Believe In Me

The open casket is too much to bear. I turn and start sprinting for the door, my only escape out of this unwanted reality.
I’m almost there before someone grabs my arm. It’s her. “And where do you think you’re going?” She spat, tears pouring from her own eyes as well.
“I can’t stay here any longer mom… please let me go.” I try pleading with her, hoping maybe this time she’ll be more understanding, caring, loving, anything…
“No. If I can’t leave, then neither can you, or Cale for that matter. But who am I kidding, Cale would never leave me in a time like this. You’re just like your father.” She spat.
Of course she wouldn’t let me go. She never did before. Why should I have gotten my hopes up?
“I would rather be just like him then you any day, because he would have understood. He always understood, and even if he didn’t, he tried his best to. And that’s so much more than I can say for you.” I stated bravely, earning myself a smack across my now redden cheek.
“Come here,” she whispered harshly, sharply pulling at my arm in the process.
I tried pulling out of her grasp, but she was too strong, “Cale,” I whispered frantically, trying to find my only family member left to save me.
While pulling me closer to the coffin her grip hardens on my wrist, “You’re going to regret ever killing Dale.”
“No! Cale, Cale help! I didn’t kill him! I would never!” I screamed still struggling in her grasp.
Finally we approached my father, laying peacefully on the white satin. I turned my head away quickly before the images of him laughing, playing football, and barbequing with Cale in the backyard disappeared from my mind. I never wanted to remember him in the way he looked now- no color in his cheeks… a little too dressed up… not smiling. She grabs the back of my neck and makes me face him. My tears darken his pale skin as I sob over his motionless body…
“Dailee,” he whispered, “Dailee, please stop crying…”

“Ca-Cale?” Dailee asks.

Cale sat on the edge of the bed and scooped up her shaking, sweating form in his arms, “Dailee, I’m so sorry. I’m sorry she’s in the one place I can’t tell her to stop. I’m sorry.”

“N-no. Cale stop,” Dailee looked up at him, tears streaming her face, “Stop. It was never your fault that she does this to me. It should never be your job to s-save me every time I scream for help. You can’t do this to yourself.”

She put her head back on his chest, holding him as he sighed, stroked her hair, and started to sing the song her father sang her when she was little.

“Goodnight, my angel
Time to close your eyes
And save these questions for another day
I think I know what you've been asking me
I think you know what I've been trying to say
I promised I would never leave you
And you should always know
Wherever you may go
No matter where you are
I never will be far away

Goodnight, my angel
Now it's time to sleep
And still so many things I want to say
Remember all the songs you sang for me
When we went sailing on an emerald bay
And like a boat out on the ocean
I'm rocking you to sleep
The water's dark
And deep inside this ancient heart
You'll always be a part of me

Goodnight, my angel
Now it's time to dream
And dream how wonderful your life will be
Someday your child may cry
And if you sing this lullabye
Then in your heart
There will always be a part of me

Someday we'll all be gone
But lullabyes go on and on...
They never die
That's how you
And I
Will be”

Cale laid the sleeping Dailee back down on the bed. “I will always be there to save you, Dailee,” he whispered delicately, “Don’t ever forget that.”
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Cale got out of bed and walked across the hall to her room. Pressing his ear up against the wood he could still hear her sobs which hardly stopped since that day. The day her husband died. The day the only person who believed in her slipped between her fingers before she had the chance to say good bye. And after that day, the line was broken and stepped across. The line from which every harsh word that was withheld for her husband’s sake and her own was kept. Because if Dale would have heard a single word from her mouth about how worthless and stupid their daughter was, she wouldn’t hear the end of it. Of course Dailee wasn’t either of those things, but who would tell her otherwise now that her father was gone?

Cale.

And that is why he took the role his father led. It was a hard role to take over, but he could handle it most of the time. Maybe not as well as Dale could, but at least he tried his best.

He stood up straight and headed into Dailee’s room to wake her up.

Knock, knock

“Dailee, you up?”

No response. Opening the door he crossed the room to her bed where she was curled up underneath the covers. He tried to push the covers back, but she pulled them back over her head.

Cale tried reasoning with her, “Dailee, stop being difficult. You need to get up for school. Come on, I won’t walk you to your first class if you get up”.

Dailee grunted in response and rolled away from him.

“Fine, be like that. I’ll be eating breakfast soon and you should too.”

After showering, dressing, and eating, Cale went back upstairs to check on Dailee. Of course she isn’t up. Oh well, let’s just hope mom doesn’t find her…

Cale left Dailee’s room and headed to Nick’s house. He knocked on the door to be greeted by Frankie, Nick’s little brother, “Hi, Cale”.

“Hey Frank, is Nick here?” Cale asked.

“Yeah, hang on,” Frankie ran inside to find Nick.

Cale walked inside knowing his parents wouldn’t mind since they weren’t home this time in the morning. He closed the door and waited for Nick. “Hey, man,” Nick said as he came down the stairs, “You’re thirty minutes early. Where’s Dailee?”

“About that, she wouldn’t get up this morning, actually,” Cale stated, chuckling a bit.

Raising his eyebrows, Nick smiled, “Well, were going to have to change that, now are we?”

Both boys walked across the street and into the house. Cale led Nick to Dailee’s room where she was still currently sound asleep. After shutting the door, Nick motioned for Cale to open her shades as he crept toward Dailee’s bed.

Getting down on his knees so he was eye level with her, he tried shaking her awake. Man, she couldn’t be any more beautiful right now, he thought as she opened her eyes, but closed them right away at the light pouring in from her window. She groans out of exhaustion and says, “Cale, I’m not getting up. Just tell my teachers I have the 24 hour flu or something”.

“But Dailee, everyone would miss you!” Cale said going over and kneeling by Nick.

“Uh-huh, sure they would, just like everybody wouldn’t care if you were gone?” Dailee responded lazily.

“Good morning beautiful how was your night?” Nick sang quietly to Dailee while she rolled over.

“Mine was wonderful with you by my side,” Cale sang looking at Nick questioningly.

“And when I open my eyes and see your sweet face, it’s a good morning beautiful day,” Nick sang a little bit louder, smiling and still looking at Dailee who had finally opened her eyes, surprised.

Nick and Cale looked at each other smiling. Cale held out his hand to Nick and the two started waltzing around the room while singing together, “I didn't see the light. I didn't know day from night. I had no reason to care. But since you came along, I can face the dawn cause I know you'll be there.”

Nick stopped and bowed to Cale, then ran over to Dailee, who was laughing hysterically, and pulled her out of bed, “I'll never worry if it's raining outside, cause in here with you girl the sun always shines”.

While Nick and Dailee were dancing, Cale took Dailee’s camera out of her desk and started taking pictures of the two. Dailee just could not stop smiling.

Cale could not believe how much fun Dailee looked like she was having. She had not smiled like that since… well let’s just say a long time. Cale turned around to go put the camera down when he heard something from across the hall.It almost sounded like footsteps. It was footsteps. He froze. “Dailee, Nick, hide, now!” Cale whispered harshly.

Dailee was now the one frozen. Nick came around first from the look on Dailee’s face and half dragged her into the walk in closet and closed the door just in time to hear her door open. She was clutching his arm the whole time with a look of pure fear painted across her striking features. Nick tried calming her down but it was no use. She just kept staring at the back of the door like it contained some torture chamber where the death of her would be waiting. And from the sounds of the female voice behind it, Nick was almost as scared as Dailee. “Where is it, Cale?”

“Where is what, ma’am?” Cale responded calmly on the outside, but his heart was burning because he knew exactly what she was talking about.

“Tell me where that stupid bitch is, Cale. I’m not going to ask any nicer.” She spat as Dailee sank farther into Nick.

“She went to school early to do a project, Ma’am. I’m sorry.” Cale said quietly, before there was a loud smack heard under the closet door.

“I’ll let it go this time, but I know you’re lying. Don’t you even begin to think you can get away with that kind of shit now with him gone. You hear me, Cale?” She said her tone threateningly even. But when she said “him”, her voice softened just a tad.

“Yes, ma’am, I do.” Cale whispered again, defeated.

Nick couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He looked down at Dailee who had tears gliding down her face. “I love you, sweetie.”

“I-I love you too, m-mom,” Cale mumbled, his voice cracked unwillingly at having to tell such an immense lie.

There was a crash, then the thud of the door. A car could be heard pulling out of the driveway, but nobody moved. Dailee let out a sob and shakily stood up to open the door after letting go of Nick’s arm.

There stood Cale. A stray tear left his eye and ran over a visible red mark on his left cheek. He held Dailee’s broken camera out for her to see. She sobbed again and delicately took the camera from Cale’s grip. “Dailee, I’m sorry. It was my fault, I took the camera out and I shouldn’t have. I didn’t-” Cale broke off mid-sentence and wiped away his tear.

Nick stood there speechless. He never thought that this was the reason for Dailee’s closure from the world. He was appalled that her own mother would say such things about her. He couldn’t even fathom living like that every day of his life. Fearing his own mother was almost impossible, unless she was mad and he did something wrong. And he was pretty sure that this wasn’t the worst Dailee’s mother had said about her.

“Cale, don’t worry about it.” She said, while opening up the part of the camera with the memory card in it, “Look, I still have my pictures. It’s fine.”

“No, Dailee. I’ll buy you a new one. It was my fault.” Dailee smiled sadly while examining the memory card.

“You don’t have to do that.” She whispered.

“Hey, guys. I really hate to break it to you but, school starts in 5,” Nick said quietly after looking at his phone.

Cale and Dailee smiled, embarrassed, and the three silently left the house and started their awkward walk to school.