New term

Disclaimer: I'm not Kate Andrews but I do own Delilah and Debbie Morgan. wink

Delilah Morgan stared at herself in the mirror and sighed heavily. It will be her first day at Robert Lowell High School and she is not looking forward to it. She thinks it's unfair that she has to start her sophomore year in a new and unknown high school. Ever since her parents got a nasty divorce four months ago, her life has been pretty much unfair most of the time. It is amazing how much of a drastic change four months had made to her life.

Her Mum had made an authoritative decision to move to Seattle despite many objections from both Delilah and her older sister Debbie. She was very angry at her Mum for separating her from her friends back in New York but deep down, she understood the reason behind her Mum's decision to move halfway across the country. Away from her Dad. As easy as that.

Knock knock.

Delilah opened the door to find Debbie standing in the hallway wearing a smart olive shirt with a short khaki skirt. "Your back-to-school gear?" Delilah snorted.

Debbie sighed. "I just hope everything will be great on my first day. College is very different from high school, you know."

Delilah rolled her eyes. "So I've heard... about a million times." She sat down at the edge of her bed. "But," she added. "Nothing can be worse that high school and all those ridiculous cliques. One wrong move and you are categorized under Social Outcasts."

Debbie went to the full length mirror to check her appearance. "I take it that you are not looking forward to school, eh?"

"It'd be cool if I can continue high school back home. You are so lucky to start high school with people you know. I know no one here. We didn't even get to spend our summer getting to know people because we were busy unpacking."

Debbie turned from the mirror to face Delilah. "Don't worry, my advice is to just be yourself. Do not get sucked into the whole superficial world of high school. Oh, and stay away from the cheerleading squad. I don't want to see you coming home with a pom pom today, you get me?"

Delilah laughed. "Not in a million years will you see me jumping around egging stupid oafs to score a touchdown."

Debbie plopped herself on the bed next to Delilah. "And they call it a sport?"

Both sisters stared at each other and said in unison. "As if!"

They laughed at their own private joke and for a moment there, both of them had forgotten about their troubles.

After a moment of silence, Delilah broke into a frown again. She got up and packed her books into her black back pack. Debbie stared outside the window and whispered. "I miss New York."

"What about Dad?"

Debbie scoffed. "Don't talk to me about him. He must be happier now living with his girlfriend. They can be together in public now that Mum is out of the picture."

Delilah examined her outfit before the mirror for the third time. Blue denim skirt, dark brown jacket over her white shirt and a pair of black boots. It should be good enough for today. She hates to be bothered about appearance but she told herself it will only be for the first day. After that, she will not be bothered anymore.

"Aren't you angry at him?" Debbie asked when Delilah remained quiet.

Delilah considered the question. "I have been asking myself that same question ever since the divorce. But..." she shrugged. "Nothing can change the fact that he's our Dad, you know? He will always be apart of our lives. At least he still remembers his responsibilities as a father."

Debbie got up and walked toward the door. "I'm still angry. Mum can be numb all she wants, and you can be all moral but as far as I'm concerned I will be angry for our sakes then."

Before she left, Debbie said. "Don't wake Mum up. She's wired from the last box left last night."

Delilah nodded. "Finally. No more unpacking!"

Debbie smiled. "Go on now, the bus will be here in fifteen minutes. Go have a bite before you leave."

"Deb," Delilah called out before Debbie made a turn for the hallway.

"What?"

"I miss our picnics at Central Park."

Debbie smiled. "And that quirky café down at Greenwich Village."

"Yeah. Empire State Building, Harlem food and even those muggers down at The Bronx."

For a moment, both sisters looked at each other. They knew that they will return to New York next summer. But that seemed a long time away.

Debbie broke the silence. "You'd better hurry." And with that, she disappeared into the hallway.

Delilah felt a sinking feeling in her stomach. God please help her survive the first day.