Life hasn't really been going the way you wanted it to. School isn't going to great, your boyfriend of two years just dumped you for some slut, you have no job, and all on the eve of your 18th birthday. To top it all off, our parents don't treat you like you're almost 18. They still leave you with a baby sitter, ugh, the old lady from next door. Mommy or Daddy has to come with you wherever you go. Everything seemed to be falling out of place for you. That is until you and your parents receive that letter in the mail.
You aren't there the day it arrives. School, even though much to your displeasure, you still have no choice but to go. It is when you arrive home that day that our parents summon you to the living room.
"We got a letter today," Father tells you.
"It's from your brother," Mother says. "He's coming back home to see you for your eighteenth birthday."
You sit there in silence, not fully believing them at first. I had been gone for close to six years now, fed up with how our parents treated me. Now 25, I would be returning to visit my beloved sister. You feel a pit open up in the bottom of your stomach. The widening void is soon filled with excitement and anticipation. Finally, someone who could understand you, someone who could love you.
You do your best to hide the happiness brewing within yourself by smiling and keeping quiet. Father rises to his feet and walks over to you. He hands you the already open envelope. Hesitantly, you take it from him, trying not to quiver. You stand to your feet and exit the living room. You head up the stairs and retire to your room where you can be alone.
You close the door behind you and lay down on your bed. You pull out the letter and read it.
"Dear Family, I'm returning home for my sister's 18th birthday this Saturday. I know I said I'd never come back, but I figured she's worth more than our differences. I hope we can put our feud aside for her special day. I'll be arriving in three days."
My words send shivers down your spine. You remember the day I left. You were twelve, but it is still so vivid in your head. Mother and Father had caught me with my girlfriend at the time in my bedroom. They kicked her out and forced me to break up with her. I realized that I could never be free as long as I lived in their house, so I left. It has been six years since that incident. You feel special, love. You take the letter and stick it under your pillow. You turn off your bedside light and try to sleep.
"Three days," you think to yourself as you fall asleep.
You wake up Thursday morning, briefly forgetting about my letter. You quickly rip up your pillow and breathe a sigh of relief; it's still there. You jump out of bed with renewed vigor and get dressed, ready to face the day.
In spite of all of the negative things that have been weighing you down in life, you face the world with your head held high. Even your best friend noticed the change in your mood.
"What's with you today?" Lidia asks during lunch. "You seem chipper!"
"Well, I don't want to get my hopes up," you say, "but I got this letter."
You reach into your bag and hand her my letter. She carefully reads over, then looks up at you, then back to the letter, then back to you again. Shock is the expression on her face.
"He's coming back?!" she whispers.