One is the Loneliest Number
Chapter 1
Curled up on the edge of her bed, Lena gazed out the window. There was nothing left for her here, nobody to comfort her. A look of pure anguish played across her face, her emptiness and sorrow neverending.
"When will it end?" She wondered. "I can't take this much longer."
She had to leave... this place held too many memories. Some happy and some sad, but the emptiness of the house was too much for such a young girl to bear. There was a musty smell of cheap colonge in the room, the firmiliar smell of her father. She began to think about him and it only brought tears back to her eyes. She longed for their company and wished nothing more than to have them with her again. But, things would never be the way they used to be.
Lena sat in silence, doing nothing more than remembering. She thought of her old life, her school, her family, and the business and love that once filled her empty house. Her childhood home brought back so many memories of a better time. A time when she was happy.
She found herself in the dark... remembering.
Ah, her father. David Michael Joshua Jameson, that sure was a mouthful, she had always thought so. She held a small picture close to her heart as she remembered whatever she could about him. Just from the picture, the only real memory she had of him, she could tell that he was a cheery, handsome young man, with great ambitions. Her older brother Chuck had always told her what a great guy he was, always looking out for everyone around him. She wanted to see him and to remember. But, she was only a baby when he died.
Then there was her mother. If there was one noticable quality about her, it was her beauty. Her name was Lily, and Lena had heard stories about her mother and father and how much they loved each other. He called her his little tiger Lily. Even though she knew everything there was to know about them, she hadn't remembered it on her own. If there was one thing she could have changed, it would have been that she was older, like Chuck or Josie, and she could remember these things for herself.
Chuck... the one who had raised her since she was a little one. She looked up to him more than anyone else because even though she knew he was crying on the inside, he took the duty of raising his two younger sisters. He sure was a brave kid, and there was no one else she'd like to be like more. But, he had abandoned her. She wanted to ask him for advice and she needed a shoulder to lean on, but he was not there when she needed him most... but she didn't blame him.
Lastly, there was Josie, Josephine Jameson her real name. They called her Josie or J.J. for short. She was always a very moody little girl and after mom and dad were gone, she gave Chuck a hard time. It was hard enough for him already without her adding more work onto his plate. But, she didn't know any better until she was older and she knew what it was like to be responsible for another person's life. But, the pressure had just been too much for her.
One thing she did remember was watching Josie sitting on her bed, just thinking. After their parents were gone, Josie spent alot of her time just thinking.
Lena would watch from her crib and whine and yell out "Osie! Lenny wana get ou!!!" But, Josie would always be in some sort of trance, lost in her memories. There was nothing she could do to get her attention. Now, Lena knew how that felt. There was nowhere she wanted to be more than lost in her memories.
Fourteen years ago were happy times. The Jameson family had just recently moved into their new house in a new place, ready for a new life. They were happy and they loved each other. They didn't need anyone else to make their lives complete.
Everything was happy, until Lily was diagnosed with a rare type of skin cancer. Her beautiful hair slowly fell out more and more each day from all the medicines she was taking. She always sat up in bed looking unusually flushed, unable to sleep yet craving a good nights rest. Days turned into weeks and weeks turned into months before the doctors were sure that there was nothing left they could do for her.
She went peacefully, in her sleep, looking as serene as an angel. Noone dared disturb her until the doctors came in the middle of the night and took her to the hospital for the autopsy. They said they wanted to know how to cure this cancer before anyone else came down with it. So, she was like their ginea pig. They all crowded around the bed and said good bye to their beloved mother for the last time. They all cried together.
As hard as it was, life moved on. The following summer was like any other, David, Chuck, J.J., and Lena playing in the sprinklers outback. The only thing missing was Lily's cheerful giggling as she watched them do tricks and have water fights from her lounge chair. But, as much as they were all thinking about her, they got past their thoughts and tried to have a good time.
Just as their little family was starting to adjust to life without their mother, David got in a terrible car accident on his way home from work. He was just outside the house when a crazy nanny's van hit the back of his car. The crazy woman must have been driving
atleast 50 mph. His head slammed violently into the windshield, shattering his skull as shards of dangerous glass flew everywhere. There was no mistaking his fate.
Chuck, Josie, and Lena mourned over the loss of the two of the people they loved the most in the world. Everything was crashing down around them, the perfect life they had shattering to a million pieces. They were just three kids, left to fend for themselves in this big, cruel world.
How could life possibley go on?!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope everyone liked the first chapter!
