Last Hope | Teen Ink

Last Hope

April 18, 2013
By Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes


I was sitting in a rocking chair on my grandparents' front porch, rocking in it and watching the world go by. I was enjoying the gentle evening breeze and the faint birdsong when the phone in my pocket rang. I pulled it out and looked at the caller I.D. It showed the picture of a teenage girl. She had thick blond hair that just barely touched her shoulders and bright blue eyes. A wide smile split her face, showing white teeth and braces. The name under the picture was Eve.
I answered it with a smile. "Hey, Eve. What's up?"
"Nothing. I just wanted to talk."
As soon as Eve said that, i knew that something was wrong. Eve's voice is normally bright, cheerful, and full of life. But then it thin, weak, and it wavered slightly, the way it does when Eve has been crying.
"Eve?" I asked, my voice full of worry. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing." Eve repeated. I just wanted to talk."
I knew that Eve was lying and trying to change the subject, and I decided to go along with it.
"Okay, then what do you want to talk about?"
"Your day?"
"My day has been pretty good. I didn't care much for the eight hour car drive, but the rest of the day has been good. We got here about one, and we've had a good time since."
"Good." Eve said.
"Eve, what's wrong?" I asked, my voice gentle.
"Nothing." Eve told me.
"Please stop lying to me." I told her firmly.
Eve didn't reply, so I thought that she was gone.
"My day has been horrible." Eve finally said. "I don't even know where to start. With school, or with home, or with the beach."
"Go in order." I suggested. "Start with school."
"I got attacked." Eve said softly.
"What?!"
"Calm down, Jack." Eve said. "I just got beat up."
I was speechless for several seconds. "What do you mean?" I finally managed to say.
"I have a black eye and a busted lip."
"Okay." I said as I managed to control my anger.
"Home......" Eve's voice trailed off, but I knew what she meant. As amazing as Eve was, her family was not. They ignored Eve whenever possible, so they probably hadn't even asked what was wrong with her. I could hear Eve's breathing pattern change, and realized that she was about to start crying.
"What happened at the beach?" I asked quickly.
"All of my stuff was stolen." Eve whispered. "I was surfing, so all I had left was my bathing suit and surfboard. I lost my keys, my wallet, my phone....." Eve began to cry.
I felt terrible. I wished that I was with Eve, and that I could comfort her. "It's okay, Eve." I said, wishing I could do more.
"No it's not." Eve sobbed. "My world feels like it's collapsing. I just want it to end."
"You won't do anything stupid, right Eve?" I said, my voice laced with fear. "Eve, answer me. You won't do anything stupid, will you?" My voice broke slightly at the end.
"Yes. No. I don't know, Jack." Eve nearly screamed.
"I'll be back in three days." I said in what I hoped was a soothing voice. "Just three days. See you then?"
"Yeah." Eve said. "Bye."
Eve hung up, but I was sure that I heard her whisper, "I hope." I sat in the rocking chair, thinking. I had stopped rocking. "Eve's smart." I murmured to myself. "She wouldn't do anything stupid."

Three days later, I walked up to Eve's front door. I hesitated for a moment, then knocked. Eve's mother opened the door.
"Hi, Jack." She said, smiling. "Did you have fun at your grandparents house?" Eve's mother looks like Eve, just a little bit taller and older.
"Hello. Is Eve here?"
Eve's mother laughed. "She's in her room." Eve's mother stepped out of the way, and I saw her roll her eyes as I walked in and headed up to Eve's room.
I knocked on the door, and heard nothing. "Eve?" I called. "Are you in there?" I heard something rattle, and I pushed the door open in time to see Eve put a small, white bottle to her lips. "Eve!" I yelled. I closed the gap between us in two giant steps and knocked the bottle of pills out of Eve's hand.
"Nick!" She screamed at me as pills in various sizes and colors covered the floor. "Why did you do that?" Tears were streaming down her face. "I needed those! The doctor told me to take them!"
I seized on of the other pills bottles that covered Eve's nightstand. "This is an allergy medicine. You don't have an allergies that this would treat."
I stared into Eve's blue eyes, which were full of tears. "Why?" I asked in a much softer voice. "Why would you try to kill yourself?"
Eve shook her head. She was still standing.
"Did you swallow any?"
Eve shook her head again. I walked over to her and wrapped my arms around her. Eve rested her head on my shoulder and cried. I held her like that for several minutes until she broke free and sat on the edge of her bed. I sat next to her. "You'll be alright, Eve." I told her.
Eve leaned against me. I did nothing, and she grabbed my wrist, then pulled my arm around her shoulders. I put my other arm around her as Eve kept crying. Five minutes later, Eve's head lolled down to my chest, her breathing slowed, and her body went limp in my arms. My breath froze, and I looked down at Eve, my blood icy with terror. Had she swallowed pills?
Eve's hair was covered her face, and I brushed it aside. Eve's face was much more peaceful than it had been before, and her chest slowly rose and fell. I breathed a sigh of relief as I realized that Eve was asleep. I stood up and gently laid Eve out on her bed.
"Jack." She said drowsily just before I left. "Come back. Please."
I went back over to Eve's bed and sat next to her. "You need to sleep." I told her. "Your eyes aren't just black because you got hurt. You haven't been getting enough sleep."
Eve blinked slowly. "What do you think of me now?" She murmured.
"What do you mean?"
"Before I fall asleep. I want to know what you think of me now."
"I think of you the same way." I told her truthfully.
"Then what did you think of me before?"
I swallowed. "You need sleep." I told her again. Eve laughed slightly. "I have enough time to sleep." She murmured.
"I think that you're beautiful." I told her. "And smart and bright and cheerful and full of life. You're one of the most amazing people that I've ever met."
Eve smiled as her eyes closed. "Anything else? She asked.
I brushed some of the hair away from Eve's face. I don't know why I kept doing that. "I think I may love you." I whispered.
"I love you too, Jack." Eve whispered. Her body relaxed as what I thought had been sleep over came her. I leaned forward and gently kissed Eve's forehead. And I decided that I did love Eve.

Two days later, I got the news. I had been too busy to go to Eve's house because we had been helping a friend move. I went to her house and her mother opened the door. When I asked for Eve, she shook her head. "She's gone." Eve's mother whispered. "She died of an overdose two days ago. It must have been just after you left."
I felt dizzy and weak. I leaned against the door frame. "What?" I whispered. "What did she take?"
"She drank an entire bottle of some kind of sleep medicine."
Tears began to leak from my eyes.
"There was a note." Eve's mother added. She left for a second, then returned with a piece of paper, which she handed me. I read it.

Jack, I'm sorry that I did this. I wish that I had waited, because your love was my last hope. I love you. Eve.

I dropped the paper and walked away from Eve's house. I never wanted to go there again. And I never wanted to love again, either. And I never would



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JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 17 comments.


on Jun. 22 2013 at 9:31 am
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Thanks, Jade!

on Jun. 21 2013 at 11:22 pm
Jade.I.Am ELITE, Fishers, Indiana
214 articles 14 photos 1159 comments

Favorite Quote:
“If you're losing your soul and you know it, then you've still got a soul left to lose”
― Charles Bukowski

Very heartfelt and well-written. Great job, I love it! 5/5

on Jun. 9 2013 at 3:59 pm
JesikahW78 GOLD, Ogden, Utah
18 articles 7 photos 19 comments
Dont worry about that...good job.

on Jun. 8 2013 at 7:10 pm
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Thanks, JRBs. Sorry I made you cry...

on Jun. 8 2013 at 6:46 pm
JesikahW78 GOLD, Ogden, Utah
18 articles 7 photos 19 comments
This left me crying...Its bittersweet...Amazing Job Dragon.

on Jun. 8 2013 at 6:13 pm
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Thanks!      

on Jun. 8 2013 at 12:48 pm
KenyaLove41 GOLD, Dallas, Texas
16 articles 0 photos 84 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Day, n. A period of twenty-four hours, mostly misspent." ~Ambrose Bierce
"Nothing is Impossible, the word itself says 'I'm Possible!'" ~ Audrey Hepburn
"Good writing is only bad writing revised"~ Unknown

Hey there! So,I'm sorry about taking a while to get you your feedback but I'm here now. Okay, so I enjoyed the overall ideas of the story but I did notice somethings. like None0 said the story was written with a lot of "passive voice" which is bacisally the over use of "to be" verbs. this really slwos down the pace of the story and makes it boring to read. For example, the first sentence. "I was sitting in a rocking chair onmy grandparents' fron porch, rocking in it  and watching the world go by."  This is a very passive sentence like the action is being done to the narrator instead o the narrator doing the action. So, the sentence can be changed to "I sat in a rocking chair on my grandparents' front porch..."  Things like this will make the story go much faster. Now on a more broader view of the story. The voice of the narrator, Jack felt very awkward and choppy, making it hard for me to relate to him. I suggest reading the piece out loud so you can see how the story flows. Another thing was Eve's death at the end seemed more sudden than surprising. I think that the reader needs to be lulled into more of a sense of relief that yes Eve is okay but then she kills herself anyways. that was it's more heartbreaking and surprising. Anyway, that's all I have for now(:

on Jun. 3 2013 at 7:31 pm
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Okay, thanks!

None0 BRONZE said...
on Jun. 3 2013 at 7:28 pm
None0 BRONZE, Bellevue, Washington
2 articles 0 photos 96 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Believe in the ideal, not the idol." - Serra

The overall language and description of the piece was very good. The content I won't judge, since I'm not qualified for emotional pieces. The only real thing I'd fix would be the flow of the piece. You tend to use statements with "was", or "had", a lot, which makes each sentence feel like it's trying to express a separate idea, instead of having multiple related ideas flow into each other. Altering the sentences to get rid of the "to be" verbs should help.

on May. 28 2013 at 2:21 pm
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Thank you!

on May. 28 2013 at 10:15 am
E.J.Mathews GOLD, International Falls, Minnesota
19 articles 2 photos 145 comments
This piece was very powerful, and full of emotion. I loved the imagery you held, and the story was very touching. Great job.

on May. 27 2013 at 12:44 pm
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Okay.. thank you for the comment! Also, Jack and Eve were just friends.

PhoebeB GOLD said...
on May. 27 2013 at 11:08 am
PhoebeB GOLD, Lexington, Massachusetts
10 articles 0 photos 26 comments

Favorite Quote:
"Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent."
-Victor Hugo

Awww. I feel like I might cry now. I loved how the character's relationship was such a prominent factor in the story's outcome. I thought it was very smart how you had Eve fall asleep, and the last thing that Eve heard before she died was how much Jack loved her. The story gave me this almost star-crossed lovers feeling, which was remorse-filled yet beautiful. My only criticisms are very technical. I found your writing to have several problems with flow at the beginning of the story. For example the description of Eve at the beginning did not read well for me. A little bit of strategic alliteration could have helped you in that spot. The other thing that could have been better was the introduction of Jack and Eve's relationship. Until the last few paragraphs in the story, I  had no idea that Jack and Eve were a couple. I had assumed that they were teenage friends of some description. In order to solve this, you could explain that Jack is Eve's boyfriend during the description of Eve in the first paragraph of the story. Other than those little things, the story was fine. The concept was very complex and beautifully carried out. Congrats on your story here! I hope to see more of your work soon... it as SUPAH good!!

on May. 24 2013 at 1:21 pm
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Thank you!

OldYoungOne said...
on May. 24 2013 at 12:00 pm
Well I could feel what the theme was but I think it didn't slow as much as it should have. I think the details took away from the story to the point I was too hard trying to imagine the whole scene. I think if I had a better understanding of who Eve was in the beginning of the story then I could have probably connected with the character more. That's it! I needed some more insight to the characters that was what was blocking me from the emotion you were  trying to convey. The ending kind of brought more a saddness and the quick transformation, in my opinion didn't serve well. The Nick thing mistake you obviously knew of before hand and that's all I can say about any typing mistakes. I believe you could develop this story more and make it completely awesome. There is potential into making it a great book. Keep writing and developing your style

on May. 18 2013 at 6:03 pm
Wings10FeetTall GOLD, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
17 articles 0 photos 332 comments

Favorite Quote:
May your words be sharp.
- Christopher Paolini


Nobody's going to wait for you, so do it now.
-Ingrid Michaelson


Broken hearts heal, but never the same.
- Jessica Romo

Idiots rely on luck.
-Sherlock Holmes

Gahh!!!!! I meant Jack. Thank you for the reveiw. Also, Lexus, I think that you would make a great editor. 

on May. 18 2013 at 4:52 pm
LexusMarie PLATINUM, Las Cruces, New Mexico
27 articles 0 photos 423 comments

Favorite Quote:
The more control you have over yourself, the less control others have over you.

Hey Andy! Wow! This was so powerful and filled with remorse. It was a bit over-whelming when I got to the end. I got very attached to Jack and Eve, I really felt like I understood them as people, they were no longer characters in a fiction story for me, but real people. It was like a movie. It reminded me of my poem '$50 Cologne' with the ending. I was angry about the fact that Eve's parents didn't care about her and how non-chalantly her mom was about telling Jack she had died. It made me very sad, because I really connected with Jack and Eve and I felt Jack's pain. I thought was a deep and sad story. Great job! (Oh, at one point you used the name 'Nick' when Eve was talking. Did you mean to put Jack or is Nick someone else?)