Chapter 1
Time Comes to Haunt Me
*Macie*
Through bleary eyes I saw the time on my watch, and woke with a yelp realizing how late it was. My cousins were coming over and I was supposed to get ready when I had gotten home. Falling asleep was not my intention; I just wanted to take a short nap. I was just so tired from studying. I was more rested, but I felt horrible. I hated to disappoint my mother and that's exactly what this would do.
My oldest cousin was my least favorite person in the world. Her name's Kaitlyn. She was my age, thirteen, but that's where the similarities stopped. She was so immature and reckless. She didn't consider anyone's feelings when she would do something. I've heard my Uncle Lucas expressing how worried he is about her when he calls my mom. One day Kaitlyn had skipped school to hang out with her friends and didn't come back till nine o'clock! She hadn't even thought about her responsibility to watch her siblings after school! Sometimes I wondered how her family dealt with her attitude. At least I only needed to see her a few times a month when her parents went on business trips. They all lived in Arkansas, so they drove up to Nashville once a month to visit, and sometimes more often when Aunt Kaielyn and Uncle Lucas had to work out of state. I loved my younger cousins Mathew and Jamie. They were a wonderful change to this normally empty house, but seeing them means seeing Kaitlyn and that means trouble.
I walked into the living room and straightened up the couch. I was still wearing my school uniform, but I didn't have time to change. They were going to be here in less than forty-five minutes. I still had to sweep, wipe all the counters, dust because of Mathew's asthma, and start dinner. I didn't mind doing this, but it would take forever. Just then I got a text from my mom. It said: SRRY GONA B LATE TONITE, SHLTR NEEDED HELP. PLS B NICE. I KNOW YOU AND UR COUSIN DONT GET ALONG. THX LUV U. I sighed. I loved my mom, she is such a good mother and she works so hard, but she volunteers at the local shelter. She tries but comes home late. I know it's for something good, so I can't blame her.
It looked like I was on my own tonight. I should've known right away that this wasn't going to end well for me. As I dusted, I started to daydream. I started thinking about my father. I thought about him often. I wondered who he was, where he was. He walked out on my mom before I was born. Sometimes I wish he was here. But I'd never told anyone about my wish because I knew Mom worked hard without any help and I respected her for that.
I jumped as the oven timer went off. Dinner was ready, just in time. As I looked out the window, I saw my uncle driving their silver minivan down the driveway. Yay! I thought sarcastically, the nightmare's about to start! I watched as the whole family piled out of the car. I looked at my phone; 5:38. The night had barely begun and I was wishing it was over. I heard a quiet tap on the door. Outside I saw my cousins smiling at me and their big sister sulking in the background. I opened the door and invited them in politely and cheerily, not knowing I was in for a new kind of test tonight and it wasn't one I could study for.