~Chapter 2~
I pulled into the house and breathed a sigh of relief. I had made it through my whole first day. I knew that the remainder of the school year was going to be a long one.
I got out of my car and walked sluggishly up the front steps. I unlocked the door and walked into the house, taking off my coat as I stepped into the heated entryway. I slowly walked up to my room on the second floor and, dumping my bag onto the computer chair, flopped on my bed.
I just laid there for a while, letting the day's events sink in and the only thing that I couldn't shake from my mind was the weird girl. For some reason she had made an imprint in my brain and I couldn't push her from my mind.
I have no idea how long I laid there, maybe a half hour, when I heard my mom walking up the steps. I knew it was her because she was always so much louder than Nick was.
He was like a cat stalking its prey. Kind of eerie in a way, but nothing out of the normal for him. He was just more graceful than my clumsy mother.
She walked past my door and went to her work room. I knew she would come back in just a minute though, when she had dropped off her load, so I sat up on my bed and tried to make myself appear at least content.
I knew she would want to know everything about my day. She was the kind of mom who would want to know every last detail.
"Hey sweety, how was your first day of school?" she asked in a quiet voice.
"It was ok. Nothing great, but not enough to have me running for the hills. Yet." I couldn't let her think that I totally loved the place either.
"Well, I think given some time, you will grow to love this place." She looked like she wanted to say more on the subject and I hated having these kinds of talks with her, she wanted to dissect every possible thought and emotion. I have always said she should have been a psychiatrist or something.
"So what was all that stuff you were bringing up?" I tried to sound interested and it must have worked. She was always so easily distracted.
"Oh, that was stuff for the business, would you like to come in and take a look?" I could already tell that she was practically bursting at the seams to share her day's spoils.
I walked to her room in a daze, not really looking forward to the next hour but not wanting the alternative.
Mom was trying to start her own work from home business as a seamstress. She didn't know much about the computer so it was a surprise to both Nick and me when she said "I want to own my own business. Maybe an internet thing, selling dresses made to fit. What do you guys think?"
We thought she was crazy, but she was happy with her endeavor.
She pulled out swatches of silk, satin and some where cottons and nylon. She also had small clips of lace, ribbon, trim and cords.
And of course in mom fashion, she wanted to show me just about every possible color and style combination that she could come up with. I could never get into fashion the way she had, even though she tried her very hardest to have me love it as much as she.
She held up this off green color swatch next to a soft purple and asked me what I thought and the first word that came to mind was weird. However, once I thought the word weird, I immediately got to thinking about that girl again. For some reason, I just could not shake her from my mind.
She was so odd. How could she know that I was standing around that corner? I really hadn't made much of a sound. And the way she looked at those guys when they were talking, almost as if she were sitting right there next to them and then called out her name.
Then, as I thought about it, I did not know her name. I just kept on referring to her as the weird girl. Maybe if I would have stopped to talk to her this morning, I could have gotten to know her.
Then again, she didn't look to happy that I had been spying on her. But in my defense I didn't mean to. It wasn't like I was walking down hallways, peeking around corners just trying to catch people doing weird things.
Mom, completely oblivious to my reverie, kept on talking about this swatch with that lace.
And I would really like to know what that look was after school. She really was a weird girl and I want to know about her, but how to go about getting to know her, without talking to her?
Then all of a sudden it was quiet and I couldn't figure out why. I looked at my mom to see why she stopped talking to find her staring at me with a perplexed expression.
Had I been talking to myself?
I had been known to do that without really meaning to do it.
"Marie, what's going on?" Crap. This was her "mother tone" as I call it.
"It's just been a long day. Getting to know new people and taking classes that have already started, it's just stressing." Who ever said that I had to tell her what was bothering me the most. She just asked what was going on.
"Sweetheart, you know it's going to take a lot of getting used to. And we wouldn't have made this move if Nick and I weren't positive that you would survive this. We always have your best interest at heart."
Great, now I made her feel bad. "Mom, I know it's going to take some getting used to. Trust me; I knew that this wasn't going to be a walk in the park. And I do know it will take some getting used to; you know how much I like change. I know it will happen in its own time. And without hurting your feelings, please let me have the space to adjust."
Oh please don't let her take offense to that.
"Of course, I won't ask you again. I will let you have all the time in the world, just so long as you are trying to adjust. Deal?"
"I love you mom. By the way, what are we having?" I love how easy it is to change the subject with mom.
"You know, I wasn't sure. I do need to run to the market. Would you like to go with me?"
"I would love to go and help you find something to invent, but I really need to go do some homework before dinner. I don't want to get behind my first day."
"Oh, right. Yes, go do your homework. I don't want to be the reason you fail." She winked at me as I made my way to the door and back to my room.
Obviously I was too preoccupied to do any homework, but I needed to make it look good for mom. Plus, I had already gone over most of the material back home, so it shouldn't be much work on my part. For a while at least.
I sat down on the edge of my bed and let myself fall back into the down comforter that I had gotten as a gift for my birthday last year. It was so soft and giving, it made me feel like I was floating on a cloud.
I closed my eyes so I could try and forget about the things running through my mind; Adam Roland, weird girl, mom, Nick, new city, Phoenix, Amanda, Rachael, school...
I knew I had fallen asleep. It was one of those waking dreams where you know you are sleeping, but you couldn't wake up. I was sitting in the backseat of an old car with a car seat next to me. I recognized the baby. It was me and I was about three or four months old.
I saw the back of a woman's head and then she turned to look in my direction, almost as if she could see me. She looked just like me, just a few years older than I am now. I guessed she was my mother or what I thought she would look like. I had no memories of her.
The man driving the car was handsome at least. He had jet black hair and from the rearview mirror I could tell he had the prettiest sky blue eyes I had ever seen, even on television.
I sat there listening to her speak and marveling in her voice, it was smooth and had a musical like quality to it. I would bet she was a lovely singer as well.
Then the weirdest thing happened, it was like the entire car seemed to glow the most wonderful red color, almost like a rose, and everything seemed to go in slow motion.
The baby disappeared from the seat next to me, leaving just the car seat. The woman held up her hand and started moving her lips as though speaking, despite the fact that I couldn't tell if there was any sound coming out of her mouth.
I blinked and I was standing on the sidewalk, outside of the car along with many people watching the scene unfold.
The car couldn't stop and was about to run the red light, with a large semi-truck barreling down on them. It was like everything around me went in slow motion as I watched the car speed out into the street, in perfect sync with the truck.
The truck hit the side of the car head-on. As if it couldn't get any worse than that, the car somehow became stuck on the front of the truck then was pulled under the front of the truck.
The economy sized car went under the front wheels, then the back. It must have fractured the gas tank because not even a second after the last wheel of the truck hit the pavement did the car burst into flames.
I watched in horror as the woman and man burned alive in the car, not even sure if they were unconscious.
No person made a move on the street. No one could do anything to save the burning family.
I woke with a start as I heard a car door shut in the driveway. I got up, not sure what to think and looked out into the night, as Nick made his way to the house.
I sat back down on the bed, reliving the horrid dream, not able to push it out of my mind. I wasn't sure what had really happened to my family, my mom hadn't been told and no one was sure what my real name had been before being placed in the foster home.
However, I was sure there was no way that I could have known anything about an accident, let alone the exact details. I was only an infant in the car. Even then, I wasn't anywhere near them when it happened.
I tried to meditate and relax myself so that I could go down to help mom with dinner, anything to get my mind on something else. I couldn't let mom know anything, or let on that something is bothering me.
I came down the stairs and immediately engaged Nick in conversation, and listened fervently, to distract myself.
"So, how was your day Nick?"
"Oh, well it was great actually. I had a conference call with the CEO, president and vice president. The director of this region was here at our office for the conference call as well and..." he paused for effect "...they unanimously agreed that I was the most suitable person to handle a new account they are trying to acquire. If they get the contract, I will be the head person on the project."
He ended his speech and gave a huge grin showing his pride in his accomplishment. As soon as mom processed the information, she was practically jumping up and down for joy for Nick and his success.
"Oh my goodness Nick. That's great. I am so happy for you." She ran over to him and basically bounced into his arms to give him a congratulatory hug. Her enthusiasm for his success was tangible. I was swept away in the moment and soon I was almost as happy about the turn of events as mom was.
"Yea, this is a big promotion. Even bigger than getting this job here. They really think something of me up into the highest levels and I know this is my time. I am just happy that I have a wonderful family to share this time with."
Mom began rambling about the possibilities of his advancement and such so I moved toward the table to finish setting it for dinner.
"Yeah so not only is it a promotion in the sense of my position, but there is also the pay and benefits that are beyond what we dreamed of."
After a few more minutes of celebration, Nick's face changed a little, like he was reluctant to share any more information.
"There is just one drawback to the job which is why I haven't accepted it yet."
"Do I really want to hear this?" mom asked slowly.
"Well, since I will be the project manager, I would have to travel some. It would be a few times a year, up to ten and usually about a week each, but could be longer."
"Oh." Was all mom could say.
"If I accept this position, I will need to leave in about two and a half weeks, for about a week to a week and half. This means I would be gone for Valentine's Day. They asked me to think it over but to give them an answer soon. Otherwise they would go with the next candidate."
Mom and Nick were both quiet for a few minutes. Mom was deliberating and Nick was patient.
"Well, I know that it will take some getting used to but I think that this would be the best move for not only you and your career but the family as well. I won't pretend to be happy while you are away, but I want you to accept the offer. You may not get a chance like this again and I don't want you to think I am holding you back."
Mom hadn't looked up from her plate while she spoke but then she looked at Nick and he was radiating excitement.
Mom and Nick talked the rest of the night, without questioning my silence. After dinner they washed dishes and I went in the living room to watch a little bit of television. I was glad Nick had brought home news; it made it easier for him to reflect on my dream without mom getting suspicious.
They came back in the living room to watch Jeopardy with me.
The night passed quickly enough after that and soon I was able to feign exhaustion.
"I think I'm going to turn in." I said as I got up from the couch and stretched.
"Honey, it's barely ten. Are you feeling ok?" Of course mom went into mother mode at the very idea of me feeling sick.
"Yes, I'm fine mom. Just a long day of school. I'll see you guys in the morning. Love you." I heard mom and Nick say their goodnights as I trudged up the stairs to my room.
"I got ready for bed, wishing that we were back in Phoenix where the houses there on average had a two and a half bath. I had my own bathroom back then and didn't have to share with mom and Nick. That was going to take some getting used to.
I crawled into my queen size bed and cuddled up against my body pillow. It was soft mocha suede, fitting perfectly into the décor of my room.
As I laid there in bed, my mind went back to my earlier dream against my will. I could not let go of this dream and the odd feeling I kept on getting. It was like déjà vu.
I knew that the woman in the car felt familiar to me but I couldn't be sure why she did. I laid there in bed for a little while longer and closed my eyes, remembering the face of the woman.
I tried to store her to my memory as best I could so I could see if I remembered her from somewhere. Maybe from my childhood. I did go to daycare when I was little; maybe that was how I got her face.
I rolled over to my nightstand and turned on my MP3 player on my phone and let myself be taken away by the music.
The next thing I knew it was 6:45 A.M. and my alarm was going off for me to get up for school.
I quickly got ready, picking out a pair of straight leg jeans and a plain blue long-sleeved shirt. Blue was my best color; or so I had been told.
I walked out of the house with my granola bar and a juice box and went straight for my car. I noticed it had rained sometime last night because it has frozen into a nice little layer coating the ground.
It was pretty thin and cracked as I stepped, but in some places it had pooled and was thicker and slicker.
I got into my car and drove down the street. I figured I might as well try to familiarize myself with the area so I drove down another street that I was pretty positive would meet up with Main Street at the end.
I hoped it did.
I took the street down to Main Street and turned left to go toward school. As I got to the next intersection I saw a little girl playing on the side of the sidewalk while her mother put money into a parking meter next to the bank.
The light turned green and I was about to go through when I heard the most awful sound. It was like metal grinding on metal. I stopped just in time to see the car run through the red light, tires squealing and the driver pulling anxiously at the wheel trying to straighten the car up.
It was like déjà vu from my dream last night. I was soon pulled out of my daydream when my thought went to the little girl on the street.
Then it was like two things happened at once. The car started to go into a spiral from the drivers attempts to straighten it out on the icy street. The little girl, hearing the sound, turned to look for it and in doing so slipped on some ice and fell into the street; right in the way of the speeding and spiraling car.
I was so shocked as I stared at the horrible scene in front of me, knowing the outcome. The little girl was going to get hit by the car and probably wouldn't make it through the accident.
Just as the car was about ten feet from the little girl, I put my hands up like I was sitting there next to her and tried to block her. It was as if someone had pulled up on the car and it did a somersault over the little girl lying in the street while her mother tried to run after her.
I dropped my hands in astonishment just at the same time that the car started to drop back to the ground. Everyone around ran toward the little girl and the driver of the car, who had somehow landed upright back onto the pavement not even twenty feet from the forming crowd and the little girl.
I started to get out of my car when a person caught my attention on the opposite side of the street, across from the scene.
The person had their mouth open in shock and stood almost as if made out of stone. There were two things about this person stopped me in tracks and made me take notice of them.
First, they were staring at me as if I had just performed an act of God.
Second, it was the weird girl.
