Get the fuck off of me, cunt!" he yelled. He jerked away from her and pushed her, pushed her hard. She stumbled backwards, but kept her balance. "You bastard! Get away from him!" she yelled. He stepped toward her and shoved her. This time though, she went down, and went down screaming, right through the glass coffee table. Her head had hit the frame as she fell. She blacked out after hitting the floor. I knew she wasn't dead because she was still breathing, but I knew she was in bad shape. I began yelling and crying hysterically. "Dad! What the hell is wrong with you? What did you do to mom?" Not hearing me, he turned around, walked though the broken glass, which was everywhere, and made a B-line for the couch. When he got there, he fell into it, passing out. Everything was quiet except for my sobbing and his heavy snoring. I was in complete shock, both from my dad's words and from what had just happened. I needed something to calm me down. I knew my mom had nerve pills in the medicine cabinet in her bathroom. I quickly ran to her room, on through to her bathroom. I opened up the medicine cabinet and immediately identified her nerve pill bottle. I opened it up, grabbed 3, turned on the water, and one by one, swallowed them with a handful of water that followed each pill. I stood there for a moment, looking in the mirror. 'I have to get outta here' was screaming through my head. So what did I do? I made a B-line to my room, unlocked my window, and climbed out, and started running for Jessica's house. Her house was about 10 minutes away on foot. As I got near, I started feeling funny and stopped to take a rest. I was still crying, so i wiped my tears and looked at the digital wrist watch that i had on my left wrist. 11:56 PM it read. I sniffled and sighed. I couldn't believe what had happened. All of a sudden, everything got blurry and whirled around me. I got up to try to walk, but fell back down. A few more minutes of this, and I blacked out. I awoke to bright sunlight and people standing around me. They helped me to my feet, and after a few minutes, I was able to stand on my own. I looked around. This is not where I passed out' I thought to myself, beginning to panic. After taking in my surroundings, I recognized a building across the street, which happened to be the movie theater, and instantly knew where I was. I was about 5 miles from home. How I got there, I'll never know, but immediately, I asked someone if I could borrow their cell phone, and called Jess's house. Her dad answered. I lied and told him that my mom had dropped me off to go see a movie, but I had gotten the time wrong, that it wasn't until that night. I then told him that she couldn't get me cause she was at the store. So he came and got me without question, and dropped me off at my house. I said goodbye and walked up the driveway to my house. When i opened the door and went in, my mom rushed up sobbing, hugging me. She had that white tape rapped around her head, and bandages on various parts of her arms, legs, and hands, where she must have gotten cut by the glass. "Baby, I'm so sorry!" she sobbed. "Please, don't ever run away again! Don't ever make me worry like that again!" I started crying too. "I won't mom, I won't.." After a few minutes of this and calming down, I asked mom where dad was. She said that he had checked himself into a clinic to get help with his drinking, and that he would be gone for at least a month or two. I was some-what relieved to hear that. And now, a year has passed by, and he hasn't drank a single drop of alcohol since. He's been making it up to me and mom for what had happened, though it had not been the first time he had done something like that. But now he is sober, and seems a little happier. I shuttered, still remembering the nightmare. But I was exhausted and needed to get to sleep. I reached down, turned off my lamp, and rolled over, falling asleep almost immediately. (for quicker updates to the story, visit http://blueandyellow.17.forumer.com/. [up to chapter 3 has been posted] emails and tips always welcome!)