CHAPTER 14

AVA CLARKE

"I saw that you were looking at the Clarke family house. My name is Elisabeth.", she says, raising her hand towards me, and I quickly accept the greeting.

"Do you know them?", I ask, pointing to my old house, and Elisabeth nods with a sad expression on her face at that moment.

"Yes, come sit with me. Would you like some tea? I enjoy having tea every morning, but I'm always alone."

I agree, sitting beside her at a table on the porch. Even while sitting, I can still look at my house, which is very old now. She seems to have lived here for a long time, and maybe I can find some answers with her.

"Well, the Clarke family were very good and kind people. I've been living here for 40 years, and I saw the first day they moved into this house. His wife was pregnant, and they wanted a bigger place for the baby.", she says, and I start listening attentively.

"They were very polite, but some people were curious about them because they were a very reserved family and didn't talk about themselves with others. I'm sorry for what happened to them. They were good people and didn't deserve that kind of ending.", she says with a low voice, and I lift my head with my eyes fixed on my house.

"They died in a car accident a long time ago.", I say, and Elisabeth agrees with me, looking at me with curiosity. I smiled sadly before continuing to talk to her.

"I was there when the accident happened. I am their daughter, the sole survivor of the car accident, Elisabeth."

She asks for more details, and while drinking tea together, we continue talking about my family. She says my parents were very happy in that house, and I should go inside to see if I can remember anything.

I enjoyed talking to her, and I feel better when I say goodbye to Elisabeth and walk towards the old house. The gate is open, and I walk in, heading to the front door.

Everything is locked, and Elisabeth was the person my mother trusted the most, so the key to the house stayed with her after they died. My aunt and uncle could have sold this place to someone else many years ago, but they didn't because they knew that someday I would come back to the place where I was born.

I close my eyes, touching the doorknob before inserting the key and opening the door. I enter and close the door behind me, seeing a lot of dust everywhere. Furthermore, I cough a bit before walking through the house. I see that everything is still here, and no one has been able to touch or change anything.

The living room is very large and has many antique pieces of furniture. I approach a window before pulling back the old curtains and letting the daylight illuminate the entire space.

"I'm back home.", I whisper to myself before observing everything around me.

I approach a table, seeing a photo frame, and I smile when I see a picture of my mother with my father. They seem very happy together, and tears come to my eyes when I touch the photo.

I take the photo out of the frame before putting it in my bag. This will make me feel closer to my deceased parents.

I continue walking, seeing a staircase next to the living room, and I start climbing each step, trying to imagine myself growing up in this place. Maybe I would have been running through this whole house when my parents were alive. I'll still be thinking about it when I reach the second floor.

I open the first door, and I blink my eyes, feeling tears wetting my face when I see that I am in my parents' room.

Furthermore, I try to control my emotions, but I can't deal with the pain in my heart. I enter the room, trying to imagine my parents together and happy here. I am back in the place after a long time away from my home.

The bed is dusty, with many cobwebs, but everything seems the same as it was when they were still alive. I approach the bed, seeing many clothes in the closet and my mother's makeup on the dresser, and it makes me smile.

I sit on the bed, looking at everything around me. Likewise, I don't remember anything; I don't remember being here with my family. I feel like all my memories have been erased, and I would really like to remember my life here before.

I close my eyes before sobbing with my hands on my face. Furthermore, I miss my parents because I am sure I was very happy with them.

I don't know how long I stay crying on my parents' bed before I get up and open the other door. The surprise is great when I see a pink children's room.

My eyes fixate on the crib in the corner of the room, and I cry more when I realize that this is my room.

My room, untouched by time, is a sanctuary of memories that takes me back to my childhood. Before the tragedy that changed the course of my life, this was the place where innocent laughter and pure dreams flowed like a gentle breeze. As I step into the room, I am engulfed by a whirlwind of emotions, each object and detail telling its own story.

The soft rug beneath my feet, worn by the constant patter of little footsteps, is a silent witness to countless playtimes. Stuffed animals, lined up on the old crib, seem to eagerly await the return of the child who once hugged them with affection. Teddy bears, bunnies, and other plush companions form a silent guard, preserving the essence of the innocence I lost.

Exploring every corner, I come across a shelf full of stories that transport me back to a time when fairy tale books were my passage to enchanted realms. I touch each worn cover, reliving adventures and misadventures that now seem distant but continue to shape who I am.