The group home was small, messy and smelled mildly of air freshener and burnt cookies. It wasn’t that far from Chief Swan’s house, and wasn’t that much bigger either. It was painted a dusty red colour that was meant to appear bright and friendly, but instead looked kinda pathetic. Elisabeth parked her car—a small bug—and fished out a bunch of keys from her pocket. It was very dark outside, and I was still dressed in my soiled-from-the-forest clothes, so was almost eager for Elisabeth to hurry up and open the door. When she did, I stepped in and she stayed behind to close up.
The first thing I saw was an uphill staircase that was littered with dirty laundry. There were various toys scattered on the floor, and I couldn’t help but laugh at the numerous rude words graffited on the walls. Not many people could’ve lived here; maybe five at the most.
Elisabeth led me up the stairs and into one of three doors. In it was a small, clustered room with two singular beds opposite each other. The one on the left was occupied by a figure bundled in a blanket. I could only make out a tuft of jet black hair. As soon as Elisabeth switched on the light though, the indistinguishable frame fidgeted a little and then woke up.
It was a guy, no older then me, with raven black hair and pale green eyes.
He looked me up and down whilst Elisabeth gave him an apologetic smile.
“I’m sorry, Alex. I didn’t mean to wake you.”
Alex merely kept on staring at me. His stare was almost a glare; I abruptly felt uneasy.
“Meet Thomas. Would you mind sharing a room with him for a little while?”
Alex didn’t say anything which Elisabeth took as a yes. She pointed to the free bed and patted me on the shoulder. “I’ll see you in the morning. You can meet everybody else then.”
She left with her words, and closed the door behind her. I silently walked to the free bed and sat on it, aware that Alex was still sizing me up.
“What’re you here for?”
I was in the middle of taking my shoes off when he asked the question. I looked up at him. “Huh?”
“Why are you here? Parent’s ditched you?”
I didn’t like the tone of his voice, but I answered none the less.
“My mom’s broken her hip. This is only temporary.”
Alex gave me a sardonic smile. “That’s what they all say.”
He lay back down and turned the other side, leaving me to stare at his back.
“I’m only going to be here for a week. And then I’ll be gone.” I said.
He kept quiet. I shook my head to myself and began to get ready for bed.
When I was just about to try and sleep, Alex said one last thing. “Switch the light off.”
YOU ARE READING
Catching Renesmee (COMPLETED)
FanfictionThomas Curbs is poorer than poor, not to mention the fact that he’s a frequent shoplifter. He gets caught and knows that he cannot return to crime—it’s his mom’s reaction that gets to him. He realizes he needs to find money, and fast, through a lega...
