everything and more

chapter 1 - introduction

"mom" i said with tears in my eyes as my parents look at me with the same sadness in their eyes. they had just told me that they were getting a divorce and i had to pick who i wanted to live with from now on. the choice seemed so obvious since my mom was my best friend and i could never leave her. but when i saw the look in my dad's face when i said i wanted to live with my mom, i thought that i had instantly made the wrong decision.

but as i grew older i realized that the decision would have been hard either way. i still saw my dad every other weekend and now he has a new wife and a new family so that made me realize that he was okay on his own.

but that was seven years ago, i was now 17 and just about to start my junior year in high school. everything seemed normal, same high school, same friends, and same town. just the way i liked it, small and pretty normal. i lived in north dakota for my whole life and this was the kind of life i was used to. i needed no change. but my mother had different plans.

"you what?!" i questioned my mom as she sat across from me. the cheerios in my mouth threatening to fall as i look at her in disbelief.

"i sold the house." my mother said as if it were a normal everyday thing.

"where the heck are we gonna live?" i asked. still looking at her with the same face as before.

"i told you all of this last week, remember? luke?" she said in a happy tone.

i half remembered what she was talking about, thinking back to when she had told me about this luke guy who she had been dating for 2 years now without even telling me.

"well, i'm moving to connecticut and i want you to come with me." she said with a smile.

"are you being serious right now? there is no way i will move in with that guy i barely know and leave everything i know behind." i said with tear now threatening now to fall.

Now, here i was, in the passenger seat of my mom's suv, that was packed full of all of our belongings. I eventually gave in and decided to go with my mom, after i had seen what this guys house looked like. i guess he was a brain surgeon or something like that and he made tons of money. it was still hard to leave everyone behind, but a part of me was ready for a new adventure.

the hardest part of all of this was saying goodbye to my dad, now that i was over 1,000 miles away from i would only see him at Christmas time and in the summer. he gave me the choice to stay with him and go to the school in his town, but i eventually decided against it since his new wife wouldn't be to fond of that.

After about an hour of driving i drifted off into a deep sleep and dreamed about what my new life will be like.