Sweet Memories
Chapter Two
I woke to my mom turning my light on and yelling at me to get up. Rolling over, I looked at my clock and it read five twenty-five. It was set five minutes ahead, so it was really five-twenty. That only gave me ten minutes to eat, brush my teeth, and get dressed, which was not enough time.
I jumped out of bed, got dressed, and brushed my teeth. Skipping breakfast probably wasn’t the smartest idea, since it is supposed to be the “most important meal of the day,” but this wasn’t the first time. Fortunately for me, I made it to school in just enough time to grab my equipment and get out on the field.
So far, my day hasn’t turned out too bad, I thought as we started stretching.
The rest of the day seemed to pass by in a blur. It must not have been too bad, or I would have remembered it.
On the bus ride home, I sat in the last seat and kept to myself. I listened to my music and attempted to work on homework. There were too many bumps to write in legible handwriting, which made it difficult to do any homework. The ride usually took about an hour. We had a long route with a full busload of kids.
I got off the bus and slowly walked down the driveway. I noticed all the vehicles were at the house. This was odd because my dad and oldest brother, TJ, should have been at work. Instead, they were home too early.
This could not have been a good sign. As always, though, I was the last person to know anything. Nobody ever told me anything ahead of time; it was always at the last minute.
When I walked inside everyone was standing in the kitchen, waiting for me. This can’t be good, I thought to myself.
“Jess,” my mom said. “Go put your stuff in your room and come back in here. There’s something we need to talk about.”
Before I walked out of the kitchen, I saw TJ sitting o the floor and Shawn, my other older brother, standing in the corner. My parents were standing across the room from each other, and everyone looked as if they had been crying.
I was so afraid when I dropped everything in my room, and before I went back into the kitchen, I took a deep breath. It helped me to stay calm in shooting; I figured it would do the same now. It didn’t help much because I began to shake anyway.
I walked back to the kitchen at a slow, steady pace. Everyone was in the same position I had left them in. They were silent and unmoving.
“Jessica?”
My eyes shot to my mom. I could see the pain in her face. She couldn’t even make eye contact with me.
“Sit down. We need to talk.” She said softly.
“I’m fine. I can stand.”
“Oh. Okay.”
“What’s going on? What do you need to talk to me about?”
She sighed. I waited patiently while she gathered her thoughts.
“Your father- your father has kidney cancer,” she said hesitantly.
I jumped out of bed, got dressed, and brushed my teeth. Skipping breakfast probably wasn’t the smartest idea, since it is supposed to be the “most important meal of the day,” but this wasn’t the first time. Fortunately for me, I made it to school in just enough time to grab my equipment and get out on the field.
So far, my day hasn’t turned out too bad, I thought as we started stretching.
The rest of the day seemed to pass by in a blur. It must not have been too bad, or I would have remembered it.
On the bus ride home, I sat in the last seat and kept to myself. I listened to my music and attempted to work on homework. There were too many bumps to write in legible handwriting, which made it difficult to do any homework. The ride usually took about an hour. We had a long route with a full busload of kids.
I got off the bus and slowly walked down the driveway. I noticed all the vehicles were at the house. This was odd because my dad and oldest brother, TJ, should have been at work. Instead, they were home too early.
This could not have been a good sign. As always, though, I was the last person to know anything. Nobody ever told me anything ahead of time; it was always at the last minute.
When I walked inside everyone was standing in the kitchen, waiting for me. This can’t be good, I thought to myself.
“Jess,” my mom said. “Go put your stuff in your room and come back in here. There’s something we need to talk about.”
Before I walked out of the kitchen, I saw TJ sitting o the floor and Shawn, my other older brother, standing in the corner. My parents were standing across the room from each other, and everyone looked as if they had been crying.
I was so afraid when I dropped everything in my room, and before I went back into the kitchen, I took a deep breath. It helped me to stay calm in shooting; I figured it would do the same now. It didn’t help much because I began to shake anyway.
I walked back to the kitchen at a slow, steady pace. Everyone was in the same position I had left them in. They were silent and unmoving.
“Jessica?”
My eyes shot to my mom. I could see the pain in her face. She couldn’t even make eye contact with me.
“Sit down. We need to talk.” She said softly.
“I’m fine. I can stand.”
“Oh. Okay.”
“What’s going on? What do you need to talk to me about?”
She sighed. I waited patiently while she gathered her thoughts.
“Your father- your father has kidney cancer,” she said hesitantly.