Breaking The Cycle

I wasn't looking forward to dealing with my mother and the punishment that she probably stayed up all night just thinking of. She never was good at punishing me or Chloe, considering the fact that we never did anything to provoke her to think of punishment. I could tell she was plotting now. She didn't send anyone to wake me up this morning, which obviously meant she wanted me to be fully awake when she ripped me apart this morning.

By the time I actually woke up this morning, I was half an hour late to my first lesson of the day. When I got down the stairs I could see my mother, still in her own pajamas, drinking tea. I was confused, now; she never was in her pajamas. Even when she slept, I was pretty sure she slept in the outfit she was going to wear the next day. I didn't know what this woman was planning, and I didn't want to find out.

"Good morning, Alexandra," she called out from the kitchen as I was preparing to sneak back up the stairs.

"Mother," I greeted her calmly.

She patted on the seat of the barstool next to her and smiled at me. "Come, sit,"

I obliged to her demand and cautiously walked toward her. Her smile didn't look fake, but it didn't suit her. I had never seen her smile, and now I knew why. She looked better with the emotionless face she wore everyday.

"Were my lessons postponed?" I asked her timidly as I sat on the stool next to her.

She shook her head and took another sip of her tea. "You don't attend those lessons anymore,"

"Huh?" The sound of my voice was drowned in the cup of tea she handed me as I gulped it down.

"Alexandra, you don't need attend any of those lessons now," she said as she went to go wash out her cup.

"I don't get it," I began as I placed my cup on the tiled countertop, "What do you mean?"

"Your father and I had a long talk last night, and we decided that now since you're eighteen, you have the choice of attending them. You're an adult; you should be treated like one now. However, just because you no longer attend those lessons, does not mean that you can leave behind your well-behaved manner and pick up a nomadic behavior. Understand?"

I nodded, probably with a dumbstruck look on my face and my mother smiled and pulled me in for a quick, awkward hug. The hug lasted for more than it was necessary, and finally when she pulled away, she quickly strode off and headed up the stairs.

"Your mother thinks I'm a nomad?"

"Shit, Mason!"

I turned around to see Mason sitting on the open windowsill of the bay window placed in the open dining room. He was wearing the same jacket he wore last night, but other than that, he looked completely different. Even his hair looked different.

"Well, does she?" Mason questioned me as he climbed through the window and seated himself on the barstool next to me.

"I wouldn't doubt it," I answered him slyly.

"I thought Victoria always adored me," he said to himself as he grabbed an apple from the bowl of fruit placed on the island table we were sitting at.

"I'm really speechless,"

"Why?" Mason always reminded me of a little kid; he always asked questions, expecting a simple answer.

"My parents are never that lenient. They must be dying," I couldn't explain my mother's random act of normalcy and kindness. It was strange; I didn't like it that much.

"Or they finally realized that you're eighteen and you can make your own decisions," Mason suggested the somewhat reasonable answer as he hoisted himself onto the countertop and ate the apple he was holding.

We both sat in silence and I realized that Mason was right; I was an adult now. I could make my own decisions, but I still couldn't figure out why I felt boring. Maybe it was because I followed a routine every day. Every morning there was a schedule, telling me what to do, and I grew bored of it. As much as I wanted to leave that routine behind, I'd be lost without it, so I stuck with it until Mason rudely came into my life, making me realize I could actually live my own life, by myself.

"Well, what should we do now?"

Mason looked at me and smiled, "Let's go swimming,"

"When you said 'swimming' I thought you meant going to The Y, or something."

I was shivering in my light blue camisole and matching set of boy shorts as we stood on the cliff of the nearby quarry near our development of houses. Tons of kids came here and I still didn't know why. Whoever jumped off this cliff was obviously asking for a death wish. Mason was wearing a simple pair of blue boxers and he had taken off his shoes and placed them on his car.

"It's not a big deal, Al. Just jump and soon enough you'll be in the water."

"I'm going to end up hitting a tree and then breaking every bone in my body and float to the bottom and drown," I wasn't necessarily freaking out, I was more of imagining the way I'd leave this world, all thanks to Mason.

"You need to let loose, have a good time once in a while," He held my shoulders so I wouldn't sway side to side and started to breathe in and out with me.

"If I die, I'll kill you," I glared at him and said this with my teeth clenched. He smiled and quickly kissed my forehead.

"You'll be greatly missed, Alexandra,"

"You're not funny,"

"Jump,"

I took in a deep breath, turned to face my ultimate demise and quickly jumped off the edge, promising myself not to scream. The distance between the cliff and the lake wasn't that far, but if you calculated wrongly how you fell and where, you'd be gone instantly. I didn't think of that though. Before I could even see if I was still alive, my body collided with the water and I was absorbed instantly, enjoying the euphoria the underwater promised for everyone. In the water, you sink, or you could float. To the water, you were weightless, the water was a comfort for everyone seeking it. The water could not judge you or belittle you like people. The glorious form of serenity just moved with you, it didn't get in your way. Your body meshed with the water. This was why people enjoyed it so much.

Soon enough my head reached the surface and I looked up to see Mason next to me, smiling. I had accidentally swallowed some water, and I still had a small amount left in my mouth, so I used it to my advantage and spewed it at Mason, laughing as I did so. I felt alive whenever I was in water. There were several other people around us, but I didn't notice. I only paid attention to Mason, how he had so much life in him, and how he was willing to share it with him. For that, I was grateful.