November 1st has been the worst day of the year for me since I was 12. Others may think that as a kid, the 1st is the worst day because of a sugar hangover from Halloween the night before, or having school the day after. Not for me. November 1st is my birthday, and it was Andy’s as well. He was my identical twin.
Our 12th birthdays came around and we were ecstatic. I was hopefully getting a PS3 brand new, and he was hoping for a new bike he had his eye on for months, even if he couldn’t use it much before the first snowfall. He was always so athletic, and that’s why people were always surprised to find out I was the opposite, even with us having near perfect copies of each other’s personalities. I got my wish on our 12th birthday, with some extra money for Call of Duty 4, which was coming out 4 days after. He got the bike he was looking forward too, including some extra sports equipment for the school year. His last words to me were “Want to take a quick ride to tell me how she feels?” It was like he was getting a brand new car. I told him no due to my still feeling the pain from spraining my ankle the Sunday before our birthday. “Fine Matty, no need to be a wuss.” It was his favorite line to say whenever I didn’t like to do anything, even if it wasn’t something risky or scary. I told him to piss off and he said he’d be back in half an hour, before the cake was done and frosted. Andy never came home.
We found out from a police officer 4 hours later that Andy was hit in an intersection 2 miles from our house. Apparently a drunk driver ran a red light when he was crossing on his way home. The news tore our family apart, causing the divorce of my parents, and eventually driving my father to suicide 3 years later. My mother has held herself together for the past 9 years now, with the occasional drinking binge due to the memories flooding back. Neither of us have been the same since Andy died though.
Last year, on my 20th birthday, things changed however. I was sitting at home, as usual for my birthday. It was the usual binge watch stuff on netflix, hopefully not get called into work (I work for the city as a repairman), and play video games into the late night. My girlfriend was out of town at a business retreat for her part of the branch. I thought of eating the cake my mom had brought over earlier in the day, but really wasn’t feeling like eating much when I heard a crash from downstairs. I instantly thought: burglar. After grabbing the bat I kept in my closet for this reason alone, I made my way downstairs. Nothing ever really scared me before, but I knew that night the fear of possibly dying. As I was nearing the bottom of the stairs, the air in my house changed. It wasn’t like a temperature change, but more of the mood of the place became very eery, and I realized why. There was no more crashing or footsteps.
Walking into the kitchen, the place was a mess. Plates were broken on the floor, mugs were smashed, but one thing was still perfect; my cake on the counter. As I walked over to it, I realized that half of it was gone however, and there was a note on it. Still thinking of it makes me cry. “Sorry for the mess, but the bad guy is gone. I took my half of the cake, sorry for leaving the side that had less frosting. Happy birthday Matty! - A”. After reading the note, I could’ve sworn I heard a laugh and the sound of a mountain bike passing my house.
It is now my 21st birthday, and I’m leaving half of my cake on the counter for Andy this year, and will for many years to come.
-By - Accomplix
Our 12th birthdays came around and we were ecstatic. I was hopefully getting a PS3 brand new, and he was hoping for a new bike he had his eye on for months, even if he couldn’t use it much before the first snowfall. He was always so athletic, and that’s why people were always surprised to find out I was the opposite, even with us having near perfect copies of each other’s personalities. I got my wish on our 12th birthday, with some extra money for Call of Duty 4, which was coming out 4 days after. He got the bike he was looking forward too, including some extra sports equipment for the school year. His last words to me were “Want to take a quick ride to tell me how she feels?” It was like he was getting a brand new car. I told him no due to my still feeling the pain from spraining my ankle the Sunday before our birthday. “Fine Matty, no need to be a wuss.” It was his favorite line to say whenever I didn’t like to do anything, even if it wasn’t something risky or scary. I told him to piss off and he said he’d be back in half an hour, before the cake was done and frosted. Andy never came home.
We found out from a police officer 4 hours later that Andy was hit in an intersection 2 miles from our house. Apparently a drunk driver ran a red light when he was crossing on his way home. The news tore our family apart, causing the divorce of my parents, and eventually driving my father to suicide 3 years later. My mother has held herself together for the past 9 years now, with the occasional drinking binge due to the memories flooding back. Neither of us have been the same since Andy died though.
Last year, on my 20th birthday, things changed however. I was sitting at home, as usual for my birthday. It was the usual binge watch stuff on netflix, hopefully not get called into work (I work for the city as a repairman), and play video games into the late night. My girlfriend was out of town at a business retreat for her part of the branch. I thought of eating the cake my mom had brought over earlier in the day, but really wasn’t feeling like eating much when I heard a crash from downstairs. I instantly thought: burglar. After grabbing the bat I kept in my closet for this reason alone, I made my way downstairs. Nothing ever really scared me before, but I knew that night the fear of possibly dying. As I was nearing the bottom of the stairs, the air in my house changed. It wasn’t like a temperature change, but more of the mood of the place became very eery, and I realized why. There was no more crashing or footsteps.
Walking into the kitchen, the place was a mess. Plates were broken on the floor, mugs were smashed, but one thing was still perfect; my cake on the counter. As I walked over to it, I realized that half of it was gone however, and there was a note on it. Still thinking of it makes me cry. “Sorry for the mess, but the bad guy is gone. I took my half of the cake, sorry for leaving the side that had less frosting. Happy birthday Matty! - A”. After reading the note, I could’ve sworn I heard a laugh and the sound of a mountain bike passing my house.
It is now my 21st birthday, and I’m leaving half of my cake on the counter for Andy this year, and will for many years to come.
-By - Accomplix