Thou Shall Not Fall - Lost Boys

Chapter 1: Moving In and Moving On

Maybe running about with a bloody bandage around my arm wasn't such a good idea.

The early morning sky was cool, the breeze light, and the murmur of a youthful town barely a dull din. Santa Carla didn't appear to offer much in the way of potential. It wasn't the sort of place you went when you wanted to be somebody; quite the opposite, really. Everyone on the street certainly looked like a somebody, but in a town full of individuals, nobody seems to be truly unique.

That's actually the reason I had come to this (somewhat dilapidated) coastal town. I was sick to death of being someone important. It's not like I had been born into prominence or excessive wealth. My family lived comfortably enough, but were hardly well to-do. In fact, ultimately, my time in the spotlight had been my own damn fault. I'd been too good. Too good at all the pointless displays of knowledge that get people listening to your ideas. I'd known too much to be able to ignore the sneers and jeers of students and parents alike throughout my school years. I was getting pushed towards the career that would surely doom me to a life of unmatched suffering.

Politics.

Santa Carla would be different.

The recent dawn leaves strands of golden light floating aimlessly through the clouds that sway overhead as I make my way into town. There aren't many people about. It's not the sort of place you see elderly couples and their grandchildren taking pleasant strolls through the sea air, especially in the cool of Autumn, when school stretches on, and the retired keep to their beds until the chill has left the air. No, Santa Carla hardly seemed a place for family, which suited me well, given I'd just abandoned everyone I'd ever known to chase the ideal of obscurity.

Passing a bus stop, I give into the temptation to study a group of youths, only to find them staring sheepishly back. The smallest of the group immediately avoids my gaze, her hand flying to her face in apparent panic. She covers the gesture by placing a finger frantically on the bridge of her glasses, sliding them back up her shining nose. A tall brunet with beautiful eyes turns to his shorter friend. Finally, the other tall member of the group, with hair comprised of ginger and blonde strands continues to stare, almost distantly, at my face.

Her composure is shattered, however, when I venture across the street to the group.

"Don't suppose you know of a hospital around here?"

All three stand frozen for a few seconds.

The towering brunet offers a lopsided smile. "No hospital for miles," he replies tensely, a thick Russian accent painting his words.

The blonding redhead interjects. "I'm studying nursing, though. You could board the bus. The college is close to the hospital-"

"Ah, forget about it, then," I sigh, hauling my injured arm upwards to place my hand atop my hip. "Thanks for the offer, though."

As I depart, all the strangers manage crooked grins and nervous shifting.

I suppose I wouldn't know how to react if some random with a bloodied arm appeared in my town at 7 in the morning.

~

I twiddle the set of keys in my jean pocket, reading every sign I pass, looking for my new home. I've never had an apartment, so the thought of being alone is both exhilarating beyond reason and a little nerve-wracking. I think I could handle the concept with more composure if it wasn't the attic of a shop, but no, the best offer I could get was from an apparently mysterious Miss Lawrence, who wouldn't tell me what she sold or where the shop was actually located. That being said, she agreed to send me the keys without any advance rent, so I could walk straight into the apartment when I arrived.