Steele Dreams

Leena sat in the sound booth with Peter and Josh. Peter had pulled her chair next to his and had his hand resting on her jean clad thigh. They were talking about the track and the best layout for the band.

Her eyes kept straying to where Aleera sat, all by herself. Would it help to tell her that she knows how it feels to be in her shoes?

Her parent's had died when she was 7 years old. Leena and Jack were raised by their grandparent's. They helped Leena get over her fear of being in a car, and tried in vain to ease her broken heart.

She blamed their death's on herself, it was her fault her parent's were out in the middle of a thunder storm, if she hadn't been sick then they would have been alive. They were on their way to the hospital when a drunk driver smashed into their car head on. Leena was the only one to survive. Despite her being sick, she still insisted to her parent's that they buckle up and neither listened. She only survived because her seat belt was on.

When she was 10 her grandmother died. After two years of mourning for his wife of 50 years, her grandfather began to see other women. Most were a lot younger than him and only after him for his money.

Leena saw right through them just as Aleera saw right through Peter's numerous "girlfriends". She remembered how hurt her grandfather was by their betrayal.

When her grandfather brought home Sarah Tanner it was to stay. That didn't please Leena at all. She assumed Sarah was just like the other's and treated her horribly. Until the time came when Leena was stranded out in the middle of the city by her then ex Kevin.

She called home crying and begged for someone to come get her.

Half an hour later her grandfather's car pulled up, but it wasn't her grandfather.. it was Sarah, her hair still in curlers and a mud mask on her face. During the long drive home they talked, the anger and confusion Leena felt melted away.

Her grandfather and brother came home that night and found the two with curlers in their hair and mud on their faces eating ice cream and talking like old friends. Life was never the same. It was better.

That's what she wants for Aleera. To show her that she wasn't like the money hungry women in her father's past. She was better and wanted to be in both of their lives and she wanted them to be in her's, but that would take time.

She had all the time in the world, not a minute of it was going to be wasted.