Monochrome Stories

The bell of the school rings. It's finally their dismissal time. I've been waiting at this school gate for an hour just to see my sister. I don't even know if she's here today. She might be absent. Oh God. What if she really is absent? It took me 2 hours just to get here. What do I do if she isn't here? 

Crowds of students come out of the school and past the gate. Each one catching a stare at me. They must've noticed that I don't go here. I mean, it's really obvious. I'm not really in their uniform, and I stick out like a sore thumb. 

As I look through the crowd, I spot a familiar hairstyle with the same white streaks as my sister. "Noir!" I exclaim. 

She jumps, and it was her. She looks around and sees me. Her eyes grow wide and she runs towards me to give me a big hug. "White! Oh my God!" She exclaims as she hugs me tighter. "What are you doing here?! It's a 2 hour trip from your house!"

"I know. I kinda regret going here, but it's a weekend tomorrow anyway." I reply. 

"Hey Noir, are you still up to go today?" A voice from behind her asks. I look over and see a small girl with dark purple hair in a long ponytail, wearing their light blue uniform. She has sparkling ocean blue eyes, and a piercing gaze.

"Can we do it another day? I have something to do now." Noir replies. "Oh!" She exclaims as she lets me go. "This is my brother, White." She introduces me. "And White, this is my friend, Orchid."

I put my hand out for a handshake. "Hello Orchid. Nice to meet you. Thank you for taking care of my sister."

She returns the handshake and squeezes my hand tight. REALLY TIGHT. "It's a pŀėȧsurė." She looks at Noir. "Call me later, okay?" She says as she walks away and waves goodbye. 

"About that... I actually wanted to apologize to you. You know, for leaving..."

She takes my hands and holds them tight with hers. "There's no need to say sorry. What's important is that you're here." She lets go and asks. "Are you gonna stay here with us for the weekend? I'll tell mom to cook all your favorites! I'm sure she'll be so glad about you being here! She hasn't been taking care of herself since you left... So I'm really glad you're here too. I hope you can make things normal again..."

"Noir.. I'm-" She interrupts me. 

"I told you! There's no need to apologize. Now come on!" She grabs my hand and starts to walk. "There's no time to waste!"

We start to head towards our house... But I don't if I'm ready to see it yet... That house is where I left my old life and started a new one. A new life where nobody would treat me like I was sick. A new life where I could just be normal... But was that new life worth everyday that I lived in loneliness?

We stop at the house's gate. Noir looks at me. "Do you wanna go in? I know I just pulled you here and this is a dumb time to ask, but do you wanna go in?"

I smile and pat her head. "Yeah. I'll be okay." I reply as I open the gate and head to the door. 

Noir opens it with her key and goes in. I follow right after. "I'm home!" She exclaims.

"Welcome home!" A voice that sound like my mom replies.

I hear footsteps come towards us and I see my mom coming out of the corner. She sees me, and her face fills with tears. "White!!!" She exclaims as she runs to me and gives me a big, tight hug.

"Hi mom." I reply. "I'm home..."

I look at my mom and return the hug. I could hear her sobbing loudly. I look at Noir, and see her crying too. I can't believe I did this to them. I feel absolutely awful. 

She lets go of me and wipes her tears. "This calls for a celebration!" She exclaims. "You can go rest in your for room. I'll prepare all your favorite foods!"

The same old staircase... The same old hallways... The same old smell... The same old rooms... The same old house... Being in here is so bittersweet.

I open the door to my room and turn the lights on. Everything is still the same as before. The stupid posters on my walls. The boring black bed on the left side of the room. The same old wooden desk on the other side, with the same journal opened on the last page that I've written on before I left. Everything's still here. 

"I'm home." I whisper to myself as I I close the door behind me and sit down on my bed.

The sheets smell new. I guess mom still cleaned this place. Weird how she kept everything the same as when I left.

I rummage through the stuff in my room to maybe find something with sentimental value, but nothing. There were just books, toys, and random stuff. On my shelves were more books and some figurines. On the very top is a manga I got from a friend when I was really young. I loved reading it, especially when we hung out. I'd read it to him, and he would always listen no matter how many times I've told it over and over.

It's just a sketch of a rose... Rose, huh? It reminds me so much of my grandma. She had the same name too. Damn, I can't believe I used to draw this badly. How'd I even get into the arts department?

"White?" A voice sounding like Noir's asks as she knocks on my door. "Can I come in?"

"Yeah." I reply. 

She opens the door and heads to my bed to lie down. 

"Is something wrong?" I ask. 

She tilts her head down and grabs a pillow. "When are you gonna go back?"

"Where?"

"To your apartment... It would be nice if you stayed here for a while..."

"Don't worry." I tell her. "I'll be home every weekend."

"Kids!" She exclaims. "Dinner's ready!"

"Come on. Let's go down." I tell Noir and stand up. 

She grabs my hand and won't let me move. "Just so you know, I never got mad at you." She tells me. "I was sad when you left, but I was never mad. I just kept hoping that one day you'd come back to us, and here you are. I'm so happy now...

I pat her on the head. "Come on." I say as I smile. "Mom's waiting for us."

Age stands up and we both head downstairs. While walking down, I could smell the pleasant aroma of beef stew, one of my favorite dishes. Grandma used to cook it for me everytime she could tell I was feeling down. There was also the faint smell of freshly baked bread. My mom loves to bake. She used fo bake treats all the time, but then she just stopped. She said baking used to bring her happinness, seeing all of us smile at the dinner table, enjoying every single moment. Now when she bakes, she just sees it as a waste of time. She keeps saying that she could use all her time from baking into finding more doctors for me... And now she's baking again. The house seems to be filled with the bittersweet feeling of nostalgia.

We get to the dining room entrance, and everything's all set up... But there were only three plates. 

"Where's dad?" Noir asks. 

"He said he won't be coming home tonight." Our mom replies.

I guess I kinda expected it. He hasn't changed at all. Always so focused on his work. I wished we would be able to eat pike a family again, but I guess that's all it'll be. Just a stupid wish. We were never that close anyway. Ever since I was really young, he'd always be the one preventing me from doing stuff. He separated me from my friends. He hated it when I'd paint and draw. He hated it when I tried to kill myself. He called me ungrateful for feeling sad when they gave everything to me. It was like I wasn't allowed to feel any negative emotions when he was around. It was suffocating. I can't say I'm not glad that he isn't here. 

Tears come running down my face as I feel a hand hold mine. I look up and see my mom, crying again. I look at Noir, and see that she's crying too. My mother holds my hand tighter. "Welcome home." She says with a calm voice and a soothing smile.