Well how was I to know
that what we carved in stone
would be so temporary?
"Bye Spence! Have a good summer!" I heard someone call behind me. I considered, for a split second, turning around to see who it was but decided against it, instead calling a generic, "Thanks, you too!" back over my shoulder as I continued walking hurriedly towards my car.
I was in a hurry to go nowhere fast as I sped down the road that would take me home and almost took out an old lady crossing the street in the process. As I reluctantly came to a stop at a red light I took a deep breath. My sophomore year of high school was over, which meant 2 ½ months of freedom. The majority of that time would be spent in L.A., visiting my cousins Kendall and Katie. I couldn't wait. I hasn't seen them for almost 6 years and, as of recently, missed them like crazy. Katie was a bit young the last time we were together but Kendall had been my best friend. That's why when my mom gave me the plane tickets last month as a birthday present I had all but exploded with happiness. The light turned green and I took another deep breath before easing down on the gas pedal.
My mom was waiting for me when I got home, a happy smile on her face. "So, how was you're last day of school?" She asked while ironing a pair of khaki dress pants, no doubt belonging to my father.
"Hot. Boring. I'm just glad to be done for awhile. Where's dad?" I asked, tossing my book bag into a corner where I wouldn't have to look at it for the next 2 ½ months.
"He's in the shower. We have to leave for the funeral around 7 tomorrow morning." The week before one of my dad's friends from work had died in some hiking accident in China where he fell some ridiculous 4,000 feet to his death or something like that. My dad was sad, but apparently he and his 'close friend' hadn't been that close after all. "I'm sorry we won't be around to see you off tomorrow. Are you sure you'll be alright? Why don't you go with Taylor? And-"
"Mom. I'll be fine. Stop worrying." I said, preventing my mother's rant before it could start.
She watched me a moment with a skeptic look on her face before finally sighing and nodding slowly. "Alright. But only if you're absolutely sure…" She trailed off a little at the end, raising a brow as she looked at me.
"I'm sure, Mom. The airport is only a 20 minute drive from here and I'll be with Kendall and his friends the entire time. I will be perfectly fine." I assured her. The trip had been her idea, but over the past month she'd brought up her doubts time and time again. It became a constant battle; her raising a new concern or worry so abstract I was sure she'd spent hours conjuring it up just to have a reason to keep me home then my father and I fighting her tooth and nail on it until she finally gave in. My dad was all for the idea; he had great faith in my ability to take care of myself and he knew how much this trip meant to me.
The rest of the time flew by and before I knew it it was 7AM the next morning and my mom was shaking me gently and saying "Spencer. Spencer wake up." over and over. I mumbled something incoherent before slowly opening my eyes to see her leaning over me, a rushed tone to her voice as she said, "I'm already 5 minutes late, Spencer. I've got to go."
I got up and stumbled my way out of my room, running into two walls and hitting my funny bone on the dining room table in the process. When I finally made it into the kitchen my dad was waiting, impatiently tapping his foot. He never was a fan of being late.
"Laura! We have-" He began yelling before my mom quickly cut him off. "I'm coming, I'm coming." She said as she grabbed her purse and hurried out the door, her heels clicking on the tile floor. I followed after them slowly, still not fully awake and trying not to severely injure myself before I even left the house.
I hugged my dad and smiled widely when he said, " Be sure to give Kendall a good punch in the arm for me." I nodded, grateful to have the opportunity and a valid excuse for it. My mom hugged me tightly, almost suffocating me before I managed to say, "Alright, Mom. Love you! You can let go now!". She sighed and kissed my forehead before getting in the car. I waved as I watched them drive out of sight before turning to go back inside.
I took a shower and got dressed, then packed every piece of clothing I owned into two large suitcases and a duffel bag. I took a moment to say goodbye to the house(silly, I know, but it felt necessary) before I loaded my car trunk and headed off to the airport.
I was on my way to L.A. a little over an hour and a half later. The flight would be long but I had brought several books and somehow managed to avoid the temptations of coffee to ensure the possibility of sleeping incase I grew bored with reading.
After the long flight and almost unbearable cab ride I had finally arrived to the Palm Woods. I tipped the cab driver before hauling my luggage into the lobby, looking around and taking the place in. It was high class, I knew that much. If the tip off wasn't the fancy décor and expensive-looking furniture then the amount of people walking around made it pretty obvious that the place was at least decent.
An unhappy looking man in a suit looked down at me over his glasses skeptically while shoving a powdered doughnut in his mouth. "What can I do for you?" He asked me after our mini stare off. His words were polite, but his tone was far from friendly.
After flicking the bit of doughnut off my face(ew.) and glaring at him a moment I finally said, "I'm Spencer Harris. I'm staying with Kendall Knight in room 2J.", matching his dry, uninviting tone.
He glared back at me a moment before saying "Oh, you're one of them. At least you aren't another obnoxious, disobedient, trouble-making boy."
I wasn't sure whether I should be offended or thankful for the comment, so instead I sighed dramatically and rolled my eyes. "Right. Well, where's my busboy? This luggage won't carry itself!" I snapped my fingers, keeping up the diva act. He gave a fake smile before ringing the bell on his desk. An employee in an ugly blue uniform with a funny hat promptly loaded my luggage onto a cart. The manager muttered, "Have a Palm Woods day." I smiled sarcastically, flipping my hair over my shoulder as I turned on my heel and walked away, my nose in the air.
Once in the elevator I cut the act and smirked a little. This was going to be fun.