The Release

This is a good day. MattY will finally be able to see the world again. It will be the first time he has been out and about for around four months now. He is stood at reception; the lady behind the counter seems to have a different look about her today. She looks happy, the place doesn’t seem so miserable today. She hands over the bag containing his valuable items. A belt, a necklace, a chain bracelet and on old iPhone 3Gs were all that the bag contained. He took the bag and did not open it, he simply placed it into the bin by the door as he left.

The doors swung open and the cloudy sky seemed to blind him as he stood there. To someone who had been allowed out for the last 4 months, today would seem like a normal dreary, dull English day, but to MattY this was blinding. Every little detail was highlighted and seemed amazing to him. The way the leaves blew in the wind, the way plastic bags were blown across the floor; it all seemed to perfect and real for him. He stood there for a moment before he was escorted to the gate.

The gate opened and MattY wasn’t sure what to expect. He hoped Cherise would be there waiting for him. The thought of this moment made him smile; he couldn’t wait to see her beautiful face again. He looked out of the gate and did not see Cherise there. Instead he saw her friend, Mykaylah. MattY looked at her and frowned, “Why are you here?” he saw that she was carrying a letter. She held it out to him and simply looked at him. At this point, all of the happiness and light that had just flooded his world drained straight out of him. He grasped the letter and turned it over, opening the back as he did so…

A solitary tear rolled down his cheek, it reached his chin and then dripped onto the letter. All the blood had drained from his face; he had nothing now. No girlfriend, no baby, no nothing.
He looked up at Mykaylah, "Why?" he croaked. He just couldn't understand why this had happened, he looked Mykaylah in the eye and could see that she was just as heartbroken as him.

MattY pulled her close to him and a few more silent tears dribbled down his face. He pulled away again and looked Myky in the eye, "but i thought she was alright... I thought she was doing well. What happened to her to suddenly decide that's it?"

MattY takes the tissue and forces a weak smile, "Okay." He wipes his eyes with the soft tissue as they walk to the cafe around the corner. It was suddenly very cold, and the sky seemed to darken around him very quickly.

MattY looks at the cigarettes and doesn't feel in the mood for them at all. He shrugged his shoulders. "They told me i was getting released; i didn't ask why, i just stayed out of the way of everyone and everything for the last few days so that nobody changed their minds."

MattY looked at Mykaylah now, "So.." he croaked, barely audible, "How did it happen?"

MattY nodded, "She finished it did she?" he smiled for the first time in a while, "Bet it's amazing." He thought for a second, "How did her FCA performance go? I bet she killed it."

MattY can feel his eyes watering, "I'm proud of her." he smiles at Mykaylah, "She is an amazing person. She must have raised so much money for that mother and baby unit. And A Concert For Angel deserves an award. I honestly can't explain how proud of her i am."

MattY couldn't look at her, he nodded. "I know it was her, she told me when she came to visit me. She wanted to hand herself in, but i wouldn't let her. She had suffered enough. At least she's with our little Angel now..." He felt another few tears slide down his damp cheeks.