Finally Seeing You

Chapter 2

"Hey kid, you alright in there?" My aunt knocked on the bedroom door and I cleared my thraot from where I sat on the bed. I could hear the smacking of her gum and the creak of the door's hinges as she opened it to stick her head in.

"Loganne.."

We had just arrived home after she'd picked me up, it had been a three hour drive home. I was expecting the ride to be awkward and quiet but Aunt Chelle had turned the radio on and tapped to the beats, which seemed to calm my nerves a bit. And that's the part I was worried about. I was usually never a nervous person, let alone scared or unsure. I wanted to be unafraid and I usually was, or at least I was back home. Here, I was just hiding behind a mask of bravery.

"Sorry, Aunt Chelle. I'm just.. resting."

I said unsurely, fingers clutching the newly bought comforter beneath me. We'd been home forty-five minutes now and I'd hadn't moved a muscle since getting in the room. The room was huge and made of wood, the walls, the ceiling, the bed, and all the furniture. Any sound made bounced off the walls and echoed oddly, making me feel uncomfortable. Admittedly, I was too afraid to try to get around without getting lost within my own new room.

"It's been a while, I thought I'd check on you. Dinner's in five, then you should probably get some rest because tomorrow is the big day."

My aunt replied hesitantly, as if it wasn't the best subject to talk about. But in reality I didn't mind because that twas the scary truth. The surgery was tomorrow, and it'd come too soon.

"I'm alright, I promise. And I think I'll skip dinner, I'm really just tired."

I yawned and ran a hand through my frizzy blonde hair, scrunching my face up. A shower sounded nice too.

"Suit yourself, L."

She shrugged and walked back out, smacking her gum. I smiled and shook my head, standing up to pull the sheets back from the bed. I swear my aunt had never grown up, and she wouldn't anytime soon. Sliding carefully into the large bed, I gave a sigh of relief. The blankets had that new car smell, like they were right out of the package. I ran my fingers along the fabric, feeling the indentations of the dotted pattern.

"Tomorrow's a new day, L. You'll have a last day around the town before the surgery in the evening. Plenty of time left, right?"

I tried to convince myself, squeezing my eyes shut. My body was tired and as heavy as lead, but my mind was wide awake.

- - -

We walked along the crosswalk, a light drizzle of rain just starting. I slipped a little bit in my combat boots, the bottoms were slick and rubbery.

"Are we almost there Aunt Chelle? Why didn't we take the car? I mean I know this town is small and all.." I mumbled the questions, even more forming in my head. Today was the day of the surgery so we were walking around town for a bit. I didn't think it was going to last long as the unpredictable Mendocino weather was acting up again.

Usually every summer I spent down here as a kid I was with Catalina, a best friend of mine. She lived on the outside of town with her Dad and his bait shop, he was kind of a fishing addict. Or so we called him. Even though I was dying to see her, it'd been many years since I'd vistited for the summer or even talked to her. Things had changed now.

"Stupid weather." Chelle muttered and kept walking, her only reply. Suddenly she grabbed my arm and pulled me into a shop, warmth washing over me.

"Thank God, it's so much better in here. Where ar-"

I cut off, the sharp smell of fish and stainless steel filled my nose, and I knew exactly where we were. We were in Catalina's bait shop. My body trembled when I heard the voice, "Hello, Ms. Michelle, I'm sorry to tell you your shipment.. Loganne? Loganne Talbott?"