Awakening (Awakening, #1)

Chapter 1

The sun peeks through the blinds, letting me know it's finally morning. I roll over to look at my alarm clock, and I silently laugh to myself seeing that I woke up an hour earlier than the time I set the alarm for. Must be the excitement; I could hardly fall asleep in the first place.

I throw the covers off of me, slip out of bed and make my way to the bathroom just down the hall, but not before peeking my head into my mom's room to see she's still fast asleep. Now, I've officially broke some type of unspoken rule. I'm awake before my own mother.

I go into the bathroom and close the door. I'm a quarter of the way done brushing my teeth when I hear the wood floors creak and see my mom in the hallway looking at me with a look on her face I can't describe.

"Mom? Goodmorning, how'd you sleep?" 

I rinse my mouth and lean against the sink and cross my arms. Raising my eyebrow, I say, "Mom, usually when someone - especially your favorite son - says goodmorning, you're supposed to-," she cuts me off with a giant bear hug. I don't know what brought this on, but I wrap my arms around her anyway.

"I'm sorry, Jonah. I'm just so damn proud..," she trails off as she pulls away and wipes her tears.

I kiss her on the cheek and just admire how she has always been there for me, and has never stopped. After all we've been through she's always put my brother Sam and I first. I couldn't ask for a better person in my life.

"Thank you, mom. Really. You can't even begin to know how much you mean to me."

She throws her hands up and sighs, smiling. "How could I have been given such an amazing set of boys," she says to no one in particular as she makes her way downstairs, probably to get breakfast going.

I shake my head, smiling at the feeling that washes over me. I'm eighteen and I have the world ahead of me, to take on head first. Just as the smile gets a little bit wider as I think about my girlfriend, Teegan, Sam groggily walks down the hallway. I burst out laughing; he looks like a zombie. 

He stands in front of me with a puzzled look on his face, like he can't tell if he's awake or not. He never even wakes up this early, so all of the stars in the sky must have alligned in some way to wake him up so early.

"Welcome to the land of the living," I say, clapping him on the back. He groans, and I withdraw my hand forgetting that he was hungover from all of the underage drinking he did the other night.

"Everything....hurts...," he says, moaning.

I shake my head. "Well, alcohol tends to have that affect on people. We're only human, Sam."

He rolls his eyes and says, "Get out, I need a shower," and pushes me out and shuts the door.

It's the first day of senior year, and I'm ecstatic. Finally, being a senior and being able to push forward with my life; it's just a good feeling. Sam will be a junior this year, he must be somewhat excited to wake up and get ready like he's doing. I go downstairs and it smells like eggs, bacon, and pancakes. 

"Made what I could in the time we've got. Are you taking the bus or your car, hun?" Mom asks.

I remember that Teegan wanted me to pick her up for school and take her with me. "I'll take the car."

"Okay, Jonah. Eat up." She ruffles my hair as she walks past.

As I eat my breakfast, I drift off into a daydream. It's a nice one. It's just me sitting in a field of grass with Teegan. She leans over to whisper something into my ear, and-

"I'm riding with you to school, douchebag," Sam says as he slaps me on the back, and I come back to reality. 

"Watch your mouth, bubby," Mom says to Sam as she hands us both some money for lunch and a little extra for me to get gas. Sam sighs. He hates when mom calls him "bubby". It was his nickname since he was a baby, and it just stuck. I laugh at his expression and he gives me a look and I just smirk.

Five minutes later, I'm dressed and my hair has that naturally desheveled look that Teegan likes. It's sort of a win-win because all I really have to do to is just ruffle it a little with some water on my hands and it looks fine, and my girl loves it.

I grab my car keys, backpack, cellphone, and brother. I kiss my mom on the cheek and she watches us leave, waving at us from the doorstep. I beep the horn at her as I turn down the street to get to Teegan's house.

Sam lets out a huff of air, "Seriously? You have to pick her up?"

"Yes, Sam." I roll my eyes. He doesn't like Teegan much, for reasons unknown. I don't care though. As long as he keeps his thoughts about her to himself while I'm around.

I pull into Teegan's drive way and hop up her few steps and knock on the door. She answers and I'm just floored. I'll never get used to seeing her; she's just so beautiful. The way her hair cascades down her back in curly black ringlets. Even wearing a simple t-shirt and pair of jeans makes her look stunning.

"Now what did I do to get so lucky, hm?" I say as I kiss her and she chuckles.

"I dunno. I still wonder that myself," she says. Her smile is just so-

"Come on! Jesus. Suck face later, we have places to be, douche." Sam beeps the horn and I roll my eyes and slip my hand into Teegan's.

"Ignore him, Teegs." She smiles like she was already way ahead of me, and we go.