Renaissance

Another new town, another new start, and another attempt to make actual friends. Yet again, I was being shipped off to another town that I had no idea was like. Well, things couldn't be all bad, an old family friend lived there. At least I had someone around my age to talk to.

The rain slowly ran down the car window. Each little droplet seeming to sparkle. I was a mean girl. I had finally gotten sick of being used, abused, and most of all, heartbroken.

To many idiot boys, to many tears shed over them. My heart had turned to stone after a certain break up that left me changed forever. I finally realized that to be happy in this world, you gotta step on others. Many of the preps called me the Demond. I liked this name and understood why they were calling me that. I barely wore light clothes, had black hair with one big red streak, and if anyone talked to me, I would be as mean as possible. After I went from nice to mean, many guys began to like me. I turned all of them down. My ex, Devon, locked my heart up to good. I was waiting for someone with a key.

Trees sailed by as the car traveled the interstate. I wished I was running barefoot through those trees. A green sign said, Renaissance, PA, 5 miles. I put my feet up on the dashboard of our ruby Subaru Legacy. Soon I'll see what Renaissance even looks like. Mom has been there before but of course I was finishing school. This year is my last year of high school, mom couldn't even wait a year to move.

"You excited Keya?" Mom said over the radio. She turned it down, wanting to start up a conversation with me. I wasn't gonna talk. I was utterly and completely upset with her. She won't hear a word from me. I looked at the radio, wishing she'd turn it back up. "Huh?" I just looked at her. "Come on, talk!" I looked back out my window.
"Fine! Don't talk to me!" Yes, just make me even more mad by screaming at me, go ahead and see what happens.
"No." I whispered.
"Why aren't you excited Bubbas?"
"First of all, don't call me Bubbas! Second of all, I'm not excited," I put air quotes on the word excited for effect, "because I'm completely sick of moving! How many times does this make this? 15?" I crossed my arms. "I just wanna settle down and stop moving, and for you to STOP LOOKING UP GUYS OFF THE INTERNET!" I screamed the last words. I've been telling her this for years and she just ignores me.
Mom sighed. Then she smiled. "I'm sure you'll find friends here, and your away from Devon."

At the sound of his name a knife jabbed into my heart. Devon. My heart ached, I could feel each beat getting slower and weaker. I looked down, I would be away from him. I wouldn't see his face at lunch anymore. A tear slid down my face. Even though he hurt me, I still loved him a lot. No one ever gets over their first love. "True." Mom thought I was over him and hated his guts, but truth was, I loved him still. I missed being in his arms, I missed his warmth, I missed being able to laugh.
"Maybe you'll find another guy! Maybe one that doesn't need a haircut."
"Hey, my weakness is long hair." I puffed. "But passed the shoulders is too much."
"And maybe one that is sweeter." Mom smiled.
"Devon was really sweet."

Mom got serious. I looked over at her. "He didn't even tell you himself that it was over, but told your friend that you thought he liked, to tell you." I opened my mouth but she continued. "Then he began to flirt with her, and then asked her out only a few days later, you think that was sweet?"
"No, but no one is perfect, and he was just being an idiot. It was mostly my fault! I was flipping out on him
for no reason!"
"You had a perfect reason to flip out on him! You suspected him of liking someone else and turns out he did! If I was in your situation I would have flipped out on him and would have kicked him right in the,"

"You're not in my situation! You never will be mother! You are totally different in handling relationship problems than I am! I've seen your relationships all my life! Your relationships are what ruined my life and sent me to the hospital on tempted suicide, MULTIPLE TIMES!" I looked back out the window. Conversation is over, off the subject!
Mom pulled off the interstate at ramp 22. Well one good sign at least, 22 is my lucky number. I looked back at the U-Haul truck slowly following us. My grandfather was driving it, I wish I had ridden with him. He would have made melaugh rather than making me mad. Tom was the best at making me laugh, no matter how upset I was. Even though sometimes he would make fun of me for a laugh, he would always come in and apologize and then make me laugh by tickling me.

The town of Renaissance slowly came into view. It was a medium-sized town. Lots of concrete sculptures littered the tops of the old buildings. This city wasn't, well modernalized. It had an old ancient feel to it, like it was from the 15th or 16th century. The roads were the most modernalized. I was surprised that they were actually paved. Mom rounded a few corners and we went through a grove of trees. The road was straight and the trees were so close I couldn't see the sky. I looked through the trees but only saw even more trees, they seemed to go on forever.

The trees ended and a regular looking city replaced them. There was a McDonalds and a Wendys. A little girl walked by on the sidewalk, walking about 5 dogs. Other than that the sidewalks were empty. I saw a library and took a mental note of were it was. I would need a place to go to when mom was fighting with her new boyfriend. I haven't met the guy but I already know he's gonna be an idiot. A little house/shop stood out to me. A guy about my age stood on the porch leaning against a white pillar that supported the roof of the porch. He had long black hair and dark eyes. He wore a thick leather jacket, even though it was 80 degrees outside. His skin was pale and he had a scar on the side of his face. Mom turned and he was no longer in sight.

A gas station was at the corner of a road that lead to a bunch of houses. I looked over out moms window and saw a church. One lone church that looked like an old time castle. A steeple was on top and gargoyles rounded the top of the building. A church with gargoyles on the top? What kind of religion was that? It was at least a decent one. My grandma, the die-hard religious one, told me that having a cross on the steeple was wrong. I had asked why her church just had a pointy end. She said because the cross was defensive to God because it resembles his death. I don't get that though, because of his death, we were allowed into heaven. As a young child I was smarter than my grandma and mother put together. Grandma told me that her church was the true church. Well everyone thinks that their church is the right one. I don't belong to a religion, I just believe that there is a God and he wants us to be good. I don't go to church but I prey to him every night and thank him for what he has given me.

Rows of houses was in view now. Little kids were playing in the squares of lawns with cardboard boxes and jump ropes. A little boy was building a fort out of many cardboard boxes and the oh-so-wonderful duct tape. I wish I was his age again, when everything was so innocent and mysterious, were creativity and imagination was the only thing we cared about. Once you hit about 13 those qualities start to fade. The boy had black hair and deep eyes, he was like a younger version of the guy I saw at the town store. The boy wore dark clothes and was pale also.

Mom pulled into the house next to the little kid with the fort. Great, the kid was our neighbor. Our new house was two stories and was an awful shade of blue. It was like a bluish purple, yet it was dark. The windows were a bright white. Mom got out of the car and the U-Haul truck parked behind us in the long driveway. I got out of the car and suddenly felt like I was being stared at. I turned to face the little boy building the fort. He was staring at me with a blank yet surprised expression. I smiled at him. He got up and began to walk towards me. My smile faded, did smiling in this town mean, Hey, why don't you come over here and talk to me? I didn't wanna talk to this kid, I was mad and I didn't wanna take it out on him. He stood a few inches from me and studied me. Then he got a smirk on his face and looked into my eyes.
"Big brother has been waiting for you."

I just looked at him. Was this family crazy? Then I thought, they probably talked to mom when she was checking out the house and she probably told them that she had a 17 year old daughter. Any teenage boy would not be able to wait for a teenage girl to move in next door so they can stare out the window as she changes her clothes. This boy was probably 18, just like Devon. "Really now." I smiled at the boy.
"Yup, he said that he has been seeing you in his dreams and that you were gonna help him." The boy smiled. I backed away slowly, but then I stopped when the guy from the town store came walking down the sidewalk. "Are you gonna help big brother?" I gotta admit this kid was cute, but he was totally bonkers.
"Um, sure kid." I said.
The guy walked up to the little kid. "Big brother! We were just talking about you!" The guys eyes got large.

"What did you tell her Bolten?" He looked mad at the kid.
"That you've been dreaming about her and that she's supposed to save you." Bolten smiled. It was like he had no clue that his big brother was mad at him.
The guy sighed. "Go finish building your stupid fort Bolten." He said to the kid. Bolten looked disappointed and began to walk back to his cardboard fort.
I called after Bolten, "Hey, I'll give you some of my cardboard boxes once I unpack them." The kid smiled back at me and nodded. I smiled and my heart lifted a little bit.
"Hey, I'm Damon Vinci." They guy smiled.
"Keyarra Rimes." I smiled back. "You can call me Keya." Damon smiled back at me.