Falling To Pieces #1 (COMPLETE)

CHAPTER ONE

"Kara, wake up" I heard Katherine whisper.
My eyes fluttered open at the sound of her voice but, I immediately shut it tight again and willed myself not to move. My eyes were super sensitive, it felt as though every joint in my body was on fire and I had the worst headache. The effects of flying for far too many hours, I suppose. Yesterday, Katherine and I had boarded a plane for the very first time. I hated the part when the plane took off for flight, as well as the landings, but other than that, it wasn't too bad. I hadn't expected it to be so tiring though. After we boarded at the Cape Town International Airport, we landed in Johannesburg about two hours later. From there, we had to board another plane that took us to an airport in Qatar. The travel time from Jo-burg to Doha took us about ten hours, and then we boarded a nine-and-a-half hour flight from Doha to JFK Airport in New York and from there, we finally flew down to our last stop: Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood International Airport in Florida, which was where Nikita and her family lived.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Our new home. At least for now.

By the time we landed, I was way too tired to really focus on my surroundings. All I remember was getting off the plane, stepping out into humid conditions and seeing a lot of palm trees. When we entered through the gates, Nikita and two men wearing suits were waiting for us. One of them had even gone through the trouble of holding up one of those signs that had our names on it. Turns out, the two men were our drivers. All of our luggage wouldn't have been able to fit into one of the black Sedans they provided, so that explains why we had the pleasure of having two present. The nicely dressed men and the nice cars should have been indicative of what was to come, but my mind was a bit sluggish, so I failed to take note of all the signs.
Nikita drove with us and tried to make small talk, but I wasn't up for it. She seemed nice enough, but it could all be an act. After all of the things she'd done in the past, and based on what I've heard about her, I couldn't see myself trusting her or warming up. I will say though, that it was really considerate of her to fly down to Cape Town about a month and a half ago to help us with our arrangements. Whether it involved getting our passports, making sure we took vaccines, or putting the house and cars up for sale, she helped us get most things in order and insisted on paying for our plane tickets. Though, we drew the line when she insisted on flying first class.

"Kara if you don't get up right. now!" Katherine pinched my arm to get me to open my eyes.
"I'm up!" I groaned and sat up straighter in my seat. I put on my aviators without opening my eyes, so I could spare my retinas the torture of sunlight overload. "You can stop pinching me now" I muttered groggily.
"Kara!" She slapped my arm
"Oh my God, What?!"
"Look!" She said, in total shock.
I opened my eyes slowly and had to blink a couple times before I could take in my surroundings. The first thing I saw was Katherine's wide eyed look. She looked absolutely flabbergasted and I would have asked her what was wrong, but then I saw it. My gaze shifted over her shoulder and through the tinted window, to an unbelievably beautiful sight. In most residential neighbourhoods, you'd find houses across the road from each other. In this neighbourhood there were no houses, apparently. The term 'house' was way too dinky to be applied here. The 'house' I was currently staring at, was the biggest one I've ever seen in real life. The type of thing I've only ever seen in movies; it was a stark white, one story mansion that stood out against all the greenery that surrounded it.
"Where are we?" I whispered, sounding amazed, even to my own ears "That's not where Nikita lives, is it?"
The only reply I got from Katherine was a slow head shake. Her eyes were still too wide, but she wasn't looking at me anymore. Her eyes were focused on something over my shoulder, so I followed her gaze and turned around just when one of our drivers stepped in front of my door to open it. The sudden brightness of daylight was blinding for a second. Even though I was wearing sunglasses, I had to blink a few times for my eyes to adjust. I moved to get out, but then froze at the sight before me. Okay, so this was the biggest house I've ever seen in real life. Something about the massive double story I was currently looking at just screamed "Mediterranean mansion" with it's high arched windows and doorways. It was painted pale peach and had darker peach trimmings and despite the property being fully gated, it still gave off a clear view of the lush, manicured gardens and the circular water fountain found in the front yard. It was absolutely spectacular and it immediately made me feel intimidated, overwhelmed and completely out of place. My feelings only intensified when a group of people came rushing out of the 'house'. The first person who appeared was a tall, dark haired man who looked to be in his late 40's. Nikita immediately walked up to him and snuggled into his side. It was pretty obvious that he was the guy that she ran off with and ended up marrying. They made a nice pair; she was tall, and had the same blue eyes and dark blonde hair as our mother and Katherine, while he complimented her beauty with his towering height, sharp features, gray eyes and dark hair that was starting to gray at the temples.
The next person who exited was a younger guy who looked to be around my age. Right behind him, was an old couple who just looked...well, rich.
"Ma'am?"
I turned to the driver who was still holding the door open for me. Ma'am? Was he talking to me? Was I Ma'am?
"Ma'am, do you need help getting out?" He asked politely
"I-uh, no..." I rushed to get out of the vehicle and turned to give Katherine the best 'What the fuck?' look, I could manage while half my face was still covered by my aviators. She didn't notice. All her attention was focused on the house, and when she saw the group that had gathered, she froze, just as I had a moment ago. I saw her take in the sight with wide eyes and a slacked jaw. It was almost comical, but nothing about this situation was really funny.