HOME | DD

Description
     I hate my insomnia…
     The same thought rang throughout Liana’s head as she lay on her bed facing the pitch-black ceiling. She heard nothing but the muffled snoring from the twins from across the hall and the gentle hum of her fan. Liana lived in a small apartment building, which just so happened to also house her two childhood friends Devon and Aiden. It was only a couple of miles away from the University of Delaware, so they often walked to the campus together. She rolled over with a groan to take a look at her alarm clock. It was three in the morning.
     Oh that’s right, Liana silently reminded herself. Devon’s leaving today.
     Devon was the kind of guy every girl could only dream of. He was tall, handsome, intelligent, a perfect gentleman and was always grinning about something. He was pretty goofy sometimes, but that only added to his charm. It’s kind of funny; his brother is his polar opposite: cold, crude, and inconsiderate. What was also funny was her love for him. You’d think that she’d choose the kind of guy like Devon, but love is odd; you don’t get to choose the person you fall for. It’s just something that grows overtime, something that can’t be altered by anyone else’s opinions or actions.
     Devon was going to be studying abroad in France. He majored in French, but also had a minor in Spanish. His flight was scheduled to leave at 7:23 am. Since it was Saturday, Liana planned to see him off and would drag Aiden with her if necessary.
     Liana continued to toss and turn under her bed sheets as her brain was kind enough to remind her for the thirty-sixth time that she had insomnia. Did she want to go to sleep? Yes. Could she? No.
     I hate my insomnia…

     “What the- I’ve got exams to study for! Let go of me!”
     “Oh come on. I have exams to study for, too, but it wouldn’t hurt you to see your own brother off. He’s going away for a whole year!”
     “Whatever. I’ve known the guy for twenty years whether I like it or not. It’s not like he’s gonna miss me.”
     “Actually I will.”
     “Stay out of this, Devon. I’m trying to have an argument with pipsqueak over here.”
     WHACK
     “OW! JEEZ, THAT WAS MY HEAD!”
     “Really? I didn’t notice.”
     Liana stood in the doorway of the twins’ apartment, lazily leaning against wall with her arms crossed. The small Chinese girl’s long black hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore a cute red and black plaid coat that was zipped up to her chin. Aiden was hunched over in front of her, holding his throbbing blonde head in his hands. Devon peeked around his wounded brother, wearing his usual silly grin and clutching a large leather suitcase in one hand and a black bag filled with files and reports in the other. His brown hair was hidden under a woolen hat Liana had given him when they were younger.
     “We need to get going so you don’t miss your flight, Devon.” Liana returned the older boy’s smile before turning around to head for the staircase. She pulled a grumbling Aiden along by his wrist with Devon right behind them.
     “What’s the University you’re gonna be at in France called again?” Liana asked Devon as the three clamored down the cold concrete steps to the first floor of the building.
     “The University of Picardie Jules Verne,” Devon answered, putting on his best French accent.
     What a dork, Liana thought, giggling to herself as she hopped off of the last step and pushed open the glass door. Aiden, who seemed even more disgruntled than before, jammed his fists into his coat pockets as they exited their apartment building.
     The chilly autumn air quickly turned the scholars’ cheeks pink as they walked hastily along the cracked gray sidewalk. The sun was not yet out, adding to the bitterness of the cold. Dead leaves were strewn listlessly on the ground, crinkled and unmoving. Liana stared up at murky sky as she trotted alongside the boys. Not a trace if light was visible above. The only brightness was coming from the multitude of street lamps and stoplights. Silence hung thick in the brisk air, and, for some reason or other, Liana began to feel a growing uncertainty deep within her chest. Something warning her, telling her, that the bleakness of the day could only bring an abyss of sorrow.

     It had taken about an hour and a half to drive from Newark to Dover. Devon parked his sleek Corvette on the second the second floor of the parking ramp. Yes, he has a Corvette. The twins are pretty spoiled by their parents. Devon checked his watch and confirmed that it was 6:50. The three of them continued on their way to Delaware Airpark, chattering nonchalantly about their classes, grades, and other light topics. Aiden didn’t give much input to the conversation, though. He merely grunted or said a couple words in reply when he was spoken to.
     The airport was crawling with people of all different ethnicities. Many were darting in every direction as if afraid of missing their flights while other drowsy individuals shuffled about aimlessly carrying or dragging their mountains of luggage with them.
     Devon quickly moved through the line to get his luggage checked and boarded onto his flight. Afterwards, the group swiftly made their way through the mobs of people so Devon could get to where he needed to be on time. Liana wrinkled her nose as they passed a middle aged woman wearing a large fur coat and an excessive amount of strong perfume.
     At last the group reached their destination at exactly 7:15. Devon’s flight had just begun boarding, so it was a good thing they got there when they did.
     Liana sighed softly as they said their goodbyes. She missed him already, and he hadn’t even left yet.
     “Au revoir ma chou. Je t’aime,” Devon whispered to her in French and bent down to kiss her hand. Liana’s smile turned bittersweet as she gave him a quick hug. Both of them ignored the furious glare they were receiving from Aiden. She knew that au revoir meant goodbye, but she didn’t know what the last word meant. She decided to just ask him when he got back from France. Devon moved from Liana to his brother, holding out his hand.
     “Get going, lover boy,” Aiden grumbled moodily, but accepted Devon’s extended hand. Devon chuckled lightly at his brother’s usual rotten mood, and Aiden’s expression softened ever so slightly before returning to its permanent scowl.
     “Don’t forget to call us when you get there,” Liana reminded Devon as she watched the two boys say their farewells.
     “Mhm I know. Well… I’m off.” Devon’s goofy grin returned to his face. He left them briskly to board the plane to France. Liana and Aiden stood there for a few moments, their shoulders just barely touching. Without a word, Aiden hastily turned around and strode off, Liana running to catch up with him.

     “Why are you still here?”
     “Because I’m bored when I’m alone. And you know you can’t cook dinner by yourself.”
     “Yeah but you’ve been in my apartment all afternoon. Go study or whatever in your own room.”
     WHACK
     “OW! MY HEAD!”
     Aiden was having a strong sense of déjà vu as he crouched over holding his head in his hands. Him and Liana were lounging on the couch in their living room watching TV and studying for their exams on Monday. Biology textbooks and papers were strewn all over the small coffee table and carpet. Liana was flipping through the thick textbook she had just used to hit Aiden’s head with.
     Both Liana and Aiden were biology majors and attended some of the same classes. Aiden had this habit of sitting wherever he had a clear aim of Liana so he could toss crumpled paper and pencil lead at her whenever the professor had his back turned. What was this? Junior high? Seriously.
     “Ugh, fine. Then make yourself useful and actually start dinner. I’m starving…”
     “What am I, your maid?”
     “But you just said-”
     “Yeah, yeah, I’m on it,” Liana mumbled, setting down the book and heading off for the kitchen. She poked through the refrigerator for a few minutes, but didn’t have much luck finding anything to work with. There was some moldy cheese jammed into the side of the door, a half empty jug of expired milk, and about a thousand other things that were gross and inedible. Liana really hoped they hadn’t tried eating any of this.
     “Hey Aiden, is there anything in the fridge that isn’t disgusting?” she called out to him.
     No response.
     “Hey!”
     Still no response.
     “Are you listening to me?” Liana huffed, shutting the refrigerator door and shuffling into the living room. Aiden was staring at the TV screen, speechless. His mouth was hanging open and the channel changer had slipped out of his trembling hand.
     “… I repeat, an airplane leaving from the Delaware Airpark that was destined for Marseille Provence Airport in France was caught in a storm while flying over the Atlantic. The flight left early this morning at approximately 7:30. One of the wings had apparently been struck by lightning and sent it crashing into the ocean. There are no confirmed survivors…”
     Liana completely tuned out the rest of what the news anchor was saying. That was, no doubt, the plane Devon had been on.
     “You’ve got to be kidding me…” Aiden murmured.
     “Th-that’s some kind of joke, right? They’re not serious… are they?” Liana whispered, feeling hot tears well up in her eyes. This couldn’t be happening. Devon couldn’t be gone, not when he had his whole life ahead of him. He was supposed to finish college and graduate. He was supposed to become a French teacher like he had always dreamt of being. He supposed to marry, have kids, live a nice, quiet life…
     Liana snapped back to reality when she heard Aiden punch the coffee table, which groaned under the weight of his fist. “I only wish it was a joke, Liana…” His voice quavered when he spoke. He snatched the channel changer from the floor and switched off the TV.
     Liana shook her head slightly, tears spilling out of her eyes and rolling down her cheeks. Devon was like the older brother she never had. He had been there for so many times… what was she supposed to do without him? She slowly sank to her knees in the kitchen doorway, allowing the tears to keep flowing from her eyes and drip steadily onto the carpet like rain.
     Suddenly, she felt a pair of strong, comforting arms wrap around her and hug her tightly, securely, as if trying to ease the growing pain in her chest. Liana clung to Aiden as if her very life depended on it, sobbing into his broad chest. Her shoulder soon became damp and she realized, for the first time in years, the man she had always loved was crying for his lost brother.

     There were no survivors. It was confirmed the next day that everyone on that airplane had died. A couple of weeks later after the crash, Devon’s funeral was finally held. Nothing could comfort his sorrowful family members and friends as they mourned the death of their loved one. Devon had touched the lives of so many, it just didn’t seem possible that a wonderful person like him could have met such a tragic end. Seconds crawled by like hours, like days, until finally weeping individuals and clusters of mourners dispersed from Devon’s new grave. Even his parents had already left, leaving Liana and Aiden standing alone in the cemetery.
     “He was a real idiot, wasn’t he?” Aiden’s voice broke through the silence. He earned a death glare from Liana.
     “The only idiot is you…” she muttered, gazing at the tombstone and the plethora of flowers that surrounded it. Aiden sighed softly, wiping away fresh tears in her eyes.
     “You know Devon wouldn’t want us to constantly mope around because of him,” he told her quietly.
     Liana was a bit surprised by the compassion he was showing, and she smiled bitterly and nodded her head. “I know. But the tears just keep coming.”
     “Then maybe remembering all the good times we had with him will cheer you up,” Aiden said, his hand still lingering by her cheek. “How about that time me and him tried to make a cake for you when you were turning eight years old?”
     Liana gagged. “That was the most putrid thing I ever ate in my life…”
     Aiden looked offended. “Well, then, remember the time you had a party at your house in ninth grade when your parents weren’t home and didn’t invite us?”
     “Oh yeah. You guys found out and totally crashed it.”
     “Good times, good times…”
     WHACK
     “OW! Jeez, I’m trying to help, you know!”
     Liana giggled for the first time in weeks. “Hey, remember the time you and Devon fought in second grade over who would get to marry me?”
     “Wh-what? I don’t remember that at all!” Aiden lied, blushing furiously.
     Liana sighed, turning back to Devon’s tombstone. She felt the gloominess seep back in as silence once again settled into the air.
     “Liana, do you know what the last thing Devon said to you was?” Aiden asked her gently.
     Liana shook her head. “I know the first part meant goodbye, but I still don’t know what the last part meant.”
     Aiden smiled ever so slightly. “He said he loved you.”
     Liana’s dark eyes widened in surprise and her gaze flickered back over to the sandy haired boy next to her. Aiden’s expression became somewhat pained as they looked at each other.
     “You loved him, too, didn’t you?”
     She nodded slightly, leaning forward to rest her head against his chest. “Of course I did. He was like a brother to me.” Liana felt him exhale the breath he had involuntarily holding in.
     “Worried you there, didn’t I?” she teased him quietly, poking him in the side. Aiden chuckled.
     “You got me.”

     Ten years flew by like a breeze. Liana and Aiden both moved from being biology majors to studying medicine. Liana became a nurse while Aiden became a doctor. A couple of years after they graduated, they moved to Guinea, Africa and opened up a small medical clinic together: Malone Medical Clinic. It was named after their last name.
     “I’m exhausted…” Liana complained, standing in front of the mirror in the bathroom and brushing her sleek black hair.
     “Hm, same here,” Aiden replied, laying in bed and reading a thick novel. “Make sure you get plenty of rest, Liana. We both want our little one to be born strong and healthy.”
     Liana smiled and rubbed her swollen stomach affectionately. “I know,” she chirped. “How about we go through names again. If it’s a girl…”
     “…we name her Emma,” Aiden finished for her, grinning and placing a bookmark between the pages of his novel. “And what about if it’s a boy?”
     Liana looked thoughtful for a few seconds before setting down her hairbrush and readjusting the diamond ring on her left hand. “How about… Devon.”

Description
     I hate my insomnia…
     The same thought rang throughout Liana’s head as she lay on her bed facing the pitch-black ceiling. She heard nothing but the muffled snoring from the twins from across the hall and the gentle hum of her fan. Liana lived in a small apartment building, which just so happened to also house her two childhood friends Devon and Aiden. It was only a couple of miles away from the University of Delaware, so they often walked to the campus together. She rolled over with a groan to take a look at her alarm clock. It was three in the morning.
     Oh that’s right, Liana silently reminded herself. Devon’s leaving today.
     Devon was the kind of guy every girl could only dream of. He was tall, handsome, intelligent, a perfect gentleman and was always grinning about something. He was pretty goofy sometimes, but that only added to his charm. It’s kind of funny; his brother is his polar opposite: cold, crude, and inconsiderate. What was also funny was her love for him. You’d think that she’d choose the kind of guy like Devon, but love is odd; you don’t get to choose the person you fall for. It’s just something that grows overtime, something that can’t be altered by anyone else’s opinions or actions.
     Devon was going to be studying abroad in France. He majored in French, but also had a minor in Spanish. His flight was scheduled to leave at 7:23 am. Since it was Saturday, Liana planned to see him off and would drag Aiden with her if necessary.
     Liana continued to toss and turn under her bed sheets as her brain was kind enough to remind her for the thirty-sixth time that she had insomnia. Did she want to go to sleep? Yes. Could she? No.
     I hate my insomnia…

     “What the- I’ve got exams to study for! Let go of me!”
     “Oh come on. I have exams to study for, too, but it wouldn’t hurt you to see your own brother off. He’s going away for a whole year!”
     “Whatever. I’ve known the guy for twenty years whether I like it or not. It’s not like he’s gonna miss me.”
     “Actually I will.”
     “Stay out of this, Devon. I’m trying to have an argument with pipsqueak over here.”
     WHACK
     “OW! JEEZ, THAT WAS MY HEAD!”
     “Really? I didn’t notice.”
     Liana stood in the doorway of the twins’ apartment, lazily leaning against wall with her arms crossed. The small Chinese girl’s long black hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she wore a cute red and black plaid coat that was zipped up to her chin. Aiden was hunched over in front of her, holding his throbbing blonde head in his hands. Devon peeked around his wounded brother, wearing his usual silly grin and clutching a large leather suitcase in one hand and a black bag filled with files and reports in the other. His brown hair was hidden under a woolen hat Liana had given him when they were younger.
     “We need to get going so you don’t miss your flight, Devon.” Liana returned the older boy’s smile before turning around to head for the staircase. She pulled a grumbling Aiden along by his wrist with Devon right behind them.
     “What’s the University you’re gonna be at in France called again?” Liana asked Devon as the three clamored down the cold concrete steps to the first floor of the building.
     “The University of Picardie Jules Verne,” Devon answered, putting on his best French accent.
     What a dork, Liana thought, giggling to herself as she hopped off of the last step and pushed open the glass door. Aiden, who seemed even more disgruntled than before, jammed his fists into his coat pockets as they exited their apartment building.
     The chilly autumn air quickly turned the scholars’ cheeks pink as they walked hastily along the cracked gray sidewalk. The sun was not yet out, adding to the bitterness of the cold. Dead leaves were strewn listlessly on the ground, crinkled and unmoving. Liana stared up at murky sky as she trotted alongside the boys. Not a trace if light was visible above. The only brightness was coming from the multitude of street lamps and stoplights. Silence hung thick in the brisk air, and, for some reason or other, Liana began to feel a growing uncertainty deep within her chest. Something warning her, telling her, that the bleakness of the day could only bring an abyss of sorrow.

     It had taken about an hour and a half to drive from Newark to Dover. Devon parked his sleek Corvette on the second the second floor of the parking ramp. Yes, he has a Corvette. The twins are pretty spoiled by their parents. Devon checked his watch and confirmed that it was 6:50. The three of them continued on their way to Delaware Airpark, chattering nonchalantly about their classes, grades, and other light topics. Aiden didn’t give much input to the conversation, though. He merely grunted or said a couple words in reply when he was spoken to.
     The airport was crawling with people of all different ethnicities. Many were darting in every direction as if afraid of missing their flights while other drowsy individuals shuffled about aimlessly carrying or dragging their mountains of luggage with them.
     Devon quickly moved through the line to get his luggage checked and boarded onto his flight. Afterwards, the group swiftly made their way through the mobs of people so Devon could get to where he needed to be on time. Liana wrinkled her nose as they passed a middle aged woman wearing a large fur coat and an excessive amount of strong perfume.
     At last the group reached their destination at exactly 7:15. Devon’s flight had just begun boarding, so it was a good thing they got there when they did.
     Liana sighed softly as they said their goodbyes. She missed him already, and he hadn’t even left yet.
     “Au revoir ma chou. Je t’aime,” Devon whispered to her in French and bent down to kiss her hand. Liana’s smile turned bittersweet as she gave him a quick hug. Both of them ignored the furious glare they were receiving from Aiden. She knew that au revoir meant goodbye, but she didn’t know what the last word meant. She decided to just ask him when he got back from France. Devon moved from Liana to his brother, holding out his hand.
     “Get going, lover boy,” Aiden grumbled moodily, but accepted Devon’s extended hand. Devon chuckled lightly at his brother’s usual rotten mood, and Aiden’s expression softened ever so slightly before returning to its permanent scowl.
     “Don’t forget to call us when you get there,” Liana reminded Devon as she watched the two boys say their farewells.
     “Mhm I know. Well… I’m off.” Devon’s goofy grin returned to his face. He left them briskly to board the plane to France. Liana and Aiden stood there for a few moments, their shoulders just barely touching. Without a word, Aiden hastily turned around and strode off, Liana running to catch up with him.

     “Why are you still here?”
     “Because I’m bored when I’m alone. And you know you can’t cook dinner by yourself.”
     “Yeah but you’ve been in my apartment all afternoon. Go study or whatever in your own room.”
     WHACK
     “OW! MY HEAD!”
     Aiden was having a strong sense of déjà vu as he crouched over holding his head in his hands. Him and Liana were lounging on the couch in their living room watching TV and studying for their exams on Monday. Biology textbooks and papers were strewn all over the small coffee table and carpet. Liana was flipping through the thick textbook she had just used to hit Aiden’s head with.
     Both Liana and Aiden were biology majors and attended some of the same classes. Aiden had this habit of sitting wherever he had a clear aim of Liana so he could toss crumpled paper and pencil lead at her whenever the professor had his back turned. What was this? Junior high? Seriously.
     “Ugh, fine. Then make yourself useful and actually start dinner. I’m starving…”
     “What am I, your maid?”
     “But you just said-”
     “Yeah, yeah, I’m on it,” Liana mumbled, setting down the book and heading off for the kitchen. She poked through the refrigerator for a few minutes, but didn’t have much luck finding anything to work with. There was some moldy cheese jammed into the side of the door, a half empty jug of expired milk, and about a thousand other things that were gross and inedible. Liana really hoped they hadn’t tried eating any of this.
     “Hey Aiden, is there anything in the fridge that isn’t disgusting?” she called out to him.
     No response.
     “Hey!”
     Still no response.
     “Are you listening to me?” Liana huffed, shutting the refrigerator door and shuffling into the living room. Aiden was staring at the TV screen, speechless. His mouth was hanging open and the channel changer had slipped out of his trembling hand.
     “… I repeat, an airplane leaving from the Delaware Airpark that was destined for Marseille Provence Airport in France was caught in a storm while flying over the Atlantic. The flight left early this morning at approximately 7:30. One of the wings had apparently been struck by lightning and sent it crashing into the ocean. There are no confirmed survivors…”
     Liana completely tuned out the rest of what the news anchor was saying. That was, no doubt, the plane Devon had been on.
     “You’ve got to be kidding me…” Aiden murmured.
     “Th-that’s some kind of joke, right? They’re not serious… are they?” Liana whispered, feeling hot tears well up in her eyes. This couldn’t be happening. Devon couldn’t be gone, not when he had his whole life ahead of him. He was supposed to finish college and graduate. He was supposed to become a French teacher like he had always dreamt of being. He supposed to marry, have kids, live a nice, quiet life…
     Liana snapped back to reality when she heard Aiden punch the coffee table, which groaned under the weight of his fist. “I only wish it was a joke, Liana…” His voice quavered when he spoke. He snatched the channel changer from the floor and switched off the TV.
     Liana shook her head slightly, tears spilling out of her eyes and rolling down her cheeks. Devon was like the older brother she never had. He had been there for so many times… what was she supposed to do without him? She slowly sank to her knees in the kitchen doorway, allowing the tears to keep flowing from her eyes and drip steadily onto the carpet like rain.
     Suddenly, she felt a pair of strong, comforting arms wrap around her and hug her tightly, securely, as if trying to ease the growing pain in her chest. Liana clung to Aiden as if her very life depended on it, sobbing into his broad chest. Her shoulder soon became damp and she realized, for the first time in years, the man she had always loved was crying for his lost brother.

     There were no survivors. It was confirmed the next day that everyone on that airplane had died. A couple of weeks later after the crash, Devon’s funeral was finally held. Nothing could comfort his sorrowful family members and friends as they mourned the death of their loved one. Devon had touched the lives of so many, it just didn’t seem possible that a wonderful person like him could have met such a tragic end. Seconds crawled by like hours, like days, until finally weeping individuals and clusters of mourners dispersed from Devon’s new grave. Even his parents had already left, leaving Liana and Aiden standing alone in the cemetery.
     “He was a real idiot, wasn’t he?” Aiden’s voice broke through the silence. He earned a death glare from Liana.
     “The only idiot is you…” she muttered, gazing at the tombstone and the plethora of flowers that surrounded it. Aiden sighed softly, wiping away fresh tears in her eyes.
     “You know Devon wouldn’t want us to constantly mope around because of him,” he told her quietly.
     Liana was a bit surprised by the compassion he was showing, and she smiled bitterly and nodded her head. “I know. But the tears just keep coming.”
     “Then maybe remembering all the good times we had with him will cheer you up,” Aiden said, his hand still lingering by her cheek. “How about that time me and him tried to make a cake for you when you were turning eight years old?”
     Liana gagged. “That was the most putrid thing I ever ate in my life…”
     Aiden looked offended. “Well, then, remember the time you had a party at your house in ninth grade when your parents weren’t home and didn’t invite us?”
     “Oh yeah. You guys found out and totally crashed it.”
     “Good times, good times…”
     WHACK
     “OW! Jeez, I’m trying to help, you know!”
     Liana giggled for the first time in weeks. “Hey, remember the time you and Devon fought in second grade over who would get to marry me?”
     “Wh-what? I don’t remember that at all!” Aiden lied, blushing furiously.
     Liana sighed, turning back to Devon’s tombstone. She felt the gloominess seep back in as silence once again settled into the air.
     “Liana, do you know what the last thing Devon said to you was?” Aiden asked her gently.
     Liana shook her head. “I know the first part meant goodbye, but I still don’t know what the last part meant.”
     Aiden smiled ever so slightly. “He said he loved you.”
     Liana’s dark eyes widened in surprise and her gaze flickered back over to the sandy haired boy next to her. Aiden’s expression became somewhat pained as they looked at each other.
     “You loved him, too, didn’t you?”
     She nodded slightly, leaning forward to rest her head against his chest. “Of course I did. He was like a brother to me.” Liana felt him exhale the breath he had involuntarily holding in.
     “Worried you there, didn’t I?” she teased him quietly, poking him in the side. Aiden chuckled.
     “You got me.”

     Ten years flew by like a breeze. Liana and Aiden both moved from being biology majors to studying medicine. Liana became a nurse while Aiden became a doctor. A couple of years after they graduated, they moved to Guinea, Africa and opened up a small medical clinic together: Malone Medical Clinic. It was named after their last name.
     “I’m exhausted…” Liana complained, standing in front of the mirror in the bathroom and brushing her sleek black hair.
     “Hm, same here,” Aiden replied, laying in bed and reading a thick novel. “Make sure you get plenty of rest, Liana. We both want our little one to be born strong and healthy.”
     Liana smiled and rubbed her swollen stomach affectionately. “I know,” she chirped. “How about we go through names again. If it’s a girl…”
     “…we name her Emma,” Aiden finished for her, grinning and placing a bookmark between the pages of his novel. “And what about if it’s a boy?”
     Liana looked thoughtful for a few seconds before setting down her hairbrush and readjusting the diamond ring on her left hand. “How about… Devon.”