Frozen on Exam Day Chapter 10
That night, Darren fell asleep on the chapel floor. I stepped into his dream.
It was the first time he had seen me since I died. I was wearing a clean school uniform, no blood on my forehead, no frost on my face. I looked the way I had when I was alive, standing in the middle of a warrn, brilliant light.
Darren froze. Then he rushed forward and threw his arms around the so hard it felt like he would never let go.
“Wes.” He touched my face with both hands, like he needed to make sure I was real.
“I didn’t protect you. There were so many chances. I could’ve made them open that door.
“Wes, are you still cold?”
I smiled and shook my head. “I’m not cold anymore. I haven’t been for a while. So please stop hurting over it.”
He held me and cried until he could not form words. “It’s my fault. I knew something was wrong. I should’ve been braver. I should’ve broken the door down.”
I took his hand. “You did enough. You really did.
“In all those 18 years, there was never a single day I regretted being your little brother. And if there’s a next life, I want you to be my big brother again. Deal?”
He held me so tight I thought he would never let go. In the dream, I was warm.
When Darren woke up, his face was covered in tears. He walked out of the chapel and into the sunlight.
He buried me on a beautiful hillside, facing south where the sun was warmest. In the spring, wildflowers covered the slope, and when the wind blew, petals would drift down and settle on my headstone. Darren ran his fingers over my name carved into the
stone.
“Wes. I’m going to live. I’m going to live a full life. And next time around, I’ll be your big brother again. Will you give me another chance?”
The wind moved through the wildflowers. A petal landed softly on the back of his hand, as gentle as a nod.
My soul grew lighter and lighter. Somewhere in the void, I saw a door.
On the other side stood a figure dressed in black. He did not speak. He simply waited.
Then another image came through from beyond the door. It was a prison.
Mom was huddled in the corner of her cell, and Dad was in his. Both of them were trying to end their own lives. They were repeating the same words to the walls, over and over/
“We’ll trade our lives for Wes’ happiness. We don’t deserve to be parents. Let him be born to a family that deserves him.”
The figure in black stopped beside me. His voice was quiet. “You can decide what happens to them.”
I shook my head. I did not hate them I did not want them to die. It I could have anything at all, I would want them to never remember me, and to never recognize me
The next time we passed each other on the street, we would just be strangers.
Wesley Merritt was six years old. He was holding a candy apple in both hands and bouncing with every step.
“Darren! Darren!”
impossible to hear.
“I want to see Wes. Just once just need to see him one more time.
“I want to ask him if he’s still cold.”
That night, Darren fell asleep on the chapel floor. I stepped into his dream.
It was the first time he had seen me since I died. I was wearing a clean school uniform, no blood on my forehead, no frost on my face. I looked the way I had when I was alive, standing in the middle of a warra, brilliant light.
Darren froze. Then he rushed forward and threw his arms around me so hard it felt like he would never let go.
“Wes.” He touched my face with both hands, like he needed to make sure I was real.
“I didn’t protect you. There were so many chances. I could’ve made them open that door.
“Wes, are you still cold?”
I smiled and shook my head. “I’m not cold anymore. I haven’t been for a while. So please stop hurting over it.”
He held me and cried until he could not form words. “It’s my fault. I knew something was wrong. I should’ve been braver. I should’ve broken the door down.”
I took his hand. “You did enough. You really did.
“In all those 18 years, there was never a single day I regretted being your little brother. And if there’s a next life, I want you to be my big brother again. Deal?”
He held me so tight I thought he would never let go. In the dream, I was warm.
When Darren woke up, his face was covered in tears. He walked out of the chapel and into the sunlight.
He buried me on a beautiful hillside, facing south where the sun was warmest. In the spring, wildflowers covered the slope, and when the wind blew, petals would drift down and settle on my headstone. Darren ran his fingers over my name carved into the
stone.
“Wes. I’m going to live. I’m going to live a full life. And next time around, I’ll be your big brother again. Will you give me another chance?”
The wind moved through the wildflowers. A petal landed softly on the back of his hand, as gentle as a nod.
My soul grew lighter and lighter. Somewhere in the void, I saw a door.
On the other side stood a figure dressed in black. He did not speak. He simply waited.
Then another image came through from beyond the door. It was a prison.
Mom was huddled in the corner of her cell, and Dad was in his. Both of them were trying to end their own lives. They were repeating the same words to the walls, over and over
“We’ll trade our lives for Wes’ happiness. We don’t deserve to be parents. Let him be born to a family that deserves him.”
The figure in black stopped beside me. His voice was quiet. “You can decide what happens to them.”
I shook my head. I did not hate them. I did not want them to die. If I could have anything at all, I would want them to never remember me, and to never recognize me
The next time we passed each other on the street, we would just be strangers.
Wesley Merritt was six years old. He was holding a candy apple in both hands and bouncing with every step.
“Darren! Darren!”
He tan ever to his big brother. Darren Merritt bent down and wiped the sugar off the corner of his mouth.
“Slow down. What are you going to do if you fall?”
“You’ll catch me!”
Wesley grinned, and the gap where he had lost a front tooth made the smile even wider.
Darren ruffled his hair.
“What did they teach you at school today?”
“Addition! I can do one plus one equals two!”
“Wow, that’s incredible.”
“Yep! The teacher said I was the smartest one!”
Wesley puffed out his little chest with pride, and Darren laughed.
“My little brother’s the best.”
On the walk home from school, Wesley held Mom’s hand on one side and Dad’s on the other. He hung from their arms and swung forward with each step like he was on a playground.
“Mom, Mom, the teacher said something nice about me today!”
“Oh yeah? What did she say?”
“She said I’m smart! And cute!”
Mom’s eyes crinkled when she smiled. “Our Wes is the best.”
Wesley nodded, satisfied, and turned to Dad. “Dad, am I the best?”
Dad lifted him up over his head. “Yes, yes. You’re the best kid in the world.”
Wesley tilted his head and thought about it for a second, then broke into that gap-toothed grin again. “Well, duh. I’ve also got the best big brother, and the best mom and dad.”
The whole family laughed.
As they passed by the sidewalk, a man sitting at a folding table with a handwritten sign looked up. He watched Wesley for a moment, then called out to them.
“Excuse me, sir, ma’am.”
He studied them for a moment, then leaned forward. “Your younger boy here.”
He lowered his voice. “Your younger boy’s success will come at your older son’s expense. The more successful he becomes, the more danger your firstborn will be in.”
Mom stopped walking. Her grip on Wesley’s hand tightened. Wesley blinked up at them with wide eyes, too young to understand what any of it meant.
Then Mom pulled Wesley a little closer and let her expression go cold.
“You listen to me.” Her voice was quiet, perfectly calm.
“Both of my children are my whole world. There’s no conflict between them. They’re going to grow up together, succeed together, and be happy together. We won’t be needing your services.”
She Look Wesley and Darren by the hand and walked away without looking back.
Dad hung behind. Once the rest of the family was far enough ahead, he turned around and walked slowly back to the table. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a police badge.
“If you ever say anything like that in front of my sons again, this conversation is going to go very differently.”
Then he turned and jogged to catch up with his family.
The setting sun stretched the shadows of all four of them ang across the road.
Wesley was already far down the sidewalk when he glanced back. The man at the table was still sitting there, his figure growing smaller and smaller.
Wesley did not know what the man had said. He did not care..
He only knew that the sunset was beautiful, that Darren was going to help him with his blocks when they got home, that Mom smelled like fresh laundry, and that Dad was telling a joke that was not very funny.
That was everything he remembered.
That was all there was to being six years old.
