The Love In Our Lungs

Chapter 2

My eyes flutter open, and I quickly come to feel the dryness of my throat. I place my cold bare feet on the wooden floor and climb out of bed towards the bathroom outside my room. I enter, and my insecurities start to kick in the very moment I look at myself in the mirror. Messy hair along with eyebrows and pale face, makes me frown almost instantly. I have today and tomorrow till my appointment on Wednesday. Then Thursday I'll have to confront the fears of going into a new school. Dread and nothing but dire infecting my system to bring my heart onto a race.

Changing into jeans and a white tank top I make my way downstairs and find a note posted on the fridge as well as a plate with some bacon and eggs placed on the countertop. I take the note in my fingers and read it as I silently eat the food.

The note was written in perfect cursive writing, something I despise, and my mother is very well aware of that. Cursive writing has always been too-how do I express this? Formal for me. There isn't much important information on the piece of paper rather than my mom apprising me of a few dollars left on the kitchen counter for me, and a short statement on her interview she had to go for today.

I forgot that my mother had an interview for a new job as a photographer. For I am actually interested in painting, and in my free time I play the guitar and piano. Art is what I really have to thank for keeping me alive, well that and my mother, and how could I forget the infinite number of doctors I've had to deal with. It may seem selfish, but music helps me calm down my nerves and anxiety more than my mother does. Should this thought be something to really put my mind on?

After I put my shoes on I make my way to the kitchen where I leave a note to my mom telling her I went out for a while. Socializing isn't my thing or talent, but looking around the streets of Missouri won't kill me. With the money in my brown bag, I walk for what seems like hours but are probably like thirty minutes, and I see a coffee shop that seems pretty old. My curiosity gets the best of me as I make my way inside the place. The wooden boards creak on my way to a small booth with red leather covering the seat where I sit in. I take out my sketchbook in which I have tons of drawings, mostly eyes. I read people's emotions through their eyes quite easily, and I'm glad I can do that since I can understand people better. The only problem with that is the fact that I don't know anyone besides my mom and the doctors.

I observe my surroundings and find nothing interesting to draw. I dig deep in my mind to find an idea as to what to draw, but then a girl with bright red hair approaches the booth, a smile plastered on her face as she looks at me before asking:

"Hi I'm Stella, what can I get for you?" her enthusiastic tone of voice somehow makes me smile. Come on Olivia, be social for once. What do you say when you interact with someone? I'm not good at all at socializing since the only two people I actually interact with are my mom and the doctor that used to attend to me. I think for a few seconds before answering

"Hello I'm Olivia, and let me think about it considering I'm new here and don't know much about the place," great, now I've ruined whatever kind of friendship I could have had with this girl. Why on earth did I think about mentioning that I had never been to this town?

"Okay well I'll be right back, and who knows maybe we could chat a little bit," and with that she is gone from my view, leaving me very, and I mean very shocked. That was my first actual human interaction that isn't with my mother or countless doctors. It went well considering my social anxiety is on a steady level since I haven't fainted yet.

I open the sketchbook that has a brown cover full of drawings of stars that I have seen through the windows of my old home. As I am starting to draw a snake plant, Stella comes back with a white cup in her hand. She places the cup in front of me and scoots into the other side of the booth. I raise a dark eyebrow at her and ask