Shattered Pieces

Once before they all fit so perfectly together. Jagged little puzzle pieces, nothing special on their own, but together forming something that if not beautiful at least created some sort of sense. Anger took that puzzle off the table and threw it down on the ground. All the pieces flew in different directions so far from where they once were. Some were bent or broken while some were lost. The truth was that they weren't much of anything without the others.


Staring out the bus window on her way back home Calla wondered what would await her when she arrived. A month prior she had been the only one sitting around an otherwise empty Thanksgiving table. Sarah and Grandpa weren't speaking, Layla had made herself scarce, and neither of the boys chose to return for the holiday. When she first left for college she tried reaching out to both Adam and Evan, but after a few weeks of no responses she decided it was best to leave it all alone. Perhaps they all needed some space after what had happened. She missed what they used to have so much sometimes it was hard to breath. Even if they could somehow manage to repair some of the damage that had been done, she wasn't naive enough to think that things would ever be the same.

Everyone around him seemed so simple and he envied that. Evan read the faces of each fellow passenger on the train and none of them showed any signs of carrying the types of burdens that weighed so heavily on his heart. This past semester in college had been so rough and it wasn't because of the academics. The dreams' pull on him had grown so intense he became physically ill. People commented on Evan's lack of color, weight loss, and irritability. He knew he needed help from the very people he had shoved out of his life. It was pride that kept him from reaching out, but he was so close to completely falling apart he was afraid he wouldn't last much longer without them. Once again he found himself at a crossroad with uncertainty looming no matter which direction he chose.

Perhaps it was out of habit that Sarah still found her way to the boy's bedroom every night to check in on them. Everything had remained just as they had left it right before they departed for school. There was an emptiness that loominated far beyond that room right into Sarah's soul. It may have taken her a long time to realize the importance of family through a series of wrong choices, yet now she didn't know how she had ever managed to survive without it as the center of her universe. Sarah had lost faith in Allan when she learned how he had failed to mention all this time just how much him and Calla knew about the prophecy. She was infuriated with Layla for taking advantage of Evan. Lastly her and Adam came to blows over his intimate relationship with Calla. It seemed like it was another lifetime ago when Sarah ran with the elder's to help maintain balance and harmony for all. Now she could hardly manage the small group of people closest to her.

If it hadn't been for school Adam isn't sure he would have survived the last few months. He threw himself completely into his academics day in and day out in an effort to drown out the questions that plagued him. The ones he had grown to put his blind faith in had all betrayed him on some level, the worst of which was Evan. The last words they exchanged with one another happened the night before they both left for school. Adam thought they should reach out to their mom and try to help her. Evan argued that she was a giant monster they should avoid or kill. It was too hard to warp his mind around taking the life of the one who had given them life. And even though Adam had never met her she was still and would always be his mom. He just didn't have it in him to cause harm to anyone, especially her. Adam was coming to the realization that there may be some bridges between him and Evan that neither can cross.

He was sure that nothing could ever hurt nearly as much as losing her the first time. Clearly Allan had been very wrong. Since that night he found himself at her front door a hope had renewed in his heart that he had thought would never be found again. This time around it wasn't just about Sarah, Allan fell in love with her grandsons too. It may have not been the family he had thought they would create together, but it was a family nonetheless. Then there was Layla who Allan had sworn he would look over to the best of his abilities. He had never come across someone so troubled and lost. As much as he wanted to try to put things back together he believed in his heart that things would work them selves out somehow. Life has already proven this to him once before.


When she woke up that morning Layla was both determined and without all hope. There was no turning back to undo all the damage she had done. All the tears had left her until there were no more to give. Deep down she always felt they would be better off without her, but she had never had the balls to do anything about it. Evan was right when he called her a scared insecure little girl. Today was the day she would finally leave them all behind her...