It was raining when I arrived in Minnesota. I pressed my face against the small airplane window as we began our descent. It was June and yet the people below were wrapped in jackets, hats and scarves. Even during the summer it never got very warm in Duluth. A drastic change from what I was used to growing up in California where, even in January, it rarely got below fifty degrees. I sighed and slumped back in my seat. I could feel the tears stinging my eyes. I closed them and took a deep breath, trying to think of other, happier things.
At the airport I scanned the crowd with my eyes, not exactly sure what I was looking for. I hadn’t seen my aunt, Kate, since I was ten years old and I barely remembered what she looked like then. I had no idea what she might look like now, seven years later. Suddenly I was being squeezed so tight I could hardly breath.
“Julia!” Kate squealed in my ear.
“Kate!” I gasped.
She held me out at arms length to get a good look at me. Kate had short, blonde hair that she wore perfectly straight. She was thin, and just an inch or two taller than me. Her trendy clothes made her look younger than her thirty-seven years. She looked nothing like her brother, my father.
“Oh, Julia you’ve grown up so much! You’re so beautiful!” Kate declared with a smile on her face.
I forced a smile. “You look great too.”
I watched as the smile slowly faded from her face, taking mine with it, and a deep sadness filled her eyes.
“I’m so sorry, Julia.” She whispered.
I closed my eyes again to hold back the tears. I said nothing; for fear that my voice would crack. I thought of the reason I was here in Duluth. I had never known my mother, she had died giving birth to me and I had been raised by my father. Two weeks ago, my father had been driving home from work when a drunken teenager drifted into my father’s lane and hit him head on at fifty miles per hour. They were both killed instantly. I was sent to live in Duluth with Kate, my only living relative. I shuddered and slowly opened my eyes to Kate’s worried face.
“Julia, I –“ Kate started, but I cut her off.
“It’s okay.” I mumbled. “I… I’m fine. It’s okay.” I was trying to reassure myself as much as I was Kate.
I was thankful when Kate decided not to press the issue. Instead she gave me a sad smile.
“C’mon.” She said. “I’m sure you want to see your new home.”
She couldn’t be more wrong.
I gazed out the window as we drove through the city. Kate was rambling about school, the kids that I would be meeting in the fall, and how many cute boys there were at Duluth Central High School. I tried to pay attention and occasionally gave an “mmm” or “uh huh” but my thoughts were of other things. As we drove further out of the city and the houses became less and less packed together, my memory kept flashing images of the beach in California, all of my friends there, my high school, my father.
“Well, here we are.” Kate interrupted my thoughts.
I looked up at the house that I now lived at. It was larger than I expected. The long driveway curved up to the house and then back out to the road, making a U shape. The house was beige, with dark blue – almost black – shutters. A deck-like balcony wrapped around the upper level of the house. Since Kate lived alone I had expected a much smaller place. With just her and I living here, we would have plenty of room.
Kate must have noticed my surprised expression. “I know. It’s big, huh?” She said excitedly. “You’ll basically have the whole top floor to yourself. Your room has a walk in closet and there’s a bathroom just for you.” She smiled and waited for my response.
“It’s big.” I agreed. It’s big? Is that all I can come up with? I thought to myself. “It’s great.” I quickly added.
Kate grinned. “C’mon, I’ll show you inside.”
The outside of the house didn’t do justice to the inside. Inside, it was even bigger. The living room was very large and open to the kitchen. Comfortable-looking furniture and polished wooden tables and shelves surrounded a beautiful brick fireplace. It made me think of a log cabin. A very huge, extravagant log cabin.
“Oh.” I breathed.
Kate grinned wider. “So, what do you think?” she persuaded.
“Wow, just… wow.” I replied. I couldn’t deny this place was amazing.
“Your room is right up those stairs.” Kate said pointing to the far end of the living room where a wide staircase led to the next level. “My room is just down the hall.” She pointed to the hallway that ran past the staircase. “I’ll make some dinner. You must be hungry. Why don’t you go check out upstairs and start unpacking?”
The upstairs was a wide hallway with a glass door at the end that led out to the balcony that I had seen outside. There was a door to the left and a to the right. I walked in the left door. Inside was probably the largest bathroom I had ever seen. A massive mirror took up the majority of one wall with a sink underneath. I looked at myself in the mirror. The baggy sweatshirt I was wea
omg im sorry! i didnt realize that it cut off! heres the rest of the chapter
The baggy sweatshirt I was wearing hung loosely around my thin frame. My straight, light brown hair was up in a ponytail. I pulled the band from my hair and shook my head. My shoulder-length hair was tangled and damp from the rain. I sighed; I would deal with that later. At one end of the room was the toilet and against the adjacent wall a long wooden bench. At the other end of the room was another door. I raised an eyebrow and walked to the door. Inside was a smaller room with a shower and a large Jacuzzi-like bathtub. Correction, this was definitely the largest bathroom I had ever seen. I sighed and walked back across the hall to the room on the right, my new room.
I had to remember to breath. The room was huge. On the far side, against the wall was a king size bed. There were three dressers, a desk with a laptop, and a vanity.
Shelves filled with books, CDs, and beautiful, expensive-looking trinkets covered the wall behind the bed. There was another glass door leading out to the balcony and a door at the end of the room opposite the bed that had to be the walk in closet Kate had mentioned. I checked, yep. Kate had, of course, bought me a few new outfits since most of my clothes were tank tops and shorts from California.
I set my bags down and sunk into the bed. I glanced to the glass door. The rain had stopped and the sun was now breaking up the clouds. Some music would be nice, I thought. I looked over at the stereo sitting on one of the dressers and it immediately started playing a country song. Much Better.
I lay back on the bed and concentrated on the things in my luggage. Clothes, pictures, and other things I had brought with me began quickly flying out of my bags and landing in their respective places. It was a convenient gift, being able to move things with my mind.
Now, it seemed almost normal. Though, of course, I knew it was not. I remembered back to the first time I had accidentally used my power.
I was seven and my second grade class was on a field trip to the zoo. I carried my fashion Barbie doll that I took with me everywhere I went. I had my arms reached high above my head, resting on the top of the barrier while I peeked through the gaps, looking down at the beautiful tiger prowling below. Suddenly, my Barbie slipped from my hand and I watched in horror as she fell to the ground of the tiger’s cage. I have always been very intelligent, and even at seven I knew that nobody was going to get my precious doll for me. I just stared in shock at Barbie lying there at the bottom of the cage. When I saw the tiger turn and start striding back towards my doll, I panicked. I knew it was for no reason. The tiger would have no interest in my silly toy.
But nonetheless, my heart accelerated and I knew in my mind that this was the end of my beloved Barbie.
Suddenly, I felt something in my hand. I yanked my arms back down to my body and peered into my hand. There was Barbie. I dropped her and shot a look back to the floor of the tiger cage. My Barbie was gone. I looked down to the Barbie lying at my feet. I quickly snatched her up and glanced around. Nobody had noticed. I put Barbie in my backpack for safe keeping for the rest of the trip.
I had never told anybody about what had happened at the zoo, but whenever I was alone I practiced my skill and eventually perfected it without anyone ever finding out. It was difficult for me, as I’m sure it would be for anyone, to keep such an amazing secret from my friends and my father, but I knew in the back of my mind that telling anybody about my gift could turn out badly. So I kept my mouth shut and didn’t use my power when anyone was around.
I heard Kate on the stairs and quickly jumped up from the bed, snatching my blue sweater out of the air and hanging it up in my closet. Kate knocked.
“Come in.” I called.
Kate glanced around my new room as she walked in. “Wow, you unpacked fast.” She stated and then turned to look at me. “So, how do you like it?”
“I love it.” I answered. “Thanks for the clothes. And the room, and everything.” I smiled.
Kate seemed satisfied. “Oh, it was nothing. Dinner’s ready.”
“I’ll be right down.”
Kate made burgers for dinner and we chatted politely about unimportant things. I hoped that we would be able to get over our awkwardness soon. After dinner I helped with the dishes and announced that I was turning in early.
“Kay.” She agreed, yawning. “I’ll probably go to bed soon, I work early tomorrow. This is your home now Jules, feel free to do or use anything you like. I’ll be at work until 6. Why don’t you go out and explore tomorrow?”
“Yeah, I’ll keep myself busy.” I interrupted. Kate talked too much. “Night.”
“G’night, hun.”
I brushed my teeth and changed into my pajamas. I was exhausted from the long plane ride and the emotional stress. As I drifted to sleep, I turned off the music without getting out of bed.
sorry, i know its long. I will post on a different site from now on if that makes you guys happy.
