Candles

01 | G E N E S I S

I STOOD TO THE SIDE patiently as the movers carried everything I owned into the small house. The small boxes piled in the living room and I dreaded the thought of having to unpack each and every one alone. Moving to Seattle seemed like the perfect idea at the time. I was able to get away from everything and everyone. I was able to have a fresh start. It did not matter that I was miles away from my previous home. I could care less about where I lived before. Seattle was new to me and I knew things would be different now. My heart raced at the thought of a new beginning. It excited me.

I was free.

I could finally live the life I wanted to live without someone constantly leaning over my shoulder. No one could tell me what to do because I had no one to tell me what to do. They were all back in Portland where they belonged. I was glad they decided to stay there and not come with me to Seattle. That was the absolute last thing I wanted. In fact, I wanted to experience what life would be like if I stayed by myself for a little while.

One of the movers dropped the box he was holding and I heard something shatter. My eyes widened at the sound and I looked at the man. He did not seem the slightest bit worried about what he broke, though. Instead, he plainly shrugged his shoulders, kicked the box to the side, and moved on. My lips parted and it took everything in me not to yell at him. How could someone be so harsh to someone else's belongings? I swallowed my harsh words and made my way to the box, rolling my eyes. I carefully took the tape off of the box and opened it slowly, scared to see what had shattered.

Glass covered the bottom of the box and my heart sank into my stomach. I put my hand into the box and pulled out the broken photo frame. The photo was of my mother, brother and I and the sight of the photo made my chest ache. I moved it to the side and made sure nothing else in the box was broken. I pulled my other photo frames out of the box, sitting them facing downward on the floor. As much as it pained me to look at them, I just could not leave them behind. I moved my hair away from my face and placed my hands on my knees, taking a deep breath. Living on my own without knowing anyone was going to be hard but perhaps that was what I wanted. I loved my family with all of my heart, but perhaps I needed this.

The movers brought in my sofa and I informed them on where to put it. They practically dropped it in the living room and kept moving to bring in my other belongings. I decided to start unpacking and if the movers had any questions, they could find me and ask me what they needed to know. I found the box containing my kitchen stuff and I moved it to where the kitchen was. It was a small kitchen but I did not mind. I would probably eat peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for dinner for the most part. I was not much of a cook and the size of the kitchen could tell anyone that.

Just as I started putting the plates where they belonged, my phone started ringing. My heart nearly jumped right out of my chest and I put the device to my ear, answering it without checking to see who it was.

"Hello?"

"Gw—"

"Sydney," I immediately corrected her.

"Sydney!" my mother shouted into the phone, immediately giving me a slight headache.

"Yes, Mother?" I sighed, cradling the phone between my ear and shoulder as I went back to putting my dishes away.

"You were supposed to call me as soon as you arrived at the airport! What happened? How is everything? Is Seattle treating you all right? Are you homesick, yet?"

"I haven't had much time to explore." I explained. "As soon as I got off the plane, I had to make sure everything was in order and I had to go pick up my car. Then I had to meet the movers and they had to follow me back to the house. They're unloading the stuff now. And no, Mother, I'm not homesick and I don't think I will be."