Lock and Key

Chapter 1; Gate

We were moving. Again. Just days before the end of a school year. This time it was to a town called Lonsdale, Minnesota, closer to a job in Shakopee than Monticello had been. I felt uneasy there. As soon as we crossed the city limit, I was overwhelmed with a sense of dysphoria. I shivered and scooted closer to my older brother, the only guy in the world that I knew I could always trust. He proved my point by placing his arm protectively over my shoulders.

"You okay, Kat?" he asked, his green eyes sparkling. I didn't respond immediately. "Hello? Earth to Kathleen?" he coaxed, snapping a couple times.

"Yeah, I...I'm just...nervous," I admitted to my brother, Adam. He smiled.

"We'll get over it, Kat," he said, "We always do," I nodded. He was right. This was our twelfth town in under a year. Mom knew it was hard on us, but she had to find a job to support the three of us on her own, so she quit a lot a lot of jobs because they weren't bringing in enough money. I missed dad. I wondered what he was doing. Probably sitting on a beach somewhere with a blonde-haired, blue-eyed, idiotic tramp of sorts, having another affair. I tore my mind away from thoughts of the divorce and placed them back on the new house. New town. New school. Being shy doesn't help this situation. It took forever to make friends in the old towns, and by the time I actually had a friend, we had to move. That was how it was with me. Eventually, I just decided it was easier to be solitary instead of getting my heart ripped apart every time we moved. This time, though, it was different. This job would pay 20 dollars an hour for eight hours, then that and an extra 2 dollars for every hour of over time. That sounded like a great deal. She was sure we'd be staying here for quite a while. I was so happy to hear that. We pulled into the driveway of a gray house with a bright blue column on the front porch. I thought it was a lovely pop of color. We started unloading the van, starting with the wall decorations, which were on top and picked our rooms. Adam took the navy blue, geometrically patterned one, and I took the one right across the hall from him, which was painted some shade of aquamarine. After getting all moved in and starting in on decorating, I looked out my window across the street at a white house with a red door. I watched as a family of three come out the front door. A woman, college-level girl, and another girl about my age. For the first time in a while, I felt excited, but I didn't go down. I waited to hear mom's voice calling me downstairs.

"Kat, come down here! We have guests!" she shouted. I took a deep breath and bounded down the stairs, brown hair swinging madly in its side-pony.

"Hi," I said timidly. The young blonde girl piped up energetically.

"Hey! I'm Mariah. This is my sister Cierra, and my mom. What's your name?" she asked. I was taken aback for a sec.

"Her name's Kathleen," my brother picked up. I looked up at him, not having noticed he was there, "She's shy, so she might not talk much. I'm Adam. Nice to meet you," he said, extending a hand to Mariah and her family, who all shook it. My mom rubbed my head.

"Well, come on in, guys. We just got the table set up, and the mugs out. Water?" she asked.

"Yes, please," I said timidly, "Thanks, mom," I added as she handed it to me. We all sat and talked for a while before mom asked me to get out the game of Clue I loved so much. Adam, Mariah, Cierra, and I played that while the parents talked. Cierra asked my brother how old he was, to which he replied.

"Seventeen. Just got my driver's license last summer," he looked over at me, "And Kat's fifteen. In the ninth grade now," he said, ruffling my hair. Mariah gasped.

"Le gasp! I'm going to see you at school!" she said ecstatically. I laughed at her. So far, she was absolutely hilarious. She came up to my room and helped me decorate for hours until our parents called up and announced it was time to go. She gave me a hug, and you never would have guessed the girl had depression. I got ready for bed quickly and sat up talking to Adam for a while.

"So, how do you like that Mariah girl?" he asked.

"Oh, she's hilarious! She watches Supernatural, and Stanger Things, and Sherlock, and My Little Pony, and Black Butler, and a few other animes. I mean, I had my doubts, but I really think this'll be great!" I said. Adam chuckled.

"Good! Hey, I'll pick you up from school tomorrow, okay?" he asked, giving me a tight hug.

"Okay," I agreed. He smiled and left the room, letting me drift to sleep.

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Hey, really quick note before you get too caught up - this story deals with some dark topics (abuse, suicide mainly). Now, having not actually dealt with these myself, this might be a bit unrealistic. So, just...be warned and chose whether or not you want to keep going. Thank you!