Snake-Bite Hearts and Bubblegum Smiles
Jane
I stared out the window, Blink 182 pouring in from my headphones. We had been in the car for over 5 hours, and I needed to get out. “Mom, please tell me we’re almost there.” I pulled out one of the ear buds, and crinkled my nose as my hearing adjusted from the loud music.
“Yes dear, I’m actually just looking for the address right now. Tell me if you see 203 Summer Drive.”
I sighed, biting the inside of my cheek. “Mom, we just passed it…”
I didn’t even understand why we were moving in the first place. When my dad died, it completely broke our family. Of course the memories in that house still remained, but couldn’t we have just moved to a different street or something? I was supposed to be finishing senior year with my friends, not with some random people, in this small ass town. After driving in circles for what felt like an hour, we finally pulled up into the driveway of 203 Summer Drive. I had to admit, it was a pretty nice house. It was much bigger than our house in Florida, and it gave off a kind of cozy vibe. It had a small porch out front, and there were two wooden rocking chairs by the front windows that I guess the previous owners had left behind.
“Isn’t it lovely, honey? I just knew I had to buy it, when I saw it on the market!” My mom was so excited about this. Seeing her eyes light up as she continued to gaze on at our new home gave me a little hope. She had barely even cracked a smile for months. She looked like a little kid as she hurriedly unbuckled her seatbelt and skipped out to the back of the car to open the trunk. For her sake, I kept my mouth shut and slowly opened my door.
The fresh air hit me like a wall and I felt like I could finally breathe again. I stretched out my stiffened limbs and cracked my back. I hated long car rides—hated them with a passion. As we unloaded the car my mom kept blabbing on and on about how this place was going to be a great start for us—a “new chapter” as she phrased it. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Easy for her to say, she wasn’t the one starting a new school, in the middle of the year, with only a few months to make friends before graduation. And to top it all off, I was probably the most socially awkward person on the planet. It was a wonder to me I even had friends back home.
I followed her into the house and together, we went exploring. There were three floors. By the front door was a little closet where I guessed we would be storing our winter coats and shoes. Next to the closet was a small, half bathroom and from there, I could see our living room, the kitchen, the den, and the dining area. I could also see what appeared to be a staircase that I guessed led down to the basement, which no doubt was probably one huge flat as well. I smiled softly to myself, as I thought of Betsy, my best friend from back home, and how if she were here, she’d already be planning one of her big blow out parties.
“Why don’t you take some of these boxes, huh?” my mom’s voice broke me away from my thoughts. I looked over to the stack of cardboard and sighed as I lifted the top one and headed for the stairs. Had we packed freaking bricks? The upstairs was just as nice as the first floor. Looking down the fairly wide hallway, I could make out three bedrooms. My mom had told me that we each got our own private bathrooms, which I had to admit, I was pretty stoked about. I guessed the last room was just a guest room—not that we would be having many of those any time soon.
I walked into the first room on the right and decided that it was now mine. The walls were white and bare. There was a big, king-sized bed, a walk-in closet, and not too much else.
A bit empty…but I guess it’s not so bad, I thought as my eyes continued to wander around the room. I walked back downstairs to find my mom hauling in some more of her things from the car, so I decided to do the same. Pushing my bangs out of my eyes, I sighed and walked down the porch steps to the car. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed, next door, a girl who looked about my age, sitting on the porch steps. She was wearing a pair of dark, blue denim shorts and a loose-fitted white v-neck t-shirt. She looked tan and had long, dark wavy hair that fell to her waist.
“Fuck,” I muttered under my breath as I lost my grip on one of my duffel bags. Of course it had to be the one with my hair straightener and blow dryer in it, which clanked distinctly as it hit the pavement. My eyes shot back over to the girl on the porch only to find that she was looking at me. I immediately felt all the blood rushing to my cheeks as they fired up and I quickly ducked behind the car to retrieve my bag. When I stood back up, I turned around and there she was, standing in front of me. Her arms were crossed over her chest and a small smirk adorned her lips.
My hand flew up to my heart as I dropped my bag to the ground again in panic. Shit, that scared me. She was taller than me by a good few inches and I resisted the urge to grumble. Freaking genetics.
“Hey there new neighbor,” She grinned; clearly still amused by the heart attack she had nearly given me. I smiled back, awkwardly shuffling on my feet as she waited for some kind of response.
“Hello.”
Wow great job Jane; you’re a real fucking conversationalist. You should get a fucking medal.
The girl smiled down at me, chuckling softly to herself, and stuck out her hand. “I’m Brooke, nice to meet you. You’re really short, but that’s okay, short’s good. And you are?”
She seemed to be a chatty, outgoing kind of person. I was okay with that; I liked people who talked more. It was less awkward silence for me. She came off as a bit of a teaser though, but I could deal with it.
“I’m Jane, nice to meet you too. And well, you’re tall, but that’s okay. Tall is good.”
She grinned, and looked back to the open trunk, still packed with boxes and suitcases. “Moving during the middle of…wait, how old are you?”
“I’m seventeen and yeah, in the middle of senior year.” I didn’t mean to sound too curt, but I just kind of hoped she wouldn’t press the topic. She seemed to have gotten it, and nodded.
“That takes balls, switching schools with so little time left. I like balls,” she smiled, her eyes looking down on me with what I guessed was some kind of approval. I let out a small snort. Maybe making friends wouldn’t be that hard after all. “You want some help? There’s a ton of shit in here.”
She seemed nice, pretty genuine. Maybe this tiny town had its perks. I accepted her offer and she grabbed another bag and followed me up the driveway and into the house.
“Yes dear, I’m actually just looking for the address right now. Tell me if you see 203 Summer Drive.”
I sighed, biting the inside of my cheek. “Mom, we just passed it…”
I didn’t even understand why we were moving in the first place. When my dad died, it completely broke our family. Of course the memories in that house still remained, but couldn’t we have just moved to a different street or something? I was supposed to be finishing senior year with my friends, not with some random people, in this small ass town. After driving in circles for what felt like an hour, we finally pulled up into the driveway of 203 Summer Drive. I had to admit, it was a pretty nice house. It was much bigger than our house in Florida, and it gave off a kind of cozy vibe. It had a small porch out front, and there were two wooden rocking chairs by the front windows that I guess the previous owners had left behind.
“Isn’t it lovely, honey? I just knew I had to buy it, when I saw it on the market!” My mom was so excited about this. Seeing her eyes light up as she continued to gaze on at our new home gave me a little hope. She had barely even cracked a smile for months. She looked like a little kid as she hurriedly unbuckled her seatbelt and skipped out to the back of the car to open the trunk. For her sake, I kept my mouth shut and slowly opened my door.
The fresh air hit me like a wall and I felt like I could finally breathe again. I stretched out my stiffened limbs and cracked my back. I hated long car rides—hated them with a passion. As we unloaded the car my mom kept blabbing on and on about how this place was going to be a great start for us—a “new chapter” as she phrased it. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes. Easy for her to say, she wasn’t the one starting a new school, in the middle of the year, with only a few months to make friends before graduation. And to top it all off, I was probably the most socially awkward person on the planet. It was a wonder to me I even had friends back home.
I followed her into the house and together, we went exploring. There were three floors. By the front door was a little closet where I guessed we would be storing our winter coats and shoes. Next to the closet was a small, half bathroom and from there, I could see our living room, the kitchen, the den, and the dining area. I could also see what appeared to be a staircase that I guessed led down to the basement, which no doubt was probably one huge flat as well. I smiled softly to myself, as I thought of Betsy, my best friend from back home, and how if she were here, she’d already be planning one of her big blow out parties.
“Why don’t you take some of these boxes, huh?” my mom’s voice broke me away from my thoughts. I looked over to the stack of cardboard and sighed as I lifted the top one and headed for the stairs. Had we packed freaking bricks? The upstairs was just as nice as the first floor. Looking down the fairly wide hallway, I could make out three bedrooms. My mom had told me that we each got our own private bathrooms, which I had to admit, I was pretty stoked about. I guessed the last room was just a guest room—not that we would be having many of those any time soon.
I walked into the first room on the right and decided that it was now mine. The walls were white and bare. There was a big, king-sized bed, a walk-in closet, and not too much else.
A bit empty…but I guess it’s not so bad, I thought as my eyes continued to wander around the room. I walked back downstairs to find my mom hauling in some more of her things from the car, so I decided to do the same. Pushing my bangs out of my eyes, I sighed and walked down the porch steps to the car. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed, next door, a girl who looked about my age, sitting on the porch steps. She was wearing a pair of dark, blue denim shorts and a loose-fitted white v-neck t-shirt. She looked tan and had long, dark wavy hair that fell to her waist.
“Fuck,” I muttered under my breath as I lost my grip on one of my duffel bags. Of course it had to be the one with my hair straightener and blow dryer in it, which clanked distinctly as it hit the pavement. My eyes shot back over to the girl on the porch only to find that she was looking at me. I immediately felt all the blood rushing to my cheeks as they fired up and I quickly ducked behind the car to retrieve my bag. When I stood back up, I turned around and there she was, standing in front of me. Her arms were crossed over her chest and a small smirk adorned her lips.
My hand flew up to my heart as I dropped my bag to the ground again in panic. Shit, that scared me. She was taller than me by a good few inches and I resisted the urge to grumble. Freaking genetics.
“Hey there new neighbor,” She grinned; clearly still amused by the heart attack she had nearly given me. I smiled back, awkwardly shuffling on my feet as she waited for some kind of response.
“Hello.”
Wow great job Jane; you’re a real fucking conversationalist. You should get a fucking medal.
The girl smiled down at me, chuckling softly to herself, and stuck out her hand. “I’m Brooke, nice to meet you. You’re really short, but that’s okay, short’s good. And you are?”
She seemed to be a chatty, outgoing kind of person. I was okay with that; I liked people who talked more. It was less awkward silence for me. She came off as a bit of a teaser though, but I could deal with it.
“I’m Jane, nice to meet you too. And well, you’re tall, but that’s okay. Tall is good.”
She grinned, and looked back to the open trunk, still packed with boxes and suitcases. “Moving during the middle of…wait, how old are you?”
“I’m seventeen and yeah, in the middle of senior year.” I didn’t mean to sound too curt, but I just kind of hoped she wouldn’t press the topic. She seemed to have gotten it, and nodded.
“That takes balls, switching schools with so little time left. I like balls,” she smiled, her eyes looking down on me with what I guessed was some kind of approval. I let out a small snort. Maybe making friends wouldn’t be that hard after all. “You want some help? There’s a ton of shit in here.”
She seemed nice, pretty genuine. Maybe this tiny town had its perks. I accepted her offer and she grabbed another bag and followed me up the driveway and into the house.
