The Storm of Tomorrow

Chapter 1

Have you ever felt that your life was so predictable, that you could know exactly what would happen from the next five minutes to the next two years. Well, that's me, that's my life. Everything is always the same, nothing ever changes for little old Lela Cortez. I never believed my life could ever change, It would always be the same predictable crap. At least that's what I thought.

I was on my home from another day at the torcher chamber called school, and the public transit was down so I had to walk three and a half miles from my preppy, rich academy. Thank god for academic scholarships. Finally, I stepped into the lobby of my run-down apartment building, which I'm sure used to be an old crack house. I went to the mail slots to see if we had anything interesting come in, but as per usual, just boring white envelopes that say 'RENT DUE' in big red letters across the front.

"Not again" I mumbled, fully aware that this was, most likely, going to happen. My mom already takes on two full-time jobs and if we can't make rent this month we'll lose the apartment.

Maybe I should take some extra shifts at the diner this weekend. I thought when walking up seven flights of stairs because our building's only elevator has been 'out of order' for three months now.

I took my phone out to text Sammy, my boss, that I needed to take some extra shifts this weekend. As I walked through the stairwell door turning left toward my small, barely two-bedroom apartment, I felt a small buzz in my bookbag's side pocket. Picking up my phone, I saw: Sure kid, I'll have you work the night shift with Jason on Saturday, plus your normal shift on Sunday. Jason was my best friend, my only friend to be exact. When you work 2 part-time jobs while trying to juggle school into the mix, it's challenging to make friends.

Feeling slightly better knowing I'll be able to help my mom with the bills, I open the door to my apartment with a slight smile on my face. That smile immediately faded.

I saw Darick, my step-father, sitting on the couch with some of his friends drinking beer while playing poker. He was yelling at the TV about how the touchdown didn't count because there was a flag on the play or something like that. He's always at home. He doesn't have a job or anywhere to go during the day, so he invites his friends over to gamble on the latest sports game.

Just then I saw my mom come out from her bedroom with her blue cashier uniform that has red and white piping down the side of the short sleeves, running late to her second job of the day. Mom usually leaves about five minutes before I get home from school, but when Darick is drunk and has his friends over, she doesn't like to leave Jesse, my half-brother, alone with him. So, she usually waits for me to get home when that happens, but I guess that she was just running late, to begin with.

I used to live in the suburbs, but shortly after I was born, my mother and I needed to move the city when she lost the house after falling behind on the payments. About a year or two after moving my mother met my now step-father, who by the way hates my guts because I'm not his child. Even though he treats my younger half-brother, Jesse, like he's Zeus almighty himself. Don't get me wrong, I love my baby brother, I just wish I at least got to know my real father and not be stuck with this hippo of a man. The only memories left of him are the broken, slightly discolored, bronze wristwatch and the ruin shaped, reddish birthmark, that's placed right above it on my outer left forearm. Mom said he had the exact same one.

She doesn't like to talk about him much. She told me is that he died shortly after I was born, but still won't tell me how. All I know is that this watch was extremely valuable to him and you could never see him without it. I tried selling it thinking it would be worth something, but I guess it was just emotional value.

I said a quick goodbye to mom, then went to my closet of a room and changed out of my school uniform, which was composed of a red plaid skirt and matching tie, a white polo shirt, and little black dress shoes with knee-high white socks. I changed into some comfortable track pants, a simple tee that says 'Falcons', our school mascot, across the chest, and your average pair of sneakers. I went into my mom's room and grabbed a small messenger bag full of Jesse's toys and other essential on-the-go stuff. I figured that it would be a good idea to get him away from Darick. I then woke up Jesse from his nap. And we left the apartment heading toward the park.