Until Tomorrow

Kelly had expected the reaction her overly-emotional mother had the second she stepped into the living room where her parents were waiting for her. Maybe even anticipated it. Her mother immediately crossed the room to wrap her arms around her long-lost daughter in a tight hug. She started to cry and Kelly smiled sadly as she hugged her mother back.

"Thank God you're safe," her mother said.

"I'm sorry, Mum."

"Didn't you see the posters?" her father cut in. "Didn't you know we never stopped looking for you?" Kelly didn't know what to say. What was there to say? How could mere words make up for her one year absence?

They couldn't.

"You know what you did just about killed your sister."

"I don't know what to say," Kelly said, swallowing.

Her father left without a word. Her mother was in the kitchen, frantically throwing pots and pans around. She always started baking when she was upset.

Kelly sank down on the couch and stared out the window at the gray day outside. It reflected her feelings so well, she thought.

Becca was nowhere in sight. She'd already escaped out the back door and taken off on her bike to a place that nobody knew about.

In Kelly's absence, her sister had become a runner, too.