Chapter 1
“What did you say your name was?”. “I didn’t” is all he said. She looked deeply into his hazel eyes with just a little green. “I feel like I have known you forever” she said, thinking it sounded like one of those corny lines out of romance movies. “Well I am just happy that I have found you, now I can finally live” what did he mean by that…finally live? He grabbed her by the wrist and suddenly it seemed like they were floating, high above what looked like her school, nah It couldn’t be….. buzz, buzz, what was that noise….buzz, buzz, yet again there it was.
Noel rolled over and slapped the alarm 6.01am. As she sighed she tried to recall the details of the latest instalment of weird if not intense dreams she had been having. They all started since she and her family moved here to Reedsport, Oregon in December last year, since then the dreams had always been so similar with the floating, the hazel and green tinged eyes, but she could never actually see who the person was. Only the way he made her feel, yes those two things she did know, it was a he and the feeling, like absolute lust around him. What did it mean and why was she dreaming about a guy she had never seen before, and she couldn’t actually see now.
She rolled back onto her back and debated whether she should spend her last few days of freedom sleeping in. Eventually she decided not to and pulled herself up off the bed. She walked over to the window and drew open her purple and green paisley curtains letting the last of the summers early morning glow in. It was hard to believe that the three months of summer vacation was nearly over and the first day of school was fast approaching. She could see the trees leave changing from vivid green to a slight yellow green, that was a sure indication that school was on the way. Looking down on the backyard she could see the neighbour’s cat being chased once again but Jasper.
Jasper was a loveable shaggy haired dog, when they chose him from the pound the control officer had said that he was unsure what breed he was, he said “I think he has a bit of this and a bit of that in him…maybe he is a new undiscovered breed, rare and unique” then tried to charge extra because there was only one like him out there. Since then his rare and uniqueness had cost them four basketballs, about twenty tennis balls, three pairs of pa’s slippers and one really disgusting mop head. Not to say the terror he has caused the neighbours cats and the local rubbish bins on rubbish day.
The house was quiet this morning, and as it was Sunday this was nothing unusual. Her ma and pa would still be snoozing and now Jacob had gone off to college the silence was deafening. She tiptoed down the hallway towards the little bathroom in their Reedsport contemporary family home, or so the real estate agent had said. It was four bedrooms, two bathrooms. Knotty pine, and remodelled in 1993. It was a cosy home on a large corner section on Seaview Ave, and it had wonderful views of the river, through the pine trees. The rear yard was fenced with a small garden but that didn’t stop Jasper from escaping to chase cats and rummage.
Opening the door into the main bathroom it was small and compact with shower over the bath and a single bathroom vanity straight across from the toilet, the walls had out-dated wallpaper that was starting to slowly peel in the corners from the moisture build up. Noel flicked the shower on to hot and thought to herself pa said it was a doer upper but this was a major renovation, she couldn’t help thinking though that the bathroom was more important than the kitchen that he had just remodelled for ma to bake her pies. Noel’s mother Samantha Chensworth was well known in Kansas City for her homemade pies. She had won many competitions for them with her most famous and most winning pie, her pumpkin pie, it was unbeatable in three states. I guess pa wanted her to be comfortable and with the local bakers competition starting in the next few months she would have to practice.
Turning around she slung her dirty pyjamas into the hamper and opened the top window next door to the toilet slightly to let the hot steam out. Looking at herself in the mirror above the vanity, she could see her soft chocolate brown curls framing her face like draping curtains, her eyes were a steel grey colour today, they seemed to change colour by the day and she often referred to them as mood eyes, wonder what mood she was in today, grey was never a good colour. She had what her mother described as a peaches and cream complexion and her lips, what she thought was her best asset if she had to choose one, were slightly pink and perfectly shaped.
Noel wasn’t very heavy set but not skinny like all the supermodels out there, she had never really had body issues but now her body was developing she had been self-conscious about becoming more feminine. She was always a tomboy and having to wear bras and deal with monthly issues was so not tomboyish, she had always wanted to go back to the way she was about six years ago, climbing trees and going to the local skateboard park with her mates, but she couldn’t.
Now that she couldn’t see her reflection so clearly anymore with the build-up of steam, she knew the shower was now at the perfect temperature. Getting into the hot water she could feel how it made her skin tingle, she had always liked her showers extra hot and never known why. As the water flowed over her shoulder blades they started to ache, maybe she slept wrong again last night, they had been aching like this every morning for about two months now and she wondered if a new bed was on the cards.