Chapter 4 – New Life, New Roommate

Ana's POV

It's the weekend so I called about the apartment and set up a meeting at a café nearby. I think this roommate thing might be good for me. I don't have any friends in Seattle yet; I don't really like getting close to people. It's something that I have had a problem with since the accident. If I don't get close to anyone then I can't get hurt. I don't want to live my entire life like that though. I want to move on in some way or another. I still have a problem with transportation so; I want to work on my social life.

The only people I talk to are over Skype and living a couple hundred miles away. It's just Alex and his friends, the only people I have left. They are all really great guys and they were there for Alex when he needed them. All of them were supposed to travel but, they had to go on without him. When I turned 18 and moved out, his friends moved into the house with him. It was convenient for the guys to move into the house otherwise we would have had to sell it. Brandon and John are game designers whilst Alex has been focusing on writing.

It's our childhood house so neither of us wanted to permanently part with it. I try to send him about a hundred dollars every month to help with bills. It's the least I could do for him and I know he needs it more than I do. I have been doing really well for myself here and he needs the money more than I do.

I walk to the café because it's only about two blocks away. When I get there I decide on a tea while I wait. I am a little early and there aren't a lot of people so I find a table near the window to people watch. I put my tea bag in the water and almost immediately pull it out.

I remember I learned to drink tea from my dad and this was the only way I would drink it. It would always be Twining's and even though my mother thought we were both crazy for hating coffee this was our thing. Whenever I have tea it reminds me of my dad and I don't mind those memories. The only memory I don't like to think about is the fact that they are gone.

I think anyone who went through something as traumatic as that would want to forget about it. I try not to think about it but sometimes I can't help it. I try to focus on the good times we shared though. We did have a lot of good memories together. Now I think it's time to make some new ones here for myself. This is my home now and I want to make as many memories as I can. I don't want his chance of starting over to be affected by my past.

I am startled from my thoughts by someone talking to me "You must be Ana" she says. I look up at a girl who looks like supermodel in front of me. I stand and shake her hand "Yes, your Kate?" we sit down at the table and she takes a sip of the coffee she has in her hand. "Yeah, it's nice to meet you" I smile and she continues "So, what do you do?" "I'm a studying fashion design at the art institute and I have a part time job." "Oh, you might know my mom then. She teaches there." I try to think about which teacher is her mom and she explains "Kavanagh" I smile "Yes, I have some of my designs in her store. She is an amazing mentor." She smiles "You must be good. She doesn't sell many students designs."

We continue talking about everything and anything. She tells me she has a part time job at a newspaper and is also a student at U-dub. She is apparently a part of a lot school activities so she isn't home too much during the week. On the weekend however she spends more time at home. The only reason she is looking for a roommate is because she doesn't want to live alone. He parents bought it for her and it's too big for one person so that's why the rent is also so cheap. She comes from money so she isn't really worried about that.

She does tell me she has a brother Ethan who is a student at WSUV and comes to visits once in awhile. I don't tell her about Alex or my parents, it isn't something I bring up to strangers. I don't want anyone's pity or anyone saying that they are sorry. If I do become closer to her I might tell her but, I haven't really met anyone who asked. Everyone back home knew about it and I didn't know anybody here. I think I could become friend with her though she seems nice. The only girl friend I have had are the girls I use to party with. I didn't really keep those people around after I got my life back on track. All the other girl friends I have had I pushed away after the accident.

She tells me that she has a good feeling about me and thinks we could become friends. She decides that she wants me to move and tells me I should look at the apartment. I accept and she tells me to come by later to come take a look. We part ways and I head back to my apartment to work on some school work for a bit.

I'm happy that I finally found someone I can be friends with. I can finally hang out with someone who isn't on the other side of a screen. All I have been doing lately is school and work. Plus, Alex has been busy working on a book and Brandon and John are working on some zombie game. They have been sending me their work though to check it out. Alex has sent me the first couple of chapters of his book to read and I couldn't put it down. I also was able to play the game that they were working on. I wasn't very good at but, I had fun. Those guys have a way to brighten up my day.

This city is still so new to me but, I'm happy here. I feel like this place is my home now. They say home is where the heart is. I think part of my heart still lies in Sedona but part of it is with me here. So, I guess I have two homes now. I'm at a place in my life where I am starting to move on from the past. This feels new but it feels good to let go. I think I am finally ready to let go, it's time to get on with my life.