Fire and Ice

Chapter 2: New Beginnings

The flight from New Jersey to Los Angeles took over four hours. For someone who has never been on a flight before that was a long time for me to remain in one position. Luckily for me, I managed to make sure that boredom didn't get ahold of me. I spent most of the flight listening to music on my iPod while sketching different types of flowers. I know it's a useless thing to draw but it made the time fly by.

I have always had a flair for the creative arts. I started sketching when I was four and got my first art set for my fifth birthday. Once I had mastered sketching with a pencil I moved to a pen. When I got good at that I moved to painting, which I am still learning. I am currently learning how to work with watercolour, which isn't that bad.

My plan for after high school is to apply to Yale where I will study art. Ever since I finished my first drawing becoming a successful artist has been my dream job. My whole family told me I was nuts and that artists don't make a lot of money. My father tried to get me interested in interior design but failed miserably. After his dreadful failure, my mom tried to get me to take an interest in law, but like my father, her efforts were sorely wasted.

My grandmother was the only one who encouraged me to follow my dreams. She loved art like me and she was the one who taught me most things I know when it comes to sketching. When she died six years ago I cried for days on end. When she passed away it felt like a massive hole had been punched through my heart shattering it into a million pieces. It is the only experience of heartbreak I have been through... so far.

For months after her death, I tried to fill the hole back up. Desperately attempted to put my shattered heart back together with cheap glue. Needless to say, it didn't work. My parents sent me to a therapist when things started spiralling downhill for me. I hated going at first but as much as I hated her I have to admit she did help me patch that hole up.

So lost in the past I don't notice my father approaching me until his large and calloused hand grabs my bare shoulder causing me to jump.

"Vega, we've landed," he informs me in a groggy voice. He had been sleeping for the majority of the flight.

"Okay," I quietly mumble and I get up to retrieve my carry-on bag from the cupboard above me.

Together we manage to survive the mind-numbing customs process. With all our luggage completely checked, we leave the bustling airport and head out to the parking lot where our new car is waiting for us. Cause of our move my parents had to sell our old car. They were worried that we would have to wait weeks to get another car. Luckily the whole ordeal was resolved when out of the blue my mom's new boss bought her a brand new car as a welcome to the firm gift.

"Wow, this looks sick," I say when I see the brand-new car: a shiny white 2019 Subaru Ascent.

"I'm not entirely sure what that means but it sounds good so I will have to agree with our daughter," my father says with a smile.

We hop into the car and with the help of Google Maps my dad starts driving us to our new home.

Even though my ears hurt I pop in my earphones again and play Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber's Stuck With You. With the song playing softly in the background I silently watch people walking on the sidewalk beside us.

I've always enjoyed watching people when we are driving. I like to observe their body language and try to guess the demons they are hiding behind their smiles. As an artist, I'm trained to see more than what meets the eye. People are a great way to practice it because what is shown on your face is not always in your heart.

The car turns left into a beautiful street. I don't take much notice of its name because I am far too busy looking at the size of the houses. Growing up in a small apartment in New Jersey these places look like mansions, okay more like mini mansions but they are still cool.