Interacting with: N/A Mentioning: N/A Date: Spring Break

Word Count: 1000

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It was that time of the year again. The time where she was finally home. The gentle morning rays that promised spring was near caressed Avery's face like the soft touch of a butterfly. She drank it all in. Her eyes were closed with her head tilted back to bask in the sunlight. A sigh escaped her lips. This was peace. This was home. She finally opened her eyes. Blinking slowly as they adjusted to the brightness. Bursts of color filled the sky. Streaks of pink, orange, and gold looked as if they were painted across the sky. A beautiful sight and the start of a new day. A good day. Or would it be good. As of late, her life had been slowly unraveling. Her grandfather was dying. She could see it in his eyes with the way they had lost their usual sparkle. That hurt Avery more than she let on. She always hid behind the facade. Hid behind the reality of how she really felt about everything. Though no matter how she tried to hide it, she knew it was only a matter of time before she fell apart. Her carefully built walls crumbled to the ground. That's why she pushed herself to stay away. To distance herself from her grandfather in hopes that it would hurt less when she lost him. It wasn't working. If anything, the distance was making everything harder. It reminded her of all the good times she had shared with her grandfather. The laughter, the joy, the peace that came over her whenever she had been near him. Whenever she had been there watching as he showed her his world. He was the one that had taught her to recognize the magical creatures and plants that filled her home. That knowledge of plants and creatures had even helped save some of her friends in the past. Avery was so focused on the sunrise that she didn't hear the heavy tread of the person approaching her. It was when the person towered beside her that she looked up. "Enjoying the sunrise?" A familiar rumble questioned. Avery looked up. There he was. The man she had tried so hard to distance herself from. Her grandfather. Shocked filled her features as her body tensed. What was there to do? What was there to say? He didn't give her time to respond. Instead, he slowly sat himself down next to Avery. His body was stiff from lack of use as he finally settled himself. "What are you doing out here? I thought you were ordered to bed rest?" Avery's brows creased in confusion and concern. His laughed was rough from disuse. A cough wracking his body soon after. Avery winced. She hadn't meant to hurt her grandfather more with her question. It hurt her more to see her grandfather suffering than her own pain. "I'm fine, and if you must know, fresh air is what I needed. I'm of no use to anyone if I stay in bed all day. Might as well enjoy myself while I'm still living, huh?" He nearly barked out another laugh, but a cough wracked his body once more. Avery nodded in understanding. She knew what it felt like. She knew more than anything what it felt like to be trapped like a bird in a cage. She also knew what it felt like to be free. Then her grandfather gently touched her left arm. Her jagged scar white against her slightly tanned skin. His eyebrows shot up in surprise yet there were hints of amusement laced within his surprise. "Now where did this come from? I do not remember my granddaughter having battle scars." Avery swallowed. The memory of the night she had received the scar flooding her mind all over again. She had chosen to keep the scar instead of removing it with magic. It was a reminder to her of what she had risked to save someone she didn't even know at the time. "Oh. It's nothing. I was just protecting a friend." Avery brushed off the question quickly. Too quickly. Her grandfather smiled. Amusement filled his face. "Ah. I see how it is. Avoiding me and keeping secrets?" Avery stared back at him in shock. "No. That's not what I'm saying. It's just. . . hard to talk about. And avoiding you. . . I'm so sorry. I-" Her grandfather laid his hand upon her arm again. Silencing her. "I understand. There are many things in my life that I wish to never relive nor speak of again. As far as avoidance, I also know. I've lived long enough to know how hard this must be for you. It's no secret that I'm weakened and rapidly declining in health. I knew it was only a matter of time before something similar happened." He sighed a broken sigh that brought tears to Avery's eyes. Avery couldn't lose her grandfather. He had practically raised her when her parents were too busy to take care of her. It was too hard for the teenage lioness to handle alone. "I can't lose you. You've been with me through everything and I don't know what I'd do without you." Avery buried her face into her grandfather's chest as the sobs finally broke free. "Avery. Listen. I know how hard this is for you, but I'd like you to know this. I'm at peace. It's time for me to face my Lord and savior. He is ready to welcome me home with open arms. You'll be okay. Know that I will always be there for you. If not in bodily form, then in spirit." Avery's grandfather pulled her in tightly. Squeezing her as if she was the only lifeline grounding him. So this was what goodbye felt like. Though her grandfather was still living and breathing beside her, it felt as if she had already lost him. It was only a matter of time before that became a reality. A reality she dreaded to experience all alone.

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