Chapter 2: New home
He woke up from a deep slumber. He pulls himself up and rubs his eyes as he aimlessly reached the frequent noise and vibrations from the alarm clock. He looks back finding the book resting at the bed, a book of the poet William Blake.
His thoughts were floating when he was reading this last night that he didn't have the time to put this on the table. When he feels like standing up, he pulled the baggage underneath the bed putting his book. He heard three knocks at the wooden door when he was grabbing his towel.
"Wake up now buddy! Time to move out, Maryvale is a far place y' know, you don't want to miss our flight." His stepbrother Tim shouted.
"Alright, I already finished packing my things, I'm going down for a few minutes," Van said, rushing over his movements.
Hearing the footsteps going down, he immediately goes to the shower. Finished on showering, he covered himself on a towel – proceeding to pick his clothes on his closet then he noticed a book, no more like a diary covered by his clothes, he remembers now, it's the diary that he found in his mother's closet when he was six years old. She didn't even notice that he found it and he continued clinging on it even after they died. The odd thing is that the journal is blank. He's glad that he accidentally found it, it would be suck if he forgets it. It’s the only memento he has from his late mother. Maybe, just maybe, he can find the answer he’s looking for if he holds onto this.
His name is Van Koelson, eleven years ago his parents died in a car accident, he's the only one who survives that day. His stepfather, Mick, adopted him as his son, though, he doesn’t very much see him as such.
He was about to put it on his baggage but he notices a folded picture fell from it and when he unfolded it, tears began to form from the bitter emotion as he saw the only photo they have as a family, unfortunately, the picture is blurred caused by being drowned in the water.
The weird thing about his first family is that they don't have any family pictures other than this one he possesses. Also, he couldn't remember their faces, that's right, he does not remember any of his parents' faces. Mick said it was probably because of the trauma, that even his conscious memory forced it to go down on unconscious to create a defense mechanism, but he did not believe in that crap, he believed that there is something more, something that is remained a secret to him. Nonetheless, the time passed by him moved on and forgot the nightmare when he was a child.
After a few minutes, he came down wearing a black jacket, black pants, and sneakers. There, Van saw his stepdad Mick eating bacon and Tim doing dishwashing.
"You already ate without me?" questioned Van.
"I told you to wake up early.”
"What time is it?" asked Van.
"You have a damn alarm clock and you didn't bother to look?" Tim scoffed.
"I guess laziness neutralizes my attentiveness." He hisses.
After Van finished dishwashing, Tim greeted him with a smile. Only god and Van know what leverage Tim's holding to make him uncomfortable.
He came closer to Van, whispering.
"Mind if I grab some of your collections?" He asked, grinning.
"Yes, be my guess; though I would be very much thankful if you're not gonna break one of my discs."
He only replies with a smirk written on his face. Guess he has no choice but to let him borrow some of his games, after all, he saved him last two nights when he snuck out and got home drunk without his father's consent to drink alcohol. Mick was very strict when it comes to this matter, he does not want them hanging out in the evening where danger is everywhere, and even though he respects his opinion but he does not want to be left behind, he wants to try out so many things before they move out because he does not know what kind of hell hole awaits there.
Mick's job was a college professor, unlike to his wife Melissa she's a doctor- part of Doctor Without Borders, Van barely knew her as she was busy traveling outside the state. The only time he saw her is either when there’s an occasion or someone is sick. Other than that, Melissa rarely came to their birthday, he couldn’t understand back then why she’s like this; not until he saw firsthand how she saves a man from getting shot. Tim on the other rather feels distant to her, he acknowledges her mom’s dedication to serving the people but also it is the reason why he is so sad, unlike Van who had no strong bond to her.
***
The sunrise is set at the horizon and glistering the clouds with different kinds of oranges across the surface. The branches of trees are swaying over the passing breeze across the river that is beneath the bridge and a specific car quickly turns shaking the passengers from asleep as if though the driver did it on purpose. Inside of it, Van shivered violently and quickly gets up only to bumped off the ceiling of the car; he grunted and quickly glanced at his stepdad.
"You did that on purpose, didn't ya?" Van said, waking up with a loud yawn.
Mick looks on the rearview mirror.
"Why would I?" Mick grinned.
"Dad, if you want to blow off the steam, do it to Van, it's not like I'm the one who has a bad record at his previous school," Tim said as he pulls the blanket covering his naked body.
"Thank you for not supporting me," Van said, rubbing his messy dark hair.
"You're welcome." Tim tiredly said.
"Is it necessary to move out?" Van asked.
"We already talk about this. You have a bad reputation at that school and those kids won't stop bothering you if you chose to stay. Trust me, I know what type they are and probably it's for the best for you and your aunt Dally of course." Explained Mick.
"Yep, she might enjoy someone accompanying her. I voted Van for assisting Aunt Dally."
Aunt Dally is his stepmother's younger sister; she owns the apartment that they're going to live. Other than that, she's also a biology teacher at the same university they are attending.
"Hey, I don't do errands." Van professed.
"Come on, it would be fun, I promise." Tim insisted.
Van brushes of his curly hair from irritating his eyes. He grabs a blanket covering him when suddenly the blanket that Tim uses fell. Van altered his gaze away from Tim’s naked body. His face is long and thoughtful, he’s trying to censor something he shouldn’t have seen.
"Could you not get any weirder?" Van said snapping back to reality.
"What?"
"Son, could you please wear something decent? For god sake, are you not embarrassed?" Mick ordered his son.
"Why are you rattling at? We’re on our rig, wait, did someone saw me?" Tim nervously asked as if though he picked up the atmosphere.
"Ugh, No." Van replied but Mick added, "A sheriff and his daughter."
"What? How?!"
"Probably because of the blanket slid off your body." Van promptly replied.
For a moment there, Tim fell in silence.
"Now, wear something, we're near to the Maryvale."
"Did they praise my divine body?" Tim reproachfully looked up to the sky.
"Gross. Your body is unearthly." Van retorts.
"I know you're just jealous of my six packs abs, so, I'll forget you said that." Tim proudly said as he shows off and strengthened his abdomen.
"Yeah, 'don't care." Van sheepishly said. "Show off."
"Boys." Mick intercepted to the two young men.
"Why again mom didn't come last night?" Tim asked.
"Because she's a Doctor Tim, not just any kind of doctor."
"Part Doctor without borders, right," Tim said with a sullen expression.
"I know that you kinda miss her, but you know what's up with her job, right?"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah."
A few minutes have passed, Tim already wore something. Red long sleeves with a white t-shirt under it, black pants, and green shoes.
"Since the two of you are finally moving out, I need you to promise to me. Always watch your back at each other, at all times." Mick said.
"Dad, you're scaring us," Tim said as slump his body slump to the comfortable seat.
"Yeah, you're scaring us, this is out of ordinary. You're making the daddy's face." Van added.
"Hey, I'm serious here. This is the first time you're gonna cook for yourselves and god knows how terrible you guys." Mick smirked.
"We're fine with take-outs, y' know," Van said.
"Yeah, we're fine with take-outs. I and my board mates always do a takeout." Tim said, reassuring Mick.
"Here's a trivia, eighty-four point four million adults in the United States eat junk foods every day which is thirty-six percent equivalent to the entire population..."
"Not this again." Both said in-sync.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone