Claimed

~Chapter 1~ A Day in the Life

~Chapter 1~  A Day in the Life

"Dad, Mom!"  Wynter shouted as she burst through the front door of her home for the first time since Thanksgiving.  Immediately her father ran down the steps and greeted his daughter with a bear hug.

"Hey sweetie.  I'm so glad you're back."  Wynter loved the way her father always sounded like a little kid on Christmas morning when he saw her.

"Where's mom?" 

"Last time I checked she was on the phone."  Even as Wynter's father, Danny, said this, his wife, Nichole, descended the slanted staircase, house phone pressed to her ear.

Once she was in front of her daughter Wynter she wrapped her arms around her and silently mouthed 'welcome home'.  Wynter smiled in appreciation of the gesture as her mother walked off towards the kitchen.

"So, how's college treating you?"  Danny asked.

"The usual I suppose.  I mean, I'm not a freshmen anymore so I know the ropes, but at the same time, I'm not an upper class-man so people still see me as immature."

"Well hey, don't be in such a rush to grow up.  Trust me, it'll happen of its own accord."  Wynter nodded at her father's wise words, knowing he was right.  Her childhood seemed to have flown by already.

"So, you need help carrying your bags up to your room?"  Wynter smiled.

"I think I can handle it daddy."  She shifted the weight of one of the Duffel Bags thrown over her shoulder, and began taking the steps as fast as she could maneuver them.

As she came down to the very end of the hall, having already passed her parent's master bedroom near the top of the steps, she suddenly dropped all her luggage. 

Standing up on tiptoes, she reached frame above her door and pulled a key from it.  While away, her parents kept her door locked to prevent heat from escaping into the attic.  After turning the key in the lock, she shoved the door open quick, wanting to look at her room.

It was comforting to see that nothing had changed since last she saw it.  Her bed was still pushed up against the window with a deep brown bedspread covered in blue dots on it.  The bookshelf she had recieved one Christmas so long ago was still on the right wall along with her dresser.  And her favorite spot in the house, the window seat, still had deep purple curtains draped over it.  The wooden floor had a furry brown carpet set upon it and two bean bags were over to the left by the window seat. 

The room was bear, as it should be, considering most of her belongings were away at school.  Still, the charm of her room was tangible and comforted Wynter.

She scooped up her heavy bags and dropped them on the carpet inside the room.  Huffing, she sat down heavily on the bed and stared out the window.  The street was covered in white, and so were all the neighbor's roofs.  Ironically, winter was Wynter's favorite time of year.  She loved the picturesque scene of the tree limbs with no leaves.  The chilled air always tasted crisp and clean in her mouth.  But more than anything, Wynter loved the snow.

"Hey!"  Wynter blinked, being yanked out of her reverie.  She looked over to the door to see her mom standing there, wearing her annual Christmas apron.

"Hi mom."  Wynter smiled.

"So, how was the semester been?  Do you think you did well on your finals?  Meet any nice boys?"  Nichole tagged on at the end.  Wynter rolled her eyes.  She knew her mother meant well, but it was getting old to have her asking about 'nice boys' every time she came home.  It was beginning to make Wynter feel depressed.  Usually, she didn't think too much about the fact that she still had never had an actual boyfriend, but with her mother nagging her every year, she could hardly remain nonchalant.

"The semester's fine.  I think I aced my finals, and no mom I haven't met anyone.  But I'm pretty sure you knew that.  If and when I find a someone, you would be the first to know."

"I know," Nichole began with a slight sigh, "I just don't see why you can't try a little harder."

"Try a little harder to what, mom?"

"You know exactly what.  Wynter, I don't want you to be alone.  I met your father my freshmen year of college, and we got married as soon as we graduated."  Wynter rolled her eyes as her mother spoke.  She had heard the story one too many times and was getting sick of it.

"If you don't meet someone soon, you'll be an old maid by the time you marry.  And if you're not, you could marry too soon, before you really know him." 

While Nichole spoke, Wynter got up and pulled on her pea coat, preparing to leave her mother with her thoughts.

"Look mom I will meet someone when I meet someone."  Maybe I don't want to meet anyone, she added the thoughts she could not bring herself to say to her mother.  

"Honey, you know I'm doing this for your own good.  Don't you feel lonely? 

Even a little?  I mean you don't really have any friends, don't you feel—"

"Mom!"  Wynter yelled.  I'm going out."

"Oh no you are not, we are not done with this conversation."

"Yes, we are."

"Wynn?"  Danny came from the den, looking concerned.

"I'm taking a walk," she sighed heavily, not ready to leave the house so soon after she had returned from school.  I'll be back by dinner."

Wynter stayed long enough only to see her father's confused face and her mother's scrunched brows.

The winter air was biting against her skin as she scurried down the sidewalk and towards the center of town.  It was early in the evening, around five o'clock, yet the sun had already set behind the sky.  Wynter breathed deeply, taking in the crisp flavor of the iced air.  Before Wynter could cross the street, she had to wait for the cars to pass by.  As she stood on the snow covered side walk, her attention was grabbed by the yard a few blocks down that contained yelling children in it.  They were having what seemed to be a very serious snow ball fight and Wynter smiled at the innocent joy.

In the back of her head she was a little jealous of the children.  She had never in her life participated in a snow ball fight.  She didn't have any siblings and her mother was right, even growing up, Wynter had a scarce amount of friends.  She always thought it was better that way, not to know too many people.  She involuntarily smiled as she turned her attention back to the street.  It finally seemed to be clear.  As she stepped out into the road, a sharp pain struck her head like a rock.  She tried to continue walking, but the pain was debilitating, she was paralyzed.  Blinking her eyes she fell towards the ground and lay there, distraught, not having the energy to pull herself up.  Wynter felt her eyes begin to droop, but she knew she had to stay awake.  Slowly, the pain receded and she tried pushing herself up from the ground.  Just as she got on her feet, the ominous glow of headlights flooded her vision.  Her heart pounded in her ears.

As her vision cleared, she noticed the vehicle was swerving.  The driver was drunk.  Wynter attempted to circumvent the car only to end up directly in its course.  To late to turn back, the car inched closer to impact with Wynter's body.  Her eyes grew wide as the car came within inches of her and then she felt a disorienting force collide with her left side.  She seemed to fly through the air and somehow landed on the snowy sidewalk.  Without missing a beat, she stumbled to her feet to assess the damage.

She didn't seem to be hit, yet her whole left side was throbbing.  Wynter watched, confused, as the drunk driver's car sped off in the distance.  Wrapping her arms tight around her body, Wynter tried to slow her breathing down, she tried not to fall apart.  In the back of her head Wynter knew she should be dead and she couldn't figure out how it was possible for her to still be alive.  Pulling her coat closer to her body, she continued on her walk.  Though in shock, she was lucid enough to remember she did not want to be home at the moment.

As Wynter sauntered off, far away, on a nearby rooftop, someone was watching her go.  The stranger wondered if Wynter had any suspicion that someone had decided to spare her life.

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-E