GREETINGS FROM W

Fifteen

Aleyn

It was my turn to read my letter, and I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous. I read it only once during the funeral, and I didn't dare touch it again until yesterday night. At first, Wolfe's words made me cry because I was sad and angry that he left us so soon, but now, his sentences didn't make sense at all.

“Are you alright?” Skylar asked me with a worried tone, “You don't have to read it if you can't,”

I looked at my hands, and I realised they were shaking as I held the paper between them. My heart was racing, and tears were burning my eyes. 

“It's okay,” I whisper, and I smile at my friends, “It's nothing I can't handle,”

I open the letter, and I see the faded ink where my tears fell before. The salty droplets stained the paper, but thankfully, I could still read the words.

“Aleyn, dear Aleyn.

You once asked me what could make me happy, and I said that nothing could compete with my love for music. That was a few years ago. 

But if you ask me now, I would have a different answer. Indeed, music still makes me happy, and it is one of the reasons why I keep smiling every day. But I found its competitor, its rival, and it's you.”

I looked away for a moment while I took my breath, and I felt Kaela's hand on my back. “It's okay, just let it out,” she whispered, and I lost control again. I shut my eyes tight, and I cried and let my tears fall on my thighs, making sure to push my hands away, not to wet the paper again. 

“Aleyn,” Skylar called with a gentle tone, “Please, you can stop if it's too much,”

I shook my head. Yes, it was too much to handle. It was hard to read Wolfe's words and imagine him writing them, knowing that his death was approaching. My chest tightened every time I read 'it's you'. Why didn't he tell me those words when he was still alive? Why couldn't he let me know that I was as important as his job? Why did he have to hide his emotions from me?

I could've helped him. Yes, I'm not the greatest of people, but I know how to listen and how to comfort. How dare he speak of happiness when he didn't try to keep it?

“I'm alright,” I mumbled as I wiped my tears with the sleeve of my shirt. “I'm just mad at Wolfe,” I added with a muffled voice. 

“I will never forget that night we spent in Paris. The masked ball was a mysterious and intriguing experience. It inspired me to introduce opera beats in my songs. I still haven't tried it, but maybe I will in the future.” 

“Wait, you went to Paris with Wolfe?” Kaela asked, surprised. “I thought you stayed here when he went on tour,”

“I did stay here,” I said, “And I've never left the country in my life,”

Everyone froze as they looked at me. I noticed Skylar looked at both Shadow's and Kaela's letters, and I understood she was now more suspicious of Wolfe's words. In every letter, he wrote nonsense, things we couldn't explain with a simple reading. 

“Did you go to a masked ball before? Here?” Skylar asked as she looked at me with serious eyes now. 

I shook my head, “Never in my life, Skylar. I don't know what he meant, I swear. I'm losing my mind because of his madness.”

“What the hell was he thinking about?” I heard Shadow mumbling. He ran his fingers in his hair and rubbed his head harshly. His right leg moved repeatedly, and he bit his nails as he was nervous. “A masked ball?” he shook his head in disbelief, “I never knew my brother could be so stupid!” he slammed his fist on the table, startling all of us. 

“Shadow,” Skylar rested her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it gently, “I'm sure everything he said has a reason,”

“What could the reason be?” Shadow frowned, his eyes watering. “My brother is dead. Everything is meaningless now.”

I clenched my fists, “Don't say that, Shadow,” I muttered, “Even if he's dead, we need to understand what's going on. What if all this is the reason behind his death?”

“So what?” Shadow furrowed a brow, “Isn't it too late? We can't save him now guys!”

“Shadow!” I didn't feel myself standing up and pushing him to the ground until I climbed on top of him and saw the bewildered look on his face. Then, my tears started falling again, and I rested my head on his chest. “I'm sorry,” I sobbed as I tightened my grip on his shirt. “It's just... I can't accept that he left us,” 

I heard Shadow sigh, then he rested his hand on my back and caressed it. “It's okay,” he whispered, “I'm as upset as you are,”

I nodded and wiped my tears before I left his lap and helped him stand up. “I'm sorry,” I repeated before I sat back next to Kaela, who gave me a sad smile and rested her head on my shoulder.

Skylar couldn't look at me. She looked like she wanted to cry, but she was stopping her tears from falling. I rarely saw her cry before.

Skylar is one of the strongest people I've ever known, and sometimes, I envied her for keeping her head high no matter the situation. 

But now I could tell how devastated she was. She and Wolfe were very close before she left the country. They were too close that I found myself jealous of her because I thought something was going on between them. Silly me, I forgot that friendship still existed. 

Skylar was with us wherever we went, and Wolfe never forgot her even when she decided not to come back and see us for many years. 

Yes, he was as disappointed as we were, but he always defended her when we said she forgot us, or that she gave up on us. We argued a lot with him, and he ended up leaving to his room. 

There was a time when I was so mad at Skylar that I didn't want to see her again in my life, but after she came back, I changed my mind. Seeing her smile, and hearing her comforting words, and seeing the way she handled the situation calmly reminded me that she was the best friend anyone could have. 

She had her rough times too, and I couldn't judge her for her choices and decisions. 

“Skylar,” I called and she lifted her head slowly to look at me. “You're right. I'm certain Wolfe's worlds mean something,”

She nodded slowly, pressing her lips. “So... you said you've never been to a masked ball,”

I shook my head, “No, and the closest we talked about a masked ball was watching the Phantom Of The Opera. Not even the play, but the movie,” I shrugged.

Skylar furrowed her brows and rested her back on the couch, crossing her arms.

“Colours, fairy dusk, a masked ball, my story...” she shook her head, “That's... that's getting more confusing,”

I didn't say anything. I only nodded and let out a deep sigh as I mentally cursed Wolfe for leaving a mystery behind him. 

My friends started talking again, but their voices echoed like a background sound to me as my mind and my heart focused on the last lines Wolfe wrote in my letter.

“Sorry for not being available lately. You know how it is like when I get a lot of work to do. But I promise, Aleyn, that when I see you again, I will take you to dance,

Greetings from W.”

“Liar,” I mumbled to myself before I closed the letter and put it back in the envelope. I pushed my head back and took a deep breath because I didn't want to be a crybaby.