BEEP. BEEEP. BEEEEP. BEEEE- I slammed my fist down on the snooze button on the alarm clock. Nestled deep under my covers, my eyelids struggled to open. I pulled the covers back and was assaulted by the blinding morning sun streaming through a crack in the curtains covering my window. I hissed and closed my eyes, covering my face. Pain. So much pain. Pulling the cover over my head again, I wondered what I had done to make God curse me for this terrible start of the day. It’s too early for waking up.
Gathering the strength to rise again, I slid off my bed and stood, followed by the creaking of the old bed. I pulled the cover over my head and walked blindly around the room. Tripping over clothes and miscellaneous items on the floor. “Ah hell!” I screamed. I had hit my toe on the corner my dresser. I fell to my knees and held my foot, throbbing with pain. Rocking back and forth, I whined to myself and cursed my dresser. I glare up at it. The traitor, you’d think you knew someone. One day their holding your clothes, the next they try to break you big toe.
The creak of my bedroom door made me look up. I looked over to see my grand-dad peeking into my room with a worried expression.
“Everything okay in here, dear?” pop asked, looking me up and down, checking the room. I smiled and shrugged. I guess I was being too loud. He shook his head and opened my door more, walking in and sitting on my bed. Watching him walk, I noticed he was favoring his left leg more. His limp must be back. I furrowed my brow a little, worried. He noticed my look and waved his hand at me.
“Don’t worry about me, my leg is just feeling a bit weak today. Nothing I can’t bounce back from”, he reassured. I stood up and walked over to him. He reached up and ruffled my wavy locks and smiled sweetly at me. “Now don’t you think it’s about time you should be getting ready for school? It’s your first day, afterall.”
My head snapped toward the alarm clock and my gazed zoned in on the red numbers. 7:10. Crap, I’m gonna be late if I don’t start getting ready now! My body sprung into action, racing out my room into the adjuring bathroom. Pop’s laugh trailed after me. Stripping quickly, I turned on the water in the shower and hopped in. The soothing warm water fell to my skin, cleansing physically and down in my soul. It felt so good to take a shower in the morning and to wash away the grime from the night before. But, sadly, I couldn’t stay for long. I was gonna be late for school. Washing quickly, I rinsed and jumped out of the shower. Grabbing a towel off the nearby shelf, I quickly dried.
Looking up into the mirror, I stared at my image, blurred by the steam from the shower. Wavy, brown hair, that barely came to touch my shoulders shaped around my simple face and fell into my pale green eyes. My slender female body, just hinted at my femininity. My hands came up to rest on my chest. “Nothing there”, I thought to myself.
I raised my arm and touched my face. My skin was the color cinnamon like my mother. But my green eyes came from my dad. I frowned a little just thinking about my parents. An empty feeling started to fill me.
I shook my head. No, I won’t think about them.
I left the bathroom and walked into my room, seeing pop had left. Dressing quickly, I raced downstairs and to the front living room. I hadn’t seen pop on the way to the door. “Maybe he was in his room”, I thought. Calling from the front door, I yelled, “ Pops I’m leaving now. See you after school.”
I paused to hear a reply, but didn’t get one. Shrugging, I left the house and locked the door. Grabbing my bike, I hopped on it and pedaled down the driveway and into the street headed toward school. The air whipped past my face and pushed my hair to the back of my head, leaving it flying behind me. I pedaled harder to the corner of my street, my breathing slightly labored. I glanced back at my house. The old, white house stared back at me. The panels on the outside were chipping with age and from a distance it appeared like the house was spotted with brown. The house stood at 2 stories and seemed to slouch to the left more. I breathed a laugh, it looked so silly. Riding to the corner, I slowed down and turned left
I remember when I first moved into the old house. I was only 6 years old, I think. I was born in Australia like my father, but my mother was from the States. She traveled there to sight see and instead saw my dad. It was love at first sight, apparently. Then I came and life was great. But the thing about my parents is that they were restless people, never content to stay in one place for an extended period of time. Their love for exploring ate at them until they couldn’t take it anymore. I became a burden I guess. They moved me in with my mother’s father, a man I had never met before.
Arriving at the school, I jumped off the bike and slid it into the bike rack on the front wall of the building then ran to the front doors of the school. The smell of floor wax and printer ink assaulted my nose as I threw open the door. I blinked as the harsh fluorescent lights stung my eyes. It was unreasonably bright here. Rubbing my eyes a little, my eyes adjusted to the lights and I saw the hall full of kid. The sound of scuffling shoes and outbursts of laughter reached my ears as I watched a group of students walking to and fro between halls. “There are so many,” I thought to myself. “There are too many.” I could feel panic rising in myself. I wasn’t used to this many kids. I felt like they were all staring at me, noticing my unfamiliarity.
Balling my fists, I looked to my right and saw the front office. Walking quickly, I opened the door and entered. Behind a huge desk settled in the middle of the office, sat a larger woman with long, scarlet colored hair. She was looking down, tapping away at her keyboard but looked up when she heard the door open. Pushing her glasses up her nose, she smiled politely.