Earth Dragon

Chapter One

"You have got to be kidding me!" I exclaim angrily.

"What is it?" Courtney replies calmly, obviously curious about my sudden freak out.

I brandish the letter I've just opened and read in the air as though that should explain everything.

"Uh, bad news?"

Courtney's my best friend and has been since we were in Kindergarten together. She knows it's bad news. There's not much in my life she doesn't know about. "It looks like I'm going to be moving out," I say with a long-suffering sigh.

"But you've only been here three months...What's the deal?"

I shrug and flop back on the chair I'm sitting on. I don't really want to get into it, but it would probably be healthier for me to talk right away rather than stewing over it endlessly the way I normally would. "Same as always. My landlord found out about Mason."

Courtney's mouth opens in a silent "O" of understanding. She gets it. This isn't the first time I've been evicted over Mason. "You should just move in with him. Hasn't he offered, like, a hundred times?" she asks me, her expression letting me know that she seriously doesn't understand why I'm resistant to the idea of living with my long-time boyfriend.

"Yes, but you know why I can't do that." It would be so much simpler if I could.

Courtney rolls her eyes at me. "You need to get over your fears and just go for it already. What's the worst that could happen?"

"Uh, I could die?"

"Mason won't let that happen."

I find it a little annoying how staunchly Courtney supports Mason. Sometimes I feel like she's more his friend than mine. Which is ridiculous, I know. She just wants me to be happy and she knows Mason makes me happy. Despite the complications. "Maybe," I reply noncommittally. My response is typical. I'm very afraid of the possibility of dying, but I do believe it would be worth it for the chance to be with Mason forever. The problem is, I don't know if dying is really something that would happen. It's just something I've heard about Mason's...family...that scares me if I let myself think about it.

"How long do you have?"

To live? I think with amusement. But I know what she means. She means, how long do I have to vacate the premises. "Two weeks." It's plenty of time to pack and find a new apartment. I'm just tired of doing this over and over again. Moving every few months or so isn't becoming any less of a headache with repetition.

Courtney nods and stands up with a stretch and a yawn. "I should get going, but let me know if there's anything I can do to help."

"Thanks, Courtney."

She smiles at me and heads for the door.

I get up to walk her out and give her a quick, fierce hug. "I'm going to think very seriously about your suggestion," I promise her. I know she wants me to feel more stable about my living arrangements. Living with Mason is just...a lot to think about right now. But I will. I have to.

"Good. I'll see you later."

I nod and close the door behind her. I give it a minute for her footsteps to recede and lock it. I turn to look around the room and sigh to myself at the thought of packing up and moving just when I'm finally starting to feel settled in and comfortable here. "Isn't that just the way of it? Speciest pig." I am, of course, referring to my landlord. It shouldn't be legal to evict someone for spending time with dragon people but somehow it is, and I get to pay for my open-mindedness with another change in address.

Ugh, never mind the packing, the paperwork I have to fill out each time is a nightmare all by itself.

I go to the closet and pull out the large stack of boxes still there from when I moved in. I've learned the hard way not to get rid of them after a move.