The Most Wonderful Time of the Year || Closure Para
December 25th, 2013 ā 8:03am
Bacon. Eggs. Waffles. Grits. She could smell it all coming from the kitchen. Aching, Bryce rolled over in her bed. Light was streaming in from the window, leaving a shape on the bed. Bryce could hear the little kids begging Nora to be able to come down the stairs. Someone was singing, and it sounded a lot like Peyton. He was probably sitting right there with all of the little girls, looking over the rail, just begging to be able to down stairs. Just a little longer, Bryce thought, snuggling back down into her bed. It wasnāt time to get up. Not yet at least.
September 13th, 2013 ā 5:04pm
āNoraās house screams Welcome to Hell!ā Bryce said under her breath, tugging her suitcase back inside the large home. Blinking, the girl looked up the stairs. Those stairs had been the dreaded stairs of Bryceās life. The only stairwell that Bryce had to walk up to get to her room, but after a long day of dance, the stairs seemed like she was walking up a mountain. Bryce hated those stairs just as much as she hated the house in general and the people inside of it. Sure there were a few people she liked. Colby was Bryceās best friend. Kylie too. Eli was like her big brother, and then there was Gray. Add Nora into the mix and that was about all. They were the only people Bryce actually cared for in the house. The only people sheād risk her life for. Glancing up those stairs, Bryce saw Gray. He was just looking at her, not saying anything before he walked off. Rolling her eyes, she ran across her best friend, Kylie. She forced a grin onto her face, glancing up the stairs again to see if Gray had returned. He hadnāt. Bryceās fake smile dropped. āYeahā¦ I missed you too, Ky.ā
December 25th, 2013 ā 9:16am
Bryce bit into her piece of bacon, glancing at it. It tasted wonderful, but she just wasnāt hungry. For the first time in a long time. It was strange. The shrieking from the little kids in the next room over made every teenager in the kitchen cringe. Though smiling, the teenagers were all annoyed with the kids. Standing up from her spot at the bar, Bryce walked back around and leaned against the kitchen island. As she waited for Ace to finish what he was doing at the sink, her mind began to wander. What was different about that day? She didnāt feel like herself. She didnāt feel right. The back door opened and a man walked in. Ross, Noraās new boyfriend.Ā Any man to be in relations with a woman who was a foster mother of over fifty kids was crazy. He loved her though, which was weird. āHey Ross,ā Bryce smiled. He grinned back with his charming look. For an old guy, he looked pretty good. A hunky, small-town version of Bradley Cooper, in a sense. āItās nice to see you smiling, Miss Bryce.ā He said. And thatās what it was. She was happy.
October 21st, 2013 ā 9:13pm
Ryder had never been the type of boy to cuddle naked after sex. He hadnāt ever been the boy to talk about a future. He was his own person. The kind of boy who did what he wanted when he wanted. If he wanted to have sex, he was going to. If he wanted to eat dinner, he was going to. If he wanted to have a quick make out session in his car with a girl he found on the street, he was going to. Thatās who Ryder was. Thatās what he was capable of. Though Bryce had figured him out. Or at least she thought so at the time. Bryce traced hearts on his chest with her finger. āLetās not get dressed yet, okay?ā She asked. Though Bryce wasnāt confident in her own skin, she wasnāt afraid for Ryder seeing her naked or touching her bare skin. Ryder was naked too, laying in Bryceās bed. And like that, the two teenagers fell asleep. Cuddling naked after making love. Thatās when Bryce decided she loved him. She decided that she was happy with him.
December 25th, 2013 ā 11:48am
āMerry Christmas.ā She giggled. Her arms were thrown around Eliās neck. He was sitting on the ground and Bryce had came up behind him. She pecked his cheek and rubbed his shoulder before skipping off, going back to the tree and finding the gift that had her name on it. She untied the bow and Ā tore off the wrapping paper. āItās not much,ā Nora said, ābut itās something.ā Bryce smiled, āItās great, Nora. Thank you.ā Bryce wasnāt exactly the girl to play with dolls or collect them or anything, but the porcelain doll that she was given for Christmas was beautiful. The doll was named Loraine, and that was Bryceās middle name. The doll had blue eyes and brown hair, just like Bryce. It was a Bryce doll. A porcelain doll that was all hers.
March 29th, 2013 ā 1:26am
āWhat is it Gray?ā Bryce questioned. It was late. Bryce had been asleep until she heard her name being called from the door way. Everything was peaceful and in itās place. Most everyone was asleep, but she could hear Gianni on the roof. A bed was squeaking, and she could only assume that it was Chandler and her douche bag of a boyfriend that Bryce never really liked in the first place. āDo you need anything?ā She asked again. Gray, again, not saying anything. Bryce scooted over and patted the spot she had just been laying in. āCome onā¦ā Bryce said. He crawled into her bed, and for once, Bryce didnāt feel so lonely. She snuggled into his back and fell back asleep. Ā But by morning, he was gone. She was scared of that. One day Gray being there and the next him being gone.
December 25th, 2013 ā 3:38pm
Bryce sat at her desk in her room, looking out the window. Everything was covered in snow, and there was more pouring down. It looked like theyād be staying in for a while. Bryceās diary sat in front of her. She scribbled some things down as her phone lit up. Another text from Ryder. She wasnāt talking to him. She hadnāt talked to him since he cheated on her. She didnāt want to. She wasnāt looking for him to talk to her. He was the last thing on her mind. She didnāt want to start thinking about him again. She didnāt want to feel the pain of see him with another girl. She didnāt want to think about the way he was looking at her the way he had once looked at Bryce. Sighing, Bryce scribbled some more things before glancing back out at the snow.
September 18th, 2013 ā 6:17pm Ā
āIām dangerous.ā Ryder had said, sitting on the trampoline across from Bryce. Bryce rolled her eyes. He seemed harmless to her. His boyishly good looks and charm didnāt seem scary or threatening in any way. āYeah right,ā Bryce giggled. Ryder didnāt budge. He kept his eye contact and whispered, āJust wait.ā
December 25th, 2013 ā 6:42pm
Bryce shoved her small feet into her boots. Sheād only be outside for a second or two. āHey Ross, a couple weeks ago I left something in your truck.ā Bryce said, calling to him. āIām gonna go get it, okay?ā He nodded and gave her a little wave. Marching through the snow, Bryce tried to hunt down a white truck. There were five of them at the house. The boys in the house all wanted trucks and the white ones were always the cheapest. Rossās truck was largest. The tired were about as tall as Bryce was the doors were super heavy. It took all of Bryceās being to get herself into that car. She opened the door of the passenger side and sat inside carefully.
December 7th, 2013 ā 8:03pm
āClimb on in, girls.ā Ross said. A long day at a dance competition was finally coming to a close. Bryce won the entire competition with her solo and her duet placed high also. She climbed in the front seat while a few of the littles got in the back seat. It was quiet, for the most part. Ross occasionally tried to make small talk. āBryce, will you grab the tissue box out of the glove compartment?ā She nodded and did as she was told. As she reached into the glove box and pulled out the box of tissues, but she saw a gun. She didnāt know what kind or if it was loaded. She wasnāt going to bring anything up. Just in case it scared one of the little girls. āThank you.ā
December 25th, 2013 ā 6:45pm
Bryce opened the glove compartment and pulled the gun out. She was wearing a hoodie and two coats. One of the coats was zipped, and the other one wasnāt. It couldnāt because of all the layers. Bryce put the gun in the pocket of her hoodie, rezipping her coat before climbing back out. Marching back up the driveway, Bryce thought of what she was going to tell Ross when she got back inside. The door was locked, of course. Bryce knocked a few times and Ross came to the door to let her in. Smiling, she thanked him and told him that it wasnāt in there. She probably had whatever this mystery item was in her dance bag. Bryce went back up the dreaded staircase to her bedroom.
July 23rd, 2012 ā 11:03pm
This was the first time. The first time Bryce had tried to kill herself. She had chickened out and decided to sleep in Noraās room instead.
December 25th, 2013 ā 9:15pm
Bryce pulled her diary back out and found the note she wrote in the back. If youāre reading this, youāll know that Iām gone. Iām sorry, but I couldnāt take it anymore. The note was written on July 23rd from the previous year. It killed her to write it, metaphorically, of course. This time, Bryce wasnāt going to chicken out. She had a great day. She got a doll that was just like her. She watched a couple black and white movies with Kylie. She danced to Christmas music with Gray. She got the long, brotherly hug that sheād been wanting out of Eli since she and Ryder broke up. It was a great day. She was happy. The smile hadnāt disappeared from her face until that moment, sitting on her bed.
9:31pm
Bryce looked at a picture of her and her sister, tears streaming down her face. The picture of her father came next. Then a picture of her mother, June. āIām so happy to meet you.ā Bryce whispered to the picture. Another picture popped up onto her phone screen. Kylie. Then one of she and Eli. One of her and Ryder that made her giggle a little bit. The last picture was a picture of she and Gray. Sheād fallen in love with him. The worst thing about loving someone was the fear that they might not love you back. Being friend-zoned was the worst for Bryce. Especially around that time. She just wanted someone to cuddle up to and kiss under the mistletoe, but all Bryce got was a friend to play Guess Who with and someone that sheād cuddle with but wake up on opposite sides of the bed, not even touching. Ā āIāve always loved you.ā She whispered, tears falling onto her jeans. Her heart beat. She could hear it. She could feel it. Bryce wasnāt scared, but she was nervous.
10:03pm
āJust do it, dammit.ā Bryce cursed at herself. Holding the gun to her head. She moved the gun away and cried. Sobbed, even. She heard people walking outside her door. She tried to silence herself but she couldnāt. She cried even louder. Opening her mouth for the gun. 3ā¦ 2ā¦ 1ā¦
