Light.

The Canvas

Morning came quickly, and I woke up at 5am.  I had actually slept late compared to when the Scientists usually woke us up.  Bored, I decided to explore the mansion a bit.

I krept down the spiral staircase at the end of the hall which lead to a long hallway.  It was the kind you saw in dreams where you were trying to reach something at the end but never could.  I opened the first door to the right and sauntered inside the dark room.

"Wow, you're up early."  I heard someone say softly.  I froze and decided to be 'sleepwalking'.  I took a step foreward but fell to the floor and curled up.

"You're not fooling anyone."  Whoever it was switched the light on.  I huffed and opened my eyes.

"Sorry, I woke up early..." 

"It's fine, I always do too."  I noticed Will in the corner of the room.  He was wearing a smock over a pair of worn gray sweatpants and a V-neck tee shirt.  In his hand was a paint brush, and to the side of him was a canvas with the beginning of an ocean at the edges.

I stood and looked around me, my eyes wide at the museum of amazing arts of work.  There were flowers, cliffs, beaches, everything that someone would see in a good dream.

"Wow."  was all I could say.  I could see him smirking, his cheeks tinting a sweet strawberry pink.

"Thanks.  I've been orking on them for years."  He said while looking up at the paintings in various types of frames.

"What're you painting now?"  I asked eying the painting he had been working on. 

The tint on Will's cheeks redened.

"It's just a beach we used to visit., nothing special."  Will rubbed his paint-stained elbow.  I nodded.

"Well, tell me when it's finished, I'd really like to see the complete painting."  I said then slipped out of the room and into the hall which had become lighter as the sun began to rise.

Once I found my way to the kitchen, the whole family was awake.  I could hear them hurrying around upstairs and I wasn't sure for what.

Esme and Arron were first to come downstairs.  They were wearing matching plaid uniforms. The uniform consisted of gray stockings, shiny black mary-janes, a blue plaid skirt, a white blouse, blue tie, and a black blazer with an emblem on the side.  The boys' version was the same except for black dress pants and shoes of their choice.

"What's for breakfast?"  Esme asked.  She took a seat at the dining room table.  I bit my lip.  After the tragedy last night I think I was going to stick with easier meals from now on.

"It's a surprise."  I whispered and glanced at scowling Arron.  Esme clapped her hands together and giggled.

"Really?  I love surprises!"  She exclaimed.  i nodded and hurried back into the kitchen.

I scavanged the cabinets in search of something simple.  I finally found a box of Cheerios and decided I would add some fruit and it would b good enough.

I poured 9 bowls of cereal, a large platter of fruit salad, 2 mugs of coffee and 7 glasses of orange juice.

I came back into the dining room to see ervyone siting in their seats, except for Anthea who I guess lived with her boyfriend.  I figured I would safe the extra cereal for myself.

"Oh, the coffee smells devine!"  Mrs. Kensington piped up.  i grinned and made my way to the middle of the table before setting down the platter. 

Everyone quickly dug in, except for Will who was sketching in a notebook under the table.

"Ha, nice job not burning this one this time."  Alec joked. Kristi slapped him on the arm.

"It's delicious.  Give her some gratitude!"  She scolded.  I wondered why Mrs. Kensington hadn't said that instead.  I shrugged it off and returned to the kitchen.

When I came back out to the collect the plates I noticed everyone was gone except for Will who was stuffing his notebook into his messenger bag.  He looked up and smiled when he noticed me.

"Oh, sorry just packing up, breakfast was good by the way."  He said and slung his bag over his shoulder.

"Where'd everyone go?"  I asked while stacking up the bowls onto the platter.

"Well, my parents to work and the rest of us to school."  Will grabbed the plate of leftover fruit.  "Let me help you, I won't be too late."  I couldn't help but accept.

He helped me clean the dishes than raced off to catch the subway to I guess where his school was.

I sighed out of boredom and looked at the clock.  I wondered what everyone was doing, and figured it was better than what I was up to.

After a while of staring at the clock, I decided to go get some rest, I would need it.