Hunter

Chapter 1

~14 Months Earlier~

   I jolt awake, startled by the sound of a banging door. A raspy groan erupts from my throat as I roll over, face disappearing in the soft, black and white pillow. I didn't care enough to look at the time. Being late to, well, everything wasn't anything new. In fact, it was quite inevitable.

   I sighed into the pillow, rolling onto my back. The sunlight that shined through the glass window made me squint and hold my hands up in front of my face. "Five more minutes!" I yelled, picking up the blankets and throwing them over my head entirely. "I'll get ready then, I promise!"

   "Mae, five more minutes and we're going to be fifteen minutes late!" Serenity banged on the door again, much louder this time. I whine loudly. "Get your ass up and get ready!"

   I curse in my head, tossing the blankets to the side with a huff. Waking up early in the morning wasn't necessarily my thing. Not that I had a thing, really. Everything seems to bother me nowadays.

   Flinging my legs to the side, sitting upright on the edge of my bed, I yawn while stretching. Sighing right after, I stare at the empty space of my dorm room as I let my hands drop onto my lap.

   Most of my things were packed away in boxes with labels on the front of each one. The only thing I've gotten around doing was, of course, my bed and most of my clothes. I've already been here for a week, and I'm not even close to being done. It's not surprising, really. I'm shocked I actually did this much.

   My eyes scanned themselves over everything; over the--what seemed to be--endless cubes of cardboard stuffed with things I brought from home. Over the empty kitchen with cabinets so shiny you can use them as mirrors, and stovetops so clean they shimmered in the sunlight.

   This is all just... too much.

   My eyes make way to the wood flooring, reflecting the sunlight off of its shine, bouncing up into the popcorn ceiling. I stare at it mindlessly, thoughts wandering back home, back where I was more alone than I'll ever be in here.

   My father works for the government; what his job is exactly, I'm not sure. He's never spoken about it, not that I can recall, that is. Hell, he barely speaks to us at all anymore. I can say the same for my sister, except her and I don't get along altogether.

   It's not that I dislike her. I love her, of course, as any sister would another. She's just always nose deep in her phone the majority of the day, and gets angry with me if I talk to her too much.

   I miss the simpler days. The days where kids enjoyed basking in the sun and communicating person to person. You don't get that as much anymore. It's sad, really. Especially when it occurs in the family.

   The thing is, we're all just so... different. And that's the true tragedy.

   I flop back onto my bed, letting out a groan. "I don't want to go." I softly mumble to the air. Sighing, I close my eyes and attempt to drift off again.

   Serenity kicks the door, making me jolt up. "Mae, if you don't-"

   "I'm up!" I yell, balling up my fists around the corner of the pillow before flinging it across the room, hitting the door with a quiet thud.

   Today is not going to be my day. I can just feel it.

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   I guess I predicted the day rather accurately.

   While I was getting ready this morning, I had realized I washed and dried my clothes with a popped pen, staining the majority of the load with blue ink. As if me being late to the first day of my freshman year of college wasn't bad enough, most of my favorite clothes were ruined.