The Name Game // Kat

1 //

The bright sun burns my feet as I dart across the silver stepping stones. I hold a large pail of water, filling about halfway up the bucket. The clear liquid falls to the ground around the pail and I, leaving streams of water behind me.

I arrive home, dropping the bucket into the dirt. Almost all of the water spills, splashing me on my filthy, aching legs. I reach into my low pockets, searching for my stopwatch. "Six minutes thirty-eight seconds! New record!" I scream, jumping up off of the steaming ground. I quickly calm myself down, becoming as serious as can be.

I bring the small amount of water left inside my home, placing it on the kitchen counter carefully so the rest doesn't spill. "Welcome back, Julia. A letter arrived for you. It's from the city. Must be important." my mother says while walking into the kitchen, her voice very raspy. "The city? But we never hear from them." I ask, wondering if I heard my mom correctly.

She nods quickly and shines a small grin that gives me much comfort; something that doesn't happen often. My mother is fairly upset at times, and it's almost as if I take care of her more than she does for me. I grab the letter and rip the white envelope open. It's written in black ink, and cursive lettering. I clear my throat and read the letter out loud, so my mother could hear what it says.

Dear Mrs. Anderson,
      Your daughter is a highly intelligent student. We are giving you a once in a lifetime opportunity by asking for your daughter to come to the main city and living here until further notice. We will provide her with clothing, food and anything else she may need. We suggest you not take this opportunity for granted as it could help your family greatly in wealth. We hope for your daughter to come, and learn much more than she does now. If she decides to join us, she should come as soon as possible; preferably today. She may bring two things of value to her and one set of nice clothes. Thank you.
                                 Sincerely,
                                 Governor Malley

My mother's grin quickly fades, her pupils dilating slowly. "Mother, why aren't you happy? They mentioned that we could become wealthy!" I say, throwing the letter next to the bucket and grabbing my mom's freezing, wrinkly hands.

We have always been a very poor family, I can't lie about that. It would be amazing to have at least a little bit of money; let alone become wealthy. I'm just afraid of leaving my mother alone. "Mother, it's okay. I'll be back home before you know it. I'll make sure Mrs. Hayle checks on you everyday." I exclaim quickly, putting my soft hand through her brown locks.

My mother smiles and nods, quickly walking away and sitting on the couch. I dart up the creaking stairs, grabbing my favorite outfit; a dark blue hoodie, black converse sneakers, white jeans, and a black long sleeved v-neck. I quickly change into the clothing and grab my journal and a small pocket knife. You never know when it could come in handy. I put on dark red lipstick and throw all of my items into the suitcase.

I slowly take the case down the stairs and kiss my mom on the cheek. "You'll be okay. I love you." I croak, holding back tears. I walk outside with the suitcase and I look at the bright sun. "Here we go again." I mutter.