Catchfly: Seeing Stars

Chapter 37: One on One

November 27 – 5:19 PM

After a road trip filled with One Direction, Rihanna, and countless Atlanta rappers on account of Austin, we finally arrive in Atlanta. When you pass the welcome sign in New Bern, you're max ten minutes away from where you want to be. In Atlanta, we pass the welcome sign an hour before we finally get to Sienna's apartment.

The apartment complex isn't very flashy– it's gray and square, but it's tall. There aren't a lot of tall buildings in New Bern. The highest the apartment buildings get is five floors. This looks to be at least thirty floors high, which is still small in comparison to all the other buildings here. It's insane. I feel like a farm girl seeing the city for the first time.

Austin's finger flies over the list of names in the welcoming hall. He presses the button of apartment 5E.

"Yes?" Sienna's voice sounds.

"Delivery from New Bern!" He's so uppity, he has been ever since we passed the welcome sign to Atlanta. It's like coming home for him. He couldn't stop screaming at every corner we took, thinking Young Thug might've been in that same spot once. Or Childish Gambino. Or either of the Outkast members, or Future. And the list goes on.

We hear Sienna laugh. "I'll open the door for you."

A buzz sounds and the glass door unlocks. The six of us stuff ourselves into the elevator. When we get to the fifth floor, we push each other out, eager for a fresh breath of air.

Elias is first to find the right door. Sienna opens up before he can even knock. Elias throws his arms around her and lifts her up. We all hug her, screeching like it's been years since we've seen her. She invites us into the apartment. It's small, but somehow it doesn't feel that way. The interior is colorful, filled with items that don't match and yet it still looks tasteful. The four chairs at the kitchen table are all different, but they all go with the dark brown table. There are different plants scattered over the apartment, tapestries hang off the wall. I don't know why this all works, but it does.

The wall on opposite side of the front door is mostly taken up by the window. It's huge, giving us a view of the Atlanta skyline. Cars zoom through the city, I see at least a dozen skyscrapers from here. We're facing a building that seems to be a business incorporation of some kind: behind every window sits a man or woman at a desk, busy on their computer or on the phone. Atlanta is living and breathing like an organism.

"This view is crazy. This place is crazy, you're a whole city girl now." Austin says.

"It's nice, huh?" Sienna seems shy showing this off, when she has no reason to be. Sure, we're all envious. But I can't imagine anyone here is unhappy that she had the chance to change up her environment like this. She deserves it.

"Where's your aunt?" Will is the first to take his eyes off the cityscape.

"She's still at work, but she'll be home for dinner."

"And what is it your aunt does?" Avery asks. "Just asking, for future reference."

"She's an interior designer."

I'm pretty sure each one of us releases an "aaaah" in understanding of how this apartment came to look the way it does.

"So aside from the banger apartment, how's Atlanta?" Austin sticks his thumb in the pockets of his black jeans. He's wearing his trademark bright blue and red windbreaker. His curly hair is unkempt, he probably didn't bother to style it this morning for the long trip. I'm sure if I hadn't grown up with Austin and didn't know exactly what his farts smell like, I would have crushed on him big time. But Austin would've broken my heart. He doesn't really believe in love. He gets physical crushes, not emotional ones. I like to tell myself Austin Cole is more of a romantic than meets the eye.