The Silver Mirror

Drive

Well I heard Mister Young sing about her. Well I heard old Neil put her down. Well, I hope Neil Young will remember. A southern man don't need him around anyhow. Sweet home Alabama. Where the skies are so blue. Sweet home Alabama. Lord, I'm coming home to you.

A tap on Ellie's knee broke her of the monotony in the car. She took out her red ear bud and saw her dad looking at her with a smile.

"We're here!" he proclaimed happily.

Ellie stepped outside hopeful and eager. The house that stood there seemed like every other house on the block. Pea green painted frames and a white base. It had a white picket fence and a red rose bush growing on the inside. It seemed like those stereotypical houses from the movies. It seemed too 'natural' to be a new house, if that makes sense. Like, it seemed like a normal day coming back from the mall or something. 

"Ellie!" her mom called from the moving truck. "Come get the keys and open the door for us so we can just throw everything inside!"

~~~~~

It took hours but everything was finally inside the house. Ellie had already looked around the house before and wasn't really excited about it. It was just a living room and kitchen on first floor, then two bedrooms and bathrooms on second floor. Pretty basic house if you asked her. Her room was smaller than the one she had before but she isn't really complaining about it. 

She plopped on her bed and looked up at the ceiling. Her mind was racing a million miles a minute. Why'd we leave? Why'd mom have to take that job? I liked it back in Michigan. 

A knock sounded on Ellie's door and she looked up to see her mom walk in. She sighed and lied back down.

"Hey, I know this isn't anything new," she said. "I know it's hard moving around all the time. But I have good news!" Ellie looked at her mom in the eyes. "You can go to an actual school this time! We're probably going to stay here for a while so you can meet new people, have friends. Maybe have a boyfriend?"

Ellie scoffed. "Sure. Me? Have friends? Or a boyfriend? That's funny mom."

Her mom smiled. "You never know Ellie."

A sudden weight came from the foot of the bed and Ellie was surprised by an attack of wet, sloppy kisses.

"Cooper!" She proclaimed. "Down boy, down!" Cooper, the family doberman pincher, stopped licking Ellie and sat on her instead. "Cooper why are you so heavy?" she strained to get that last part out. 

Ellie's mom laughed and got up. "I'll leave you two alone then." 

Ellie sat up and looked at Cooper. "I guess I can make friends now." Cooper cocked his head to the side, panting. "I know right! And she thinks I'm crazy!" He whined and put his head in her lap. "Yeah I could try to make friends, you're right. But they're just going to laugh at me like the rest of them." Cooper looked at her and barked softly. "I'm not prejudice! I read it in a book once that the new girl always gets picked on! Either that or she falls in love with a vampire... wait you don't think there's vampires here do you?" Cooper nibbled on Ellie's hand slightly. "Yeah," she laughed. "I'm being dramatic. There's no such thing as vampires."

"Ellie stop talking to yourself!" she heard her dad proclaim. "It's weird!"

"I'm talking to the dog! And it's rude to listen to our conversations!"

She heard him scoff once and then silence. Ellie looked back at Cooper and lied down. Cooper scooted up a little and put his huge head on her chest. 

Ellie put her hand on his head. "You need a bath, boy-o."