Where the Heart is - Leah Yirga (free e books to read online txt) 📗

One

The minute he walked in, I knew he was different. Sure to be an outcast within a week's time. I could tell from the way my peers gave him funny looks and whispered into each others' ears. The typical reaction when a new kid shows up without any friends or any clue of what he was doing. I guessed it would take him maybe a month before he stopped being the center of rumors.
He was tall and slim, with broad shoulders and, if you looked closely, a very handsome face.
"Hello?" Amber waved her hand in front of my face.
My best friend's shrill voice teared my attention from the handsome, but anonymous boy standing in the middle of the cafeteria, alone and confused.
"What?" I said, irritated.
"I asked you a question," Amber put her manicured hands on her hips. "What color dress should I wear to prom-red or blue?" Her blue eyes looked frustrated.
"Pick blue," I replied, not really caring how she looked for prom. The truth was, it really didn't matter what she wore to prom. All the guys would be drooling over her anyways, with her perfect blond hair and hourglass shape. Did I mention she was the prettiest girl in the school?
"But I look fat in blue," Amber complained.
I chuckled at that. "Then pick red."
She wrinkled her nose like something smelled bad. "I don't know."
I looked at her thoughtfully for a moment. "How about purple?" I suggested, "It's a mixture of the two."
Instantly, Amber's face lit up. "You're a genius!" And she hugged me.
I turned my attention back to the new boy...who had disappeared. I sighed, frustrated that I had lost him. My head shook, trying to clear my thoughts of him. But then I heard loud laughter behind me. I snapped my head to the goth table-and there he was, laughing with the goth kids as if he had known them all his life. To my surprise, it looked like he had made friends. New kids weren't usually accepted into groups right from the start. But I guess he was an exception.
After lunch, I prepared myself for Latin- the only class that I enjoyed. I shared it with my cousin, Abigail. We were like sisters since birth. Actually, scratch that, Abigail was so much more that a sister to me. She was a part of me. We told each other everything.
But I didn't tell her about the new kid. After all, it wasn't like I knew him or anything. So I kept my thoughts to myself, which was troubling. I couldn't concentrate on the teacher's lectures and kept getting in trouble for daydreaming and spacing out during the lessons. I tried to tell myself I really didn't care for him; that he was just some other new kid who didn't even know I existed. But I couldn't ignore him. No matter how hard I tried. And I knew that that wasn't about to change.
When class ended, everyone looked visibly happier. I could feel my spirits lift, too. Even our teacher relaxed some. I guessed she was in a good mood because she handed out reindeer-shaped cookies to everyone and kept humming Christmas tunes to herself.
Mrs. Johnson wished us all happy holidays and an enjoyable, long weekend before the final bell rang. Immediately, my classmates and I all tried squeezing out the door in a hurry to go home.
With everyone rushing in the halls, it was hard to tell where you were going. Kids were shouting and shoving and papers where flying everywhere, but nobody cared enough to pick them up. Suddenly, I tripped over something and tumbled backwards, landing painfully on the person behind me. I sat up quickly. "I'm sorry," I said, turning around to see who I had landed on. My face grew hot with embarrassment and I froze. It was the new kid. Just as handsome as I remember. And I was sitting in his lap. My heart raced so fast, I thought it would jump right out of my chest.
He smiled at me. "No, it's okay, really."
Without answering, I got up and got to my locker fast, before I did anything else stupid.

Two

When I got home, I felt better. My heart slowed down to a healthy sixty-beats-per-minute rate. From the living room, I could hear conversation. I threw my light bag down on the kitchen table and went in to check it out.
"Hey, mom," I greeted her. She was wearing her old Rudolph-the-red-nosed-reindeer baking apron. Her hair was pulled back in a tight, shiny red ribbon.
My mother returned my greeting with a warm smile. Then she went back to her busy conversation on the phone. Not wanting to disturb her, I scribbled on a sticky note that I was going to go for a walk and that I'd be back in forty-five minutes. I stuck the note on the kitchen table and slipped quietly out the back door.

Once outside, I went through our backyard and headed for the woods, my body getting colder each step of the way. A freezing gust of wind whipped violently at my face. I shivered and zipped up my jacket. My pace quickened.
I let my legs carry me along the familiar man-made trail that I had followed so many times before. It wasn't long before my destination was in sight. My secret hideout. I could see it up ahead now. It was just two small wooden rooms that I had built under a tree during the summertime, but it meant a lot to me. And it proved useful when I needed a place to escape to. A quiet, peaceful place that no one knew about.
I stepped into the old room, the floor creaking underneath me. To my left was a small bookshelf. I grabbed a book from it and curled up on a beanbag chair in the corner and started reading.
I hadn't realized I had fallen asleep until I woke up. Through the window, the sky was much darker than it was when I left my house. Oh, shit, I thought. My mom was probably worried sick.
I rushed to my house, trying to ignore how much colder it had gotten. I hesitated at the door. Finally, my hand twisted the knob and I stepped inside, knowing what I was going to tell my mother. I couldn't let her find out about my secret hideout. Then it wouldn't be a secret anymore.
But when I went inside, my mother was already asleep on the couch, her cooking apron still on. She must have been exhausted.
I pulled my mother's shoes off and placed them on the shoe rack by the door. Then I took her apron off, carefully so I didn't wake her up. I grabbed a blanket from the closet upstairs and draped it over her. After giving her a kiss on the forehead, I went upstairs to sleep myself.

Three

I woke up in the morning to the growling of my stomach. I stood up and stretched my arms. I opened the curtains, letting the sunshine fill my room.
When I looked through the window, I saw that it was a beautiful day. For winter, at least. I was so used to seeing the sky covered in dark, gray clouds, that I was surprised to see that there was sunlight.
My stomach growled again, turning my attention back to food. As if on cue, I smelled pancakes and eggs and bacon coming from downstairs.
I quickly changed out of my pajamas, brushed my teeth, washed my face, and skipped downstairs. I found my mom setting the table, a coffee mug in her hand. She took a small sip before placing it on the table and coming over to hug me.
"Good morning, Autumn," my mother said lovingly.
"Good morning, mom."
I took a seat at the table and started eating. I ate quickly, though, so it wasn't long before I was finished.
After rinsing my plate, I put on my favorite black and gold plaid sweater and matching hat and scarf. I knew better than to be tricked by the sun. It may look nice outside, but it was still cold.
"Where are you going?" My mom asked, taking a sip of her coffee.
I stared at her. "Outside."
She took another sip. "Okay. Oh, and maybe you could say hi to the new neighbors."
I must have looked clueless, because then my mother said, "You mean you didn't notice the new people next door?"
I shook my head. "Whatever. Sure. I'll say hi."
Before my mom could hold me up any longer, I left the kitchen and went outside, into the cool air.

Publication Date: 10-30-2010

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