Into the Light

“It all started during the summer break of 2005, exactly sixty days since the last time I had seen you...”

Chapter 14

Lex

Since the moment I first spoke to Charlotte at the restaurant, I knew there was more to this than what she was letting on. I didn’t think I would be standing in the middle of a cemetery late one night, and I couldn’t help but feel uneasy, but I remained silent, allowing her to do what she needed to do. I followed her lead to a section of tombstones that sat underneath a large willow tree. I watched her kneel down and wipe her hand across the stone, its words now visible as I read it with my own eyes. It was her grandmother.

She showed no sign of being scared; it almost looked like she was at peace sitting on the cold dirty floor, not at all affected by her eerie surroundings. She began to speak so I knelt down beside her and listened to her words, the words I knew that would finally explain the missing piece of the puzzle.

“It all started the summer break of 2005, exactly sixty days since the last time I saw you...”

August 2005

I sat at the dining table, staring at the envelopes in front of me; four to be exact. I always wondered why people said that it was probably their most nerve wracking moment, something I never understood…until now. I looked up at the clock, it was a quarter past three. Gran said she wouldn’t be home till three thirty so I waited, I couldn’t do this alone.

At exactly three thirty she strolled through the kitchen carrying a basket of apples. She was making her famous homemade apple pie, my favorite. She saw me anxiously sitting at the table. Placing her basket down she put on the kettle, apparently tea solved the world’s problems, and placed two cups on the counter. She prepared the tea and placed the cups on the table, one in front of me.

“Sweetie, take a sip please. We knew this day would come. What lies inside those envelopes does not define who you are.”

I took her words in; she was right. No matter what happened I would do what I wanted to do; I wanted to be a lawyer. I took a sip of my tea and opened the first envelope from Stanford University. I read the words...‘Congratulations Miss Mason’. I stood up and kissed the letter thanking my lucky stars that I had at least one option, one path to walk down. I opened the second; it was from Columbia...the same words repeated. I jumped again. The third one I opened had the logo of Berkeley embossed on the envelope, and again the words lit up my face. Gran sat there with a wide smile spread across her face and I knew she was proud of me. The final envelope made me nervous. I carefully opened it...‘Welcome to Harvard University, Miss Mason’. I pushed the chair out of my way and hugged Gran as tight as I could. The tears ran down my face but these were happy tears, not the sad

ones I had grown accustomed to.

“Honey, you did it. What a great achievement!”

“I can’t believe I got into Harvard. This is… just wow...” I took a moment to take it in.

“You always had it in you; sometimes you need to see the dark side in order to appreciate the light.”

She was right, as always, and that night I lay in bed unable to contain the excitement that I felt. It had been such a long time that I had felt this normal. It was 1am and sleep evaded me. I was feeling slightly ill, but I kept palming it off as excitement. It was a new chapter of my life and no matter what, I had to move on. The possibilities were endless, and for a brief moment I wondered what he was doing. Was he with her? What did it matter anymore? I was going to Harvard. Fist pumping the air, I couldn’t believe my lucky stars. I turned over, falling asleep, dreaming of this new life I was about to embark upon.

The next morning I sat there quietly staring at the bowl of cereal that looked a pile of vomit.

“Honey, is everything okay? You look awfully pale today.”

“Yeah, um sure...just didn’t get much sleep… you know, too excited.”

“Well, eat up and then let’s take you to Doctor Flannigan, just to make sure everything’s okay?” Worried, she pushed a strand of hair away from my face.

“Gran, I’m okay... now. Just the cereal looks.. .can you please move it away?”

It was too late, I projectile vomited into the kitchen sink, stupid nerves. Now she would definitely send me to the doctor. What was it with old people and their obsession with visiting the doctor for the tiniest little thing? It was just nerves, that’s all.

“Oh honey, don’t think you’re getting out of it now.”

An hour later we sat in the waiting room. Doctor Flannigan, who turned out to be a she, called my name. Gran offered to wait in the waiting room so I walked in unsure of what exactly I was being tested for.

“Miss Mason.”

“Charlie, please.”

“Charlie. Your grandmother tells me you haven’t been sleeping well and you’ve been vomiting.”

“Well, the sleeping thing was due to other circumstances and the vomiting only happened once.”

“Charlie, have you been having unprotected sex?”

“Um, no, I haven’t even been having sex.”