Ethan
It was taking a while for Riley to wash the dishes, much longer than it took me to get ready. I offered to help her, but she acted like the kiss on the cheek never happened and went back to her old sour attitude and refused my help. While she was finishing up in the kitchen, I took out of my suitcase the letter that my parents gave me at the airport. I read it again. It couldn't be true, could it? We got a call from some English folks, it said.
So they'd just send me away like that? From just a call from some people they didn't even know? The emotions overwhelmed me once again, a fresh set after a day for them to build up pressure behind my eyes until I felt like I was going to explode. I didn't want to show Riley how much inner conflict I was feeling, but it was hard to hide it. To start off with, I was scared and disappointed in the fact that my parents sent me away with no warning and not a second thought. Also the fact that they never told me I was adopted. Not to mention, everything was so strange, with no one telling me what was really going on.
The letter was crinkly from my dried tears, and I wanted nothing more than to tear it to bits, but I couldn't bring myself to do that because it might be the last thing I get from my parents in a while. Instead, I threw it to the floor angrily, and buried my head in my hands.
"Ethan?" Riley said quietly from the entrance to the very small kitchen. "Are you ready to go?"
"Coming," I said, and instinctively reached for my car keys, which were not there, because I did not live here, my car was thousands of miles and several hours away. I sighed, and stood up. "Do you know how we're getting there? And where is there is?"
"Nope!" she replied enthusiastically, trying hard to ignore my obvious discomfort and sadness only seconds previously. "But I'm excited!"
Downstairs we met Sophi and she took us out to where her mother, Annabeth was sitting waiting for us in the parking lot. "Hello children," she said kindly. "Nice to see you all in one place," she paused. "And in one piece," she said looking warmly at Riley. "Now I know this is strange for all of you, and I said I'd explain later, but you're going to have to wait a bit longer for an explanation. It's all a bit complicated getting everyone settled in on such a fast notice. I hope you all understand."
The car ride was awkward, but luckily short. No one said much of anything; it's not like there was nothing to say, it just all went unsaid. It was the same sick car as the other day, and now as I looked around closer, it was clearly rented. I tried to notice as many things as I could to keep my mind off of my current situation.
I noticed that there wasn't a single cloud to break up the monotony of the pure, perfect blue sky
I noticed the ruralness of the area we were driving through. I thought New York was all about big cities
I noticed how nice Riley's hair looked pinned back like that..
I noticed the generic dice plushies hanging from the center mirror in the car
Eventually I was lulled into a sense of calmness and security, until she pulled up next to an empty valley and told us to get out of the car.