A Poetic Retelling of an Unfortunate Romance

Only a week after Ella returned to Venice with James, she found herself packing her bags to head up north to Berkeley. She had thought that packing was going to be a simple unemotional process, it wasn’t.

There were several moments throughout the ordeal in which she began crying, it was ridiculous, she knew it was ridiculous but she couldn’t help it. She truly was scared to leave everything and everyone behind.

Up north she knew no one except for her father’s sister that lived in San Francisco with her family, but she didn’t really count. Ella had never been particularly fond of Dolores and the thought that they would be the only people she knew, made her a bit depressed.

She was used to knowing everyone, to being able to wander down the block and hang out with her best friends but it was time to embark on a new chapter in her life; a chapter that she hoped would be filled with successes.

The night before they left to Berkeley, she went out on a date with James, which they had planned, into turning into a sex filled evening but her period stopped them from being intimate.

That unwelcome visitor definitely put a damper on their evening, but they still enjoyed one another’s presence and when he dropped her off at home, her brother was waiting for her on the front porch. He wanted to take her out for coffee.

Coffee was not something that Ella could ever refuse, so she agreed to go with him to their favorite café. They sat at their usual table in the far back of the restaurant, ordered their favorite drinks and waited.

Ella was hoping that he wouldn’t get overly emotional on her, she was having a hard enough time dealing with her mother bursting into tears every five minutes, she didn’t know if she could deal with her brother – the strongest person she knew – being emotional on her as well.

Ella had made it halfway through her coffee before Leo started to speak.

“I'm bad at this stuff, you know that right?” his gaze was firmly fixed on his cup.

“Yes,” answered Ella, her fingers tapping against the porcelain cup nervously.

“Alright then . . . well, I just wanted to tell you that I'm always going to be there for you. I know how hard college is. I know that some days you’re going to have four papers to write and not have a fucking clue as to how to write them or that there might be times when all you want to do is drop out but don’t ever quit. Don’t ever stop working because you’re smart, you may do some pretty dumb shit but you have a good head on your shoulders and if you ever need to talk, even if it’s two-three-four in the morning, call me, because I’ll always pick up.” Tears glistened in his eyes. “You’re my little sister and I want you to know that I’ll always be here for you.”

“Thanks Leo,” Ella left her seat so that she could hug him. “You don’t know how much that means to me.”

“Don’t cry, people are going to think something’s wrong,” he patted her back. “And nothing’s wrong here, we’re just getting ready for you to get your life started and don’t worry about making mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes, especially during college, so enjoy your time but remember why you’re there, always remember why you’re there.”

“I will.”

“Good,” he patted her cheek. “Now go finish your coffee, we have to go home since mom’s probably going to want to sob on you for awhile.”

“Can we just stay here until morning?” inquired Ella. “I'm tired of seeing her cry. She didn’t cry that much when you left, she only cried whenever they’d drive back from dropping you off.”

“That’s because I went to Riverside. I was an hour drive away from home, mad close and considering how close I was, mom’s crying was ridiculous and that just goes to show you how emotional she is. I don’t even want to imagine how bad she’s going to be when we get to Berkeley, I might have to sedate her.”

“If only you could,” muttered Ella.

Shortly after they left the café, they returned to their home where they were greeted by their sobbing mother whom engulfed Ella into a tight embrace the moment she saw her.

Ella hated seeing her mother so sad, she whispered comforting words, hoping that they would be enough to calm her down, they weren’t. Margaret kept crying and crying, only stopping when Samuel peeled her off Ella and took her to their bedroom so she could get some rest.

Like every night that week, James snuck into Ella’s bedroom and held her in his arms as they slept. He hated the fact that she had to leave but he understood that she needed to get an education, she was the smart one out of the two, the one that was going to make something with her life and he had to support her or else she would find someone else that did.

When morning came, he wished her a safe trip and snuck out the window. As soon as he was gone she began getting ready to go, she had left a change of clothes on her dresser.

The clothes were quickly slipped on, her large purse was grabbed and as soon as she had her large, pink care bear in her hands she was ready to walk down the stairs and board the red Expedition that would carry her to San Francisco.

The first four hours of the journey were spent sleeping. She only woke up when the family stopped to eat at a Denny’s and as soon as they boarded the Expedition again, she fell asleep. About an hour later she woke up and when she saw the freeway signs saying Oakland, Berkeley, and San Francisco she couldn’t help but start singing.

“If you’re going to San Francisco be sure to wear some flowers in your hair. If you’re going to San Francisco you’re going to meet some gentle people there,” Ella sang the song nonstop for thirty minutes.

Leo glared at her, hoping that she would spontaneously combust and stop butchering one of his favorite songs. “Every time you fucking sing that song a hippie dies.”

“Wouldn’t doubt it, original hippies are pretty old now and all that drug use was bound to catch up with them eventually,” Ella cleared her throat before she began singing Subterranean Homesick Blues.

Ella didn’t even get through the first verse before Leo covered her mouth with his hand. That should’ve been enough for Ella to stop singing, but being the younger sibling, she was an expert in the art of annoyance and took the liberty of licking his hand.

“Gross! Mom, yell at Ella! She just licked me!” shouted Leo in disgust.

“Gabriella, don’t lick your brother!” yelled Margaret from the passenger’s seat.

Ella glared at Leo for a bit before reaching out and grabbing his nipple in her right hand. She squeezed it tightly, making him clench, his teeth in pain and in a hoarse voice, he threatened her. “Just you wait.”

Soon enough The Acosta family entered the city of Berkeley. They made their way down the streets, pulling into the Clark-Kerr dorm complex where Ella would be living during her freshman year. It was the farthest dorm from campus but it also had the largest dorms which made it an ideal place for Ella whom needed space.

Eventually, all the things were unloaded and taken to the dorm which was conveniently located on the first floor. Her roommate had already set up her area and the moment that Ella saw her things, Ella knew that they were going to clash.

Her roommate’s walls were adorned with posters of the periodic table of elements, calculus formulas, and a very large “Yes on Prop 8” poster. Her bed was neatly made, her desk already had everything set up; she was neat, organized, and judging by the lack of color in the room, she was going to be a bit dull.

“Well I'm sure your side of the room is going to make up for her lack blandness,” stated Margaret as she opened the box containing the linens and comforter.

In less than an hour the four of them had managed to transform Ella’s side of the dorm into a vibrant oasis, it wasn’t as spectacular as Ella’s room back home, but her favorite posters had been put up and her multicolored comforter and drapes were up; it was a lovely start.

“We’re done,” whispered Samuel, his voice cracking. “I . . . behave Ella, make sure to behave and remember why you’re here.”

“I will dad,” reassured Ella.

Samuel had never been skilled at showing emotions other than happiness so when he began crying, both his children were stunned. Ella immediately jumped into his arms, burying her face in his chest as he held her tightly. A few minutes later Samuel felt stable enough to part with her, he kissed her forehead tenderly and bid her farewell.

“It’s worse than kindergarten!” sobbed Margaret.

“Shh calm down mom, I'm not going to be gone long,” Ella rubbed her mom’s back.

“Yes, you will! You won’t come home until November. How am I going to live without my little girl?” whispered Margaret.

“I'm going home in late September for Alfredo’s wedding, remember?” Ella hoped that would be enough to make her mom smile.

“But that’s not for a month and it’s only for three days,” Margaret wiped her tears. “No, you know what, you can start school next semester, we’ll transfer you to UCLA and everything will be fine.”

“Mom, calm down,” Leo spoke up. “Ella’s fine here, she’s going to be safe so just calm down.”

“She’s going to be six hours from home living with strangers! How can you expect me to calm down?!” hissed Margaret.

“Maggie,” Samuel placed a comforting hand on his wife’s shoulder. “Just let her be, this is hard enough on her without us adding to it.”

“But she’s my baby,” she whispered, her brilliant green orbs flooding with tears.

“I know, but we have to let our baby go.”

It took a few minutes but Samuel eventually coaxed Margaret into letting go of Ella. The pair walked out of room, Samuel telling Leo that they would wait in the Expedition for him.

“I knew she was going to go crazy,” muttered Leo as he reached into the inside of his jacket and pulled out a rather large bag that was filled with nature’s glory. “Do your, reading, pay attention, have fun, and always, always be safe. Love you, Ella.”

“Love you to, Leo.”

The moment he closed the door behind him, the tears began to fall from her eyes.