Hearts of Glass

Sylvester stared at his reflection for the hundredth time that week. Each day he saw himself disappearing. His skin becoming more and more translucent. His eyes looking more and more bright blue, nearly grey. His lips turning purple. He reached for his wife’s makeup, putting on the foundation so thick that it creased near his eyes, and his laugh lines.

He sighed lowering his head. When is this going to end? Sylvester pulled himself away from the mirror and finished getting dressed. Everything around him was crashing, just like that night. When he and his daughter left the school.

He closed his eyes, remembering that night always made him feel high. He had his music blasting and his daughter beside him laughing as he sang, off-key as always. She was the better singer out of the three of them. Sissy…his beautiful seventeen-year-old daughter. With her hair the color of spun gold, and her eyes the brightest of honey brown. Just like her mother.

He buttoned his shirt, listening to Sissy laugh in his head.

The house had grown cold, the light fading from his wife's eyes. The love dying. She was giving him the cold shoulder. He left the bathroom, turning the light off. His wife laid in the bed, like every other day. Her eyes swollen from crying, her lips cracked and dry. The cup of water left untouched.

He came over to her, sitting at the end of the bed. He placed his hand on her and she tried scooching away from him. She rolled over the back of her head a matted mess. No matter how many times he tried to comfort her, she ignored him.

“Oliva?”

She pulled the blankets over her head. She pulled into herself, her soft cries broke his heart all over again. He tried touching her again, Oliva pulled further away from him. He couldn’t understand what was going on. Why is she ignoring me like this? Just the other day she was talking to me. Enjoying me being there. Now, …she’s acting like I’m not even there. He got up from the corner of the bed and went to his side. He just slept there, and it was already made. Did I do that?

Olivia took his pillow and pulled it close to her face. She breathed deeply. The deep bags underneath her eyes and dark circles worried him. Her face looked thinner then he’d ever seen it. When was the last time she ate?

He sat down next to her, he reached out and tried touching her. He stopped, terrified—

I’ve never been afraid to touch you before. Why now? He placed his hand on her head, her eyes lit up. But soon followed with more tears, more crying and screaming. He couldn’t understand—

“Daddy?” Their bedroom door opened, their daughter, Sissy was standing there. Her yellow sundress flowing around her knees. Her cork heels giving her an extra few inches. Her brown eyes kept dancing to her mother, worry creasing her beautiful face. “Why is mommy crying? I can hear her in my room.”

Sylvester only shook his head, unsure of how to calm his daughter's worries and his lovers' tears. He leaned forward kissing the top of her head. Oliva wailed.

“Come here, Sissy.” He waved her over.

She listened sitting next to her father. She looked at him then back to her mother. “She looks so sad…”

“I know bug. I’ve tried everything I could. I can’t seem to get her to hear me. Or for her to even look at me. We’ve been here for weeks and it’s like she can’t—”

“Can’t even see us.” Sissy slumped her shoulders, her own eyes became foggy.

Sylvester puffed up his chest, he went to his wife placing his hand on her shoulder. He gave her a gentle shake. Olivia didn’t even move, she kept her face buried in his pillow. For a long moment, she even stopped breathing. Sissy looked at her mother, “Dad! I have an idea!” She got up from the bed, disappearing into the hallway.

Sissy turned to the left, going into her own room. It wasn’t long before he could hear Olivia and Sissy’s favorite song play from her room. ‘Rockin Robin.’ They used to dance and sing to that song while Olivia was cleaning the house.

Olivia opened her eyes. She rolled over to look out the open door. “Wha—?”

Her voice was hoarse she had a hard time talking. The music grew louder as Sissy turned the volume up. For the first time in a week, he watched his wife pull the covers away from her. Her P.J’s hung off her, she was a shadow of the woman he married twenty years prior, right out of high school.

He got up following his wife down the hall, the memories of them hung up on the walls. Photos of Sissy, from day one all the way up to her senior picture. He watched her take that same turn as Sissy, she leaned against the door frame. The record spinning on the player. She watched it over, and over.

Sissy’s room remained the same. Nothing changed. She was their little cheerleader. From the time she started middle school all the way to high school. Sissy was dancing, singing. Sylvester came around to the front of Olivia. He saw her eyes closed, her head tilted listening to the music. There was a faint smile in the corner of her mouth.

“Make it louder Sissy.” Sylvester looked into their daughter's bedroom.

She turned it up.

Olivia was bopping her head to the song.

“Mommy, please open your eyes,” Sissy called from her bedroom. She still couldn’t hear them. Olivia was in her own little world, a world where everything was still normal. Even for those few minutes.

Sylvester looked at his daughter, the sun was creeping up over the trees. He went to her, taking her hand in his own. He squeezed it hard, she squeezed back. The song kept playing, over and over. “Olivia, look at us.”

She opened her eyes, looking at her husband and her daughter. An emotion neither of them could understand came over Olivia’s face.

“Are you real?” Olivia croaked.

They looked at one another, “Dear…I’m sorry. We didn’t mean to leave you like that.”

Sissy nodded, looking at her mother. “It wasn’t dad’s fault. He did everything he could to protect me. Please, you have to start living for yourself again. We came back because you were hurting.”

Olivia lowered her head, laughing to herself. “I’ve gone insane.”

“No, you haven’t mommy. We don’t want you hurting anymore.”

Sylvester picked up his daughter's hint.

“We’ve been watching you for a while now my love. It’s okay. We’re not hurting anymore.” He had the smallest of grins. “Thank you for my favorite shirt. I love it.”

Sissy grinned, “And thank you for my stuffed cat. I missed him.” She dropped the smile, “We have to go, mom. We love you.”

Olivia collapsed, staring at them. “But—”

“No buts my love. You will grow stronger every day. We will always be here in your heart.” He stopped himself from reaching out to her. It wasn’t right to give her hopes up. “You’ll see us again someday.”

Olivia, covered her face screaming. “Will I?”