All or Nothing - A Love Story

The Beginning

As they pulled up to the entrance of the sleepy little town that was soon to be their new home, Louis looked at the weather-worn "Welcome to Hemsworth!" sign with disgust. How was he ever supposed to get used to living in the south? Living in California his whole life, he already had his mind made up about how residence in Hemsworth, Georgia would be.

He rolled down the back seat window to his mother's Kia Soul and took a deep, long breath of the thick humidity filled air. He was trying to be optimistic about the move and didn't let his mother or sisters know that he was dreading starting a new school in his senior year of high school. Would the kids here like him? Would they understand his interests or style? How would they adapt to an outsider invading their cliques he was sure they had formed since birth? He was nervous but he was always up for any challenge which was why he could find the strength to be optimistic through this all.

Driving through Hemsworth, Louis had noticed a few things about the place: there was only two stop lights for starters which gave him an idea about how small this place really was. The next was that there was signs covering most of the front lawns of the cookie cutter all American type homes that said "Proud supporter of Hemsworth High Blue Devil Football" or "GO BLUE OR GO HOME". Some of the lawns had large wooden fixtures in the shape of jerseys on them with a number and last name, which Louis had figured meant one of the football players lived there. The last thing he had noticed before they arrived at their new home was that there was only one "downtown" type of area. There was a few local businesses, a diner, a theater, and maybe a grocery store? But that was all he could make out from the inside of the car. He thought to himself that maybe after unpacking he could do a little exploring of this unfamiliar place.

The Tomilinsons pulled up to a driveway surrounded by massive cherry blossom trees that led to the Cape Cod style home that greeted them with a wrap around porch and an American flag waving in the warm summer breeze. Louis hopped out of the car and stretched his legs and arms; driving 36 hours could really take a toll on a person's sanity and body. "Louis!", his sisters yelled, running from the inside of the house to him. They had come a week earlier because they wanted everything to be set up perfectly as a surprise for their mother. "How was the drive," Lottie said, "You didn't absolutely lose it being in the car with mom that long, right?" Louis, with a laugh playing on his lips, looked over to his mom, Johannah, said "No, she was fine. Really quiet surprisingly too. I think she's worn out from the drive here. Plus, it must be weird coming back to the place she grew up". The house they were moving into had been the childhood home his mother had grown up in and couldn't bear to part with since her parents had died. It had been a few years since their passing and his mother came back every summer to take care of it but she had decided this summer that she wanted to permanently move the family to her hometown.

Louis started to unpack his things into his bedroom and get settled in to his new foreign environment. It was early afternoon and he felt like he couldn't be inside for one more minute. In California, Louis was a part of his high school's track team. He had a passion for the natural high it gave him and a burning ache it gave his lungs after pushing himself a little harder and farther. He decided to give up on unpacking for a little bit and go for a light jog. Although he was a runner and knew the impact smoking could have on his abilities and respiratory system, he grabbed his half smoked pack of cigarettes out of his jeans and headed outside. The blast of dense humidity hit his face first as he started to run down the dirt path he had found on his grandparent's land. He thought to himself again about starting at Hemsworth High School next Monday. There was still a week left of summer and then he would have to face being the new kid. He never had to worry about not being liked, he had a way about him that always drew people to him but nonetheless, he was still nervous about starting over. He hoped they had a decent art program and that all the funding wasn't just being given to the football team considering his first impression of the town was that high school football was taken seriously here. His paintings had been in a few art shows in California, mostly bizarre abstract portraits of people with their faces replaced with flowers or plants, were what he prided himself in. He dreamt of going to art school in Los Angles one day so he was anxious to see what kind of programs his high school had.

As Louis ran, and thought about all the possible scenarios that could play out, he saw a clearing in the woods that the dirt path had led him to. It was a small patch of long grass with a hidden grove of skinny, pale trees almost lined up in a perfectly straight line that encased a meadow of lilacs. It looked almost untouched by any human and Louis felt like his discovery was his new secret between him and the meadow. He decided to sit down and enjoy the view and a cigarette. As he took a drag of the cigarette, he finally felt a sense of calm and peace and knew he could take on whatever this new life threw at him.