Beginning Again

Chapter One

                                                                                        Kat's POV

I looked out the window of the car, and up ahead I saw the 'Pennsylvania Welcomes You' sign. It was almost like a normal billboard, but it was a lot bigger. The sign was blue and said Pennsylvania Welcomes You and had a weird green shape around the Penn and the Wel. "Look Mama!" I exclaimed reaching up to the front seat and pointing at the sign "We're in Pennsylvania!". Mama looked back at me and smiled. "Yep. And we're a whole state closer to New York!". At that I lost some of my cheerfulness and started anxiously tapping my fingers on the box sitting beside me in the seat. Then asked "Why did we have to move?". "Well," Mama replied "I grew up in the city  and still have some family there. Just some cousins. Anyways, want to be closer to them and it's about time you met them." She cast me a hopeful glance from the front seat. I didn't reply and started staring out the window still anxiously taping my fingers on the box beside me.

Suddenly the red porsche that had been behind us swerved and passed us and proceeded to do the same thing to a car in the other lane.  Mama threw her hands in the air " Dude! You don't just ride my bumper and  then speed up and swerve around like a madman! Like where you have to go and what you have to do is more important than anything anyone has to do!" She fumed. No doubt the other people who had gotten passed were saying the same exact thing. After a while of staring out the window, I drifted off to sleep and started to dream.

1 Day Ago

"Thanks John. That'll be all." Mama told our mover, John, as he loaded one of the last few boxes out of the garage and into the moving truck. "What about those boxes in the dining room?" John asked. John was a pleasant guy in his mid twenties with curly brown hair and ice blue eyes. Mama smiled "Oh we'll take those up with us in the car. You do have the directions to get there, right?" "Yes." he nodded "And once I get there I get the keys, unlock the door, unload the boxes into the apartment, sort them by their labels, and when I finish leave with the door unlocked and the keys inside.". Mama nodded approvingly and folded her arms."How much do you want? I'll send a check once we get there with the amount you want plus the amount for the gas and the tolls." John bit his lip and sighed "Umm... I'll have to think about it." he ran a hand through his hair. "How about three hundred plus an additional  fifty for gas and you don't have to pay tolls unless you really want to?" "Deal." they shook hands. John shut the door to the back of the moving truck. Then he got in, cranked it, and started to pull out of the driveway. Just before he left the front of the house, John caught my eye and rolled down the window and waved at me. I waved back.

After John left, I went and sat on the steps in the dining room. I sighed and put my head in my hands. Mama sat down beside me and hugged me, "I know this is hard. Moving. Leaving everything and everyone you know." I sniffed on the verge of tears. "At least it's not in the middle of the school year. That would be awkward." Mama laughed. "That would be. At least you get a couple of months to learn your way around the city. You might even get to meet some of the people who'll be at your school." I giggled, feeling better. "Thanks Mama, that really helped."

That night we stayed at my best friend's  house since she was also our neighbor. Ella was my closest friend since before preschool. We had done almost everything together. One time I snuck out of the house and crawled in her window just so that I could sneak her my iPad since she was grounded. Another time we tried to plan and fix dinner for her parents and Mama. All I can say about that is that is didn't go very well.

That morning I woke up to the smell of bacon and pancakes. Excited, I leaned over the edge of the top bunk and looked at Ella. She was still asleep. "Ella." I whispered in a singsong voice, "Wakey, wakey!". All she did was roll over and mumbled  something I couldn't hear, probably "Five more minutes." or "Go away!". I leaned back and tried to think of another way to wake Ella up. I could probably just smack her but then she'd just get mad at me. Suddenly, I realized what I should do. I grabbed my pillow, leaned back over the edge and threw it at Ella, then darted back. I peeked back over the edge. Ella was sitting upright with her long brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. She caught my eye and I noticed an evil glint in her cobalt blue eyes. "Crap." I muttered as I watched her chuck the pillow right at my face. I ducked and my pillow missed my head by a few inches. Peeking my head back over the edge I sputtered "T-truce?". Ella rolled her eyes "Fine. But I'll get you back." she said pointing at me.

For breakfast we had bacon, scrambled eggs, and Mama's famous strawberry pancakes. We didn't talk much at breakfast, probably because we knew that we probably wouldn't see each other again.

Before we walked out the door, for good, Ella stopped me and handed me a box about the size of a shoebox that looked like she had wrapped it herself. "I wanted you to have this to remember me by." "Thank you." I beamed. "I want you to open it when you get to New York." Ella told me. "I will." I promised. We hugged for what seemed like an eternity, even though it was just a few seconds. As I was walking to the car I turned back and waved at Ella. She opened her mouth to say something but instead of her voice it was Mama's. "Kat wake up! We're here!"