1 One

When we moved into 3415 Maple Street in Silvercrest, Vermont, all eyes were on me. Not because of my well-known parents who were governors of Vermont, no, it was how stunning I looked. Boys were eyeing me from top to bottom, from my wavy, ebony black hair, to my curvy dark skinned legs, I am a nice shade of a light mocha color, I wasn't too dark, only in the summer.

I was starting to regret wearing my high waisted shorts as the neighborhood boys were looking at every curve that I had, my father had to shoo all the prying eyes off of our property. After that ordeal, we continued our unpacking, you might think about why we are living in a small neighborhood. Well, my mother and father might be very successful, but they were never suckers for the high lavish life of mansions, vacation houses, expensive clothes, and anything else you can imagine. We do have a cabin out in the Rockies, and we do have an expensive wardrobe, but we don't have the big houses or the private jets. We are actually your average, normal family in America, well as normal as it gets.

I decided on a nice size room with a bayside window that I could sit at, I was already imagining where I was going to place all of my furniture at and what decorations I wanted in my new room. Thoughts were running wild in my head as the movers were bringing in my furniture, my canopy bed with pull back drapes, my navy blue sofa set with matching armchairs, the wall tv, and other things. The white carpet and the white wall would definitely match with my furniture so there was no need to buy any paint, maybe some more white seeing as the walls were turning yellow.

After getting the canopy bed set up, getting the furniture settled next to the bookshelf that was filled with hundreds of books, and a few other things, the rents and I decided to go out to eat. We settled on a local Italian restaurant for dinner and spent most of the time talking about schools, planning for college visits in the future, and other miscellaneous topics. There were a few times during dinner when people would want pictures with my parents or autographs. It was nice to see that the people of Vermont loving their governors.

Dinner soon ended and we headed back to our new home, we moved away from the city and into this small town to enjoy the peace and quiet. My room was almost done, and tomorrow I am going to get started on the art studio that I'm setting up in the spare bedroom that is downstairs. I got dressed in black women's cut shorts and a loose black t-shirt, I snuggled underneath my cobalt blue sheets with duvet covers and white pillows. I turned off my lamp and went to sleep.

The next morning, I stayed in my PJs, grabbed a granola bar and finished up the last of my room, after that project was done, I began placing all of my art supplies into my new studio downstairs. I was so excited to finally have a room just for my supplies so I can now have a bedroom that wasn't also half a studio. While I was setting up the last easel, I heard a knock on the door and told whoever it was that they can come in, it was none other than Mom.

" Wow Cela, this studio setup is looking amazing already. Your Father and I are going grocery shopping now that the kitchen is set up, do you need anything while we are at the store?," Mom was gawking at one of my in-progress paintings that needed finishing touches.

" Could you get some seaweed wraps and rice? I'm thinking about making that onigiri we were talking about trying out when we were at dinner the last night.," Mom nodded and then left the room after telling me that they'll be back in an hour. I continued setting up the digital drawing studio with my drawing tablet that I got a few months back when summer started. Soon after, the studio was finished and I was exhausted, I got some water and looked around the house.

The living room, dining room, kitchen and most of the downstairs was set up, my room and Mom and Dad's room was done. The only rooms that were left are the guest room, the back patio, and the upstairs bathroom. I'm just glad that we are getting this all done before I start school next week, I'm supposed to get my schedule sometime this week. Feeling bored from gawking at the Victorian style, four bedrooms, three-story home, that also happened to be a light blue, I went to the studio.

Seeing as the folks would be back in the next half hour or so, I decided to finish up the last touches of the painting I was working on for a few months now. The painting is based off a photo of the Black Forest in winter in Germany. My family took a trip to Germany a couple years ago during the winter, that winter was when I got my first camera, the photo is actually hanging up in the living room. Ever since that vacation, I fell in love with photography and stuck with it, and since then, I improved and I plan to keep improving.

I needed a more evergreen like the forest as the Black Forest reminded me of the Colorado wilderness during the winter time, they both looked so similar. Its something that I love about the natural world, I've always admired the great outdoors. When I was younger, there was never a moment when I was inside, only when it was below freezing or it was too hot, or the rain was downpouring followed by thunder. Other than that, I spent every waking moment outside in the forest or on my bike, exploring the neighborhoods of the small town I used to live in when I was five. We moved into the big city when I was nine, it was like I lost an entire world that was once mine, I loved that world.

The painting was finished, I changed into some baggy, blue jeans, a dark red shirt and got on some old tennis shoes, I grabbed a sweatshirt just in case and walked out the door. The forest wasn't far from where I live, I went on a walk to take in the natural surroundings. Again, there were boys who were gawking at me, obviously not looking at my face but at my slightly big chest, I ignored the hungry eyes. The entrance to the forest was getting into sight, as I began a light jog to the entrance, before realizing what I was doing, I went into a full dead sprint to the forest.

The smell of evergreen, pine, oak, and birch was engulfing my nose, this was the smell that I was longing to smell again. No longer would I have to wait until the winter time to go to the Rockies to get that natural smell in the Evergreen forest that held the family cabin. A common ground squirrel scurried past my feet into a small burrow that dug underneath a tree. A hawk flew overhead and went on into the heart of the forest, something that I would discover soon enough, but not today. I walked into the forest until I saw a giant oak tree with branches that were sturdy enough to fit five people on the branches.

I began my climb into the tall tree and soon rested on a branch as my aching arms needed to rest. I took in the view of the forest, the different shades of green were turning to the colors of yellow, orange and red as autumn was coming soon. I pulled out my phone and earbuds and pulled up The Planets, Op. 32: II. Venus, the Bringer of Peace, a lovely piece arranged by Gustav Holst, and played by L'Orchestre de France, one of my most favorite arranged pieces by this amazing composer.

It was late August here in Silvercrest, so Autumn was coming in mid-September unlike in Maine when fall comes in early September. The last of the Monarch butterflies flew past as they were trying to migrate to Mexico for the winter, one landed on my nose unexpectedly, I giggled. The monarch soon flew off with the rest of the pack as they blended in with the orange trees, not to be seen again until spring. On the floor of the forest, stood a doe and a buck, they twirled around each other as they were entranced with each other.

I carefully climbed down the tree, careful to not make a sound and watched the two deer spinning around each other. For what seemed like decades was only ten minutes, the two deer ran off into the deep forest, soon in spring, they'll return with a little one. Looking at the time, I realized that I needed to get home, I was going to come back to the forest, for the forest was my second home.

I opened the door to two angry faces, I closed the door behind me and they both pointed to the couch, I sat on the couch and they sat on the love seat on the other side of the table. Mom and Dad yelled at me for about fifteen minutes, I was sent to my room, not to come out till dinner. I don't know why my parents flipped out on me going to the forest, usually, they're all for me going outside.

I slipped out of my jacket and jeans and into a pair of sweatpants now that the weather is starting to get cold, summer is about to end and school is going to start in a few days. The internet and cable wasn't set up yet, and I didn't want to use all my data on television so I grabbed a book and read it. When I went over to the bookshelf to get a book, my eyes looked at the boy that was standing outside my house. His hair as white as snow wasn't what intrigued me, nor was it the toned muscles or the perfectly tanned dark skin, no, it was his eyes, they were a pale blue.

It was such an oddity for a black man to have blue eyes, although rare, it can happen, I didn't want to think anything of it. I couldn't stop looking at the boy, but the strangest thing happened, he looked back at me, winked, and then vanished into the shadows. I looked at the exact spot he was just standing at a few moments ago. There was something off about that boy, but that was for him to know and me to not find out. I grabbed a book that I haven't read yet, plopped on my sofa, and read, but I was distracted.

The picture of the strange and mysterious, but yet handsome boy was still stuck in my head, I was pretty sure that the thought of the young man would soon leave.

. . .

Dinner was a deadly silence, I'm guessing that my parents were still mad at the incident that happened earlier. The silence was so thick that you would need to cut it with the heaviest laser that is known to mankind. I washed the dishes as a way of punishment and then soon went to my room to get clothes for a shower. I went over to the window, the sun was already down, the street lights were going to come on any minute now. I grabbed a white nightgown and hopped in the bath, the bubbles soothed me as I melted into the warm fragrance of cinnamon and vanilla.

After my bath, I wrapped my hair up in a white towel and went to my bedroom, I was pretty sure that this whole ordeal is going to blow over by tomorrow morning. I sat on top the comfy sheets of my canopy bed and looked across my room at the bayside window. My bed sits on top of a platform that has four little steps leading up to it, all of my furniture sits below. From where I was sitting, I had a perfect view of the world beyond the bayside window. I reached over and turned off my lamp, I walked over to the bayside window and sat on the windowsill. Stars decorated the sky along with a full moon, and a special someone was there again.

My curious mind wasn't going to take over, curiosity killed the cat for a reason, he was looking back at me. I could get a better look at the man, he was wearing priest clothing, all black, the white thing in the middle the whole thing, he wore heavy eyeliner, and tattoos nearly all over his body. His priest shirt was short-sleeved and he was toned to perfection, he was wearing all black and he was staring right at me. I was intrigued by the way he looked, but then I changed my mind when he was licking his lips at me.

I rolled my eyes at him and turned around when he was right there, I had no time to react though for he had me pinned to the wall. I wanted to stay calm, but my heart was beating so fast, it was the only thing that was truly audible in my ears. He had a devilish smile at me, I stared into his icy, blue eyes, but was interrupted by his talking.

" You are more beautiful up close and personal, the names Elias, Elias Sardothien.", said Elias as he placed his hand underneath my chin I tried to look away, but he had an iron grip that would snap my neck. I opened my mouth to scream for someone to come in here, but the sounds were muffled as Elias placed a hand over my mouth.

" You are so cute when you struggle, but its rude to not introduce yourself, so I suggest you do it.", I didn't need to anger the man more than I already have.

" The name is Celaena , Cela for short, can you let go of me? You're really starting to hurt my wrists.", Elias was grinning like crazy.

" Only if you give me a kiss, then I'll let you go.", Elias puckered his lips. I blew a raspberry at his face, he opened his eyes in anger, the grip on my wrists tightened, I winced a little in pain.

" Guess I'll have to take it from you.", Elias immediately pushed his lips against mines, and soon wrapped an arm around my waist a little close to my backside. As much I wanted to push Elias away from me, I couldn't, he still had my other wrist, and he was very strong. Eventually, he pulled away, he still had a grin on his face." You have a beautiful name you know, its Roman.", my heart skipped a beat.

Never in a million years would a boy complement my name, and know where it originates from. Elias actually caught me off guard, but just because he knows the origin of my name, does not mean that he is on my good side especially since he stole my first kiss! I do know that when he kissed me, there was a warm, fuzzy feeling in my heart, I plan to pay no attention to it. I'm not one for romance, and I don't plan to get in on it while I'm working on my path to success.

Elias surprised me again by embracing me with a hug, my heart was skipping beats, but then it slowed down to the point that my heart was syncing with Elias's. The hug was soon short lived as the cold draft filled the empty space, there was a note on the floor, I picked it up and read it.

Cel-

Time sure does fly, but I have to go, this isn't the last you'll see of me. We will cross paths again very soon.

Elias

Something told me that Elias was going to be around for quite a while, and something told me that it wasn't going to end well.