After dinner, I was all too eager to go to my room and be alone. Up until I had gone away to school, I had shared a room with my two brothers, Taylor and Zac.
But while I was in school my dad had set up a room in the basement for me. It had always been there, but was used mostly for storage. My dad had fixed it up, repainted it and laid down an area rug over the concrete floor. The basement rec room had carpet and the rest of the basement was finished, but this one room had never had flooring so far as I could remember.
Someone had painted the room a nice shade of sage green and put a green and blue striped curtain over the small window along the one wall. There was a long and low wooden dresser that had been painted a dark brown color. Along the opposite wall was a double bed. It looked as though my mother had found the headboard at a yard sale or thrift store and painted it to match the dresser.
The bedspread matched the curtains with blue and green stripes and the sheets underneath were a navy blue. There was a small bookshelf in one corner and a tiny little desk took up a part of the remaining wall. There were two small table lamps with white bases and navy blue shades; one was on the nightstand and the other was on the desk.
When I unpacked my things I made sure to keep everything neat. I knew what a perfectionist my mother was; she wanted us to have clean rooms at all times. The last thing I wanted to do was to make any waves and start a fight. I felt like my parents were waiting for me to make a mistake so they could throw me out.
So I folded all of my clothes and neatly put them all away in the dresser. I pushed my duffle bag under the bed to hide it. I set my laptop up on the desk so I could talk to Olivia and placed my guitar on the stand near the bookshelf.
I sat down on my bed and glanced at my alarm clock on the nightstand. I promised Olivia I would meet her online at eight. It was only shortly after seven. I had to wait a bit.
I glanced around the room, thinking about getting a poster or something to make the room seem like I owned it. Or at least that I belonged there.
I thought about opening the curtains, but because my bedroom was in the basement, my view consisted of a good couple of feet of snow. There wasn’t even light coming in.
I was interrupted by a soft knock at the door.
I looked up to see my brother Taylor standing in the doorway. He folded his arms over his chest. “Hey,” He said with a shrug.
I frowned. He was wearing one of my old shirts. Clearly when I had been gone he’d been raiding my closet.
“So you got your own room, huh? Wow. I wonder what I have to do to get my own room.” Taylor mused.
I could tell he was trying to make a joke, but it simply wasn’t funny. To be honest, it was annoying. I almost wanted to hit him.
“Sorry, that wasn’t funny.” Taylor frowned. “I just came down o see what you were doing, and was wondering if you maybe wanted to hang out or something.” He shrugged.
I glanced toward my alarm clock again.
“We could watch a movie or something? Or maybe mom or dad could drive us to the movie theatre… although I’m pretty sure they would make us bring Zac so…. That might not be the best idea.”
I shook my head. “Sorry, man. Some other time. I promised Olivia I’d meet her online at eight.”
Taylor raised one eyebrow. “That chick you met at school? Is she hot?”
I rolled my eyes.
Taylor was my parents golden child. He had prefect grades, he was popular and on a few sports teams. He had extra curricular activities under his belt. He was a model son. He took piano lessons all his life which automatically made him my mother’s favorite. He was undeniably spoiled. I’d always resented it growing up, but now it seemed to be even worse. Especially when I tried to hide it.
“Yeah, she is.” I said simply.
“And she’s flying here?”
I nodded again. “Her dad lives here, and her mother and step dad live in Arkansas. So she’s going to spend half of summer vacation with her dad so we can see each other.”
Taylor nodded. “And she’s hot right?”
“Yes.” I hissed.
“Then what is she doing with you?” He asked with a grin.
I narrowed my eyes and threw a pillow at him.
Taylor casually stepped aside and my pillow went soaring into the rec room.
“Hey, it was an honest question.” Taylor shrugged. “I mean, does she know about your past?”
“It’s not like I murdered someone’s grandmother, Taylor. I made a few mistakes. Of course you wouldn’t know anything about that, would you? Because you’re perfect. You always have been. Ever since you were a baby, everything you did was just perfect in the eyes of mom and dad.”
Taylor swallowed thickly and glanced around. He knew I was right.
“I just thought you maybe wanted to talk… is all. I haven’t seen you in a couple of months.” He shrugged.
“Right. I’m not sure, but I think Oprah needs to be here for that. Or maybe even Jerry Springer.”
I narrowed my eyes at my brother. I was very close to throwing something a lot more tangible than a pillow. He knew exactly how to push my buttons. He always did.
“Well maybe we can shoot some pool or something. You know, for old time’s sake.” he lifted his shoulders in a cocky shrug.
“I don’t think so…” I mused, “Really I would only kick your ass anyway.” I smirked.
Taylor’s smile fell from his face and in typical Taylor dramatics; he dropped his hands from his hips. “Alright, fine.” he sulked. “Don’t blame a guy for trying.” he turned on his heel and left my bedroom doorway in a huff.
I rolled my eyes.
I sighed and dropped back against my bed, tucking my arms behind my head. I was actually starting to miss being at Pine Crest Academy. At least if I was there, I could talk to Thomas or we could hang out and do something.
It probably seemed strange, but he was the closest thing I had to a true friend. He was a little weird, and we were probably the oddest roommates ever, but he was a friend. And friends were few and far between since I couldn’t engage in any fun or illegal activities.
I stood up and rummaged through my bookshelf. There were some old beat up paperback novels, but nothing remotely interesting. I sighed and wandered out into the rec room. There was a TV there, and two sofas. I stood for a moment and folded my arms over my chest. I examined the room for a few moments. This place didn’t feel like home to me anymore, and that thought scared me a little.
I thought about going for a walk, but the thought of missing Olivia online was unbearable. I missed her more than I had thought I would.
I picked up my pillow and went back into my room, shutting the door. I put my pillow back where it belonged and turned on the laptop I’d gotten at the school.
I wanted to make sure I was plenty warmed up before Olivia came online to chat with me.
I picked up my guitar and plopped down on the edge of my bed. Having been jostled around on the train, it was severely out of tune.
I was retuning it by ear when there was a soft knock at the door. I looked up at the closed door and paused for a minute. “Come in.” I said.
The door opened slowly and my mother appeared. “Hi, honey.” She smiled warmly.
“Hi.” I said.
“What are you doing down here all by yourself?” She asked. “Your brothers and your father are watching a movie upstairs…” She offered. It sounded like the perfect patriarchal family bonding moment. Like something out of a lame sitcom. “I thought maybe you might like to join them.” She offered.
I shook my head. “No, I think I’m okay.” I answered. “I’m supposed to meet Olivia online at eight. I know it’s kind of lame that she’s coming to town tomorrow, but I just wanted to check and make sure everything is going the way we’d planned.” I shrugged.
My mom smiled lightly. It was a knowing smile. “You miss her, huh?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I do.”
Mom smiled. “I can’t wait to meet this girl.”
“She’s amazing.” I told her. “She’s not like any other girl.”
“I can see that.” Mom replied. “Anyway, I won’t bother you for long.” She insisted. “But I made cookies this morning, and I wanted to make sure you got some before your father and siblings eat them all on you.” She extended her arm and placed a plate of cookies on my nightstand. They were chocolate chip and M&Ms.
“Thanks mom.”
She placed a mug that was filled with dark brown liquid and steaming hot. “And some hot cocoa. You know, just in case you wanted something extra.” She shrugged lightly.
“Thanks. You really don’t have to do all that, mom.”
“I know I don’t have to. But I feel kind of bad that you’re down here all by yourself. It’s the dead of winter, and sometimes it gets cold down here. I told your father we needed to make sure you were warm enough…”
“Mom, I’m fine. Quit worrying about me. Honestly.” I said. “I’m fine. If I get cold I have blankets and heavier clothes. I’m fine.”
Mom nodded. “Okay. Well… call if you need anything.”
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