Written in the Stars by Jayme Ardente-Silliman

shut before I walked back into the bathroom and washed my face. I placed the picture back on the nightstand and softly said, “ I love you to the moon and back, around it a million times and back again.”

Chapter Seven:
     
     
    I didn’t sleep that night. I waited for the first sign of dawn to sneak out of the house for a morning run, hoping it would help take my mind off my mom long enough to regain some sanity.
    I quietly open Erin’s door, crept across the floor, and very slowly climbed onto her bed. I had to cover my mouth to prevent from l aughing as I looked down at her and saw her drooling on the pillow. I waited another minute to make sure she was still fast asleep before I started jumping up and down right next to her making her body bounce.
    “Erin, wake up, wake up, wake up!” I sang.
    “Earth quack!” she screamed. I died laughing when she flew out of bed and ran for the door.
    “No, Erin; wait, there’s no earth quack.” I grabbed her before she could run out of the room. Nonna would kill both of us if she woke up to Erin running through the house like the raving lunatic she already thinks she is.
    “Yes, there was. My bed was shaking.” She looked at me in fear.
    “That’s because I was jumping on your bed.”
    “Are you kidding me?” Her fear quickly turned into anger. “When are you going to grow up?”
    “It could happen in the next few minutes, or possibly never.” I smiled.
    “What time is it?” She climbed back into bed.
    “Almost five.”
    “In the morning?” She rubbed her eyes.
    “Yes, in the morning.”
    “Why in the world are you waking me up before the sun rises?” she asked.
    “I wanted to know if you wanted to go jogging.” I plopped down on the bed next to her.
    “In all the years we’ve been friends, have you ever seen me jog?”
    “Yes, once when Saks was having a sale.”
    “Are we jogging to a sale?” She glared at me.
    “No, just for our health.”
    “Then the answer is no!” She covered her head.
    “Fine, but don’t say I never asked.”
    “Oh, believe me, I won’t.”
    “I love you,” I sang as I shut her door.
    “I don’t care.”
     
    It was dusky outside. Barely light enough for me to see where I was going. I shoved my headphones into my ears and made sure the volume was all the way up before I started running towards the beach.
    I was actually surprised that instead of being carried away by the music, and lingering on any memories this path held, my thoughts were on my dad. I hated the fact that we were going to be apart for so long, and I was starting to worry about him being alone even more. I never really thought about what he had been going through or how hard it was for him to lose her too, and now he was alone in the house for the first time since she died, and I knew how lonely the night there could feel.
    I was happy when I reached the beach before any real sadness could set in again. I stopped once my feet hit the sand and took a deep breath as I looked around. It looked smaller than I remembered it. It was nothing more than a small cove, surrounded by huge cliffs.
    I walked to the edge of the water and sat just far enough for the waves to miss my feet when they came rolling into shore.
    The misty breeze blowing off the water’s crest felt good as I closed my eyes and zoned out to one of the many memories I had of when my mom and I used to come here. I could almost hear her laughter when I heard someone yell, “Geronimo!” I opened my eyes just in time to see the water start settling from someone or something breaking its barrier. I quickly stood up to get a better look at what could have fallen into the water, hoping to see anything but a dead body. Fear set in when I saw how high the fall was for whatever fell in. It had to be at least a thirty-foot drop.
    Just as I was about to be forced to imagine what had happened, I saw someone swimming towards shore.
    “Are you okay?” I yelled, even though I knew they couldn’t hear