[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/IZmPysU.png[/img]
[sub][color=A4C0CF][b]Rhonda Decker[/b][/color] & [color=9f372b][b]Victoria James[/b][/color]
[@BrutalBx] & [@LovelyComplex][/sub]
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[color=lightgray][indent][color=A4C0CF]“For the longest time, he knew he was not of this world. Yet when he awoke every morning and he walked out into the daybreak, he turned his head left and he saw her and his life had meaning. She gave him purpose and something to work toward. When they walked side by side, their rhythms together as one, the music and art and the joy of the world made sense.”[/color]

Rhonda’s fingers travelled over the braille words that her son had written so long ago. It was a tragedy that most of his words were lost and the ones that remained were now being used for ill. The warm July evening felt like a gentle touch across her cheek. It was late and although the south side was known to be dangerous, Ronnie felt completely safe; Why? She was the mother of the notorious Charlie Decker, no one would go near her with a ten foot pole, not even the worst of the worst. 

[color=A4C0CF]“I can’t thank you enough for having this converted for me, Victoria.”[/color] Her empty eyes drifted to the shuffling sound and the woman that sat on the other end of the porch. [color=A4C0CF]“I think we both know who he was writing this about.”[/color]

[color=9f372b]“Please, don’t thank me.”[/color] Victoria James rested her elbow on her propped up knee, using her hand to support her chin, as she sat on the stairs. Beside her was an ashtray with a cigarette resting in it, burning itself out. [color=9f372b]“... Yeah, of course it’s about her. How could it not?”[/color] 

Ever since that tragic day that took a lot of children away from their parents, the time Vicky spent with Rhonda had become her most cherished time. A time where she could drop the pretense, relax, and be completely honest with herself. With Rhonda, she felt like a better person. That for once, she was doing something right. 

Victoria couldn’t help but think about that fateful day and how chaotic the town was. She had found herself waiting outside the school, being prevented by her husband’s co-workers from entering. All she wanted to do was find her last surviving daughter and the man that was her saving grace. Her everything. 

All the uproar. All the tears. All the pain. That didn’t matter when she was here with Ronnie. Her friend. They both suffered from heartbreak and outliving their children. The only difference was Victoria had one more child to still care for, until her dying day. There was no map to parenting. If anything, Victoria pretended as she went, not knowing what was right and what was wrong. 

The scary truth for her was she didn’t know if she was a good mother. She failed Maxine, her delicate jewel, and she failed Charlie, her son not by blood but by faith and hope that one day it would become true. [color=9f372b]“If only I realized when they were small, in just a few years… it would be completely different. And— ”[/color] 

Adjusting her posture, she shook the depressive thoughts out of her head and cleared her throat, [color=9f372b]“—And I just know, in my heart, he would’ve treated my little girl so good. I just know, he saw the world in her.”[/color] 

[color=A4C0CF]“My Charlie saw too much of the world I think,”[/color] Rhonda sighed as she placed the book down and reached for her tea. She was under no illusion, she knew what her child had done, what he had become but regardless of the fact, he was her child, her flesh and her blood. When he was younger, he was always questioning, always watching and learning, he was so perceptive. Something obvious in the words he expressed on the pages he loved so much. 

[color=A4C0CF]“I remember this one time, I had saved up some money from the diner and I promised Charlie we’d head into the city for a day trip. We went over the bridge and God we had such an amazing day. It was winding down. I gave him five bucks and I sent him into the market, you have five minutes Charlie to bring back anything you like. So off he went and when his time was up, you know what he came back with? On the Road by Jack Kerouac. What eight year old reads Kerouac? I knew then that Charlie’s head was wired just a little different to everyone else. He was meant for more…”[/color]

[color=9f372b]“Mm, yeah. He was brilliant, impressing everyone in the neighborhood. Such wisdom I never had when I was his age.”[/color] Vicky thoughtfully responded. Charlie was destined for greatness, she knew it, her husband knew it, even his teacher Beau knew it, but it was cut short, like it was for her own daughter. Changing her position, Vicky leaned back on the porch stairs, glancing up at the stars in the sky. Sometimes, she wished they had the power to rewrite the stars in a different sky. If they could change their circumstance, if they could change their hand, would they be happier? 

Sighing to herself, Mrs. James looked away from the fated stars and glanced over at her friend, [color=9f372b]“As awful as it feels right now, his words are making a difference. He is causing a ripple effect…”[/color] Her eyes softened as she looked at the empty eyes of Rhonda Decker, who was intently listening to her. [color=9f372b]“I don’t think whoever has his journal realizes this town will never be the same. It’s scary to see how much your son knows and that someone is using it as a weapon. Even so...”[/color] 

Briefly her voice trailed off as she absentmindedly grabbed her cigarette and forcibly pressed it in the ashtray, [color=9f372b]“There isn’t all bad coming from this. Penelope left the house, she went. She hasn’t left the house willinging in months. I know it’s only a matter of time when that pain becomes fuel to her. I truly believe that and that’s thanks to her love for Charlie.”[/color] 

[color=A4C0CF]“I’m glad to hear Poppy is getting out, I worry for her.”[/color] Rhonda could hear the chorus of sirens in the background, a near constant ambience in the Southie neighbourhood. [color=A4C0CF]“That said, whatever is happening out there, with those things that my Charlie wrote, I can’t see any good coming from it,”[/color] the dark haired woman let out a soft chuckle. [color=A4C0CF]“Haha, see. I can’t see anything”[/color] Ronnie had learned to live with her situation and found some humour in knowing that even though she was blind, she could still see the world for what it really was. In response, Victoria could only frown, glancing at her friend with saddened eyes.

[color=A4C0CF]“Everybody has secrets. Everybody lies. Charlie carried it all somehow, alone and afraid. Now we’re all going to have to carry that weight and I worry not everyone can handle that. The thief who stole my baby’s journals will have to live with the consequences of unleashing hell.”[/color]

[color=9f372b]“Maybe,”[/color] Vicky drawled, having released the old smoke into the ashtray before adding, [color=9f372b]“That’s exactly what they want. Maybe,”[/color] With one cigarette done, she was quick to reach into her pant’s pocket for another. Penelope’s mother pursed her lips, annoyed at herself, as her hand clasped onto the pack. [color=9f372b]“Some people just want to watch the world burn.”[/color] When she pulled a cigarette out her mind began to drift into far away memories.

It was silly to think the truth would lead to years of problems being solved. That Charlie’s ghost could make a difference in this doomed town. See, as much as Vicky wanted to be the optimistic type, and sometimes she convinced herself she was, Rhonda reminded her that optimism didn’t work in this town, especially not for the Decker and James family. 

Shakily placing the cigarette in her mouth, Victoria noticed a patrol car passing by. She waved at the man she knew all too well, giving him a knowing smile, before lighting her cancer stick that rested in between her lips. He did a quick honk so that Rhonda knew he was passing by. After one short moment of him and his wife looking at each other, both tired, both with purpose, both with heavy hearts, he was off down the street to work until he couldn’t work anymore.

[color=A4C0CF]“Sly?”[/color] Ronnie questioned despite already knowing the answer. She recognised the sound of his patrol car anywhere. Despite having to look after an entire town, he still made a point of driving down Carlisle and checking up on the locals. [color=A4C0CF]“I remember in high school when he dated Shannon Ling and we were all like, yo he needs to be with a Mooney. Funny how it all turns out huh? Lives predetermined; a future imperfect.”[/color]

Age usually begets thoughts of the past. Rhonda was stuck there. With no way to see the present or the future, all she had was days she recalled being both wonderful and horrific at the same time. The tragedies of Eden were not deserved for their children but for everyone, sometimes they were just hidden better. As time had passed, Rhonda found herself leaning more into a bygone world, dwelling in the secret labyrinth that was Edenridge's rich history. There were too many coincidences, too many serendipitous happenings. Destiny was an invisible hand in Eden and it controlled everything.

Once the smoke seeped out of her lips, Victoria rested her elbow on her leg and thought about her husband, thinking about the time before they got entangled with one another. He wouldn’t have truly noticed her as a lover. He was four years older than her. Vicky was the little sister across the street who he felt compelled to save. They weren’t supposed to be together, at least not in Edenridge. When she was sixteen, Vicky made him see her as a woman and then nine months later, a little after her birthday, she had Maxine. 

If only Rhonda knew how much hurt Shannon went through because Vicky wanted Sly all to herself. She wanted Rocky, the boy that could fight his way out of anything and everything, the boy with an indomitable spirit, extreme tenacity, and ferocious attacks, with fists alone, like the real Rocky Balboa. Maybe it was the idea of having a savior at the time that called her to action, but her twisting the fates set everything in stone, causing a domino effect she could never take back. [color=9f372b]“If only we went about things differently... maybe O’Hara would still be alive. I always wonder, if Sly and I took a leap of faith earlier with one another, would we have paved the path for him and his secret lover?”[/color] 

[color=A4C0CF]“If there’s anything I’ve learned since Charlie, it’s that we can’t live in what ifs. What happened, happened and we just have to live with it.”[/color] Grabbing her walking stick, Rhonda pulled herself to her feet and felt her way towards the front door of her home. [color=A4C0CF]“Thanks for keeping me company, Vicky. You should get home. It’s late and I’m sure your girl will need you.”[/color] Disappearing into her house, Ronnie turned off the porchlight, another day in Eden over.[/indent][/color]