The Proof || Hardlet
Rich had grabbed the closest pants he could reach. He was in a hurry to get to the park. He should have asked her just to come over, that would have been easier. He shook his head, banging it against the wall and then went inside of his parents room and his parents were busy reading books or whatever it was that Kevin and Anita do when they aren’t pestering and making Rich’s life hell. He knocked on the side of the rim of the door and then asked, “I need one of you to take me to the park.” he said, his arms crossed as he looked at them. “Sorry… what for?” His dad said and Rich rolled his eyes. “To the park Kevin, to the park!” he said nearly going over there and grabbing him by the shirt. He wanted to rip them to pieces sometimes. But instead he just waits until one of them or both gives in. “What for?” they ask and Rich says, “Grace,” he says in a whisper, almost wanting to leave the room and just fucking walk there. But it would take him all night to get there. When his dad finally gets up he heads over to the car and sits in the front seat waiting for his dad to sit next to him.
Rich is impatient. His dad seems to be taking his sweet time to actually get there. Rich should have already gotten his license but he hasn’t. Its been a long few years, he thinks to himself. By the time they do get there Rich already knows he’s late. He has no idea how the fuck he’s going to get back home but he supposes he doesn’t care as he starts to walk by the place where he sees a figure sitting down. He stops there and looks at the figure knowing very well that its…. Grace. But he could be hallucinating. He wishes this was real. But his cynical side is coming out and he knows that it isn’t real. He closes his eyes as he grabs his cigarette tin and takes one out putting it between his lips as he walks over to there, grabbing his lighter and lighting it and then taking a drag as he walks to Grace. As he looks at her, everything floods back to him.
He’s never loved anyone more than he has ever loved Grace. No one has ever touched his heart as Grace had. His cynical heart has never ever been touched or warm, but Grace managed to sneak her way in there. And he loves her more than anything and he just wants her to know that. He looks at her now, he feels like crying, but he knows he can’t do that. But this is his proof and he isn’t sure how he’s supposed to deal with it. He shakes his head as he slowly reaches out for her face and touches it, but more cradling it in his palm. He looks at her and then slides his hands on her shoulder and goes down, knowing that she’s really there. She has a few scars on her head, her forehead and he touches them very lightly, almost where she couldn’t feel it. He doesn’t like to think about the fact that she could have died. He lived so many years thinking that she did die. And he doesn’t know what to do with himself now. He shakes his head as he looks at her again and then finally says, “Grace?”
It was only a few more minutes of waiting until Rich arrived. Every minute that ticked by, Grace grew more anxious, to the point when he actually appeared by her, she jumped. Her eyes flickered from her hands, which were interlocked, tightly, to Rich, attempting her best to stay focused on the boy. Grace studied his face. He hadn’t change much, in fact, he basically looked like she had last remembered him. Short hair, and all. His expression, however, was one Grace had never seen before. She couldn’t even place a name to it, just the look in his eyes set her off. Was he relieved? Maybe. Was he confused? Probably. So was she. But, they’d figure things out, hopefully.
As Rich reached out, Grace winced a little, not quite used to the feeling being touched, but she didn’t pull away. She simply watched as his hand move to the scars, a reminder of a memory she didn’t want to be reminded of. It made her self conscious, and a tad uncomfortable when people pointed them out, but for once, especially for someone who meant so much for her, Grace could get past that. The touch was so gentle, causing a sad feeling of nostalgia to flood over the girl.
“Grace?”
He believed her? The girl opened her mouth to speak, but not a word was uttered, she wasn’t sure how to respond. “Y..Yes,” she sputtered, giving a nod. “That’s me.
The Proof || Hardlet
Betrayed. One word to sum up how Grace felt. Betrayed, and mad, and confused at her current situation. Four years, four fucking years, and just now, she finds out her father faked her death? He tore her away from everybody she loved, from the boy she loved, and never even told her they believed her to be dead. The thought made Grace’s stomach flip flop even more than it was already. It was understandable why no one seemed to have believed it to be her, though, after all those years, she was certain she was just forgotten about. What harm has it caused? Whatever it was made Grace feel terrible. Everything was supposed to be okay. Why wasn’t it okay?
Grace needed to sort things out. Grace needed to sort things out with Rich. Poor Rich, who was probably feeling as scared as she was right now, or at least, she hoped. She was “dead” for the past four years, and then all of the sudden, there she was, back in Bristol. We all need explanations, she thought, her hands shoved into her coat pockets to keep themselves warm in the chill England air. She was already half way to the park when she drifted off into her thoughts, she shouldn’t be far away now. If she remembered correctly. There was a part of her that wanted to run away now, all the way back to her flat, and just avoid this all together, but there was another part who wanted to see her past lover(whom which she still had feelings for).
Maybe she just wanted to run because she wasn’t sure of what he would say. What if he simply just wanted an explanation, and left her alone? No, that would be silly. She was just simply psyching herself out. ”Everything will be okay, Gracey,” she mumbled to herself, as her eyes flickered up to the park which finally laid ahead. Though, she hadn’t spotted Rich yet. Maybe he was just a bit late, or maybe it was she who was a bit early. Either way, the girl had taken a seat at the nearest park bench, hoping, and waiting, everything would be okay.
