The November wind seeps through the several layers of clothing that encompass my body, sending shivers down my spine. It's lightly snowing as the ice crunches beneath my favorite converse, as I walk across my snow covered backyard. I look at the two headstones in the center of a dirt plot and sigh. I brush away the snow and cover them with my umbrella. Staring at the little pieces of cement in the ground a tear slips from my eye. Engraved on the stone are my parent's names Salila and Noah. I sit in my small hatchback, stuck. Not sad or frozen just, a pause on this completely normal day that gave me a shiver. I drive onto the road and gaze around watching other kids riding in their cars on their way to school about to head in the opposite direction. I drive to the outskirts of town until I see the city limit sign.
Cape Saint Claire, Ipswich UK.
Population: 903
This sign had been incorrect for years and it's careless how even though my mother was one of the nicest women around, not one person ever bothered to change that damn sign.
Sitting on the roof of my car staring at the rusty old sign, my phone starts to ring with the sound of bells.
"Hey dork, what's up?" My brother's morning voice floods the speakers and I smile at the probability of him having his face stuffed into a pillow as we speak.
"Hey Bro."
"You at school yet?"
"I went out for a drive."
"Give me a heads up next time Gracie"
Ashwin is my older brother. He works at the bank in the downtown area. Ever since our parents died he's been taking care of me. I probably would have been in America with my cherokee grandmother if he hadn't decided to take me in.
"I'm staying home from school."
"India!"
"No!"
"You're going to school whether you like it or not."
"Please,Don't make me go!"
"If I get a truancy call from your school I'm eating all your maoams."
"Not my babies! That is not funny!"
"The cherry ones are looking pretty good right now."
"Love You, Bye!" I climb back into the drivers seat off my beaten up Chevy and make a U-turn to the right and head for school. I go to a boring private school with boring uniforms and boring teachers and boring classes. I'm in my last Year of Secondary School before I go to Uni. I've been here for years and nothing has changed. It's still the same teachers slamming books on desks, same people whispering behind their friends backs, and every one following the same rules of the school yard that are set in stone. If you try to make one change, one difference you're no longer one of them. You are an outsider. They are vicious and merciless. They don't care who they have to step on to get to the top.
I'm not bullied or anything. Everyone is pretty nice to me and I smile when they say Hi. I like to mingle around so that I don't have anyone on my bad side. I'm literally just a small town girl who likes to read a lot and hang out with my small group of friends. I still have that chill that makes me feel like the tie around my neck was too tight, and I don't like it.
