LET ME START BY SAYING, I'VE INTRODUCED A NEW CHARACTER INTO THE STORY TO GIVE THE READER AN OUTSIDER'S PERSPECTIVE. CHANCES ARE YOU WON'T LIKE HER, AND I UNDERSTAND THAT. IF IT WEREN'T FANFICTION I THINK IT WOULD BE A GOOD STORY, ONE THING I WOULD CHANGE IF I WEREN'T SO LAZY IS I'D ADD MORE HELGA EARLIER IN THE STORY. I FEEL LIKE I DIDN'T DEVELOP HER CHARACTER ENOUGH. BUT READ IF YOU WANT, IT IS PRETTY LONG BUT I PROMISE YOU'LL BE HAPPY WITH THE ENDING. xoxox .
Chapter 1: New Home.
I've never stayed in one place for very long. It's the nature of my Uncles lifestyle. We've been jumping around one horse towns in Alberta since I was 10. He's a teacher so he goes where there's work. Recently he started to feel guilty about dragging me around the province throughout my entire adolescence. He went looking for a stable position so I would be able to have a semi-normal University experience. You know, friends, roots, stories, the whole deal. Long story short, here I am. In the car driving down the highway on route to Hillwood, Washington. Apparently there weren't any permanent jobs any closer to Alberta, my home province. I'll miss Canada, but Canadians are essentially wimpy Americans anyhow. I sense assimilation imminent. Oh dear. Anyway, my Uncle got a position as a principle at an Elementary school in Hillwood. P.S. 118 I think it's called. In Canada the schools are named after people or places, not numbered, which I found terribly inconvenient anyway. Our new house is in the same neighborhood as the school. Apparently it's a national landmark and old as dirt or something. Should be interesting.
We pulled into a rest stop and my Uncle went inside to get a snack and some water for Rutiger. Rutiger is our dog. He's roughly the size of a boat and drools a lot. I love him, mostly because he's huge and playful and doesn't judge me. My Uncle soon returned with rations. With one hand clasping my maple doughnut and the other pushing Ruti's big head away from it we pulled out of the gravel lot and got back on the highway. It wasn't much longer until I saw Hillwood for the first time. It was a lovely place. Bigger than any of the places I'd lived in the last 8 years but smaller than Edmonton, where I lived for the first 10. The buildings were all made of brick and seemed quite tall, but it may have been an illusion caused by their rectangular shapes. We passed a park near a strip of restaurants and a gorgeous bay with boats and seagulls.
"This could be home?" I said to myself.
"What's that Pickles?" My uncle said over his shoulder from the front seat. Normally I'd be riding shotgun but Rutiger fought for it. And won.
"Nothing, Uncle L."
My name isn't actually Pickles. That'd be silly. We got off the main road and continued down a cozy neighborhood street. The houses were all tall and colorful. I saw a green house up ahead and silently hoped it was that one. Sure enough, Uncle L. parked the car in front of it and proudly announced,
"Here we are Skyrocket!" I nodded and took off my seat belt. Uncle L. passed me the keys and winked. "Go ahead, get acquainted, I'll get Ruti and follow you in."
"Okie dokie." I chirped and got out of the car. As I sauntered up the sidewalk my heart started beating a mile a minute. My head spun around the thought that, if my Uncle was true to his word, this would be my home for the next 5 years. I was free to get as comfortable as I wanted without fear of having to pack up and leave again in 9 months when the school year was over. I unlocked the door and opened it wide before I even stepped inside. All our boxes were waiting for us, ready to be unpacked. I looked past them and straight ahead there was an archway into a dining area and beyond that was the kitchen. To my right was the stairs and to my left was another archway into was I assumed was the living room. Just as I went to take my first step inside my new home Ruti came bounding in; where he proceeded to run into the kitchen, skid on the linoleum and crash into the cupboards. Felt like home already. I laughed.
The rest of the day consisted mostly of unpacking. At one point we took a field trip to P.S. 118 to see what Uncle L. was up against next semester. Classes had been in session for about 2 weeks, so I hadn't missed very much this year. Except, of course, the awkward first day where everyone else is at least somewhat as clueless as I will be. Uncle L. didn't take over as principal until January so he had a semester off to relax and help me adjust, as well as adjust himself. P.S. 118 was a cute school, a lot like my elementary. Being in a school made me realize that my Uncle wouldn't be there at school with me every day like he had been for years. The fact that it would be much larger than anything I'm used to was also moderately terrifying, but I had to be a big girl. Tomorrow was the big day.
When we got home from P.S. 118 we unpacked for a few hours and then ordered pizza. Shopping could wait until tomorrow while I was at school. Gulp. School. As we ate Uncle L. suddenly became very inquisitive.
"Are you nervous about tomorrow?" He asked.
"More like terrified." I answered through the pizza in my mouth.
"You'll be fine, Princess." He assured me. I wasn't sure I agreed but I smiled anyway.
"I think I'll go to bed." I said as I got up to take my dishes to the kitchen.
"Okay. Goodnight Pickles, I'll be in your room to get you up at 7am sharp. Don't make me get the squirt gun out." He teased. I cringed at the memory of cold water hitting my back first thing in the morning for many months. I'm not a morning person.
"I make no promises, dude." I said and took off up the stairs. "Love you!" I yelled down. He reciprocated my statement and I made my way down the hall to my bathroom. As I was brushing my teeth I stared at my face in the mirror like I always do. Same red hair, same green eyes, same pale skin, same big nose. My eyebrow ring sparkled in the fluorescent light. Same old me. I finished getting ready for bed and walked into my new room. There was cowboy wallpaper on the wall.
"That needs to go." I said aloud. I sauntered over to my bed and climbed in. Just as I was about to lie down I reached into the unpacked box near my bed and pulled out the old photograph on the top. It was a picture of me, my parents and my brother. I kissed the glass. "Goodnight all, I love you." I muttered. I put the picture on the nightstand, pulled the blanket over my head, and soon fell asleep.