The Girl In My Head

There was this old beach near my house. Four years ago, my parents would bring me and my sister Sam there every late afternoon. We would sit on the sand, watch the sea as it turns gold, the sun setting on the horizon. We would talk about our plans and dreams. 

Last year my sister graduated high school and rented a house in the city. My parents wanted her to stay and told her she didn't have to leave and that she could ride a bus every early morning to school. But she didn't listen, as most teens that age act. She said she wanted to live alone.

As it turned out, she wanted to live in the city because she had a secret. And that secret came out at the worst time. My mother fainted. And my father who never believed in crying, also cried. It was too much for all of us. 

The news about my sister arrived last Saturday. It was my mother's sobbing that woke me up. I burst out of my room and ran into the kitchen. There, I saw my mother, lying unconsciously on the floor, my father supporting her head with his leg. 

Beside them I saw Ricky, my sister's best friend, trying not to cry but eventually broke down. I saw Ricky holding a little white box. 

It was at that moment where innocence will be taken away from me. And it was from that moment I would discover that it was not only Sam who had a secret - it was everyone.