Falling Away With You

I stood in front of the large old house. It looked as if it could collapse at any minute, under the slightest pressure. It was painted an ugly tan color, which made it look dirty. The windows looked foggy, one of them even had a crack in it, and the front door looked like it would fall off of its hinges. I wouldn't be surprised if it were the worst house in South Carolina. Overall, it was an unappealing place. And this was where we were going to live.

“Kellin, take your things up to your room and start unpacking please.”

I wasn't looking at her, but I could still tell that she was annoyed, just by the tone of her voice. If anyone should be annoyed, it should be me. Its not like I wanted to move here, away from my friends and everything that was familiar to me.

“Yes, mother,” I said, rolling my eyes a little.

She caught me, and stopped dead in her tracks, giving me that stern look she always gave me when she was serious.

“Listen, I know you're not happy about this Kell, but moping around and complaining isn't going to make things better.”

She had a point, but I didn't really care. I just wanted to go home. My real home.

“Whatever,” I replied, picking up a box full of my belongings and heading inside.

My room was on the second floor, facing out over the front lawn. There was one very large window, which I would be covering with blinds. I like to sleep, and the sun always makes that difficult. The view wasn't all that amazing anyway. All I could see was the dried up looking grass, our rusty old mailbox, and the winding path that lead from the front door and all the way out to the main road. My walls were a pale gray, and the wood kind of smelled musty. This room also made me feel uneasy, like something was wrong with it, but I couldn't figure out what it was.

I put the box I had been carrying down on my computer desk. All the main furniture like beds, tables, chairs, bookshelves, and stuff had been brought here a few days ago, so it was already in place for when we finally moved in. I wasn't currently in the mood for unpacking. I just wanted to be alone in my room, away from everyone.

There was a slight chill in here. I could feel it creeping up my arms and down my neck, making me shiver. This room really creeps me out, but I have to deal with it now. I did choose this room after all. But that was before I actually stayed here for more than five minutes.

Laying back on my bed, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. Getting used to this place was going to take some time. Time that I didn't have the patience for.

“Kellin!”

My mother's voice could be heard all the way from the first floor. Maybe if I ignored her, she'd leave me alone.

“Kellin! Come downstairs for a minute!”

Or maybe not. I sighed and forced my body up and off of the bed, going down to see what she wanted.

“What is it mother?” I asked, a little annoyed.
“Could you please help your sister set up her room? I don't want her breaking anything or making a mess, and I'm kind of busy right now.”

“She's seven, can't she do it on her own?” I complained.
“No, now please go help her.”

I rolled my eyes, and my mother started to get annoyed as well.

“Kellin, I know you're upset, but I need you to help me a little. I can't do everything on my own, so stop acting like a little kid a and start acting like the mature young man you're supposed to be.”

This was the problem with her. She always expects so much of me, like I'm an adult already. Its been that way since dad died a few years ago, back when I was thirteen and Kailey was only three.

“That's not my job, it was dad's. I know he's not here anymore, and you need someone to help you out, but you can't just expect all of these things from me like I'm an adult. I'm only seventeen, and I'm trying as hard as I can to help you and deal with my own problems as well. I'm eventually going to grow up and have my own life mom. You can't rely on me forever.”

She seemed stunned by my little outburst, but I needed to say that. She needed to know just how much she was forcing on me. She still didn't say anything, just stood there with her mouth slightly open. And I could have sworn she looked like she was going to cry. Her bottom lip trembled slightly, and her eyes looked watery.

“J-just go, Kellin. Get out of here.”

I sighed again, rubbing at my face in a frustrated manner as I exited the room. Great job Kellin. You just made your mother cry. I really am a huge asshole.

I went back upstairs and ducked my head into kailey's room. She was taking her dolls out of a suitcase, and rearranging them on a shelf. I watched for a minute as she neatly placed them next to each other, then moved them around a few times until she was happy with the way they looked.

I knocked on the door, even though it was open, and she spun around.

“Hey, Kailey. What are you doing?”
“Nothing, just putting my dolls away. What are you doing here?”
“Mom sent me to help you. Why, do you not want me here?”
“No, I was just asking. You never want to come to my room.”

“Its just a little too pink for me.'

She giggled, and continued placing her dolls where she wanted them.

“So, what do you need me to do?”

She looked around the room in search of something I could unpack for her.

“You could take out my lamp and stuff. Mom doesn't want me touching it.”

I opened the box she was pointing at, and carefully lifted the lamp out, placing it on the nightstand next to her bed. I checked the boxes for any other breakable items.

“Is that all?”
“I think so. You can go now if you want, I'll call for you if I need more help.”

I moved in the direction of her door. The faster I got out of this bright pink room the better. I stepped on something that was on her floor, most likely a doll, and tripped. Before I knew it, I was reeling backwards, and bumped into the nightstand. Her lamp fell over and hit the floor with a loud crash. There was now broken glass everywhere. Kailey looked more upset that I broke her lamp than she was scared of getting glass stuck in her foot.

“Shit,” I mumbled. “Now mom's going to be even more pissed.”