Is Everything Perfect/ Volume 1: Set free by handcuffs

Part title

  CHAPTER III:

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WASHED UP TO SHORE BY THE RED SEA

CALEB THOMSON———————————————————————————————————————————————————————
    The Police station floor is frigid and the air had an empty feeling through it. Even though the new lady at the desk, who works the night shift, is there. She doesn't acknowledge me, and just sits at her desk filing her nails. It's around midnight, and I can't find myself to drift off. I physically can't. I stare up at the ceiling, my thoughts flying through me like cars on the highway. How am I supposed to live like this? You're so selfish. You're going to leave your best friend for some rich snobby town. Frankie has called and texted me a few times, and I haven't even dared to answer them. What was I going to tell him? How was I going to tell him that Jen is letting me live with her? I'm leaving him, just like everyone does. I squeezed my wrist, and accepted the pain it gave.
   Emily said that Jen would show up to pick me up, sometime the next morning. So I've been stuck at the Police station. The same Police station that I've been in a million times. They said they couldn't let me go home because my house was in an unlivable condition. Which I find bullshit, Because my house has always been like that. And I've lived in it my whole life.
   The bright and sticky August sun eventually awakened, and I repositioned my head on my lumpy backpack. I stared up at the ceiling, and sighed.

FRIDAY MORNING——————————————————————————————————————————————————————

    I heard the small jingle of the bell by the door, so I sat up. Just like the past 5 times that tiny bell rang, and it was just a policeman or a worried mother. It wasn't either. It was a woman in her late 30s, with long red hair pulled back into a ponytail. She was wearing a tank top and jean shorts. And her skin was tanned from the hot late summer sun. Jen.
   I felt my heart drop to the bottom of my stomach. She looks a little different since I last saw her, she's lost weight, and she grew out her hair, along with the hair dye. I stumble up to my seat in the waiting room, and brush down my clothes. She didn't notice me, and walked up to the front desk. Then, Emily pointed back at me, and a warm smile came across her face. I stepped forward, and looked down at the carpet, because the long eye contact was killing me. She walked over, her arms spread out wide. Then, she gave me a deep squeeze of a hug, A hug that was suffocating, and I know she didn't mean it. I'm just very claustrophobic when it comes to hugs.
   ' Caleb!' She said, letting go of me.
She put her hands on her hips, as she looked up and down at me. ' Wow, you've gotten big since I last saw you!' She looked surprised.
' Well it's been like 7 years since you last saw me, so no wonder.' I joked.
She didn't respond. She looked up and down at me once again, most importantly at my hair. She smirked, ' I like your hair,' she ruffled my hair harshly. 'Colorful, I like it.'
She headed back to the front desk, while I walked back to the waiting room to grab my things. I pulled up my backpack around my shoulder, and my phone pinged a notification. A text message from Frankie. I took a quick glance at it, and shut my phone off. I still can't find myself to answer him. My face is painted with guilt and shame.
   Jen finished her conversation with Emily at the front desk, as I walked up to her. She put her hand on my shoulder, ' Come on honey, let's head out.'
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   The drive to Dansberg had a sting to it, burning through my skin. All the chances and possibilities, it will give me. New town, new school, new people. It scares me, and I feel bad leaving Frankie without saying goodbye. I'm literally starting from the start. All I have is my. Backpack for school. I look out the window, and down a long stretched road goes from the torn down, and grown in houses to rich mansions. Some of them aren't even mansions, some of the houses are just incredibly lavish and gaudy, much different than the environment I lived in my whole life. I gazed out the window as I looked at different types of convent stores, and pharmacies. We past a park that had a stone wall entry wall, with a huge sign that said
' Dansberg Community Park' with no vandalism or graffiti on it.
    Then, we drove down a smooth pavement road, no cracks or potholes. Just a smooth sailing road, passing more fancy houses. It's so weird that Dansberg is only 10 minutes away from Trenton, and the changes of the architecture is phenomenal.
    Finally, Jen's MiniVan went to a stop, in the driveway of a huge light tan house with a wrap around porch. It had a stone brick patio just like my house but much nicer, and there weren't weeds growing through the stones, and there were tiny plants spread around. Jen got it out of the van, and she opened my door. ' Sorry, there's a child lock on it.'
I nodded, and grabbed my backpack. I remember Aunt Jen had a daughter named Sarah, but she had to be around my age now to need a child lock.
   Jen walked up the steps to the front door, opened the door and turned back to look at me.
' Welcome to your new home'
Her arms spread out wide, she led me inside, The first thing I saw as we walked in was the kitchen. Sun rays streamed through the window, casting a warm glow through the room. In every window sill was a little plant grasping the need of the nautical light. Everything was very tidy, like she just cleaned the entire kitchen. Clean dishes, drying in the drying rack next to the sink. Calendars and a bunch of messily drawn pictures were stuck on the fridge with magnets of cartoon characters. It was most definitely Sarah wasn't an only child anymore. ' There is a small guest room upstairs with a bathroom, it should have the essentials,' Jen looked up and down at me. ' You don't look like you have a lot of anything'
I looked down at myself, and nervously laughed, ' Yeah, The police men wouldn't let me get anything from my house.'
I tried to laugh it off, it hurt. It feels like my whole life is crumbling from underneath me, but yet its building itself up. In a way I don't want it to.
   ' That's a bummer, I'm sure they'll let you have some of your things, once they clear everything Illegal out.' She explained.
Maybe, just maybe.
     Jen hung up her keys on a small rack by the door, and she set her purse down on the breakfast nook, in front of a window. ' Alright, I'll give you a little tour, while none of the kiddos are here,' she explains.
She led me into the dining room, and then the living room. ' When will they be home?' I asked, trying to simply find out who this other kid or kids are.
Jen gazed her eyes around the living room, ' Well Sarah, will be home in an hour or so, Then Chase will be home an hour after her,' she explained,
'Chase?'
' He's my son, I don't think you have ever met him.'
I shook my head, I've never heard of a Chase in my life, ' How old is he?' I ask, quietly.
' He's five,' she answered, leading me up the stairs.
I nodded, letting out a small mumble of a response.
   She walked down the hall, pointing out Chase, Sarah, and her own room. Then, the small guest room at the end of the hall. She slowly opened the door, revealing the neat and spotless room. It wasn't much, just a bed, a desk, a nightstand, along with one small dresser for clothes I do not have. She watched me, as I stepped into the room gently. I had a weird feeling about this, how could she just drop everything and let me live with her, for god knows how long? Why does she care? It doesn't make sense to me, but I'm damn glad she does. I turned back to her, she was standing in the doorway, her arm leaning on the doorframe. She lifted her arm off the doorframe and sighed. ' I'm going to let you have some time to yourself, let you compress. I will make a small lunch around 4 when both the other kiddos are home, I'll call you down.' She explained.
I nodded, as she slowly closed the door, shutting away all the noise. Leaving me with a death ending silence.
   The room was slightly dark, with only a sliver of the sunlight gusting through the curtains. I mind the darkness, I needed it. I looked around the room once again, plopping my bag onto the floor. I stepped into the bathroom, and glanced inside. Nothing too fancy, just much nicer than any bathroom I've been in. It reminded me of the bathroom in Frankie's house. And the sharp thought of Frankie punctured through me. 'God dammit' I muttered to myself.
Fucking Frankie.