Coconut Colada

Chapter 1

The attic was quaint. A mild mist of mildew swept the air. It was the start of April- the beginning of spring. A chilling breeze grazed the back of my neck, bringing me back into focus.

I was in charge of emptying a lone corner of the attic. To most girls my age this would seem like a paining chore. For me it was interesting, emptying my strange aunt's attic. She had collections of trinkets and collectibles. The attic was organized and lined with shelves and bins, all very neat and tidy.

I started by placing the items off the shelves into packing boxes. My brother Lee gave a smirk, noticing he'd almost emptied his corner in the attic. It was almost like he telepathically said 'look at me, I'm doing way better than you!'

"What?! Don't look at me like that Lee!" He always knew just how to agitate me, one of his greatest talents.

"What, I didn't do anything Nora." Lee said calmly while holding back a smile. I knew exactly how this was going to go. So I continued with my chore.

Grabbing more porcelain dolls, I noticed a small envelope beneath one. I know what you're thinking- oh my goodness could that contain something mysterious. Let me just inform you, it was nothing more than old dirty guitar strings, wrapped in a tight circle. Right when I thought I had found something interesting, well that's my luck.

It felt like the boxes just kept coming. There was so much more to go through, so I had to keep focused. I was starting to feel as old as the woman who once owned this stuff. Ya right, as if, just being here was making me age faster. Why do I even think about this type of stuff. I was strange that way. I always felt like my thoughts were different from others. I would associate what I was thinking while I was listening to songs with the song itself. I would tap my fingers in an order over and over and create shapes in my mind with each tap. And think of things like I was doing right now.

"I think your dad and I are going to get some food, then we can continue," my mom was finally going to get food, about time. My stomach felt more empty just thinking about it. As much as I liked doing this type of stuff, it was draining. I could feel my legs aching. The muscle behind my shins was stiff, whatever it's called. Oh right, calves? I don't know, but whatever it is it was throbbing and little jolts of pain were tingling when I extended it.

After posing like a thirsty influencer for several minutes, I decided a seat might help with my pain, as posing with my knee bent, butt out and arm resting on my leg was not helping the matter. As I dragged a chair into reach I began to wonder what was causing all this pain. It was probably because I was playing basketball, in dancing and ran for fun. No wonder.

Lee was already getting bored of me. He was two years younger, but he always acted around the same age as me. He galloped down the stairs, bobbing up and down with each step. He was probably hungry, searching the empty fridge wouldn't help much.

To keep my mind off of my aching legs, I thought that maybe looking out the attic window would keep me sane. I dragged the wooden stool over to the stained glass window.

Kids were walking past, a few adults jogging, the usual for a suburb like this. Then my eyes trailed over at the intersection to the left. There was a boy who looked around my age. My heartbeat quickened and I almost instantly felt embarrassed. I wasn't sure why, but this was how I felt around boys. He wasn't even close and I was still panicking. I was wearing old working clothes and my hair was a mess. Not that I would get the courage to talk to him anyway. I always dreamed about having a boyfriend, but I hadn't even been asked out and didn't have the courage to do it myself.

I stood up and looked in the long oval mirror. Okay my hair wasn't as messy as I thought it was. I actually thought that maybe I looked cute, in a relaxed kinda way. Maybe? Oh, here comes the second guessing. He was already walking closer to the house. I began to think about all the other times I wished I would have talked to someone. I couldn't let that happen again. I rushed down the stairs carelessly trying to make it down in time. And before I knew it I heard a crack.