Chapter 34
6 days to go
Memories
Memories of my brother are what keep me alive
They keep me going
I hummed as my hands painted with ease. Once again, I stayed in solitude after everyone had left for school.
“Hey” a voice sounded from the door
I didn’t need to look before I knew who it was
“Hi Jomar”
“Whatcha doing?”
He came closer to take a peek of what I was drawing. Today, I drew a girl holding a fruit basket. Caravagiio’s painting gave me inspiration to create a masterpiece of my own
I engulfed myself in the craft – not missing the tiniest detail. I described everything well, from the girl’s long blonde hair to the light shade pink of her lips to the depth of her deep blue eyes to the complexion of her bronze tanned skin. I didn’t forget the fruit. I made sure to highlight the redness of the apple, the colour in between the green shade of the ripe and unripe grapes, the bright yellow of the bananas and much more.
That was when I realized that the picture was no form of mere fiction of creativity- it was a piece of reality. The girl in the picture is me. The beautiful fruits in the basket describe how pleasant the highlights of my life seemed but society didn’t bother to see what was underneath
Under the bright fruits laid moulds of rotten plums, fungi covered peaches and spoiled kiwis, they don’t know the pain I go through on the inside, and they only seethe beauty that lies on the surface.
“It’s beautiful” Jomar commented
“Thank you”
As I continued painting, I couldn’t help but notice his steady gaze on me. Feeling utter confusion, I decided to ask
“What?”
He shook his head
‘Nothing”
I shrugged and went back to work
“Is this your thing? Or is this something you and your brother used to do?” he questioned
"It's something we love to do together. We love to paint"
"Tell me about him"
Where do I start? How can I talk about someone so special? Where and how can I begin?
"He" I paused for a moment " he was everything" I whispered
He was. No amount of words could do my brother any justice
"Were you two close?"
"Like two peas in a pod"
"I'm sorry"
"No, don't be. They should be sorry. Everyone who did him wrong should be sorry. He was a special boy who was simply misunderstood. He was my best friend"
The paintbrush fell from my hand as I began sobbing
“Sorry" Jomar tried to comfort me " It's okay"
"No, it won’t." I cried. "He's gone. Forever"
He wiped my tears and placed a soft kiss on my forehead
"You'll be fine" he said caressing my cheek with his thumb "You're so strong"
I nodded
"Thanks"
That was when I noticed how close our faces were. He leaned in closer until
"Am I interrupting something?"
Mr. Henderson's voice sounded from the door. Jomar and I quickly detached ourselves from each other. His face was filled with a mixture of pain and disappointment. He was hard to read
"No sir" we replied
"Good"
He turned around and left. I hurriedly got up and followed him all the way outside de the school building
"John wait" I said
He turned around
"It's Mr. Henderson!"
I stood there in shock
"It’s not what it looks like" I explained " He was just comforting me"
"It hurts. It hurts okay. He's free to be with you and I'm not"
"I"
"We are both going to get heartbroken. I'm going to be a priest in 5 days. 5 freaking days"
He kicked the stone on the floor with force. He pulled on his hair
"I'm sorry" I said
Although I wasn't quite sure what I was sorry for. I just said it because it felt like the right thing to say
"I should be sorry" he said " go back inside before someone sees us"
He walked away taking a piece of my heart with him