First Impressions (On hold during NaNoWriMo)

A New Neighbour

Emelia lay on her bed, her brown eyes glued to the pages of the book in her hand. She absentmindedly twirled a strand of her chocolate brown hair around her finger, a habit she had always been teased about. The 25-year-old was comfortable in a pair of black sweatpants and a t-shirt with the words We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars - Oscar Wilde printed on it in black cursive letters.

She was busy reading the second volume of 'Pride and Prejudice' by Jane Austen for the umpteenth time - it was a part of three volumes which made up the first edition of the novel published in 1813 which she had inherited from her grandmother, and it was one of her most prized possessions. The three volumes were beautifully preserved, with a binding made of calf hide leather which had been stained to produce a tree-like pattern - it was referred to as a 'Tree Calf binding' which originated in the late 18th century.

She was abruptly snapped back to reality when her youngest sister, Lindsay, excitedly burst into the room and ran to the window which overlooked the street. The room was painted a light grey and housed a double bed, cupboard, side tables, a desk and a large bookshelf filled with books of many different genres, all in mint condition.

"What's this all about?", Emelia asked, confused and annoyed.

"Come! Look!"

As Emelia reached the window her eldest sister, Jeanine, joined them and explained Lindsay's excitement, "On our way in we saw some moving trucks and Mrs Crane told us that a young man will be letting the penthouse. Mum is still downstairs gossiping."

"Apparently he's a millionaire! I hope he's single!" Lindsay exclaimed.

Emelia and Jeanine smiled at each other and simultaneously rolled their eyes.

Lindsay was very silly and immature, most likely because she was the youngest and the most spoiled amongst the five sisters. She was a very pretty girl, with ash blonde hair and blue eyes, both inherited from their mother. She was rather tall, taller than all of her siblings in fact, with legs that went on for miles. She could be a runway model if she wanted to.

They watched as the movers carried in some expensive-looking pieces of furniture, beautiful pieces of modern art and a white baby grand piano.

"That piano is so beautiful... I miss my piano." Jeanine stated. She loved playing the piano, but due to the limited space, she had to leave hers behind at their parents' home when Emelia and herself moved into apartment L3 of Azarin Heights together.

"That must be him!" the 18-year-old bounced with excitement.

A taxi had just pulled up and a young man emerged, the wind making a mess of his thick brown hair. He was wearing a pair of black slacks and a white button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up. A few seconds later Lindsay's face dropped as an attractive blonde woman stepped out of the vehicle, wearing a figure-hugging black dress and stilettos.

"Well Linds, it looks like he has a girlfriend. Guess you're out of luck," Emelia remarked sarcastically.

"Ugh! She looks like such a gold digger. He's way too hot for her!"

"Lindsay! That's not a nice thing to say," Jeanine reprimanded her with a disapproving look.

Lindsay didn't have a filter and always blurted out the thoughts in her head without thinking of the consequences - not only did she look like her mother, she acted like her too.

"In any case, he's much too old for you," Emelia added and Lindsay stomped out of the room, pouting.

Jeanine and Emelia sighed simultaneously and then averted their attention back to the people in the street.