Hello!

This is chapter six of my story A glimpse of something new.

Now I'll start posting on two or three weeks because I'm busy with classes

Enjoy!

Andy breathed in the fresh moist Scottish air. She was still very sleepy and moody, but the anxiety started creeping over her, and with every step she had taken, her actions had started sinking in more and more. She looked at the brochure in her hands. There was a large map of Edinburgh and smaller towns on the outskirts. Her eyes stopped at icon of the town called Gealach. It meant "a moon" in Scottish Gaelic. There was a howling wolf and a dust of sparks on its coat of arms. Somewhere deep in her bones Andy felt that place was what she had been looking for. She looked up the town on the internet about ten times but she couldn't find anything but the most basic informations. However she had memorised everything she had read. It was a small town near the costline. There was a small bed–and–breakfast where she'll be staying for a while. There wasn't much to find out about the town anyways. There weren't any chain stores, only small businesses, except one big technological company that was selling computer chips and stuff like that all over the world. Andy was pulled out of her thoughts when the taxi stopped in front of her. She got in and told the driver where to take her. She wanted to take a bus but they didn't drive that far from the Edinburgh.

"Coming home from holidays?" the driver cast a quick glance at her.

"I beg your pardon?" Andy was very confused by this question. Why would the driver assume she was Scottish?

"I didn't mean to confuse you miss. I just figured from your dialect that you're from here."

At that moment Andy realized she had been speaking Scottish since she got off the plane. "Yes, I am." was the only reply she was capable of getting out of her mouth and she hoped her face wasn't reflecting the confusion she felt on the inside. She tried to make some small talk with driver, hoping to get more information about Gealach and to distract herself from what had just happened.

After the thirty minutes conversation, she had already known pretty much the entire biography of the driver. His name was Carl, he had a wife and two children — one son and one daugther. Before he started working as a taxi driver, he was working in that technological company in the town. At this part of the story, Andy tried to squeeze out of him any information she could, but of coure in a polite way. He didn't mind telling her about his previous job, he even seemed rather proud of it. And she soon realized why — according to Carl, the company was more of a family business and they rarely hired anyone who wasn't family. It was an honor to work there and the payment was very good. And the family that was running the company — Hawkings', was quite important in the town. It almost seemed as if they owned the town. They had a say at everything that was happening in the town and the people of Gealach often asked them for advice when it came to town's business. Then Carl changed the subject and Andy zoned off to her own thoughts. She wondered if their power over the town was simply because they were running one of the most successful companies in the Europe. Her look got caught in the postcard taped to the side of the car. It showed a beautiful landscape of a cliff. Above the image, there was 'Gealach' written on the postcard.

"Is that a postcard from Gealach?" Andy asked, not able to hide the amazement in her voice.

"It is indeed. You soud so surprised miss, don't you come from here?" the driver's eyes were focused on the road, but Andy knew he was courious. This wasn't a question a local from this village would ask. She needed to come up with a good explanation. And she needed to do it now.

"It's just, I haven't seen my home for a while now."

"Then you'll be even more amazed when you come back to Gealach. What was the last time you lived in the village?"

Andy slowly nodded: "Back when, I was a child. About fifteen years ago. How much has changed since then?"

The driver smirked: "This town never changes, miss. No matter how long you've been away, the town has stayed the same."

A cold shudder waved down Andy's spine.

She never really considered the possibility of walking right into her past. What if the driver's right and the town is still the same as it was 20 years ago? What would that mean for her? Will she remember everything or will it not wake any memories inside her.

It's been to long. I lost the sense of the child, I used to be before the adoption. What am I even doing here? Whatever has happened in the village, It happened twenty years ago. What am I looking for, the truth? Comfort? The reason why my life is falling apart? It's all pointless. I can still turn around, go back, forget all this. I can still give up.

But deep down inside, Andy knew she won't give up. She won't go back to Seattle because there's no one waiting for her. She won't go back, when she still had a chance at becoming something more, at finding a sense of life.

"I won't go back", Andy thought. "It's not in my blood".

Just as she thought of this, the driver announced they arrived in Gealach and Andy knew just what she was going to do now. She'll go to the hairdresser's.

Robert was sitting in Theo's living room. It was strange not having Vic around due to the fact that they weren't as close as he and Vic. They both hadn't said a word since Theo let Robert in his house. Half an hour ago Robert came to his address not even completly sure if it was the right one and without an idea of what he wanted to acomplish or any resemblance to a plan.

What were you thinking, you idiot!, his mind scolded him. He was impaitently pacing on the sofa, seemingly unsure of what to say. But he had so many questions, starting with where did Andy go and why didn't she say anything.

I let her down, I shouldn't be such a jerk and maybe this wouldn't happen. Robert knew that he wasn't the guilty one of their divorce. But he also knew he avoided her because he didn't want to feel guilty. He wanted to convince himself that he did everything right, that he didn't hurt her. The pain in her eyes when he met her at the supermarket was still at the back of his mind. He didn't know if it was because of him and he had to admit that Andy was dealing with a pile of problems lately. He was worried about her and too hurt, himself too let her pull him down with her.

"Is she safe?", he could've asked a thousand more important questions but this one was the only one that came to his mind now. He felt pathetic enough even if the person who was sitting across the table wouldn't be Theo. He attempted to at least try to fix it so he asked: "Where did she go?"

Theo was hesitating, obviously not wanting to betray her trust, he was a good friend and Robert could see it in his eyes he was torn between what Andy wanted and what she needed.

"She asked me not to tell anyone, even you." Robert wasn't surprised to hear that. After all Theo was Andy's rock when she was having hard time at 23. He was probably her best friend now that Maya didn't really care about her anymore.

"I know what she's like Theo. She's impulsive, quick to act without thinking and she might regrets it later."

"She's not like that anymore. She really thought hard about this, before making a decision. She won't change her mind. It's a– It's a family thing"

The last part somehow hurt Robert so much. " We used to be a family, me and Andy. I still care about her. I know she put walls around her when she's not ok and she tries to convince people that she is. I know that she's adopted, Theo. Please tell me where she is."

Theo's eyes widened at the mention of Andy's adoption. It felt weird to Robert too, he couldn't imagine how Andy must be feeling right now.

"Fine. She went to Scotland", Theo looked into Robert's eyes. Robert's mind was spinning. Scotland?! No, he couldn't believe it. Yet, Theo wasn't joking, it was all real.

"She went there looking for her family, her ancestors. She had been having strange nightmares that led her to a small village on the coastline. It's called 'Gealach'. Andy will stay there for a few months, no matter what happens. She'll need to get a job and a fresh start, away from this". At the last word, Theo motioned with his hands around the place. Robert couldn't believe what he was hearing. He knew Andy would most likely look for her parents but he didn't expect her to do that on another continent, away from everything familiar. Maybe that was actually the case, like Theo had just said; she wanted a fresh start.

Robert thanked Theo and rushed to his car. He didn't want to stay there any longer. He needed time to think about the two possibilites that presented to him. Wether he stays in Seattle and moves on or he goes after her, hoping to get a fresh start with her.

Andy was walking down the street. Gealach was a lovely village with small houses and clean streets. The road wasn't the usual grey coloured-like but it was almost beige and everything that surrounded Andy seemed to be warm coloured, like in a fairytale. But the atmosphere was a bit strange. There weren't any children playing outside and everywhere she looked, it all seemed kind of empty. She looked at her watch. It was four past three pm. The path from the bed—and—breakfast Moonlight, where she was staying, to the hairdresser's didn't take long. Moonlight was an older tall house. It was oddly decorated and for Andy's taste the woman who owned the place used too much lace for the furniture. The owner's name was Gloria and she had a son who was working as a mechanic. His name was Matthew and Andy already had got a chance to meet him. He promised her to take her on a tour of the town after he finishes his work for today. He was nice and funny and definitely not as pushy as his mother who asked Andy a thousand questions about Seattle and firefighting but otherwise she was a nice lady.

Andy opened the door to the salon. The place was bright and shiny and full of the smell of hair conditioner. All the heads in the salon turned to her and each of them had a surprised expression. Gosh, I really do, stand out, Andy thought to herself. The hairdresser greeted her nicely. When she asked her what does she want to do with her hair Andy hesitated. She didn't know what to say so she just asked her to colour it in a different colour. The hairdresser asked her in which colour Andy wants it to be. When she hadn't answered for a while she suggested black and Andy simply said yes. She knew she had black hair as a child but as a teen she died it brown and now she had died it in red. Andy sat down and the hairdresser started working her magic. In the mean time Andy was talking with other customers there and she found out a lot of interesting facts about Gealach. She noticed people were mentioning a lot some sort of a tragedy but when she asked them about it no one wanted to answer her directly. They kept saying that this was a reminder not to trust the wizards. Andy wanted to know what they ment but she didn't want to look suspicious. When her hair was done she couldn't believe the reflection in the mirror. She was beautiful and the hair gave her a natural look that showed her features in a new refreshing way. She almost started crying for no reason at all. She quickly paied for her haircut and left the hairdresser's. For a while she just walked around the town catching courious glances as she passed by people. She finally saw a playground where kids were playing but there was something odd about it. The children were running and laughing completly recklessly, but Andy noticed that their mums weren't letting their eyes off them. At any time. It was as if they were afraid of something. The tension of the scene affected Andy and she could feel the anxiety creeping over her. She quickly walked away. A few minutes had passed before she had seen a bar. Andy knew if she wanted to get a job in this town she could get the most information about this town's business at the bar. She walked inside and sat behind the counter. She tried to avoid the staring glances that were pointed in her direction. There weren't a lot of people inside, only a few old men who were watching a football game and a woman who was looking at her laptop. The bartender greeted her nicely.

"Hello, haven't seen you here before"

Andy replied that's she's new in town and that she will be staying here for a few months. When the bartender asked her why did she come here, Andy said that she needed to get away from her lifestyle back in Seattle for a while. The bartender smiled and introduced herself. Her name was Elsa and she was a skinny blonde who made the best caramel macchiato Andy had ever tasted in her life. She was chatty, but not pushy. She told her all the gossip about the town, particulier the stories about "the rich kids". Those were the children of important families of these little towns near the coastline. One of those kids was also from that Hawkings' family. When Andy asked Elsa if there are any available jobs here, she said that she didn't know. At that moment the woman who was looking at her laptop cleared her throat. She apologized for overhearing the conversation and told Andy that she was a reporter and that she could use a partner for writing her new story. The thought of working as a reporter gave Andy a strange feeling. That would be useful to get as much information that could be related to her adoption as possible. She would be able to have access to town's archive and people wouldn't get suspicious. On the other hand she had to admit she wasn't qualified for this kind of job. The reporter seemed to guess her thoughts when she said that Andy could start working as a photographer and learn a few tricks and then they'll see where to go from that.

I have to take this job. It's a kind of opportunity I'll never get again, Andy thought to herself.

"Alright, I accept your offer"

"That's awesome and I already have the first task for you."

Ok that's it for today.

Follow my story to find out what happens next.

Stay safe everyone