A Little Something Different

I slipped out of bed, the light of the moon breaking through my glass windows, and checked the hall outside of my room for anyone else who might've been awake. When I heard no one, I shut the door again, locking it behind me. I walked to the glass windows that led to my balcony and opened them, being sure not to make a sound. I shut them again and stepped onto the balcony bare foot, clad only in my knee-length white nightgown. I rested my elbows on the railing and stared up to the moon. It was full that night and lit up the sky so each line of the clouds was showing. I looked down again, eyeing the small squirrels that raced to their trees.

I pulled out the tie that had held my pitch black hair and let it all fall passed my shoulders, tickling at my waist. I pushed my bangs up so I could see, forming them into a strange set of spikes. My pale skin glimmered beneath the light, reflecting off of the wooden railing. "Mother," I said aloud. "Watch over me won't you? I know you'll protect me and take care of me. I love you." I always called the moon my mother, she took better care of me better than my real mother did. I winced at the early memories I had with her; the bruises, the scratches, the pain.

I stepped up onto the railing closest to the roof and pulled myself up by the gutter. I pulled myself up again, placing my feet on the edge of the roof, climbing to the top. I sat near the chimney, staring down at my now dirty feet.

This time of day, or night, was my favorite. I felt safe surrounded by the darkness, barely touched by the moon's light. No one was there to bother me or yell at me for some odd reason. I was alone and happy.

I heard something suddenly russle in the bushes below my balcony, making me look down immediately. The leaves and branches stopped moving, nothing was around. I sighed, figuring I was just being paranoid. I closed my eyes, imagining how later today would be like. A new school, new people, would they accept me like the people at my old school didn't? Or would they just be the same. I had learned to live with the latter, and figured if it came out that way then it wouldn't be that big of a deal.

In my last school, Oakland High, no one there understood why I was the way I was. Dark, possibly scary, but very quiet. I kept to myself a lot, never noticing anyone I could get along with. This year would most likely be the same at New Salem, North Dakota.

I heard the russle again, still seeing nothing. I furrowed my eyebrows and decided to crawl down from the roof and get back to sleep before one of them caught me.

Warm beneath and old quilt I fell asleep again, dreaming of nothing.

. . .

"Arisa! Get your ass down here, now!" she yelled from downstairs. My eyelids flashed open, my vision blurry. I stumbled my way to the dresser, pulling out a pair of regular jeans and a black shirt. After I had changed and brushed out my hair, I rushed down stairs, only tripping on my own feet once. "What did I say about you sleeping in?" my mother said while pointing a sizzling spatula at me.

I looked up at the clock, noticing it was an hour ahead. "What are you talking about? We just didn't change the clocks back." I walked up to the clock and, standing on my tip-toes, changed the clock back.

She just shook her head and finished making her breakfast. I ran back upstairs, figuring I could find a better outfit than the one I had just grabbed from the drawers. This time I pulled out a pair of grey-wash skinny-jeans and a nice shirt that had the word "ipod" written across the front. I brushed out my hair again, taking a bit more care, and drew on some thin black liner around my eyes. I dug under my bed until I found a pair of my white converse high tops and slipped those on over the ankles of my jeans. I walked back out of my room to see that my mom had already left. "Looks like I'll be walking," I mumbled before putting on my purple jacket. I walked out of the door, locking it behind me, and began my walk for the school.

Following only the signs on the side of the road, I made my way to the school. Only a few cars passed me, one or two passengers eyeing me incredulously. I kept my focus on the sidewalk in front of me. I hummed to myself the tune of "Tongue Tied" by October Fall until I heard fast footsteps behind me. I turned around to see a boy about my age jogging down the sidewalk the same way I was. He had choppy, dark brown hair, minimally tanned skin, and was pretty built though very lean at the same time. He didn't really seem to be excercising, considering he was dressed in pretty much the same style I was. "Hey," he called when he noticed I was staring. My cheeks turned pink and I whisked my head around again, pretending I hadn't been looking.

He caught up to me, panting as he came to a walk that mimicked the speed of mine. "Hey," he managed to blurt out between gasps. "I've never seen you around here before, are you new?"

I kept to myself and began humming the song once again. "Okay, I'll take that as a yes. My name's Elijah, what's yours?" He outstretched his hand towards me so I could shake it.

I slowly lifted my hand and shook it. "Arisa," I mumbled.

His hair russled as he looked up to the sky, pondering. "Arisa...that's a real pretty name. So, you heading for the school, too?" I only nodded, keeping my eyes on my feet. "Well, maybe I'll see you around, but I have to run before I'm late meeting my friends. See you, Arisa." He gave me a wink and began jogging again.

I sighed and kicked myself internally. What was wrong with me? I shook my head and started to walk faster, fearing I may be late for class.