• “Mom, is that you? Mom.” “Shh my child, I’m here. I’m here.”Slowly she started to fade into the mist that surrounded us. “No! Mom come back! Please! Don’t leave me again!” I shouted, but she still faded away.

    I sat up with a start, sweat covering my body, tears flowing steadily from my eyes. Lying back down, I clutched the only thing that was not burnt in the fire. The last thing of hers. Still crying, I thought of one of my favorite memories of her and me.

    ~~”Could I have more potato salad please?” I said as I took a drink from the lemonade in front of me. Passing the bowl towards me, she looked towards the sky. We sat in the shade of a tall oak, having a picnic in central park. “Look at the clouds Haley, don’t you just wish you could be as carefree as them?” she said, still staring at the sky. Looking too, I thought of what it would be like to float along like they did, never knowing where they were going, just happy to be there.~~

    Sighing, I wiped my face. I had stopped crying and now had red, puffy eyes. As I often did, I put on some clothes and climbed out the window. Walking to central park, I sat under the same oak tree we had sat under the day of the picnic. I sat in silence listening to the sounds of the city until the sun peaked up above the trees.

    Slowly walking back to her house, she climbed back in the window, grabbed her school stuff and walked toward the living room. Her dad lay passed out on the couch, bottles of beer everywhere. Sighing, she walked out the front door, leaving a note where her dad would find it, and toward her bus stop.

    Waiting for her was her best friend Penny, who preferred to be called Hope. “Had a dream about her again didn’t you?” she said as I walked up. “Yea and it was really bad this time we were on the picnic again and all of a sudden a mist came in and I couldn’t see her. Then she appeared and faded into the mist.” I said as tears welled in my eyes again.

    As the bus pulled up, we saw John race up the street. Laughing, we got on the bus and told the bus driver to wait. Panting, he climbed the steps and took his seat beside me. “Thanks, I owe you one.,” he said. “How many is that now?” I asked stealing a kiss. “Plenty.” he said as the bus took off.