*~Lily's P.O.V.~*
I clutched my bag tightly. The mixture of fear and excitement in my stomach was enough to make me sick. Moving to a new place. Going to a new high school. What if everybody hates me like they did at my old school? Luckily, school had only been in for about a week, so I wouldn't be too lost.
My big sister wrapped one arm around me in a failed attempt to comfort me. I faked a smile at the contact.
I looked back and forth between my sister and the gates, signifying that we should get going. She just nodded. Neither of us felt like speaking right now. We slowly made our way to the gates where they took our tickets and sent us through the metal detector.
Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Lillian Gage, but I prefer to go by Lily. My sister's name is Samantha. Although Samantha and I are sisters by birth, we've been separated for years. She went off to college while I stayed at the orphanage. When I finally got adopted a year after she left, Samantha came to visit once a month, but it was only one day at a time. That family kept me for a year and a half until they sent me back to the orphanage because I was "too much work." I was at the orphanage for another year before Samantha finally graduated college and came to take me to move to New Jersey with her yesterday. I haven't lived with her in almost four years. She's twenty-two now, and I'm only sixteen.
So here I am, sitting on an airplane, moving to New Jersey with my birth sister, who I haven't been around for more than a day at a time since I was twelve.
Samantha finally broke the silence. "So, how have you been?" She asked.
"Good," I said, not feeling much like talking.
Samantha sighed heavily and turned to face me. "Lily, I'm sorry I couldn't be there for you. I went to college because I wanted to graduate and be able to get a good job, so that when I was finally old enough to be your guardian, I'd have enough money to support us. I'm so sorry I left you behind. I understand if you don't forgive me. I just wanted you to know," she explained, letting a single tear slide down her cheek. I had never seen Samantha cry. She would always put on a brave face so that I wouldn't worry. She had done that since we were little.
"Sam, it's alright. I'm not mad at you. I could never be mad at you. I love you," I smiled a real smile for the first time in years.
"I love you too," she said, hugging me right back. I held onto her tightly. I hadn't realized how much I had missed my big sister until this moment. I didn't want to let go. For the first time since our parents died, I felt at home.
After our sister moment had ended, Samantha told me some stories from her time in college. For the first time in years, I laughed without faking it. Her college life was hilarious!
As our plane landed in New Jersey, Samantha grabbed her suitcases and I grabbed my dufflebag from the luggage carousel. It was sad that all of my belongings fit into one small dufflebag, but that's the life of an orphan I guess.
Samantha had already got us a house and a car before she came to get me. We left the airport and climbed into Samantha's car, which had been sitting in the airport parking lot since she flew back to Los Angeles to get me. We drove for about twenty minutes before we ended up at a pretty large house in a cute little neighborhood in a town called Belleville.
"Welcome home, sis," Samantha smiled, as she unlocked the door and let me into the house.
It was lovely, and much bigger than anywhere I'd been since I'd been an orphan.
"How did you afford this?" I asked, in awe.
"Being a lawyer pays surprisingly well," she laughed.
"You're a lawyer now?" I asked. She had told me that she went to law school, but she never told me that she became a lawyer.
"Oops. I guess I forgot to mention that," she laughed. "Yes, I'm a lawyer."
I smiled and hugged her. I was proud of her. She followed her dreams and it actually worked out for her.
You see, Samantha was very advanced. She graduated high school at age sixteen. She took community college courses for two years, then went off to law school when she was eighteen. Four years of law school later, my sister becomes a twenty-two year old lawyer. Pretty impressive, if you ask me.
She hugged me back before chuckling and letting go. "C'mon! I'll show you around the house!" she said, kicking off her shoes and excitedly running up the stairs. I kicked my shoes off and ran after her.
First she showed me where all of the bathrooms were, just in case. Next, she showed me her room, which was pretty bare. She must still be in the process of decorating. I found a door with my name painted in fancy black lettering on it, but Samantha said she was saving that one for last.
We ran back downstairs, and she showed me the kitchen. It was fairly small, but it had all the essentials; fridge, pantry, dishwasher, sink, and plenty of cabinets. The dining room was also somewhat small. It had a ceiling fan hanging over a small table with four chairs. In the living room was a big TV, a large couch, and a few recliners.
Last but not least, after showing me the garage and the laundry room, she led me back upstairs, to the door with my name on it. She covered my eyes with her hands and led me into the room. She quickly removed the blindfold and my jaw dropped.
The walls and ceiling were painted black, and band posters hung on all the walls. There was a large canopy bed against one wall, with red sheets. Sheer black curtains hung on the canopy.
There was a huge desk with tons of art supplies scattered all over it, along with some blank canvases and sketch pads. I'd definitely put that to good use.
A large wardobe stood against the wall opposite the bed. A TV hung from one of the walls, and various consoles, controllers, and stacks of games sat under it. This looked like paradise to me.
I turned to Samantha, who just smiled at me.
"So how do you like it?" she asked.
I was nearly speechless. "Oh my god, Sam! It's perfect! You didn't have to do this for me!" I said, nearly crying tears of joy. Nobody ever does things this nice for me. I was shocked.
"Of course I didn't have to do this. I wanted to. You're the best sister ever and you deserve every bit of effort I put into this," she said.
"I didn't even know you paid this much attention to me. You got everything I've ever wanted in a bedroom," at this point I was crying. "I love you," I managed to choke out through my tears of joy.
She walked over to me and hugged me again. "I love you too. I'll let you unpack your things, then we're going to the mall to get you some new clothes, alright?" she asked as she pulled away from the hug.
"You really don't have to spend any more money on me. I'll use what I have."
"Sis, we're getting you new clothes. You don't have a choice. There's no way I'm letting you start a new high school with those ratty old things," she laughed, before leaving me to unpack my things.
My stomach dropped as high school was mentioned. If it's anything like my last school, I'll end up utterly alone. Great.
