Sector City

Chapter 1 ~ Julie~

              Peace. Calm. Tranquility.
        These three words describe this moment perfectly.
          We are sitting underneath the apple trees in the middle of an orchard in full bloom. His right arm is gently wrapped around my waist, while the other is resting on his lap, his hand intertwined in mine. The pale pink blossoms flutter to the ground around us and some land on us. The warm breeze blows one into my face. 
          I lift my hand to take it off but he gently brushes it away and grasps my hand again, softly. I smile, snuggling my head down into his shoulder and curling up closer to him. I just want to be next to him and never let go. I slowly turn my face to look up into his. 

                                   ~

          And, that's when I wake up. He was never there and I never got to see his face.
          I hear the front door slam, and my aunt calls me from down stairs. It is time to get up. My cousin Thomas Henry has already left that was the slamming door, he has one or two chores to finish before he heads to the bus stop, so he always wake up before me. I scurry to get dressed. I throw on a pair of faded black skinny jeans and a dark green polo. My school uniform. I hastily braid my long blond hair and put on my make up.
           On the way out my room I grab my back-pack. I pass Tom's room on my right, head down the staircase, and take a right into our living room. On my left is my aunt and uncle's bedroom. The door is always neatly shut so that it appeared to be a closet when I first arrived here.
          Almost two years have gone by since the night I came here. I shake my head to stop my thoughts before the flood of memories comes pouring out. I can't cry now.
         I'll be late for school if I don't hurry, and I don't have time to fix my make up again today. I walk through the living room to the kitchen, then to the breakfast table. Behind the table is a huge bay window showing the world outside. A large expanse of fields surrounded in trees and dotted with animals. Its mostly cattle, but a few horses, sheep, and goats are scattered around as well. I can see Henry trudging down the drive way towards the barn.
        My Aunt Anne is sitting next to my Uncle Lou and sipping her coffee while he shows her an article in the news paper. She sets her coffee mug down and looks up when I walk in.
       "Good morning, Julie. How did you sleep last night?" She asks getting up from the table.
         "Ok, I guess. I had a good dream, well at least not a nightmare," I take my seat at the table and sip the orange juice she already had fixed and at my place, "Did To- mass Henry already head out?"
        "Well, that's good. Yes, he did. Would you like a hole-in-one?" She asks and I nod while reading the comics on the back of the paper.
           Aunt Anne frowns at my uncle, and says, "Lou hand her the comics while I fix her food dear."
           Grudgingly he stops reading long enough to pass the comics to me and I eagerly take them from his grasp.  I read them and grin quietly to myself until Aunt Anne puts my breakfast in front of me.
          A piece of bread with the center cut-out, and an egg cooked over easy in the middle. The perfect blend of toast and egg. The cut-out part is toasted with butter and sits on the side of my plate. I fold the comics and start eating.
         When I finish I get up and put my plate, cup, and fork in the sink. Then I grab my backpack. On my way out the room I give my aunt a little hug.
         "Thanks for breakfast!" I say then hurry off so I won't miss the bus.
        I walk out the front door and start down the drive way. I have to walk about half a mile to the end of the road. On my way I pass the chicken coop where I collect eggs after school. A few yards further on I pass the milk barn, where I finally got the hang of milking about a month ago.
         I keep walking. So many good memories on this farm. So many bad ones out there, I almost want to turn and run back to the house, skip school, never go back, but Aunt Anne would have a fit.
          She is the one who promised my mother, her sister, that she would take care of me, and that meant,"A quality education until she is fifteen."
          So because of my aunt I keep walking. I hear the sound of the cows calling Uncle Lou from the barn. He hasn't let them out yet.
            *Great,* I think, * That means more work for me when I get home.*
         I keep walking and reach our neighbors' house. I walk past their garden and hear their dog barking which sets off their hens. I keep walking. I turn the corner and see the line of mailboxes up ahead there is already a group of kids gathered around it. I hear the bus pulling up and break into a sprint.
           I reach the mailboxes with about two minutes to spare. I lean over with my hands on my knees and try to catch my breath.
         That is when the teasing starts.