Race Against Time

New Beginnings

"We're almost there." Carl said quietly. It was the first time either of us had said anything since we got in the car.

I nodded. Today had been a long one. Not only did I have to pack for the move, but I also had to tell my parents bye. I most likely won't be seeing them for at least a few months. It was a tearful farewell, to say the least.

"And we're here." Carl breathed out as he pulled into a long driveway. About half a mile up a large mansion sat on top of a hill.

"This is the house?" I asked in awe. We didn't even have two stories in my old house.

Carl nodded. "We tried to make it as modern as possible. There's four floors. The first is where the testing is conducted, the second is where the kitchen and laundry rooms are, and the third and fourth floors are where your rooms are. Girls are on the fourth, boys are on the third."

"Sweet." I nodded as he explained.

My heart beat started to pick up speed as we neared the house. I don't know why, but the prospect of meeting my four new house mates made me extremely nervous. I was told there were two girls and two boys, I would become the third girl.

The car pulled to a stop and Carl looked over at me as he killed the engine. "You ready?"

I gulped, but nodded. I swung the door open and grabbed two of my duffel bags while Carl grabbed my suit case.

I jogged up the steps and before I had the chance to ring the door bell, Carl opened the door.

I gasped in surprise. It was magnificent. This was just the 'testing floor' as Carl put it, but there was a wide area with an elevator about ten feet away from the front door. Two hallways branched off from the left and right. Rooms lined the two hallways.

"I'll show you to your room and let you get settled. Dinner's at six, so you can meet the others then."

I nodded as he led me into the elevator and pressed the button for the fourth floor. The soft elevator music filled our silence as we waited the few seconds until the doors opened with a ding.

He led me past several doors. "You can pick between this one and this one." He said, motioning to two doors right beside each other. He opened the first door. The room's theme was blue. There was a large bed in the far corner and a large window started where the end of the bed landed. The curtains were half closed so I could still see outside.

There were two doors to the other side of the room, a closet and a bathroom. A desk and a dresser lined the walls.

Carl opened the other door and everything was the same except that the theme was purple.

"I think I want the blue one." I stated.

He nodded and closed the door to the purple room. He set my suitcase on the floor in the room I chose and I set my bags down. "Thanks." I said.

"No problem." He walked to the elevator and I closed the door. I checked the time on my phone. It was half an hour until six.

'Plenty of time for unpacking.' I thought.

***

At exactly six o'clock a soft knock penetrated the silence of my room. I got up from the floor where I was just finishing unpacking my last bag and opened the door.

A short, petite girl with fiery, frizzy red hair and bright green eyes stood before me, an excited smile lighting up her face.

"Hi. I'm Samantha, but most people call me Sam." She stuck out her hand for me to shake and I did so.