Nighttime

Chapter 1

The sky was busy with angry grey clouds and rain that gently drummed against the foggy glass of my window. I leaned against my rough wall, my legs tucked in between my arms that were tightly wrapped around them.
Boxes surrounded me, stacked and scattered all over the wooden floor, full to the bust with furniture and things that I needed to pack when we move to…Connecticut. The name just makes me cringe.
Why now? I’ve just gotten friends that I can trust, and actually smile with, but now we’re moving again, and as always, I have no say in it.
My name is Evelyn Mortridge. But most people call me Eve.
   I see myself as a miserable shortie who has to keep moving because of her mom’s job, and the dad…. Er, I actually don’t know where he is, all I know was that he went to sea and never came back. Something like that. Moving on.
    My mother is a scientist featuring pretty much anything. Mom said that I’ll enjoy New Haven, more than I enjoy Australia. I doubt it. We’re visiting the more quiet and leafy part, and as far as I know, I’m basically allergic to nature and its animals, as much as I like them. Ouch, I know.
A small sound erupted from my wooden door that was thickly coated in white paint caught my attention. My head snapped to  the direction of the noise as my door cracked open, Mom’s head peeking through.
“The moving truck has arrived, honey”
Mom was in her 40’s, now. Her hair was long with grey streaks  and it cascaded down her back and tickled her hips, framing her face.
Her eyes had grey circles below them, marks from sleepless nights. Her forehead had lines that sliced horizontally.
  I could barely see the color in her blue eyes, now. She gave me a wary grin and her head disappeared.
   Groaning I opened the door wider and a random man just walked through. I didn’t question it, though, because clearly on his back it read: Moving Man. Co.
The man loaded my boxes onto the his trolley and wheeled most of them away. I stalked down the hallway and joined my mom outside, watching the people load our boxes into their truck.
“It’s ok to miss this place, honey” she whispered to me. I shrugged and looked away, avoiding any reminder that I’m making my happy group of friends a miserable bunch by leaving, but really, I think they’ll move on quickly. I didn’t really bother to make sure people remember me by listening and talking in the smallest voice ever, only agreeing and joining in with conversations that aren’t my business. Nosy as always.
   Once the boxes were loaded into the truck, I climbed into the car hurriedly, and mom followed, aggravatingly calm and slow. Doesn’t she want to leave before we get smothered in goodbye hugs and gifts that will crowd my already crowded car?
She twisted the key  and gave me a grin before turning back to the road and steering to the airport.

“You excited?” Mom asked me as we boarded the plain. I gave her an emotionless glance as we both shuffled in forward in the long queue for our seats. She placed her hand on my arm and squeezed gently. “It’s ok to be  scared honey. We’ve never been to America”
Mom let her hand drop to her side as we shuffled forward again. I glanced at my ticket. There is our seat!
  I hefted our luggage into the overhead compartment and dropped into my seat, sliding my bag under the one in front of me, and finally letting out a breath that I didn’t even know I was holding in.
“Mom” I murmured, “Why New Haven?”
“Well, Eve” she replied, looking at me, “Why not?”
She slumped back in her seat as the engine roared and the plane began to move, and the pilot spoke through the speakers and headphones, interrupting the screens by pausing movies.
Choosing to ignore his annoying voice, I clenched my eyes shut and cleared my mind. And slowly, the sound of the world died out and I drifted off to sleep.
“Honey” a voice hummed. “Honey?” it said a bit louder. I lurched upwards and bounced back into my seat with the seat belt holding me down.
“Breakfast here” Mom said gently. I managed a weak grin and looked the flight attendant who wore a concerned look but I waved it off and unclipped my table and unfolded it in front of me as she placed my food down. Opening the box, I was welcomed by the sweet smell of fried rice with vegetables mixed in. I attacked the food and it was finished no problem, judging by a monster of my stomach that was constantly hungry.
“When are we landing?” I asked. I felt slightly queasy from such a long flight, fidgeting from staying still for so long in an uncomfortable seat. I shifted positions again.
“Soon, Honey” Mom said. I could feel the plane tipping downwards, soaring through the clouds and nearing to the ground. I yanked my bag on to my lap and squeezed it to my chest anxiously as my head started to become painful. I hated planes. You’re always blocked from the wind and you never know when it’s going to crash, and I’m always afraid of landing. Squeezing the bag tighter, I forced my pale green eyes open to be aware of my surroundings.
“Stay seated, 15 minutes ‘till landing. Thank you for riding our airline, we hope you enjoyed your flight. It is currently 59 fahrenheit, 9:30 pm and make sure your seatbelts are fastened. The flight attendants will….” I blocked off his voice from my hearing and looked clenched my teeth as the pain increased.
It felt like forever until the plane landed with a thud, sending a jolt through my body. The plane sped forward, turning and slowing. I looked to the side. Connecticut, eh? I still hate the name.

“Eve, calm down. You’ll get your things tomorrow. Remember, they are travelling by road. We had faster transportation. So breathe” she joked, I cracked a smile and looked away, my arms folded over my chest angrily. I stormed down the hallway and found my room, which unsurprisingly was empty. I could do this, I could survive with only a thin blanket and a bag as my pillow. This is normal, I probably won’t freeze to death in these conditions. Who am I kidding, if I fall asleep and never wake up, I won’t be living in this miserable place called home. I tugged my cotton blanket out of my bag that was somehow connected to my pillow and curled up on the cold, dirty wooden floor. I yanked out my phone and earphones soon after, realizing I had no hope in sleep so I buried the ear machines deep inside and roughly turned up the music, listening to the sad lyrics of my playlist featuring…. Sadness. Suits the theme of what I am stuck in now, right?
My eyelids felt like stones as they sealed themselves shut, and eventually falling into a restless sleep.