Pure Dumb Luck

Chapter 1: Worst Feeling Ever

     It was winter time in New England which meant lots of snow, and really bad drivers. I swear almost four people slid into me on my way home from work, and it's an eight minute drive! I finally pull into my driveway and reluctantly turn my car, and the heat, off. I put on my Russian hat and zip up my coat before getting out of my car and putting my boot covered feet in the snow, which almost reaches my mid calf. Luckily my dad had cleared the driveway of snow the day before so once I walked around the front of my car I could walk normally and not take huge steps like an idiot. I lock my car once I reach the walkway leading to my front door. I walk up the front steps onto my porch and type in the key code for our lock. I open the door and am greeted by our family dog, Marley. He's an all black yorkie-poo with one white patch on his chest. He's a medium sized dog that has gotten quite chubby through the years we got him just before I turned eight so he's around ten now. He's just about the sweetest dog you'll ever meet, if he could kiss you forever he would. I lean down and scratch his head.

  "He boy, how you doing? Good day?" I say like he'll answer. He just licks my hand and rolls over for a belly rub. I chuckle and rub his soft belly. "You're getting big old man." I tell him. He just pants, enjoying the attention I give him. It was then I heard my mother call me into the living room.

  "Jackie, hon, can you come into the living room please?" She says sounding serious. Did I forget to do something?

  "Coming!" I reply and walk down the hallway into our open living room. It's December so our Christmas tree is up and decorated. The lights are turned off though, which confuses me as my mother usually watches TV with the tree lit. Once I look away from the tree I see my parents sitting opposite each other on our sectional. "What's going on?" I ask. My mom just pats the small part of the couch between them. I'm getting nervous now.

  "Hon, your father and I have been talking for a while and there's something we need to tell you." She says, looking apprehensively at me. She looks at my dad and puts a hand on my knee. "Your father and I are getting a divorce." She says. 

  Boom. Everything stops. I see my parents saying something to me but I've gone deaf to the world. My head is spinning. So many thoughts at once. How long have they been talking about this? What will happen to our house? Will I have to choose one of them to live with? Will I have to scramble for an apartment? What about Marley? Where will he go? All of these questions and more swimming in my head all at once and it feels like I'm drowning in them. Desperately trying to come up with answers but none coming to mind. I feel a tear fall down my cheek with more following in its path. I hadn't realized I was crying or that my parents were still trying to comfort me. I only had one thing on my mind in that moment. Youtube. I got up, ignoring my parents calls for me to sit and talk more, went down the stairs into our basement and went into my recording room. I shut the door, the padding on the walls silencing my sobs to the outside world, and walked to my desk. I turned my PC on, followed by the monitor, and opened up my web browser. I went to youtube and found Markiplier's channel. He was one of my favorites. I found Christmas video he did last year with Ethan and Tyler of them trying to make gingerbread houses. It's one of the funniest videos I've ever seen. If anything could get me out of my own head it was this. 

  I watched and slowly started to calm my breathing and stop crying. I laughed when the kept naming impossible like numbers and smashing the table, Ethan smashing his poorly made house to smithereens in the process, and just enjoyed watching them be themselves. I wish that could be me. Making videos for a living, acting as childish as I like and people finding joy in my silliness. The reason I make videos isn't to be some big, hot shot youtuber. It's to be someone's source of happiness. Someone's escape from the world. Having something like that is great and I just want to make people happy. After finally clearing my head I decide to make a video explaining to my subscribers that I won't be posting on my day off tomorrow and why. I turn my camera on and set up my mic. I sync everything up to my other monitor and make sure everything is working properly. I hit record and start my intro.