Broken

Stainless

(A/N sorry for such a late update, school and cross country have been taking up all of my time! I will try to update once every other week. I have to keep Steps up and running too. At the start of this chapter, the flashback has ended and Delilah is back in present time.)

For the first time in forever, I let myself drift to sleep without anxiety, without heartache, and without my mom. Being on the plane, calmed me so thoroughly, I didn't even recognize the emotion. I let the light turbulence rock me to sleep, dreaming of the freedom of the little lake house. I wish I could remember the dream I had on that flight, but the only thing that comes to me is how pleasant I felt.

The jolt of the landing gear onto the pavement, woke me from my dreamland. As my body slowly became aware of it's surrounding, I could see there was a light drizzle outside. I thought to myself about how different Pennsylvania was to California, and how in California we would almost never have that refreshing rain. I quickly grabbed my backpack and sped through the aisle in order to avoid the other exiting passengers. Weaving through the terminal of the small airport, I made it to the luggage carousel in probably a record time. As I sat and listened to country music on my phone, waiting for the luggage carousel to start, someone came up to me.

"Hello Miss, can I have your time for a moment?" The petite woman asked me.

"Yes, of course." I replied with a cheerier attitude than normal. "What can I help you with?"

"Do you know if I could get to Kingston if I take Route 309 from here?" She continued.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm actually not from here. I live in California." I apologized to the woman, who was brushing her thick black hair out of her face.

"Don't worry about it sweetie. Now what I really want to know is why you left your home in California for this," she gestured to the rain that was still pattering on the concrete.

"That is not my home, I just live there," I mumbled to myself.

"I'm sorry, what?"

"Oh, nothing, I just said that you always want what you can't have," giving a small smile.

"That's the truth! Well, thanks for you time, goodbye."

"You're welcome," I replied just as the luggage started to pile out one at a time. I grabbed my blue polka dotted bag and quickly grabbed the first taxi I saw. I sat down in the back seat and leaned back in relaxation. I gave the older man in the front the address and observed everything around me. I watched the bright green forest pass me, the trees going by in a blur. I looked back at the man and wondered where he got the purple scar on his Chin. His beard was a growing stumbling, and he had flattened grayish brown hair. The taxi driver information read Archie.

"Stop staring. It's rude." Archie grumbled at me, slowly looking up and down my face through the mirror.

Flustered and slightly creeped out, I forced out a quiet apology looking down at my phone. Suddenly I remembered the unread message on my phone. I pressed the button and watched the power on screen flash. Silently thanking for a reason to avoid talking and to do something to pass this awkward interaction. I swiped through my messages and found the one I had missed. It was from Anna and read, you didn't text last night, what happened? Our promise was to give me a recap of every night. Call me. Also, don't do anything you will regret. I quickly sent back saying that a lot happened and I would call when I got to the safe haven, the nickname we made for my Grandma's.

The taxi slowed and then turned onto my grandma's red pebbled driveway. The raining had stopped but the gray clouds hanging over my head and the sky weren't completely gone. I payed Archie and grappled my bags from the trunk, slowly walking up to the brown dainty house. I listened to every crunch the pebbles made underneath my foot, absorbing the humidity that was busy sticking to my face with each step. I lightly went up the creaky wooden steps, turning the brass doorknob that my grandma always unsafely left unlocked. I peeked my head through and called out, " Gram? You there?"

"Oh Lilah! My little flower!" She exclaimed from another room, shuffling her short feet towards the front door. She came up to me and pulled me into a tight embrace, forcing me to drop my bag.

"Hey gram!" I exclaimed with real excitement. I leaned down to try to match her height of 5 feet.

"Wow! You've gotten so big! Just look at you! You're absolutely stunning!" She awed, holding my hands. Her hands were thin and wrinkly, with blue veins sticking out but I found them surprisingly soft and surprisingly comforting. She pulled one hand out of the hold and placed it on my full cheek. "You look so much like your mother. It's amazing," she smiled with a little water gathering on the bottom of her eye. "How tall are you? 5 foot 11?"

"Almost, 5 foot 10 inches." I corrected sweetly with a smile.

"Wow. I can't believe it," she continued to look in my green eyes. "Anyway, your room. Follow me."

I grabbed my bag and followed her to the tiny room in the corner of the house. The room was a light beige, covered in pictures of my family. The was a slight crack in paint of the ceiling and the carpet was slightly stained from the two cats. The twin bed was covered in a pastel blue comforter and tiny little decorative pillows as an accent. It was quaint and charming, fitting my grandma's personality perfectly. "Thank you. I love it," I said genuinely.

"I'm glad. Now make yourself at home, I'll be in the kitchen making your favorite. Pirogue," she said ecstatically.

My mouth watered at the thought of the fried goodness, "Thank you so much, Gram! Do you mind if I go for a run first?" She nodded and smiled as a sign of approval.

I quickly pulled my trainers and spandex from my luggage, throwing everything else aside. I changed into the black shorts and laced up my neon trainers. I grabbed my phone and headphones and headed towards the door. Anticipation was boiling up inside me for a reason I couldn't determine.