Seaside Lullaby

Chapter 1

As the sun rose, light filtered in through half-closed shutters and sheer curtains. The birds chirped and seagulls took flight. The ocean continued drumming on and the salty air was whisked through the small town of Seaside. People were beginning to wake up and repeat their morning routine. In a little cream-colored house surrounded by much bigger and grander homes, a harsh beeping noise echoed throughout it. It was followed by groaning and heavy footsteps going down a dim hallway. The person begrudgingly dragged themself to the bathroom, washed up, and looked in the mirror. Her ginger hair was all tangled and messy, dark circles hung like shadows under her green eyes. Studying for the upcoming math test had taken its toll. Sure, both Caitlin and Hailey had told her that staying up did her no good, but she needed to up her grade, and the chances of doing it before the trimester ended were getting smaller and smaller. She walked over to their coffee machine and poured some into an old mug with letters worn out from use. They sat at their table and paused for a moment enjoying the silence. Mom probably drove Josh to his appointment already. thought Allison. She grabbed some toast from the scorching hot toaster, nearly burning her fingers trying to grab it. After eating she pulled herself together for the day. If they allowed it at school she would have just walked out of the door in pajamas and an oversized hat to cover her hair. She proceeded to brush it out, put on some mascara and eyeliner, and threw on some warm clothes. A green sweater, comfortable jeans, and a puffy brown coat. She grabbed her backpack and water bottle, leaving it on the couch to not forget. She checked the clock, it was only 7:20 A little time to kill, wonder where Momo is. A sudden clattering noise came from her room as if to answer the question. Allison realized that in her grogginess she left her door open. She rushed to the door, silently begging for Momo not to have broken something. When she reached the doorway and peered inside she saw a lithe figure sitting on her desk Illuminated by the light in the hallway. When she licked the lights on, it revealed that the little black cat was sitting directly on her keyboard. Its big eyes showed admiration for its crime: batting a plastic cup filled with pens from off the desk.

"Momo! You're not supposed to be in here! Allison said while gathering up everything from off the floor. She sighed, at least it wasn't the ghost-hunting stuff that Caitlin had given her. It looked complicated and very breakable.

After cleaning she promptly picked up Momo who began squirming in her arms in discontent. As soon as she was out she shut the door behind her and put down the cat.

"You know I already clean up after you, I don't need more work. If you had thumbs too I'd make you do it."

Momo just started back up at her with big green expecting eyes. She sighed and gave Momo a pat on the head.

"Just stay out of trouble while I'm gone ok? You're lucky you're just so gosh darn adorable." She checked the clock, 7:30. She gave a quick bye to Momo and rushed outside. The clouds covered the sun and the cold day. A shiver ran down her spine and she could see her breath billow out in puffs of white. The grass blades were covered in frost and so were the fall leaves. She quickly walked down the stone path from her house to the end where the mailbox sat. A bark from across the street met each step. Her neighbor's dog, Lucky, a very energetic golden retriever, rushed to the fence. Despite seeing her every morning for the past 3 and a half months, he barked at her anyway, leaving billows of white each time he did. After Lucky decided that he couldn't get her to leave, he made a cross woof and stared at her. With newfound silence, Allison caught the sound of seagulls squawking and the ocean tumbling in the distance. The bus arrived, announcing its presence with a long shriek of the brakes. The doors creaked open and with a cautious stride up the stairs, she was off to school.

The bus came to a screeching halt up to the school, Nook Harbor High. It wasn't grand, there were only about 500 students in attendance. She thanked her bus driver and hurried out onto campus. Just like clockwork, Allison's phone buzzed, the name Caitlin was plastered across the notification.