Page 11 of Broken Pieces

I place it in my luggage, hiding it under a few shirts so he doesn't see it and get any other ideas.

Even though I can't have Violet, at least I can take the happy memories of her with me forever.

3

Violet

I’ve spent the past thirty minutes trying to decide what to do with my hair. Usually, I wear it up in a ponytail, but that feels too boring for tonight. It shouldn't be such a hard decision to make. It’s just hair.

I’m just feeling so anxious about tonight, well more about everything going on in my life at the moment.

They never came.

After I asked my stepbrothers to let me back in and at least be friends again, they left me completely alone.

It’s only a few more days until Max and I are leaving for our separate colleges. We’ll all be miles away from each other.

Maddox is staying behind, but I’m not sure how he’s going to cope without Max.

He has his job at the garage to keep him busy enough. Other than that, I haven't got a clue what he's been up to.

If he took just a minute out of one of his suddenly busy days to talk to me, then I'd know what's going on with him.

I wish I could stay with him here, but I don’t want to miss my own chance at college, even if it is away from the two people I love most in the world.

I neverimagined myself getting the chance to attend one of the most expensive colleges in the country, let alone the one with the best literature course I could ask for. It's only thanks to my stepdad's generosity that I'm able to go and I'm not about to turn this shot at really making something of my life down.

My stomach turns at the thought of not seeing them everyday.

Not like I’ve seen them recently anyway, but at least here we still live under the same roof.

They’re my stepbrothers, but I can’t imagine going through life with anyone that’s not them by my side.

We used to spend so much time together, practically every second of the day we were glued to each other.

It’s such a messed up thing to want and that’s exactly why I’m dressing myself up to go to a party tonight.

Finally, I settle on leaving my hair down. I give it a quick brush, smoothing the static out as I position the long ends over my chest.

Then I finish my makeup off between drinks of wine. I managed to sneak a bottle up from the kitchen and it's already almost empty. I'm definitely in need of the liquid courage tonight. I take a final big swig, as I slip my heels on.

I had to dig deep into my closet for this outfit. A tight black skirt, a shimmery silver top that covers my breasts and most of my stomach, but only ties with a few pieces of string at the back and heels that make my ankles wobble dangerously.

Now that it’s all on, I feel a bit more sure of myself. Usually, I spend my free time at the library or in bookstores, not at house parties so my closet reflects that, but maybe I should add in a few more pieces like this?

My phone buzzeswith a text from my friend, Chloe, saying she’s waiting in her boyfriend's car down the street for me. We've never been very close outside of school, but she's always been friendly and she was nice enough to invite me along with her tonight.

To be honest, I regret not making more effort with her. If I put the time in to hang out with her then maybe we could have been close friends by now. Instead, I invested all that energy into Maddox and Max.

Part of me wonders how much of my isolation was my fault. They're the ones that made it almost impossible for anyone else to come near me. I always assumed it was them being overprotective brothers, but now I'm not sure what to think.

Tonight is the night that everything changes. I'm going to make sure of it.

I poke my head outside my bedroom door to find the hallway dark and empty.

As I pass Maddox’s room, I listen for the tell-tale sounds of music or his video games telling me he’s still up.

There’s only silence.