After dinner, I wash the dishes and then I settle down onto the couch in the lounge, next to my mum. My dad is sitting on a chair in the corner of the room, and he has the footrest pulled out. He sips slowly from the glass of wine in his hand.
We decide to watch the movie I found. It is about a high school student, who is accepted to an Institute of Technology. The night before leaving to go live on campus, she celebrates with friends and then drives home while under the influence of alcohol. She crashes into another car and the father in the car survives, but his son and wife dies. Instead of going to study, the girl goes to jail. The girl is plagued with feelings of guilt and remorse, and she wishes she could reverse time. Then another planet is found, which is like Earth, but scientists suspect it could be like a mirror image of Earth and on this other Earth people make different choices and decisions.
When the credits start flashing on the screen, my mum says, "Nice choice, Caitlyn. I enjoyed that."
" It was quite nice, wasn't it?" I get up from the couch and stretch. "I'm going to go to bed, I'm feeling a little tired." I should not be feeling tired, but these days I always feel tired, and I prefer spending time in my room anyway. It saves me from having to pretend all the time that I am happy. Bending down to my mum, I kiss her on the cheek, "Good night, mother dearest."
" Going to bed already?"
" I think I'll read a little."
" Kay. Sleep tight."
" You too." I smile down at her. Moving to my dad, I give him a quick peck on his cheek. "Good night, Dad."
He startles awake. "What's the time?" He asks, as if he has been awake all this time.
My mum answers, "Late. Bedtime."
He smiles up at me. "Good night, Caitlyn. See you in the morning."
I laugh amused. "I don't think so. By the time you leave, I'll still be fast asleep. Mum says I need to recharge my batteries."
My dad glances at my mum and they must think I am stupid not to see the look passing between them.
" Love both of you," I say as I leave the room.
They reply in unison, "Love you too, Caitlyn."
I go upstairs and get into bed, making sure I pull the comforter tightly around me so that when Salem gets back from his nightly escapades, he does not hem me in as usual.
The blinds in front of my window are still open and as I look up, I wish I could pull the stars down from the sky and wrap them around me. I wonder if Shayne is amongst them. Is he looking down on me? Does he remember me? If I had a superpower, I would want it to be to change the world, and that nobody will ever die.