Misfortune by L.Bann (christmas read aloud TXT) 📖

1

There was silence being held between us. No one talked but the old vicar, and he didn’t seem that interested anyway. My aunt was holding my dad’s hand, and my dad, well; his vivid, green eyes pondered the wooden box containing his deceased wife. Silver tear drops fell from his cheek and into the muddy, worn-out grass.
I’d never cried more in my life. I couldn’t talk, think or even hear properly. My mum had just suddenly taken over my life.
My best friend, Jenna, cried as well. She told me that she was like a second mum to her but obviously not like she was to me.
Everyone else looked half asleep, their eyes so tired and worn, and I knew how they felt. I hated being here. I didn’t want to remember my mum this way, and I had a feeling that my dad thought the same thing as well.
I looked at him through my drooping fringe and I swear he looked at me and gave a wince of a smile.
I rested my dreary head on Jenna’s shoulder and she rested her head on my head. I watched my mum sink into the ground.
My dad was the first to stand up, and he dropped a rose onto the coffin.
Then I stood up and dropped a photo in it. It was of my mum and dad and I, my mum was in hospital just after she gave birth to me.
Dad said that I was the perfect baby; I never cried at night, I was the quietest baby he’d ever known. Well, that all changed when I could talk. I used to, and still now, to talk all the time.
Everyone dispersed from the cemetery. Apparently I had to go to an after-funeral party. Why is there a party/get together anyway? So we can mourn even more. I told my dad that I wasn’t going. He understood so I walked to the car park with Jenna.
People on the way were saying to me, ‘I’m sorry for your loss’ and ‘how do you feel?’. Well, how do you think I feel? Happy, I don’t think so.
My dad was probably annoyed with people asking him all sorts of questions. I could tell that he was going to get drunk, again.
I’m so glad that Jenna brought her car because I couldn’t see out of my tear-filled eyes. I put my seat back and I felt the car being pulled out of the parking lot. I shut my eyes, hoping for all this to be a dream, but who was I kidding.
When Jenna parked her car into my drive I couldn’t be bothered to get out. She got out on her side, walked over to mine and opened the door for me. I still didn’t get out.
“Daisy, you’re going to have to move sometime. I don’t think my mum wants you to sleep in my car” she said with a small smile.
I groaned and got out. She shut the door behind me.
“Thank God I brought some ice-cream yesterday” I said with a relived tone.
“Daisy, you know I’m your best friend in the entire world ...” Jenna started.
“Yes, you can have a couple of spoons, but not a lot, I have a lot to mourn about” I finished. I kicked a rock and got a mark on my new $20 pumps.
“I know you do” Jenna said. She put her arm around my shoulder and kissed me on my head. I put my arm around her but then let go since I had to get my key out to get in.
My bungalow didn’t have any life in it any more. My mum used to cook random exotic foods and decorate them with very colourful vegetables. Dad said that it was the only way I would eat vegetable; if they were all fancy-looking. But now I just don’t see what was wrong with eating them looking plain.
Jenna went to go and turn the TV on but I told her that we would go to my bedroom. I got out the ice-cream while she got 2 spoons.
We both sat down on my bed and I turned on my laptop.
“I love Ben & Jerry’s cookie dough” she grinned.
“Yeah, it’s my favourite flavour” I said. I looked at my Facebook page and all that it said was ‘OMG Daisy i’m so sorry = (‘. Why were they sorry anyway? They didn’t do anything. I felt my eyes tearing up again. I’m so glad that Jenna could read my mind.
“Maybe this wasn’t a good idea” she suggested. She turned off my computer and put it on my desk. She picked out a movie and put it on. I didn’t notice that she had eaten most of the ice cream when I went for my second scoop.
“Hungry, are we?” I smiled.
She just laughed back.
“I’ll get some popcorn since I haven’t had any ice cream” I said, walking to my door.
“Yeah, you do that”. Her eyes were fixed to the screen.
I went to my kitchen, got a bag of corn out of the cupboard and put it in the microwave. As soon as I pressed start, the front door opened.
I was wrong. My dad wasn’t drunk. He looked at me.
“Are you OK?” he asked. Just then my aunt walked in.
“Been better” I replied.
“Ok, well, don’t eat all the food” He gave a small smile. He went to the fridge and got out a can of beer and went to living room and turned on the TV. My aunt came into the kitchen and started on my dinner.
“I’m not having dinner” I said.
“You’re not going to eat crap all night are you?” she asked.
“No, but I still don’t want dinner” I replied.
“OK. Jenna has to go by 10. You have school tomorrow” she said to me, then I walked down the hall and I could feel her eyes burn through the back of my head with guilt.
I walked into my bedroom and Jenna grabbed a handful of popcorn.
“If you’re that hungry then you can have my dinner” I said.
“What are you having?” she asked, with a serious tone.
“Greedy. You have to go by 10, OK” I said, sitting down on my bed and spilling some popcorn.
“Oh, I just texted my mum, I have to back by 8” she explained.
“8, really, your bedtime is at 7. Are you allowed to be up that late?” I said with a sarcastic voice.
She just chucked popcorn at me and we carried on watching the movie together.
When the movie had finished, Jenna ate the last bit of popcorn and left.
“If you don’t eat your tea, don’t tell your mum that it was because I gave you food” I chuckled.
Jenna laughed too. “Are you sure you’re going to be ok?” she wondered.
I didn’t say anything while we walked out to her car.
“Yeah, well, if I’m not at school tomorrow I’ll be in my bed, drowning in my tears” I replied.
“OK. Well, we have that school exchange thingy tomorrow” she shouted from her car. I watched her drive off and waved at her when she left my road.
I completely forgot that we had the school exchange. I signed up for the exchange weeks ago and totally regret it now. It’s not a foreign exchange, it’s just another school in the area and they sort of joined to our school in a way but they are on the other side of town. What I have to do is show one of their pupils around school and they do the same when we go to their school.
I walked indoors and heard my dad crack open another beer.
“Are you sure you don’t want anything to eat, love?” my aunt said from the living room.
“No, I’m just going to go to bed now” I replied. My dad took a large swig of his beer, stood up and walked over to me.
“You don’t have to go to school tomorrow, you know” my dad said. He had an apologetic look in his eyes.
“Even though I would never put down an offer like that, I have to do this exchange thing at school so I have to go” I replied.
“What school is doing the exchange with you?” he asked.
“Um, South Fairfield High School” I said.
“Oh, OK” he muffled.
“Why?” I asked.
“Oh, you know David”. I nodded. ”Well, his son, Ben goes there. You haven’t met him yet have you?”
“No, but I met his older brother, Freddie. But that was ages ago and I’m sure he doesn’t look the same” I said.
“OK, good night” he said and went back to his chair and took another swig of his beer.
I started to walk into room and outside of my room there was a family picture of all of us. I took it down quietly and went into my room. I sat down at my desk and took out the photo. I put the empty frame in my wardrobe and folded the photo and put it in one of my drawers. I didn’t want to see it anymore. It held to many memories.
I turned on my laptop. I was thinking about getting rid of all my photos of us together. I went into one of my files:My family, and click slideshow. I don’t know why, but I wanted to see them for the last time. I knew I was going to cry. These were happy times, when I had a proper family, and when I could talk to my mum, something I obviously can’t do now. We used to get our nails and hair done together. We used to go shopping and we used to buy lots of nice clothes with my dad’s money. But just one phone call changed it all.
My dad was home from work, he’s the manager of the food store in the village and he didn’t know what we wanted for dinner. I know, he could have cooked anything but my mum is allergic to random foods, and being a man, he forgot them. He called her, not realising that she was on her way home early. She picked up her phone and didn’t see the red light. Dad thinks it’s his entire fault. I keep telling him it wasn’t, but he blatantly won’t listen. My dad’s sister is going to be a family helper from now on. She’s going to cook all my meals, wash all my clothes and buy stuff for school. She’s going to try and help my dad since he won’t be ok on his own right now.
I could feel myself drifting off to sleep, I saw the time; 8:17. I shouldn’t have been tired, but I just had the longest day in life. My slide show was still going when I closed my eyes.
**
I heard my alarm go off. My dad knocked on my door.
“Daisy, are you awake yet?” came my dad’s muffled voice.
I looked up and saw my laptop screen say; OUT OF BATTERY. Did I just sleep on my desk?
“Daisy, are you OK?” he shouted.
“Uh, yeah. I’m awake” I grumbled.
“OK, well breakfast is almost ready” he said.
I stood up and left my room. I walked down the hall to the kitchen. I could smell pancakes.
“Morning, sweetie” my aunt said with a chirpy voice, trying to raise the atmosphere, but