Two and a half hours had passed by the time I’d dragged my suitcase and bags of clothes, shoes, books, and toiletries up the stairs and unpacked. I’m straightening the spines of my books when I hear laughter and talking coming from outside the house. The voices move inside and the front door bangs shut.
I step out of my room to hear a guy say, “I wonder if that girl is still here or if she bolted after seeing us.” He laughs. “The look on her face and what she was wearing... it looked like she was going to church.”
I glance down at my long dress with three-quarter sleeves and my ballet flats. What’s wrong with my outfit? To be fair, I have worn this dress to church on Sundays many times, but still...
“Her name’s Elena. I’m sure she’s in her room,” Lucy says. She looks up the stairs. Her friends follow her gaze until all eyes are on me.
I give them a small wave. I’ve always been socially awkward.
Lucy waves me over. “Come down and have some pizza with us.”
My stomach growls, reminding me I haven’t eaten since breakfast. I go down the stairs and approach her.
“Come on, I’ll show you around,” she says with a bright smile.
I clasp my hands in front of me and nod.
Lucy steps over to her friends, who have taken a seat on the couches. “Everyone, this is Elena,” she says. She points to the three attractive girls. “These are my friends Cindy, Jasmine, and Lia. They all live here too.” Cindy and Lia have blond hair, and Jasmine has black hair. The girls give me a friendly smile.
Two guys are fighting over the remote. Lucy points at one and says, “Jeremy is my boyfriend.” It’s the guy I saw this morning and who made fun of my dress. He snatches the remote and then smiles at me.
“Justin is Cindy’s boyfriend,” Lucy says, gesturing toward the other guy. He salutes me.
I follow Lucy toward the kitchen. The kitchen cabinets are cream, but with plenty of scratches. A broken cupboard door hangs crookedly. It’s clear that no one is taking care of this house. I suppose it’s perfect for people our age.
“Pots, pans, cutlery, and cups are stored in the cupboards and drawers,” Lucy says. “The grocery store is only a short drive away. Write your name on things in the cupboard and stuff like milk so that no one gets confused about who it belongs to.”
I follow Lucy back to the loud voices in the living room. Lucy sits on Jeremy’s lap, and I take a seat on the single chair.
“Where are you from?” Lucy asks. Everyone quietens and all eyes lock on to me.
“I’m from Meadowbank. It’s a small town around a thirty-minute drive from here.” My hometown isn’t anything to be embarrassed about. I need to be independent from my parents, and I thought a beach town would be a great place to move to.
“Oh yeah. It is small. It takes what, five minutes to travel through?” Lia asks sarcastically.
“Something like that,” I answer.
“What brought you to Crown Village?” asks Jasmine as she twirls her long black hair around her finger.
I was lonely and bored. “I landed a job at a restaurant.”
“Which one?” asks Lia.
“Crown Village Seafood Restaurant.”
“Our friend Cameron works there. His parents own it. The food there is so good,” says Justin. Everyone else nods.
“So good, but so expensive,” says Cindy.
There’s a knock on the door. Both guys stand up and hurry to the door. “Pizza’s here!” Justin yells out.
“Where do you guys work?” I ask them.
Cindy’s face contorts. “I don’t work. I’m at college studying economics.”
“I’m studying tourism,” Jasmine adds in.
“Jeremy and I are studying business management,” says Lucy. “Justin, engineering, and Lia, social sciences.”
