The Girl Who Reads

Chapter 1 - A proposition

I sit at my wooden desk with built in drawers. it's a warm morning, spot sunlight streaking into my room through the glass of my windows. the purple curtains inhabit a warm glow from the sun. I'm facing my laptop, writing yet another story on my favourite writing platform, Write-A-Book. currently, I'm writing a fiction novel about a girl who lives in a tribal village. while wandering in a forest, she comes upon a fox, trapped in a hunters snare. she frees it, yet as she returns to her village, she finds everyone dead. so now she has to go on this quest to figure out who killed her family, while on the way discovering she can shift into different animals and people. but so far, I'm having major writers block, being stuck on where to go in chapter 5.

Looking at my watch sitting on the rustic wooden texture of my desk, I turn my laptop off, pack it onto my denim blue cross-body bag, as well as a few other items. A novel I'm currently reading, a notebook I use to take class notes with, and some pens. then, making my way over to my dresser that's also wooden but white, I pull out a few articles of clothing to wear. the first, a light red plaid sweater, black leggings and navy blue high tops. as always, I tie my neck length hair into a half ponytail then grab my cross-body bag, descend the dark brown wooden steps, heading into the kitchen. as I descend the wooden steps and see his photo still hanging on the wall. i descend the steps quickly so it doesn't linger in my mind for too long.

Mum had the kitchen renovated a while ago. while our kitchen used to be modern and slightly tech-savvy, now she's replaced all of that, instead favouring a rustic, wooden appearance. if i'm being honest, I loved the change straight away. gone is the marble island, replaced instead with a wooden top. gone are the cold, metal chairs that were present at our granite kitchen table. mum stands at the counter, pouring tea into a teal mug from a copper kettle. like mum, I've always loved copper kitchen utensils, their brassiness, shininess, so in character and well-matching with the rest of our rustic kitchen.

Once mum has the contents of her tea in her cup, she turns to face me. in the morning light, her blue eyes shine. her back length hair, the same colour as mine, also shines in the light, though only a bit. she's wearing a light beige sweater, the fabric of the material hiding and hugging part of her hands as she hols the mug. she smiles sweetly as she says to me,

"Good morning Sweetheart," she says to me. I return it, saying good morning as well. I approach the copper fridge, grabbing out of it the jug of white milk. then, grabbing a box of cereal, I combine the two together, giving me a bowl of cereal for breakfast this morning. I grab a spoon from one of the drawers and take it over to the kitchen table, dipping the spoon into the milk once I take a seat. the milk combined with the cereal makes the liquid taste sweeter, sending warm and welcome sensations into my mouth. I sit in the chair comfortably, the warm sunlight coming in through the grass. eventually, I finish my cereal, taking the bowl and spoon to the dishwasher and placing it inside. "oh, by the way, remind me: when is the book competition again?" I reply to her, saying,

"next month."

"Ah, thats right. okay, I'll make sure to make my schedule free for that day so I can drive you and the others there. now, you need to get going. the bus will be here soon," she gives me a warm hug and I leave through the front door, heading to the bench where the bus for my school, Pine Hope High, will arrive to pick me up.

Pulling the book out of my bag, I turn to the page I left on, reading a section where she's currently walking through a forest, trying to find her goal through the snow filled pines. while waiting, I eventually hear the sound of the wheels and look up. granted, I know that buses are yellow but this one is a gross, tacky and gaudy shade of yellow. it hurts my eyes. the bus eventually stops in front of me and I ascend the metal steps once the door opens. the bus is long, big but secure and protective. I make my way to the very back and see Anne Scott, not only a friend but a fellow member of my schools reading club. her red hair, like everyday, is in pigtails. her pale skin and green eyes seem to glow or look more alive in the warm sunlight. her freckles are so evident and visible on her pale skin. today shes wearing a green t-shirt with light blue denim jeans. red canvas shoes are her chosen footwear for the day.