We were pulling into Santa Carla now, I caught sight of my reflection in a passing mirror, and boy did I look good. My waist length black hair was tied back and my Saffire eyes shined brightly. We passed the brightly painted sign, when the sun shined back in my window, so I turned around to avoid it and saw the eerie words 'Murder Capital of the world' written across the back. I looked over at my twin brother Michael and saw the curiosity in his eyes, that would've been shining in mine.

My younger brother Sam sat in the front next to my mum, his huge Siberian husky, Nanook sat on the floor. Sam was shooting mum pained looks as she tried to sing along to a song. He turned it down, she turned it back up, he tried once more and when that didn't work he pulled his baggy, trench coat over his head and hummed really loudly.

I leaned forward and pulled a chunk of his sandy blonde hair, which was still poking out. He yelped and pulled the coat off. He looked straight at Michael.

"It wasn't me, it was Autumn." Michael said, annoyed that I'd gotten him in trouble already. Sam just gave him a look, like 'yeah right'.

Annoyed by all our bickering, mum turned the radio up louder as an old, ancient song came on. She started singing, very out of tune, might I add. Glancing about the car I realised my shoe lace was untied, bending down to tie up my bright yellow converse, I felt someone pull a chunk off my hair.

I sit back up looking around, I spot Michael, who looks a little too innocent, just staring out the window. I reach over and slap him across the head.

"OW! What was that for?" he asked genuinely surprised. I feel bad, he didn't do it and I hit him, that means only one person could have…and that one little fourteen year old brat was laughing his guts out.

"Mum! Sam pulled my hair!" I cried turning on the water works. It's not that I don't like my brothers, it's just try being stuck in a car with them for five hours, then see how you feel.

I stopped the waterworks and looked out the window…gee everyone looks like freaks around here. I groaned in relief when mum pulled up at a gas station to refill the tank. I got out of the car and stretched my legs a bit.

I finally had a proper good look around. Shabby, weird houses. Weird people, weird stores. Awesome boardwalk. My kind of place, better than Phoenix, all the kids there were tan snobs and sports freaks. My roaming gaze landed on some poor kids in a dumpster fishing around for food.

My heart strings twanged…my weakness was kids. I fished through my pockets and pulled out a twenty buck note, I walked over to the kids. The larger one, a girl, looked up at my arrival. "Here guys, go buy some food." I handed her the money. She grinned up at me and said thanks, before dragging her brother to the nearest department store.

Happy that I'd done my good deed for the day, I dragged my Neon green Harley Davidson out of the trailer and went for a ride up the road and back. Mum showed her disapproval, with her classic purse of the lips but other than that she let me continue on my bike all the way to Grandpa's with Michael close behind me on his beet up old dirt bike.

I pulled up and checked out my surroundings. I can not live here, it looks like something from one of Michael's Texas chainsaw masica movies! Grandpa had stuffed real animals and had them hanging or standing anywhere they could fit.

We all grabbed a couple of boxes and made our way up to the front door, when Sam caught sight of Grandpa lying, motionless on the floor.

"Oh…My…God." I said, before rushing over to see if he was alright, with mum , close behind.

"Hey, if he's dead can we go back to Phoenix?" Sam asked.

I glared at him about to retort when, "Playing dead and doing a good job of it I hear!" Grandpa laughed as he rose.

"Not funny Grandpa!" I snapped and walked into the house. I found an empty room, (minus the bed and desk, wardrobe) and settled down my boxes. I breathed in a deep breath to calm myself down and nearly gagged. The air was so dusty; I ran over to the window and tugged it open. I stuck my head outside and breathed in the fresh air. I could see Sam and Michael outside, being the irresponsible person I was, I pulled off my shoe and aimed for Michael's head, then I let the shoe go. Bull's eye! It hit its target.

I was laughing, because Michael thought it was Sam and Sam was saying Michaels on drugs. I just had to play my part. "You hoo, boys, it was me!"

They yelled and then I could hear there footsteps on the stairs. I ran to shut my door, but Michael beat me to it and slammed it open. Sam and him entered and backed me up onto the bed, then they pounced and tickled me and tickled me and tickled me.

Finally I couldn't take it anymore and told them I had to pee, just like I predicted, they left like I had a can of pepper spray. I decided to have a shower and maybe sneak out.

I walked into my own personal bathroom and had a warm shower, then I got out and dressed. I put on a ankle length blue wavy print skirt and a tight tie-died singlet. I completed my hippie look with yellow flip flops and a studded red fore head band.

After telling mum, that I was tired and going to bed, I snuck out through the window. I got to the garage and slowly pushed my bike out, down the drive. When I reached the end of the road, I revved the bike really loud and headed of down towards the board walk.