Wish You Were Here

Brandon looked once more at the swaying hammock before running towards his house. The cold fresh air pricked his bare skin and chilled his lungs with each breath, as he ran home. He walked in slowly unsure if the rest of his family was awake or asleep.

"Brandon," said the stern voice of his mother, "where have you been?"

"Oh god. Mom you scared me," Brandon gasped holding his chest.

She cocked an eyebrow at him, "Right…so where were you last night?"

"Out."

"Where? With who?"

"Mom."

"Brandon."

" I am 20; I think I am entitled to some sort of privacy."

"I worry Brandon, that’s all. I want to know you're safe."

"I am and I was. And now I have to pack all I need for tour in an hour."

Dolly sighed as Brandon kissed her cheek, "You could've done that yesterday."

"I know, but I had thing to do."

"Like what?"

"Say goodbye," Brandon said walking into his room. The large suitcases laid open and empty around his room. He opened and pulled countless items from each drawer, trying to fill the suitcases quickly and efficiently. He was running out of time, racing against the rising sun. He finished with fifteen minutes to spare and rushed into the shower, rinsing away the remains of last night. He let the water run down his back as he thought back to her sleeping form. As much as he wanted to, he couldn’t say goodbye to her. He couldn't bear to see her face darken and her smile fade, at the news that he was leaving. So he left that out and let last night be his happiest. He dressed in silence and left the sand washing away down the drain. He brought his luggage down and found that Mike and Jose were already waiting for him in the living room.

"Hey," Brandon said smiling.

"Hey!" The both said in unison.

"Is that all your luggage?" Jose asked eyeing the three large suitcases.

"Yeah."

"All of it?"

"Mmhm."

"All right, you sure you got everything?"

"Think so."

"Okay, well we'll be leaving Mama B," Jose said picking up one of the suitcases and giving Dolly a kiss on the cheek.

"You guys be careful now," Dolly said hugging her son, "especially you."

Brandon smiled and gave her a kiss, "See you later mom."

He walked out into the sunlight, he felt his stomach quiver beneath his skin; she could be waking up by now, finding him gone. He hoped she'd understand. Brandon placed the suitcases in the van and sat in the backseats while Mike and Jose took the driver and the passenger seats. Brandon leaned against the window as the van began to move and enjoyed its cooled surface on his face. He looked on sleepily as they passed all his familiar streets and the few pedestrians walking among them. His began to feel heavy when a piece of fabric caught his eye. There, a few feet away from him, with a scorn on her features was Luna, wearing his jacket.

"Luna," he whispered to the glass and a white cloud replaced her image; when the cloud had vanished, she did too. Brandon took a deep breath and sighed.

"You all right man?" Jose asked.

"Yeah…just tired."

"Well you got 4 hours to sleep."

"Great," he mumbled and looked away from the window, he laid across the gray seats and closed his eyes, but instead of the glorious darkness of sleep he desired, Brandon gazed upon Luna's sleeping form. "Please understand."