Hope Case

Gazing into a mirror she stared at her tear-stained face. A pair of red blotchy eyes starkly staring back at her. It had been two whole days and the tears just never seemed to cease. Sleep now seemed to be a distant reverie. Splashing water on her face she turned to leave, only to feel another arrow go through her as his towel hanging on the rack brought back yet another memory. She remembered the day she first met him. Those big brown eyes stared back at her, as though recognizing her from some prior dream. As soon as she saw him, she knew she must have him, she needed him. She thought back to the day she brought him home. He moved slowly, exploring the new place. Turning back to her, he smiled; the smile that lit up his eyes and brought joy to her heart. He was her ray of sunshine in the maddening world closing in on her. After a long time she finally felt happy.

They spent three years together, the best years of her life. Holidays in the snow and picnics on the beach, enjoying every moment together. They would catch snowflakes on their tongues and go fishing in the river, as though there was nothing more important than the time they had together.

She remembered that fateful day so clearly, every aspect etched into her memory like carvings in stone. The screech of the car tyres, the yell of the boy down the street and then the sound of deafening silence, as she busily baked cookies for tea. Running into the street she had gone screaming, to the red jacketed lump on the ground. No scratches on his face, no blood anywhere, but he didn't move, didn't breathe. Just as quickly as he had come, he had been taken away. Taken from her life in one swift moment, her hope, her love, her son.

The funeral was filled with the priest telling her how lucky she was to have got to spend those precious moments with him. He was right. Charlie had taught her to live, to laugh, to love. He had helped her become a better person, live a better life. He had given her hope to wake up the next day and look forward to what life tossed at her.

Everything happens for a reason, she thought as she wiped her eyes. Touching, one last time, his towel hanging on the rack, she smiled, because that was what Charlie would have wanted.