The Friendship Project

The airport wasn’t very busy this morning. It usually never is this early in the morning. I looked down at my Tiffany watch, 6:45AM. A crossed from me Rylee sat with her legs Indian style in the airport bench chair. Her long brown somewhat poorly highlighted hair was a mess covering her face as she had her head in her hands. You could see the thin white wires intertwined with her hair and you knew she was listening to her iPod. Her ripped up jeans and her graphic t-shirt were the exact opposite of what I was wearing. I looked down at my light wash skinny jeans and my plain white t-shirt. I have no personality compared to Rylee. I sighed as a thump of a head hit my shoulder. I turned my head and Junior’s face was on my shoulder asleep. I smiled and turned back facing forward.

Checking my watch again I realized we had another fifteen minutes till we had to start boarding. My mom made a noise at my Dad and it made me look up. He was taking out his iPad to check e-mails.

“Family, remember,” she whispered. I sighed as he gave her a look and started to tap away.

“Mom,” I quietly said. I didn’t want to wake Junior. She looked up at me. “Can I go get a Starbucks?”

“Sure, why don’t you take Rylee with you? She might want something,” she smiled encouragingly. That’s all my family has been doing with her. Encouraging.

I sighed again, I knew Rylee didn’t like me too much. So, this could go either way.

Pulling together all of my courage, I got up slowly so I wouldn’t wake Junior. I picked up my purse from the seat next to mine and pulled the strap over my head so it rested on my shoulder. The bag hung next to my hip.

“Excuse me, Rylee?” I tapped her shoulder.

She jumped and looked up at me. Her headphones fell out of her ears and you could hear the muffled music coming out of them.

“Yeah?” She grumbled blinking, I think I just woke her up.

“Do you want to go to Starbucks with me?” I pointed over my shoulder to the coffee shop a couple hundred feet away. “My treat.”

Rylee looked at me blinking a few more times. She stared behind me looking at the coffee shop. She glared at it like she was angry for it being so far away. “Yeah…I’ll go,” she grumbled out.

Rylee got up puling her iPod out of her back pocket. I sucked in air, maybe she would actually turn it off. I sighed when I saw her just turn it down and place one bud into her ear.

She has barely taken them out of her ears ever since she arrived. I was hoping that maybe she’d open up just a little bit more. After what happened at school yesterday with Ben Kane I haven’t gotten anymore out of her. Even when I went to her room after dinner and offered her some cookies my mom and Junior made.

We began to walk to Starbucks slowly. Once we were out of earshot from my, I mean, our parents, wait…

“So Rylee…I guess we are kind of like…sisters now,” I smiled biting my lower lip. At least that’s what my parents told me last night in my room. They signed the adoption papers an hour after dinner with her consent. And that’s why my dad was wearing a suit yesterday instead of scrubs. He was negotiating with lawyers all day, and supposedly his sister.

“Yeah, I guess.” She shrugged putting her hands in her pockets.

“I’ve always wanted a sister.” I said quietly.

“Me too,” she replied.

The awkwardness grew as we walked into the coffee shop.

“I like your outfit,” I said making conversation.

“Really?” Rylee asked taken aback.

“Y-yeah, you have a certain style,” I smiled. Her eyes grew a little bit and a small smile appeared at her lips.

“Thank you,” she said quietly.

We ordered our coffee and it was back to silence until we started walking back.

“Hey, Charlotte,” Rylee said as we almost reached our chairs again.

“Yes?” I said a little confused. She has never said my name before, it made me stop dead in tracks. I was almost terrified.

“Thanks for the coffee,” she said gesturing to her venti cup in her hand. Before I could say ‘you’re welcome’ she placed the other ear bud in her ear and rushed back to her chair crossing her legs.



“Charlotte! Rylee! Wake up! Lunchtime!” Junior’s voice poked through the seats in front of me. I felt his hand hit my leg numerous times.

I opened my eyes to see Junior hitting Rylee’s leg. He pulled both of our headphones out of our ears.

“What’s going on?” Rylee woke up.

“Lunchtime,” Junior’s face grinned at us from in between the seats.

“Oh…cool,” Rylee shrugged snatching her headphones from her lap and putting them in her ears. She opened the window shade and stared out of the window.

Junior looked at me and rolled his eyes. I knew what he was thinking, ‘over dramatic.’ I glared at him and he turned back around. I don’t think he knows she is actually our sister yet.

“What are you listening to?” I asked hoping she would hear me.

“Paramore.” She quickly replied. So her music isn’t that loud.

“That’s cool,” I commented as the flight attendant now came to our row.

“What would you like to drink with your meals?” The flight attendant asked with a very fake smile.

“Diet Coke,” Rylee blurted out.

“Regular Coke for me,” I said politely. She handed us our lunches and rinks moving on to the next row. Even in first class the food isn’t the best.

I could tell Rylee wasn’t used to all of this. I think this could even be her first time on a plane. Either way it isn’t like I would know. She never talks.

Plus…we’re complete opposites.

But I like challenges.

“What is this meat?” Rylee said confused poking at the meat that came in the sandwich.

I stared at it for a couple seconds and I honestly didn’t know either. “Ham?”

“I don’t know…it smells like turkey.” She said tearing off a piece smelling it.

“You know what turkey smells like?” I joked.

“Well…yeah there is something about it,” she said with a slight attitude.

I looked nervous…I guess that wasn’t the best thing to say. “I guess it does have a certain scent.”

Rylee huffed and shrugged squeezing mayonnaise on the sandwich. I followed suit with mine but instead of mayo, mustard.

“Good afternoon Delta travelers. We are estimated to arrive at Cape Air Airport in one hour and 37 minutes. The temperature is a perfect 78 degrees F and partly cloudy. Our exact arrival time will be 5:07PM. Thank you for flying Delta.”

“5:07? Oh wait…there’s the time change,” Rylee said more to herself then me.

“Yeah, it’s three hours ahead there,” I said quietly.

“Okay.” She said taking a bite of her sandwich.

“Have you ever flown before?” I asked my curiosity getting the best of me.

“Once, when I was seven.” Rylee said, I could see her shivering off memories. I took that as a hint to not mention it.



“Rylee, you’ll have to share Charlotte’s room. We would give you the guest room but your grandparents visit often so that would get confusing.” My dad said as we drove to our beach house. Rylee look taken aback at the word grandparents.

“But there’s only one bed, Dad.” I said confused. I’m sure Rylee wasn’t going to be okay with that, and judging by her raising her eyebrows right now…I was right. Especially I think that thought took away from her previous one about grandparents.

“Not anymore, I bought another double bed and asked the cleaning staff to set it up.” He smiled into the rearview mirror.

Relief spread a crossed Rylee’s face as we pulled into the driveway. A smile spread across my face. This is my favorite place in the entire world. The ocean and the beach are refreshing from the endless amount of trees and forests in Oregon.

Once we got into the house I ran up the stairs with my bag to my room towards the back of the house. I looked behind me and Rylee was right in tow. She followed me down the hallway and to the right to my our room. It was the second biggest bedroom in the house. My parent’s room was almost double the size.

It seemed a little smaller with the extra bed but everything was exactly how I left it: my bed facing the ocean, the television in the corner on top of the dresser, and my desk in front of the window. Rylee’s bed was a few feet from mine also facing the ocean. The windows almost covered the entire wall facing the ocean, along with the French doors leading to the large balcony with stairs leading to the downstairs and the beach.

I could tell this all overwhelmed Rylee a little bit, but she would get used to it. “That bed is yours.” I said pointing to the bed with the blue comforter on the other side of mine. She placed her bag between the wall and her bed. I placed mine on my yellow comforter. “You can unpack into the closet and dresser. You can have three drawers and I’ll have three drawers. I’ll take the left side of the closet because that’s where some of my clothes are already that I left here last year. I never fill up the whole thing.” I said sounding a little like Junior rambling all of that out. I ran over to the balcony doors letting the summer ocean breeze hit my face.

“Thanks Charlie.” Rylee said standing next to me taking it all in kind of.

“Charlie?” I asked raising my eyebrows looking at her, no one has ever called me that.

“Yeah, Charlotte is too much to say,” she smiled smally.

“Well, you’re welcome Rylee.” I said grinning from ear to ear.