Reckless. (ON HOLD.)

Two.

Hello, all.

Just a quick note to say that I do live in England, and so all my information on Williamstown, it's streets, and it's people come straight from Google. I'm only working with the notes I've got, and so if I mess anything up or misjudge places and travel times, I really do apologize.

If you see I have made an error and have a better understanding of Williamstown, MA, then please do message me. I would truly appreciate it.

Leigh J.

Yawning widely, I stretched my tense body and listened to the satisfying pop of my elbows and knees. I glanced out the plane window next to my head, surprised to find we had landed from our near fourteen-hour flight to Albany international airport. My stomach twisted at the thought of being in New York, and not England.

Upon boarding I had gone through the bag my parents had given me, and found a little travel list that, by the handwriting, seemed to have been written by Lexi. The first leg of travel was the eleven-hour flight to Albany. Then I was to meet Maggie outside, the woman I was staying with.

From there, Maggie would drive the forty-one miles to Williams town, Massachusetts which was roughly going to take just over an hour. I clambered off the plane with the other passengers and went through all the procedures to get out of the airport, including snagging my luggage from the carousel of hell.

I had never traveled alone before. I had always gone with my parents, on holiday or to Miami to see my granddad Michael and his wife, Penelope. I heaved my luggage out front with shaky arms and through throngs of people filling the entrance and shops, despite it being a crisp six am in Albany.

I dug through my bag and switched on my phone while I waited. Turned out I didn't need to wait long because there was suddenly a tap on my shoulder. I turned around in surprise and come face to face with a middle-aged woman with blonde hair and crow's feet.

"Alice? My, haven't you grown up sweetheart!" Maggie smiled and reached out her arms for a hug.

I returned her hug, if only because I was tired and slightly scared, and she seemed motherly. I did briefly remember her, and her children but no lasting impressions of who they were, and I hadn't spoken to them in years. When she pulled away and got a look at my face, she clucked her tongue in disapproval.

"Now, now. None of that sour puss face, missy," she scolded.

I assumed my cheeks had just lit up like cherries because they felt on fire but I kept my polite smile in place. She leaned forward a little and sniffed. "My! Is that awful smell you? We'll have to keep the windows down on the drive home and a shower as soon as you get in!"

So much for polite.

I scowled despite my growing horror and urgent need to throw myself under a plane. I shoved my phone back into my pocket and grabbed my things, although Maggie insisted on helping me. I went to walk ahead when I realized I didn't know which car she drove, and so instead hung behind her.

Maggie breezed past me towards a large black car and my mouth screwed up unpleasantly. There seemed to be someone waiting in the car who was leaning intently across the dashboard to gawk at me and Maggie.

"Who's that?" I asked as I followed Maggie's lead.

She went round to the trunk and popped it open, not needing to answer as the person in question sprung from the car. Out spilled a gangly blonde girl who beamed brightly at me. The sun caught her white teeth and blue eyes, similar to her mothers. This gangly thing must have been Maggie's daughter.