((Chapter 2))
I slid my hands through my tangled and disturbed hair, stretching my arms as I did so, my normal morning routine. Except this time I noticed the smile on my face and how my eye caught various things in the room and the way things were naturally that I almost always ignore through pure frustration to the rest of the world. The peaceful, flawless glow of the sun beamed in through the window directly in front of me, it heated me and increased the size of my already massive grin.
How ridiculous, I thought. Why not? Why can't I be happy? Both of these arguments raged on in my head without causing aggression or sorrow, they were just there.
I walked across the floor bear footed in my red shorts and t-shirt slipping them off gently and closing the door to the bathroom behind me. Above the sink in the mirror I looked at my reflection; my pale skin was ever lasting, I sighed and decided I didn't care stepped into the shower holding myself with my hands and turned the shower on hot. The steam poured out with the water and relaxed my whole body.
As I stepped out and rapped my soft warm towel around myself, I heard a thud on the stairs which I assumed was my brother walking upstairs to see if I had woken yet. In a way he'd been a lot like a father to me, he was still my brother, but sometimes when I needed someone to tell me what's what and to get me into line, sort me out and look after me, he played the right role.
"Hey Nes, you got mail, want me to leave it on your night stand?" This surprised me, I never got mail.
"Yea that be great thanks."
"No worries, you going to school today, you may wanna hurry up." What? I thought to myself, of course I was going to school, it couldn't be that late.
I slipped into the hallway and back into my bedroom, forgetting completely about the mail I'd been left more concerned about the time, glancing up at the clock as I pulled on my blue jeans in a rush to get ready in time. Dam it. He was only messing with me, in fact I was 20 minutes ahead of my mental schedule.
I sighed and got dressed at my normal speed. As I reached the kitchen I smelt my brothers delicious cooking and took a pancake to eat. His eyes met mine over the top of the newspaper and he laughed at me, as the pancake reached my mouth I re-thought my move and chucked it right at him. Unlike a parent he continued to laugh and pulled me into a hug, "Got much on today?"
"Do I ever?" I replied chuckling along with him.
"Hey maybe you should sign up for cheer squad, your un-naturally optimistic this morning, not that I disagree but seeing you smile when you walked in almost gave me a heart attack, I am much to young for that!"
"You look old enough for that," I pointed to the glasses and gestured towards the newspaper that he clutched.
"Ha-ha you're funny," He shuffled and dropped the contents of his hands, "Well," he sighed, "I have a burst pipe I've got to fix, have a good day at school." My brother recently became a plumber; I can't see the appeal of a job like that other then the fact that you can make a lot of money out of it. Maybe that's it, he has me to look out for but even so, it must be one boring job. "Oh, I circled the jobs going downtown and printed you out a résumé, not that it has a lot on it, I was tempted to mention the baby sitting but then you'd probably have to tell them how horribly wrong that went." I gave him a look that said, I am not getting a job, "Hey kid don't give me that look, I gave you that truck for your sixteenth birthday I didn't say I would continue paying for fuel, that ones on you."
"Mmmk I will give it a look, but I am not working in a restaurant!" I do not work well under pressure.
"I know that, I only circled shop gigs." I rolled my eyes and he laughed once again, "Stop by all of them after school, I want you to have a job offer by the time you get home! Bye Nes."
