Apricity

1. First Sight

Monday, January 3rd, 2005

My legs were cramped in the crowded space of the car. I had been stuffed in the same position for days with only short breaks few and far between. My mother and I were in the final minutes of the drive to our new home in Forks, Washington. It had been a long journey, one that I hadn't wanted in the first place.

I had been uprooted from my home, my life in general. So many things had changed in the last week and a half. The last thing I needed to deal with was moving to an entirely new state. I wouldn't know a soul, though I didn't mind not talking to anyone right now. I needed time alone, just me, myself, and I. That didn't mean that I wanted to give up everything I knew, though. My mother, on the other hand, thought that it was exactly what we needed, despite my objections. She'd been saying so nearly the entire drive across the country.

"-and it's the perfect opportunity to start over." I rolled my eyes for what felt like the millionth time today. That action had quickly earned me displeased look, complete with narrowed eyes.

I raised my hand up in defense. "I wasn't rolling my eyes," I said quietly, "I was simply rewinding my brain. After all, I've already heard that line twenty times in the last hour."

"Clever, real clever, ha-ha," my mother countered sarcastically, clearly trying to hold back her laugh at my quick witted quip. "I'm serious. We need a fresh start after all this, and- Oh! Look, there it is!"

I stared out the passenger side window where I sat, taking in the pale brown house we were now pulling up next to. It was nothing extravagant, but it didn't look bad. With a sigh, my mother put the car in park, shutting off the engine and turning to face me. "Just, give it a chance."

I gave her a half-hearted nod and practically ripped the door open and lunged from the car. The second I started stretching, multiple pops could be heard from various places on my body along with the strange hnnyuuuh that escaped my mouth at the relief. The crisp morning air felt wonderful on my stiff joints, and the thought of just laying on the cool cement of the sidewalk was just entering my mind, and sounding quite good, when my mother's voice broke through the silence.

"The moving trucks should be here later today. For now, just help unload the car. You can take your stuff up to whichever room you want after we get it all inside. I'll order us something to eat."

I groaned quietly enough that she wouldn't hear me, but started pulling the first of my belongings from the car anyway. I yanked the soft blanket from the front seat and wrapped it around myself before reaching into the back seat and hoisting a box up into my arms. I hurried to carry it inside and drop it gently onto the hardwood floor, before heading back out and repeating the process many more times, frequently passing my mother with full arms.

Soon after we had everything inside, pizza was delivered to us and we sat on the floor taking a much needed food break, and just as we finished that, the moving trucks arrived. It wasn't until ten o'clock at night that the pair of us had given in and gone to bed.

When I woke up the next morning, it was early. I was still exhausted, and was stumbling around my not even half put together bedroom trying to get ready for school. All the while, I was tripping over some boxes and digging around through others trying to find what I needed. There were boxes everywhere, and the though of having to unpack them later wasn't very thrilling.

I pulled a simple pair of black leggings and a grey tank top out of a box and dragged myself to the bathroom. I didn't bother shutting the door, since it was just my mother and myself in this new house. I flicked on the light and snatched the bra I had hung on the doorknob the night before when I had showered. With a yawn, I dumped my outfit on the counter in front of me and stripped out of my night clothes.