New Questions.

Chapter 1

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There's something about the way it looks. The broken light shining through the leaves never ceases to captivate me. I thought about this as I brought the camera once more to my face before setting it gently aside in its case. I was lying under this old willow tree that stood in the corner of my large back yard.

My family lives in a farm house of what used to be my great grandparents' successful a few years before I was born. The old barn that used to stand strong and tall a comfortable distance from my willow tree has been converted into my own personal living space. The outside looks like an authentic run down barn but half of the inside space has been renovated into a very chic, modern looking loft. The other half looks just as run down as the outside of the barn, omitting the new wood floors.

Under the floor of the barn is my own personal art studio. The area is set up like a horse's stable with the furthest quarter of the room blocked off for a dark room to develop my photography. I have a collection of different kinds of cameras. The two I have been using today are an instant Polaroid camera and a Nikon with film that I develop in my dark room.

It's turning to fall which means crisper air, changing leaves, beautiful scenery... And school. I'm going into my senior year. This year I am determined to uncomplicated my life or at least prevent it from complicating itself even more. The past year or so has been tough on me and because of that everyone is so careful with me. Not that it's horrible to be felt cared for, but it's been taken to extremes. My parents have forced me to move back into the house, just across the driveway might I add, so they can "keep an eye on me," or as I like to say "smother me of all privacy." The only time I get alone is when I'm outside taking my pictures or in my art studio.

I wish everyone could just forget about my whole high school career and just imagine nothing bad ever happened. Since that can't happen, I wish everyone would stop babying me and realize that I'm on my way to a better life. I am an adult, and I will be recognized as one by the US government in a couple of months.

I sigh as I open my eyes, unsure of when I closed them and raise my camera back to my eye. As I take shots of the setting sky through the tree, I notice a humming bird hovering near where I was shooting. I quickly focus my camera on the bird, blurring the landscape behind it and take a few shots before everything goes black. Someone is covering the lens of my camera.

Feeling annoyed, I lower the camera expecting my younger brother to be there sent out to check on me for the second time this hour. Instead I feel lips on mine and smile beneath them.

"Hey," I breathe when he leans back.

I start to sit up until Kody picks me up briefly to sit down and settles me into his lap.

"Hey yourself, your parents said I might find you out here," he smiles, "Did you get any good ones?" He nods towards my camera.

"I'm not sure, I hope so. Want to look through them?" I ask, sliding the camera to him.

I watch him while he scrolls through my photos stopping often to study the pictures. I lean over and grab my instant from the case when I look at him again he is looking very intently at one of my shots with a bright smile lighting his face. I raise my camera to capture the moment because it looks so perfect. Just as I'm about I take a picture he turns the camera towards me and looks at me smiling wider. I snap the picture and his face goes blank for a second in surprise, which surprises me how he still isn't used to my constant pictures.

When he realizes what I've done he sets down the camera and grabs me closer to him as I squeal with a smirk on my face. "How many times have I told you to warn me about taking my picture? I wasn't ready!" He pouts.

I stick my tongue out at him before replying, "And how many times have I told you that that takes away the reality of the picture."

Shaking his head he smiles at me, "You know... you should really keep your tongue in your mouth. It's not polite to stick your tongue at people."

"What are you going to do about it?" I challenge before sticking my tongue out once more.

He puts his hands on my cheeks and kisses me before I have a change to pull my tongue back in. "I'll just steal it, that's what I'm going to do about it," he replys before kissing me again.

We sit there for who knows how long talking about random stuff that doesn't really matter until he brings up the big topics. "So, are you ready to go back to school tomorrow?"

I pause before answering. "Yeah, I think so. It was only one semester I missed and I still kept all my grades up online. Plus I've been talking to my friends all summer, I think everything can go back to normal -or as normal as it can get -after everything that has happened the past couple of years."

"I know you can do it. I'll be right there with you if you need anything," he smiles at me.

I don't know what I would have done without Kody. If he had left me when everything started to go downhill the summer after my sophomore year, I'm pretty sure I would have gone insane.

"I love you," I whisper looking into his eyes.

He leans forward to kiss my forehead. "I love you too," he kisses my nose, "So much." Our lips meet and everything feel perfect.

However, if I've learned anything, it's that perfect never lasts.

Moments later I hear my mother's voice cut through the fading light, "Ryley, time for dinner!"

I hold Kody's lips to mine a second longer before pulling back and leaving my forehead against his. "Are you staying for dinner? I think we're having roast tonight."

"Absolutely," he smiles before standing up with me in his arms. Setting me down on my feet he kisses me once more before tangling his fingers with mine and wrapping his arm around me.

When we reach the house I see my mom setting the roast on the table. I breathe in and smell the aroma of the meat mixing with potatoes and sugared carrots. "This smells amazing, as always Mom," I say greeting her with a hug.

As I'm about to take my place at the table I hear a cry ring out from the nursery. My mom gets up to go get the baby but I hold up my hand stopping her, "It's ok, I've got her. She's probably hungry anyways." I turn towards the sound as I say to Kody, "You can go ahead and start eating, and I'll be back in a little bit."

He nods his head and begins piling food on his plate. When I reach the baby's room I walk straight towards the crib to lift her out. "Shhhh, it's ok. Bay, I'm right here. Mommy's here." When I say those words another sigh escapes my lips. No matter how often I refer to myself as "mommy," I still can't quite wrap my head around the fact that I am a mom.