Grandad - Chapters 1 and 2
New story about Grandad...
Chapter One
Grandad looked out the window and onto the little dirt path that wound itself all the way from the house to the driveway. I could see the wrinkles in his face, edged along onto his cheeks, onto his forehead, around his eyes. His lips, though full and pink, were cast in a frown that obviously knew more than it let on. His eyes were green, and penetrating, yet they suggested weariness, and his eyebrows, gray, were arched in a way that meant he was surprised.
"Jill." He turned towards me, and though his voice was young and lively, I could immediately tell something was wrong because it had raised another octave.
"Jill," He repeated my name, and let his hands fall to his lap. They lay there, motionless, and I recoiled, for I could see his veins, which frightened me and disgusted me at the same time.
"Yes?" I looked up at him, his face so worried, his voice so high.
"Do you know the secret?" I suspected him to go on, but he didn't. I wondered what he meant. The Secret? Was it a big deal? I didn't know any secrets except the little, inconsequential ones, my friends whispered to me at school.
"No." I wanted to say I knew, but I couldn't lie to my grandfather.
"You have to know," Grandad shook his head, a little bit of motion, but then stopped. "You got to know. It's the most important thing in the world that you know."
I could tell he was panicked, and above all, he wanted me to know The Secret. What The Secret was I didn't know, but I had to. It was important to Grandad.
"I - I don't know." My voice faltered for the first time in our conversation, and I immediately cleared my throat. I had to be strong about this, take it on head-first.
"Here," Grandad was breathing hard know, his chest rising and falling. He reached under his red knitted sweatshirt and pulled a box, which was crystal-clear, and had what looked like a slip of paper in it, rolled up and tied with a piece of loose-fitting string.
"Grandad - what is this?" I ask him. It doesn't look like anything I've ever seen in this lifetime. I would remember this if my mother or father showed it to me - I have an excellent memory.
"You'll know soon enough," He breathes out the word, his chest still rising and falling in a way that makes me worried. His eyelids are fluttering now, and though I silently beg him not to close his eyes, my thoughts are no use in the silent, but tensed, air.
"Grandad!" I say, just realizing that it has a lock on it. "Where's the key to this? Where is it?" I look down again at the cast, locked with no way to open. Then I look up at Grandad, who's breathing is becoming raspy, and who's face is losing its color.
"No - Grandad!" I desperately beg him, and my knees collapse under me, and they fall to the floor, and now I drop the box, and I beg him not to close those eyes, because if he does, all is lost, and now he is, and now my world is spinning, and I can't think, and I can't breathe, and I think I'm going to go the same way as him, and the world turns upside-down and everything is dark and I don't know anything.
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Chapter Two
I don't know. Do you guys like it? Comment!
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The house is dark when my eyes finally open. And it's quiet. I can see the outline of a body, slumped, in an armchair, and I can see the flickering candle on the wall. It's light cast over the room, and my heart jumped into my throat, when I saw Grandad on the armchair my heart stops beating and my mind jumps into action. He's not moving. Something must be terribly, horribly wrong. I don't want to know.
I don't want to hear that he'll never open his eyes, that he'll never see me again. But I know it's true. The incident he had just before I passed out was as clear as the beautiful sky he used to watch, so intent on finding a species of bird that he hasn't discovered before.
"Grandad." I whisper, my voice still, alone in the darkness. I sigh and shake my head. I can't believe this is happening! Who knew a simple visit with your grandfather who lives alone in the middle of the woods would end up in pandemonium? Grandad had always been a healthy man who used to play golf with me.
I never, ever imagined in my life that this would happen. He didn't have any phones; he didn't believe in modern technology. He didn't have a car, for he mostly stayed in the house nowadays, locked up in his office doing - something.
Then it hit me. It hit me with as much force as a rock would hit the ground when dropped from a high height. What Grandad was doing, locked up in his office, may have had something to do with The Secret! Possibly. That was my only hope to find out what The Secret was. To go into his office.
I shuddered. But I didn't want to go into a dead man's office. I wanted to get out of here, to go back to Mom, Dad, and Dee, my little newborn sister. Mom and Dad would be mad when they figured out I was back early, but what else could I do?
I slowly got up, my body shaking, and went to the windows. I felt nervous butterflies flying in my stomach, and my head hurt so much I felt sick to my stomach. I closed my eyes and the pain in my head reduced. I breathed in deeply and then let it out. I opened my eyes again and immediate pain rushed to my head.
I left them closed for one more minute, then opened them. The pain was subsided now, and I and tiptoed over to the window to look out. The sight that met my eyes I couldn't possibly prepare for.
Grandad looked out the window and onto the little dirt path that wound itself all the way from the house to the driveway. I could see the wrinkles in his face, edged along onto his cheeks, onto his forehead, around his eyes. His lips, though full and pink, were cast in a frown that obviously knew more than it let on. His eyes were green, and penetrating, yet they suggested weariness, and his eyebrows, gray, were arched in a way that meant he was surprised.
"Jill." He turned towards me, and though his voice was young and lively, I could immediately tell something was wrong because it had raised another octave.
"Jill," He repeated my name, and let his hands fall to his lap. They lay there, motionless, and I recoiled, for I could see his veins, which frightened me and disgusted me at the same time.
"Yes?" I looked up at him, his face so worried, his voice so high.
"Do you know the secret?" I suspected him to go on, but he didn't. I wondered what he meant. The Secret? Was it a big deal? I didn't know any secrets except the little, inconsequential ones, my friends whispered to me at school.
"No." I wanted to say I knew, but I couldn't lie to my grandfather.
"You have to know," Grandad shook his head, a little bit of motion, but then stopped. "You got to know. It's the most important thing in the world that you know."
I could tell he was panicked, and above all, he wanted me to know The Secret. What The Secret was I didn't know, but I had to. It was important to Grandad.
"I - I don't know." My voice faltered for the first time in our conversation, and I immediately cleared my throat. I had to be strong about this, take it on head-first.
"Here," Grandad was breathing hard know, his chest rising and falling. He reached under his red knitted sweatshirt and pulled a box, which was crystal-clear, and had what looked like a slip of paper in it, rolled up and tied with a piece of loose-fitting string.
"Grandad - what is this?" I ask him. It doesn't look like anything I've ever seen in this lifetime. I would remember this if my mother or father showed it to me - I have an excellent memory.
"You'll know soon enough," He breathes out the word, his chest still rising and falling in a way that makes me worried. His eyelids are fluttering now, and though I silently beg him not to close his eyes, my thoughts are no use in the silent, but tensed, air.
"Grandad!" I say, just realizing that it has a lock on it. "Where's the key to this? Where is it?" I look down again at the cast, locked with no way to open. Then I look up at Grandad, who's breathing is becoming raspy, and who's face is losing its color.
"No - Grandad!" I desperately beg him, and my knees collapse under me, and they fall to the floor, and now I drop the box, and I beg him not to close those eyes, because if he does, all is lost, and now he is, and now my world is spinning, and I can't think, and I can't breathe, and I think I'm going to go the same way as him, and the world turns upside-down and everything is dark and I don't know anything.
********************************************************
Chapter Two
I don't know. Do you guys like it? Comment!
********************************************************
The house is dark when my eyes finally open. And it's quiet. I can see the outline of a body, slumped, in an armchair, and I can see the flickering candle on the wall. It's light cast over the room, and my heart jumped into my throat, when I saw Grandad on the armchair my heart stops beating and my mind jumps into action. He's not moving. Something must be terribly, horribly wrong. I don't want to know.
I don't want to hear that he'll never open his eyes, that he'll never see me again. But I know it's true. The incident he had just before I passed out was as clear as the beautiful sky he used to watch, so intent on finding a species of bird that he hasn't discovered before.
"Grandad." I whisper, my voice still, alone in the darkness. I sigh and shake my head. I can't believe this is happening! Who knew a simple visit with your grandfather who lives alone in the middle of the woods would end up in pandemonium? Grandad had always been a healthy man who used to play golf with me.
I never, ever imagined in my life that this would happen. He didn't have any phones; he didn't believe in modern technology. He didn't have a car, for he mostly stayed in the house nowadays, locked up in his office doing - something.
Then it hit me. It hit me with as much force as a rock would hit the ground when dropped from a high height. What Grandad was doing, locked up in his office, may have had something to do with The Secret! Possibly. That was my only hope to find out what The Secret was. To go into his office.
I shuddered. But I didn't want to go into a dead man's office. I wanted to get out of here, to go back to Mom, Dad, and Dee, my little newborn sister. Mom and Dad would be mad when they figured out I was back early, but what else could I do?
I slowly got up, my body shaking, and went to the windows. I felt nervous butterflies flying in my stomach, and my head hurt so much I felt sick to my stomach. I closed my eyes and the pain in my head reduced. I breathed in deeply and then let it out. I opened my eyes again and immediate pain rushed to my head.
I left them closed for one more minute, then opened them. The pain was subsided now, and I and tiptoed over to the window to look out. The sight that met my eyes I couldn't possibly prepare for.
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