1.2

I ate dinner by myself on the eve of my birthday. My dad was still upset that I was moving out, and the fact that it was coming in a few days just made his mood even worse. Blush wouldn’t talk to me, but I was fine with that. I just wish Dad would get ahold of himself. Orchid’s parents weren’t reacting so harshly to her moving out.

 My birthday came, and I suppose I was lucky Dad even showed up or threw me a party. All of the Lace children around my age were there, and a bunch of other kids in my grade from school. Orchid was there too, of course. The two of us shared a birthday, and we’d always partied together.

 Before I was ready for it, really, it was time for me to blow out my candles. I dreaded aging up and then seeing Orchid age up, because she was always so much prettier than me. I also dreaded tomorrow, when I would move out. I guess I would miss my dad, and it hurt even more that he was pretty much disowning me for growing up.

 I suppose I turned out okay. I didn’t really look any different from when I was seventeen. Why did people make such a big deal about turning eighteen? I couldn’t even legally drink yet, but most of the bars in town would serve you anyway.

 Then it was Orchid’s turn.

 Though I cheered as loudly for her as she did for me, the dread in my stomach continued to knot up, worse and worse. She’d always been the pretty one, how could any guys take interest in me when I was standing next to her? I’d never been worried about guys in high school, but now that graduation was just around the corner, and all I wanted to do was garden, I had plenty of time for a boyfriend.

 She turned out just a pretty as I expected her to, and I had to fight with myself about the jealousy I felt. Orchid had never mentioned anything about being prettier than me, and I knew she would never take a guy away from  me, but it was just hard to see.

 The next morning dawned over Starburst Shores. The morning marking the day I would move out and the day of my graduation. Plenty of people in my class were moving out, but their parents were still there for them. Their parents still loved them, and would be attending their graduation.

 I stood in my room and looked around sadly, at all of the things I wouldn’t be allowed to take with me. All of the potted plants I had nurtured, the bed  I had slept in since I was four, my gaming system and TV. At least he was letting me keep Mackster, I think he knew I would take him no matter what. But it was nice that I was allowed to have his tree too.

 I waited outside for Orchid to arrive. I wished that my dad would come out and tell me goodbye, but I knew better than to hope for miracles. It felt strange to stand outside with all of my worldly possessions; a parrot and some gardening books.

I felt relieved when Orchid did finally arrive. She showed up in the car her parents had bought her for graduation. Her parents had paid for a large part of the house we were moving into. Of course, I put in as much money as she did.. But it was hard for two high schoolers to save up enough money for a house. We were just lucky that her parents were willing help, and that her dad made plenty of money as the head surgeon at the hospital.

 Once we had gotten Mackster’s cage crammed into the car, I turned around and looked at my house one last time. My father and stepmother were nowhere to be seen, and I sighed heavily.  I didn’t understand why it had to be this way. Why couldn’t he just support me? He’d abandoned my mother when I was young, and now he was abandoning me too. Finally, I turned my back on my home. There was no point in waiting for him any longer.

“You okay?” Orchid questioned as I slid into the car with a sigh.

“Yeah, I just wish he didn’t have to be like this.”

She turned to look at me for a moment, and smiled a bit. “I’m sure he’ll come around, Moon, you just have to be willing to accept him when he does.” 

“I guess.” Was my only response.

I perked up a bit when we reached the house. It was on the other end of town, where the “poorer” berries lived. It didn’t really bother me, I’d never been one to judge a berry by the amount of money they made. I was just about to run up the stairs and check everything out when Orchid grabbed my arm and pulled down.

“What?” I questioned, feeling a bit confused. She’d already seen the house, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t excited.

“You won’t be disappointed, will you? It’s not exactly what you’re used to.” She looked down at her feet. I’d known her for long enough to know that she was really worried.

 I laughed a bit, “It’s not what you’re used to either, silly. I didn’t expect a mansion for a starter home, I’m sure it’s lovely. Now, lets get in there and check it out!”

 She smiled a little, and I grabbed her arm, pulling her up the stairs and into the front door.

 The sitting room was the first thing I saw, and to me it looked lovely. It wasn’t like the stuffy furniture you had to worry about spilling things on in my house. It had more of a homey feel.

I looked to the left and saw the kitchen and study area. The kitchen was small with out-dated appliances, but I was just happy to have something of my own really.

Next I poked my head through the bedroom door. Orchid and I would have to share a room, but that didn’t bother me. If she had a guy over, I could crash on the couch or something.

 Finally, I took a look at the bathroom. It was the only room in the house that really disappointed me. All of the bathroom fixtures were really cheap,  and I knew they would be breaking a lot.

 But from the outside, the house was so so pretty. All of the plants just took my breath away.

 Orchid managed to show me the absolute best part of the house before we had to get ready for graduation. The garden area. I squealed with delight. No matter what the house looked like, as long as I had a place to do the thing I’d dreamed of since I was a little girl, I would be happy.

“All right girls, smile!” Whisper exclaimed, as she held the camera up to face. We all got into position and smiled like we were told. My parents hadn’t showed up, and Orchid’s parents had already left. Whisper was taking pictures with Lily, Rosee, and Brink when we walked up, and we got roped into taking a few pictures as well.

“I’ll be sure to get you girls a copy!” Whisper called after us as we headed down the stairs to go home. I turned around and waved at her before hopping in the car with Orchid.

 When Orchid and I got home, I got busy on hanging up our awards while she cooked dinner. Orchid had graduated with honors, and beat Rosee by a few points in becoming Valedictorian. I got the “most likely to get married” award, which stunned me. I’d never even had a boyfriend in high school, so why my classmates would vote me for that was beyond me. Orchid also got the “most likely to burn the house down” award, which made sense with her love of cooking. She’d already started working at the coffee-shop in town, and planned on owning it someday.

 We invited Rosee and Lily over for dinner, and we all talked about the future a bit. Rosee had to intern at the local business for a year before she could hired on as regular staff, and Lily would be leaving for a few weeks in a couple of days for her police training. Both of them had plans to move out, but I was shocked to find out they didn’t plan on moving in together. They always did everything together, so I couldn’t help but to wonder how they would cope without one another.

 We finished the night by watching the romantic comedy: “Knocked Up” It starred Sage Rain ( one of the funniest berries in the world ), and Periwinkle Helio. The movie was really good, and by the time it was over we were all exhausted. We would have let Rosee and Lily stay the night, but we didn’t want them to have to sleep on the couch.

 Once we’d all said our goodbyes, I got ready for bed. I was out as soon as my head hit the pillow. I couldn’t wait to get started on my garden, and perhaps find my first boyfriend.