Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I hope you do know that I don't own any of the songs mentioned in these chapters, correct? Because if you thought I did, I don't. Sorry to burst your bubble. Oh, please, don't flame me if you just don't like it because I mentioned in the first chapter that-oh, go read it yourself. I'm too in tact with an idea to look up to find it, so please enjoy my story which I am working on as well as The Dangerous Road, a Lord of the Rings ficcy! And alas! Do I see the review button all the way down at the bottom of the screen? I do believe I see it! It's just a click away! lol

~~~ POV-EPHRAM ~~~

I sighed as I looked out of the window and saw Karin driving off. Her car wasn't fancy. It was an old, beat up, rusty Chevrolet truck. He wondered why she couldn't afford a better car. He would wonder about it tomorrow afternoon when she was here.

"Ephram, get ready for bed. It's almost 9:00." My mom told me.

I nodded my head and took off towards the shower. I noticed how rank I smelled, and wondered how long I had smelled like that. I grinned as the thought passed through my head.

I opened the door, and turned on the hot water in the shower, hoping Delia's bath hadn't drained all the hot water. Thankfully, it didn't.

~~~ POV CHANGE-KARIN ~~~

I reluctantly drove into my driveway that was littered with debris from last night's 'storm.' I opened up the door to my truck and closed it, dreading what my twin brother had to say about it. Then I cringed at what he could have done to my eight-year-old brother also.

"John! Todd! I'm home!" I called as I locked the door on my way inside and threw my keys on the table.

"John! Are you sober?" I asked cautiously walking into his room.

"Yeah, for a while." He said, sitting in a corner of his room with Todd lying on the bed at his corner of the room.

"Well, try to stay sober until I'm out of the shower. I smell terrible from the exhaust from that truck of yours I have to drive everywhere. Oh, and I'm taking the keys with me into the shower, don't even think about coming in there to get them and go out partying tonight. I have to get up early also, I have to do my classes at the school." I reminded him as I walked into the bathroom and threw the keys in had in my hand in the clothes hamper, knowing my brother would never find them if he was going to ignore my warning.

I slipped my shirt off and threw it over the keys and made a mental note to never wear my tanktop again to work. I turned on the water in the shower stall and finished undressing and blasted the stereo my brother had conveniently left in the bathroom and heard Metallica blaring Master of Puppets.

~~~ POV CHANGE-EPHRAM ~~~

When I got out of the shower, I had gone back to my room to finish my homework. I sighed as I listened to My December by Linkin Park. It was their only soft song, and I loved it. It reminded me of Karin, though. My thoughts drifted back to the seventeen-year-old girl who was my new housemaid. I was called back to my room when I heard banging on my door.

"Ephram!" I heard my dad call.

"Yeah?" I replied, turning my stereo off. It was now playing Place for my Head by Linkin Park.

"You met Karin today, right?" My dad asked me.

"Yeah. She's cool." I replied, wondering what type of interrogation he had in store for me now.

"Well, don't scare her away. When I asked her about her homelife and all on the phone two days ago, she wasn't real open, and sounded like she was quite nervous. I warn you not to ask her about her house." My dad warned me.

"Yeah, right." I said, going back into my room.

I sighed and turned my stereo back on and lay down on my bed, now exhausted. But dang, I still had to finish my homework. I growled under my breath as I sat up and faced the blank sheet of paper.

'It's just an essay, Ephram. You'll live.' I thought to myself as I began writing about music for my art class.

Eventually, I finished and looked at my digital clock. It was eleven now. I grumbled and got under my covers after throwing everything into my backpack for tomorrow. I closed my eyes, my CD player still on, but on a soft song now and fell asleep.

~~~ POV CHANGE-KARIN ~~~

I woke in the middle of the night in a cold sweat almost. I looked around and saw Todd standing there beside my bed.

"Yeah? What do you want?" I asked erratically.

"I'm thirsty." Todd said to me.

"Alright. Come on." I said, getting out of bed and put my robe on then went into the kitchen.

Todd followed me all the way there hastily. He watched my hands moving from one place to the other as I filled his glass with water.

"What?" I asked him when I noticed his observations. "Where were you earlier today?" He asked me.

"Hey, you're the genius of us, you figure it out." I said to him and watched him drink deeply from his water.

"You like him, don't you?" He asked me with a hesitant gaze.

"Who?" I pondered.

"Your employer's son. Why else would you stay? John almost went crazy because you weren't here to dye his hair. I had to use reverse psychology on him to stay away from the bottle!" Todd said to me after he was done with his water.

"Well, his mom finally got me to stay for dinner. I was going to come home, I swear, so you can't blame me." I protested.

Todd nodded his head slowly in disbelief then went back down the hall of out trailer to his room and fell asleep again. I sighed as I realized I couldn't get back to sleep. It was only two A.M. and I knew I would be a walking zombie in the morning. I went to the couch and lay down with a book and a cup of coffee, if you want to call it that.

Before I knew it, it was the butt crack of dawn. I was supposed to be waking up then. My coffee had long since been gone and my book long since finished for my class. I had written a report on it during those two or three hours. I mumbled something inaudible and got up to go to my room and change. Once I finished changing, I went into John and Todd's room and turned their light on.

"Up. Come on. Time to get up!" I yelled for my ver obstinate brothers to wake up.

Stirring was seen in Todd's bed as I yelled. I grinned slyly as an idea hit me smack in the head like a boot. I stalked over to John's bed and put my head close to his ear.

"Wake up!" I yelled loudly in his highly sensitive ears.

He immediately shot up in his bed from my calling and rubbed his ears. I about died laughing and heard Todd laughing as well.

"I'm awake!" John yelled.

"Yeah, now you are!" I said through tears of laughter.

Once we all finished laughing, I left to make them breakfast and get them ready for their long days. I had to pack Todd's lunch, and make sure John had enough cash in his wallet for his lunch at the high school. I sighed as I threw Todd's lunch into his backpack and John's wallet by his bag.

"Eat and be gone with you. I'm taking the car to classes today, all right? Then I'm going to go to work and be back at possibly four." I said as my brother's sauntered into the kitchen.

They mumbled responses as they ate their oatmeal that I had quickly made for them. I sat at the table, proofreading my report to make sure it was on the right subject and I had all of my facts correct or my teacher would kill me in my second college class.

"Karin, aren't you going to eat?" Todd asked me.

"Ahh, no. I'll eat on the way to my classes. Oh, John, I took out your extra cash from your wallet so now you only have enough for lunch and a snack during homeroom. No other expenses, all right?" I reminded my very hardheaded brother.

He nodded his head and put his bowl in the sink for me to wash later. Todd did so as well and they both headed for Todd's truck. I waved good bye to them and pulled together my stuff and left out the door.

~~~ POV CHANGE-EPHRAM ~~~

I grumbled as I sat down in my Algebra class and listened to my teacher ramble on and on about no CD players in her class. But never the less, I turned mine on and heard Saliva playing Rest in Pieces. When I realized something interesting was happening, I tuned in.

"Class, this is John Dunlapp. He just moved here with his sister and little brother. John, take a seat by Ephram, the one with the CD player I specifically banned this morning." My teacher said.

I grinned as I carefully slipped it back into my backpack as John took a seat by me. He looked a lot like Karin with his dark hair and dark skin. I figured I would ask him if he knew her or was related. My teacher began rambling again, and I painstakingly took notes on every little detail about the class. I sighed, as I knew this was going to be a very, very long forty-five minutes.

Time passed quicker than I thought. It was already time for my English class, thank the Lord. I packed up my junk and left the class when I felt a tap on my shoulder.

"Your Ephram, right?" John asked me.

"Yeah." I said hesitantly.

"My sister works for you." He mumbled and walked passed me.

"Wait, Karin's your sister?" I asked, bewildered.

"Yeah." He called back to me, and headed towards the English classroom.

I followed him and took a seat in the back of the class. Surprisingly, John sat next to me. His eyes were downcast, I noticed, but tuned back in to my teacher as she started talking.

"We have a new student today, class. His name is John Dunlapp. Stand up, John." My teacher said happily and motioned for John to stand.

He warily did and sat back down quickly. I looked around the class and noticed a blonde girl sitting in the front I had had a crush on for the longest time. I looked at her, and felt nothing now. My cheeks didn't flush or anything. I winced slightly and listened to my teacher talking about poetry loudly, as if getting my attention.

~~~ POV CHANGE-KARIN ~~~

I rushed to my car to go to work after my class. My teacher had, thankfully, accepted my paper, although, I quote: "It's sloppy, Karin, but I'll take it. Next paper, make it neater." I wanted to spit right then and there all over her desk, but I couldn't, dang it. I soon forgot about everything else after I got into my car and started driving. I turned my radio on, and listened to Evanescence on the radio. She was singing My Immortal. I loved that song.

"These wounds won't seem to heal." I sang along with the radio threw the entire song in key until I arrived at Ephram's house.

I turned my radio off and started up into his house to clean. Delia was home, so I would have someone to look after and to talk to if I needed, but that was the last thing on my mind.

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Agh, I know this chapter sucked. But I'm out of ideas on how to get from one place to the other. Yeah, I have parts in my notebooks here and there. If you all have any ideas on what you would like to happen or something, email me (elves_and_black_hawks@yahoo.com or ringbearer888@yahoo.com) or IM me. I have AIM. My IM name is in my profile. TTYL!

All for one, and one for all!

~Aramis~