Exposure

1.

~ Zoya ~

Nervousness. Unease. Fear. Those were all the things I felt while standing in the middle of the crowded LAX airport. People all around me, holding conversations, screaming at their kids, talking about the latest gossip. Not a care in the world. Then there's little old me. Fresh out of college, and born and raised in Philadelphia, flying across the map to live in one of the most popular cities was all new and scary for me. I have not the slightest clue of what's in store, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared shitless. I grabbed my bags and rolled them through the LAX terminal and outside. I pulled out my iPhone and set up an Uber service. Within minutes, I was in the car driving through downtown L.A. As the driver rode through the city, I couldn't help but to view my surroundings. Everything is so bright and big here. The buildings are tall and the palm trees are so long and beautiful. I watched outside the window at the pedestrians walking normally with their shopping bags, and some with their work clothes on. I know I'm nothing like these people, and I can't help but to wonder whether I'll fit in. My thoughts were interrupted by the buzzing of my cell phone. I looked at the caller I.D and saw that it was my father. I quickly picked up.

"Hey daddy. I'm in the Uber now and on my way to the apartment."

"Good. Good. I'm actually here waiting for you. I have a few things to discuss with you and then I have to run out for a bit to a meeting."

I rolled my eyes slightly and shook my head. Typically daddy. My father and mother separated when I was about 10. My father moved out here to California while my mother and I stayed back in Philly. Growing up without my father around 24/7 was definitely hard. There were certain things only a father could instill in his daughter, and unfortunately he wasn't there to do that. This caused me to make crappy decisions, especially when it came to what kind of boys I chose to date. My father never came back to Philly to visit me, and when I questioned him about it he always blamed it on how busy he was with his work. After a certain age I stopped giving a shit and didn't deal with my father at all. It wasn't until my last year of college when he reached out to me and asked me to move out to Cali. He offered to rent me an apartment, and I was tired of Philly and ready for a change so I couldn't turn it down. My mother was slightly hurt at my decision, but she learned to accept my choice.

"Alright. I'll see you soon," I said to my father.

I hung up and went back to observing the city. I suddenly was interrupted by my uber driver's voice.

"So...are you like new here or something?," he asked.

I gave him a weird look as I saw him peeking at me though his rearview mirror. I didn't reply back fast because I hate talking to my Uber drivers.

"I'm only asking because of the way you're looking out the window. It's as if you never seen this stuff before."

I averted my attention back to the driver and spoke.

"Yeah, I actually just moved here from Philadelphia."

"Really? That's a long way from here. What made you move so far away?," he asked while stopping at a stoplight.

"Eh, I just needed a fresh start. I was tired of Philly so I moved out here with my dad."

"Cool."

The stoplight turned green and the driver pulled off. I looked out the window and couldn't help but notice how many people were out and about for a Tuesday afternoon.

"Is it always like this here? People out everywhere?," I asked still gazing out of the window.

"Yeah, mostly," the driver responded. "There's a huge fight on Friday so the city is also preparing for that. It's gonna be a crazy week in L.A. A lot of people are flying in for this fight. That's another reason why I asked if you were from here."