Life Line (a Neptune Royal Series novel) Book #1

Chapter 2: Starting New

Chapter 2.

Starting New

"Isabella, time to wake for school or you will be late!" Those were the words that awoke me on October 11th. My alarm was screaming at me along with my mother pounding on my bedroom door. Two of the harshest sounds to wake up to after a restless night. The night before was crazy in a bit of a good way, but I did not want to get up to go to high school. I dreaded the lectures that I would soon hear and the homework that I would return home with. It was so cold outside that it felt like the wind was blowing right through me with each strong gust that was unleashed. To prepare for the cold morning breeze outside, I took a hot shower because the buses were always cold when you got on them. They never did have any source of heat in the fall or winter time. It was best to be prepared for the long, freezing ride towards the school. But there was one day that I hated more than school itself: my birthday on December 18th, but that is another story for a different time.

I did not even eat breakfast because my nerves began to kick in for no apparent reason. I hated mornings as much as the next teenager, but I never got nervous to tackle the day. This was a new feeling for me. I just dried my long, brown hair, got dressed in black leggings, my lancer leader T-shirt from school, and knee-high black boots. I walked down the stairs to the main floor of the house and dashed out the door to the bus stop that was near the elementary school. The bitter wind howled through the evergreen trees that lined the cement paths in the park. The field was yellow and barren as the fall temperatures and lack of moisture moved in. The chains of the swings rattled while the tetherball chains slammed on the metal poles, clanking and echoing within the empty space around them. It was as if this neighborhood was a ghost town for how silent it was at 6:30 in the morning. The gentle grinding of concrete beneath my boots whispered to my ears. Normally, there would be adults in cars, heading to their jobs, or heavier foot traffic around the park, but there was nothing.

Arriving at the bus stop, there were a few other students waiting eagerly for the bus to arrive. I stood there, holding my phone in one hand, and a warm tumbler filled with coffee in the other. The wind was picking up strength the longer that we waited. I cowered beneath my hood trying to stay warm and keep my hair from getting tangled in the harsh breeze which was hard to do with how long it was getting with each passing month.

As always, the bus driver was ten minutes late. His excuses were always the same every day that he drove us to school. He scared me the first time that I saw him, but that fear soon washed away with each lame excuse he revealed to us. I was late coming to work. The bus would not start. Traffic was terrible. It bugged me. I hated people that were late. I liked being on time for everything. It is just how I was raised. Being early or on-time would show professionalism.

It was not a good morning to start off with. Mornings which followed stressful nights were never good. Every morning, I was always the only one on the bus sitting alone which I did not mind at all. I enjoyed the morning solitude before the crowded halls of the school. Every other seat on the bus was filled with chatty friends, siblings arguing over who was dressed the best, or who should sit by the window. When the bus driver pulled up to the parking lot of school, everyone was eager to get out the door and meet the rest of their friends inside the warmth of the school. While I was walking on the path to the front doors, I was humming, "Today is going to be a good day, Izzy. Today is going to be just fine. Relax." I had been going through a great deal of stress and fear, though what from, I have no idea. Those were never a great mix of emotions. I had to keep myself calm in order to keep it contained.

I kept telling myself that while walking to the doors because yesterday was a very rough day for me, and needless to say that I had a temper tantrum in the hallway with some freshmen that were not acting their age yet. It was not a good way to start off a very busy school day.