AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I know. It’s a terrible tragedy. But you’re not alone. We’re here to help you through this.”
Now, everything is different. My mom is different. She moves around like a robot, like she isn’t really there.
Days pass, and things don’t get better. Then one morning, I find her in bed, not moving, empty bottles everywhere.
I attempt to wake her up, but she won’t. I’m scared. Why won’t she wake up?
“Mama?” I whisper, shaking her gently. “Mama, wake up, please.”
There’s a note in her hand.
My son,
I’m sorry I couldn’t be stronger for you.
You will always be my guiding light, and one day, we’ll find each other again among the stars.
Until then, always remember that I love you more than all the galaxies in the sky.
Mama
Why did she leave me?
I cry and cry until I fall asleep next to her.
Later, a man gently touches my shoulder.
“Come on, kid. Let’s get out of here.”
I don’t want to go, but I don’t have a choice. I take his hand and, together, we leave the only home I’ve ever known.
“Tell me about the last time you had one of those nightmares, Dion,” my therapist prompts, her voice echoing in the quiet space.
I hesitate for a moment, gathering my thoughts. “It was a few nights ago,” I begin, the memories still fresh in my mind. “It was about my childhood. Again. But this time, it felt different. More vivid, more real.” My heart races as I recall the images.
Her brows furrow slightly as she leans forward. “And do you think there’s a reason for that?”
I pause, searching for the words, feeling uneasy. “This is really fucking uncomfortable for me,” I grit out. “Sorry. Language.”
Dr. Goode nods, a gentle smile on her face.
I don’t even know why I’m here. Fuck. I should just leave. This is stupid.
I had the bright idea to go to therapy. You know, to unravel the tangled mess of memories that keep assaulting me, especially the ones of my parents’ deaths. It seemed like the logical step, the pathway to peace. So, I mustered up the courage, made the appointment, and now I’m here, five sessions later, and I feel like a little bitch.
As if she can read my mind, she interrupts my thoughts. “It’s okay, Dion. Remember, this space is for you to explore and express yourself without judgment. Take your time.”
I exhale slowly. “Since I met…her, things have been...different,” I admit. “It’s like she managed to uncover things within me I’ve been ignoring for so long.”
It’s been a year since I last saw Aria. And as each day crawls by, I’m dragged further into the suffocating grip of my anguish.
Since our last conversation at her engagement party, I’ve been haunted by nightmares of my past, as if the wound of her rejection opened the floodgates. They claw at the edges of my consciousness, threatening to consume me. I believed then that she didn’t mean any of it, that something had made her push me away. I was still going to fight for us. But after months of her ignoring all my messages and calls, I started to think that maybe she really had changed her mind.
My therapist nods thoughtfully. “She opened you up to vulnerability,” Dr. Goode explains. “Now that you’re more in touch with those feelings, that’s why your dreams are becoming more intense. You’re allowing yourself to feel what you hadn’t for years.”
The weight of her words settles over me, a realization dawning in the silence of the room. “It’s overwhelming sometimes,” I confess, my vulnerability laid bare before her.
Her gaze softens. “It’s understandable,” she acknowledges. “But confronting these feelings is the first step toward healing. We’ll navigate through it together.” Her words, somehow, are a guiding light in the darkness of my mind.
