The sun shone through the window of the room, in a average middle class family home, which was occupied with the remainder of this family, the remainder of the Matthew's family, the 18 year old adopted daughter. She stirred as the sun shone through the window, no matter how hard she tried; she eventually gave in and opened her eyes, moaning at the bright light that blinded her.
"Damn you!" she sighed, she turned to her CD player and switched it on full blast the music filled the air; she pushed back the covers of the bed and stepped out, staggering towards the bathroom.
About half an hour latter she emerged from the bathroom wearing black jeans, army style boots with a tight white t-shirt. Her hair and Make up perfect, but her head still spinning, she staggered from the bathroom towards the kitchen. On her way she stopped momentarily out side the room that her adopted parents once occupied, now the house was so empty, the once family orientated house was now out of place, in this suburban area of San Francisco this house, with it's picket white fence should have children playing in the garden, a father working on his car in the garage and a mother cooking in the kitchen, stereotypical, maybe but, it was the kind of house that gave you the 1950's feel not in the décor, just in the absence of a family, is shouted out at Paige reminding her of what she lost the day the car explode, she still didn't understand why she was stood here today, why she was not dead but she wasn't and there had to be a reason.
She walked over and took out a flask from the fridge, opening it, she took a glass from the side and tipped the content of it into the glass, it was a green reddish kind of substance that didn't look particularly inviting. Paige didn't care, she had gone through this routine most days, it had become nothing new, lifting up the glass she downed the liquid, it didn't taste good at all, but Paige was used to it so didn't even pull a face. In finishing she felt much better slamming the glass down on the side she took her bag, and Phone along with the half empty pack of cigarettes with the lighter and left the house.
Today was Friday so, like another Friday it would play out like this, Go to school, manage to make it through to lunch, ditch the rest of the day, going to a local abandoned warehouse, and drink, drink a lot.
She pulled up into the school car park and stepped out her car, "Another day at high school hell." She moaned, slamming the car door shut and making her way towards the entrance, it was deserted, "What's new! I'm late." She complained walking up the steps and into the entrance.
She pushed the door open to the room where she was supposed to be twenty minuets earlier; she walked through to take her usual seat at the back of the class next to Luke, her life long friend. She turned and looked at the teacher sat at his desk, "Miss. Matthews, Explanation..."
Paige smiled; he really makes this too easy, "What to why you're wearing the dead cat on your head." The class sniggered, as her English teacher, in his mid fifties, raised his hand to his toupee on his head, "I mean really, do you want to be any balder!" she finished.
"Miss Matthews. Principle's office Now!" he hollered, Paige rolled her eyes and stood to her feet, picking her bag up from the floor she made her way towards the exit of the class and left, to go down a familiar rout, she had been down many times, the principles office. Down the hall first left, continue till you come to the double doors, the entrance to the center of hell.
Paige didn't exactly rush, 'what was the point, what was at the end and inevitable shouting match, usually lasting a good half hour, then a trip to the councilor, then if I'm lucky back to the principle' she thought. She arrived at those double doors far to soon for her liking, in pushing them open, she was standing in the middle of the reception, she turned to the woman on the desk, she was one of those people you see floating around the school but never really know their name or what the actually do. "Here to see the principle" Paige blurted out, with no emotion, as if not really standing in her body.
"Okay then, take a seat." The woman directed, Paige did, she threw her bag to the side of the chair and sat down, she didn't speak to the woman again, only sat and thought, mostly about when she would get out of here, out of this place.
She didn't know how long she had been waiting, not very when she hared the door to the principles office open, "Paige"
She looked up, "Thought you were to busy to see me?" she asked,
"Always make time for you..." he sighed, "come in." Paige stood to her feet, grabbed her bag and followed him into the office.
"Take a seat." The principle offered
Paige did, she sat on the soft cushiony chair she was accustomed to the routine, but she didn't like routine so decided she would start, "made fun of his wig..." Paige spat out, waiting to see what Mr. Robinson's response would be,
"You what?" he asked, talking a seat at the opposite side of the desk, looking at Paige.
"That's why I'm here. I walked into his lesson late, took my seat...he asked for an excuse and I made fun of that thing on his head. He makes it too easy!" she explained,
"Paige, why do you always treat us like enemies?"
"Look, sir, do we really have to do this again, you know, the, we are here to support you, and we care about your future because both you and I know I have no future that doesn't contain the word criminal or drugs."
"You are so wrong Paige...you have a future, a future that will be what you make it. I am here to guide you and teach you, we can't live your life for you."
"Sir, I have a life that is hell. I don't know my real parents, and I watched my adopted parent's burn to death in a car explosion I wish killed me! Do tell me what to do or what I have...I have nothing, and that includes family."
"You are wrong...you have a life, that could be great, a life that you cold live and be proud of." Paige lent back in the chair, "Is this going to take long..." she mumbled.
Mr. Robinson lent on his desk, so he was closer to her, "Paige you come to school, stinking of cigarettes and alcohol, you don't work, you skip classes and you have very low test scores, if thing don't pick up then I will be forced to expel you."
Paige shrugged, "Maybe that would be for the best."
"Do you think that this is what they would have wanted?" The principle spoke, "For you to just give up."
"Well we don't all get what we want, I never wanted to watch my mom and dad die, I never wanted to be left alone but I am...now sir, I really do hope we can hurry this along."
"Why do you have somewhere to be?" he asked, "Right now you have school, if you get expelled then you wont have anywhere, you sure as hell wont be anywhere you want to be." Paige looked at him and shrugged, "well that'll be my problem."
"It doesn't have to be...Paige I know that you have had it hard, extremely..."
"You know nothing." Paige shouted, "Don't sit there and tell me you know because you don't..."
"Paige, I would like you to see the school councilor?"
"No, I don't want to go to the dam councilor again."
"Paige, I'm not asking you, I'm telling you." The principle rose to his feet, "You know what I'm sick of people telling me, why do, you have to tell me? Tell me what you think is best, tell me how I feel, tell me how to act. STOP TELLING ME!" she screamed.
"Paige, I'm getting the councilor, you can't keep this locked up you need to talk to someone."
"I need to be left the hell alone." She shouted,
"You better get that anger under control Paige. Right now we are trying to help, but if you continue like this we will have to expel you."
Half hour latter Paige found herself sitting in the councilors office, she looked at her watch, "Well I'm not getting out of here for lunch, that's for sure." She mumbled, just then the door opened, Paige never looked up just spoke, "We don't have to do that ink blot stuff do we."
"No Paige, we don't." Paige looked over and replied "Good because I swear to god, it all looks the same to me, all looks like your pen leaked."
The young blond woman walked over taking a seat at her desk, "So Paige, sounds like you are having a tough day."
"You could say that and it all started because I got up late." The blond woman smiled,
"Didn't we have this convocation before..."
"Yep just last week."
"And I told you to get an alarm clock..." Paige nodded her head, "Yeah, but I don't like them they wake you up."
"Paige I think that you are missing the point..." Paige felt strangely calm, Paige always did when she was sat with Miss. Jackson, she didn't have to hide behind anger she could be herself, or whatever was left of her original self, she felt as if after her parents died apart of her died to. She looked at miss Jackson's loving eyes, and reminded herself, 'not to break too much, no matter, who this person is no one will no what you truly feel.'
"So how about we talk about you?" she asked, Paige looked at he, "Oh come on we always talk about me, do you have any unresolved issues that I can help with?"
"Cute, Paige, really cute. How about we concentrate on you?" Paige shrugged her shoulders, "Same as last week!" she answered,
"Obviously, that mean that are session last week didn't help."
"What? It helped..." Paige protested, not wanting to go through everything again,
"Paige last week we spent over half an hour speaking about alarm clocks and, you still don't use on."
"I told you they wake me up." Paige repeated as if it was a simple reason that didn't need any explanation.
"Okay, well as much fun as the alarm clock stories are, how about we talk about the distinctive smell of alcohol and cigarettes that I can smell on you." Paige looked away, "Hay smoking isn't illegal."
"No but drinking is!" Miss Jackson offered, "Paige if you are found..."
Paige rolled her eyes, "On campus with alcohol or drugs...etcetera, etcetera, Expelled, etcetera, and so on..." Paige completed, "I know the score."
"Yeah, obviously, but you still seem to continue...not only that Paige...you are ruining your health and your future..."
"Not you too, I don't have a future, this is all I am and will be..." Miss Jackson nodded,
"I see, well lets talk about your none existent future...shall we?"
Paige really just wanted to get out of this place, not sit here so ever reaction, or move that she makes could be analyzed and then the solution that she was mentally unstable be the outcome, or even better depression that's the best, 'I mean they get paid to state the obvious, of course I'm depressed I saw my mom and dad explode and live by myself in one huge house which emphasizes how alone I am.' She thought.
"Paige." Miss Jackson's voice broke into the thoughts of the very distant student, "So what do you want your future to be?"
"My future..."Paige laughed, 'okay I can play this game' she thought, "Future..." she mumbled, "Well I want a gigantic house, picket fence, three sisters, a brother, mom and dad, a little dog...one of those dogs that are loyal and never leave, and that live a long time, I want to have a job that involves, monkeys, little tricycles and a fishing rod."
Miss Jackson lowered the pen to her paper and started to write, although Paige was been sarcastic it reviled a whole lot about her, un known to Paige she had expressed a great deal of emotion. Miss Jackson looked up at Paige's brown eyes, and saw nothing, it was an empty shell, "So Paige what I got so far is that, you want a stable family, a job that no one would expect you to have, and the dog represents the people that you love, you want people to stick around, not leave, or die,"
Paige eyes now registered shocked, she sat forward and her voice rose a little, "Hay...hold on I didn't say any of that at all."
"You didn't have to Paige; you hide your emotions behind anger and sarcasm, why?"
"What do you mean, you really are delusional, I want a future that was possible before my mom and dad dies, that was the only chance I had of having a stable family."
"Paige, look you are adopted right?" Miss Jackson knew to tread carefully around this subject. "So?" Paige asked,"
"Have you ever thought about contacting your biological family?" Paige thought a moment then erupted, "Hay, my family are dead, because I watched them burn in front of me, these other people you are talking about are not family they gave me away...they never loved me, and will never get the chance to. Got it?"
"Okay, Paige I didn't mean to..." Paige nodded her head and sat back, "I know, I'm sorry." she offered, and then she stood to her feet, "So can I go to lunch now."
"Not just yet, you got at least another half hour" She said looking at her watch, Paige fell back onto the chair and moaned, "All this because of his wig..." Miss. Jackson let the comment pass by and continued, tactically, "So do you want to talk to me about anything?"
"Yeah, Fish?"
"Fish?" She asked, Paige nodded, "I want to have convocation about fish..."she had the biggest smirk on her face, and Miss. Jackson slouched back in her chair "This is going to be a long half an hour" she mumbled.
And as promised Paige left the office half an hour later, she craved for the bitter taste of alcohol, but first she had to find Luke, she looked at here watch, great still lunch time, he'll be eating. She headed towards the crowded corridor when she hared someone shout her name echoed down the long hall, "Hay, Matthews, how about we head off?" Paige smiled, and looked up to the guy stood against the two lockers, "Hay, so you ready to get out of this place?" She asked,
"Hi to you, too." Luke smiled, hugging Paige, and then they both walked off down the corridor, "After last night I have to say I never thought you'd show today."
"Well you know me? A glass of home made fix your head juice...more formally known as hangover cure, and I'm fine."
"Maybe you should lay off today."
"Hay after the mornig I just had I don't think so."
"Well why don't, you, think of another way to relieve your stress, I know a guy."
"Luke I don't like your guys, never have never will."
"Matthews are you ever going to trust me." Paige looked at him, "Okay tell me about your guy?" she said,
"He has some stuff!" he hinted with his eyes, Paige got the picture, "And this stuff, is..."
"Matthews you know how it works no questions asked no answers give."
"Yeah well I'll stick to the spirits, k, and now how about I drive?"
"Fine my me." Paige nodded, and with that both headed towards her car.