Starr Academy: Year One

Part 2

Two

For the first time ever, I had someone helping me with dinner. Marek was great at cropping veggies. The kitchen may have been small, but we worked well in that small space. Him over at the cutting board on one side of the kitchen, and I was at the stove.

"When does your family get home?" He asked drying his hands on the towel. He grabbed his plate and followed me into the laundry room. We sat on the wooden shelf that I fold all the laundry on. The shelf was very sturdy.

I looked to the clock. I put up three fingers. Slowly I ticked them down and just as my last finger went down the front door opened and chaos had started. I had made sure that Marek and I had gotten our food.

Marek stared in obvious shock as so many came in and we almost fighting over the food. He turned to me. "And they're like this all the time?"

I looked down at my food and nodded. I started eating and he did too. He was frowning as he noticed no one even saying hi to me. They weren't saying hi to him either or asking who he was. We were just ignored.

I took my mom coming home and throwing her sweater in the laundry room before anyone heard us. "Hope dear, who's this?"

Marek rose in reply and extended his hand. "I'm Marek Knightly from Starr Academy."

My mom's eyes went wide. "Oh my. You're here already?"

He tilted his head to the side. "School starts next week." He sounded confused.

My mom closed her eyes and placed a hand over her heart. "I totally lost track of time." When she opened her eyes there was a silent plea. "Can I speak with you a moment... Marek was it?"

He nodded and turned to me. "I need to talk to your mom for a second. Are you done?" He gestured to my plate. I handed over and he gave me a quick smile before going into the kitchen to put our plates into the sink. He glanced one more time at me and I smiled and waved to him before he disappeared with my mom.

I felt lonely again. Sitting here with no one. By my lonesome. Back to being the pathetic girl I had been all summer. It was nice while it lasted. To have someone actually like my company.

My head snapped up when I heard my mom tell all my brother's friends they had to be out of the house in ten minutes. That there was a family meeting tonight. That was weird. We never had family meetings. Why tonight?

Marek? Had to be.

Ten minutes later, the house was quiet for the first time this summer. It was eerie to hear silence at this time of night. It was almost ominous.

"Hope? Can you come in here honey?"

I rose and walked to the living room. My brothers looked bored as they sat on the couch. One on either end of the couch. I slowly and shyly went to the couch to sit in between my brothers.

Marek was leaning against the wall near the front door. He smiled at me. A knowing smile. He knew what this was about and had eluded to it earlier today. It looked like he was trying to tell me something. That what my mom was about to talk to us about would be good for me.

The thing about me and my mom, we can read people. I'm mush better at it then she is. It isn't telepathy, but almost as exact. Some people are just so much easier to read. It also helps to get to know someone really well too.

My mom sat in the only chair in the room. The one that is adjacent to the couch. She was turned so she could see all of us. "Tomorrow, Hope will be leaving for school." She paused as all of us stared at her in shock. My brothers and myself.