A New Beginning

A New Beginning

Eileen glided gracefully through the dark blue waters, its touch felt like a soft fuzzy blanket on a cool October night. Up ahead she could barely make out the figure of a large school of fish as they swam together quickly towards a mountain of sea coral ahead of them. Her attention was suddenly drawn to movement on her left side. As she turned her head sharply she could see that two beautiful blue-grey dolphins had joined her flight. She was amazed at how graceful and precise they were with their movements both in sync with the other as they swam beside her but always at a distance.

A feeling of peace fell over her as she silently sped forwrd guided by instinct and a strange sense of familiarity. Eileen had no idea where she was going or why she felt compelled to go there. All she knew was that something dark and foreboding was going to happen and she had to try and stop it. She was suddenly drawn to a bright white light in the distance. It was warm and inviting and she knew that that was where she had to go. As she drew closer to the light it became almost blinding and she could see nothing buy the bright glow growing larger and she could faintly hear a female voice start to talk. As she listened intently she could start to make out what the voice was saying.

"Please fasten your seatbelts and put your tables in the upright position!" The thin stewardess with the short burnette hair announced as she walked quickly up the aisle towards the front of the plane.

Eileen quickly sat up in her seat as she was shaken awake by her mother who was sitting next to her. As she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and tried to focus on her surroundings, the images of her dream slowly faded away.

"Good afternoon sleepyhead. They said we will be landing in about 10 minutes so I figured it was time to wake you up." Her mom said as she reached over to brush Eileen's hair out of her face.

"No biggy deal mom. Is dad meeting us at the airport?"

"I'm afraid not hon. He is meeting with the CEO and some of the other managers today to discuss expansion ideas, work schedules and other "business" stuff. There is supposed to be a limo waiting to take us to the house. Your father is going to meet us there later this evening to take us out to dinner."

Eileen turned her attention to the small window next to her and peered out at the small, toy-like houses and cars down on the ground beneath her. They reminded her of Teddy's collection of matchbox cars that he would display in his old room back in Texas. The sky was clear blue with only a few clouds scattered here and there. She could see dark figures in the distance flying in circles over the ocean which she assumed to be seagulls. The muffled mechanical rumble of the planes' landing gear could now be heard lowering and locking into place as they grew closer to the ground. Soon Eileen could make out the large red, brick buildings that lined one side of the runway. She laid her head back against the chair and closed her eyes as she waited for the plane to land. There was a slight jolt as the wheels came in contact with the runway and you could hear the brakes squeal as the plane gradually slowed down and coasted towards the docking area where they would soon be exiting.

As Eileen and her mom reached the waiting area it was filled with people welcoming loved ones, couples reuniting, and a line of men and women holding up signs announcing who they were there to pick up. They searched the crowd to locate the driver that would be taking them to their new home. To the right of them standing against the far wall they saw a tall, thin man wearing black dress pants a white shirt, and a black double breasted jacket. He was holding up a sign with the name "MORRISION" written in large, bold letters.

"There mom. Over there!" Eileen suddenly blurted out as she held out her arm and pointed in the gentleman's direction.

The two women hurried over to the young man as he stood there silently holding the sign his eyes carefully searching the crowd for his fare. As Eileen and her mom drew closer his full perfectly shaped lips parted and he presented a big, bright smile that revealed a perfect set of white teeth.

"Hello I'm Mrs. Morrison and this is my daughter, Eileen."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, ma'am, and you as well young lady." The driver greeted as his glance shifted from mother to daughter. "Let's go retrieve your luggage, and we will be on our way." He continued. "This way". He started walking down a long hallway that led to the baggage pickup. He walked at a very fast pace while Eileen and her mom followed quickly behind him. After gathering up their bags, the trio headed out to the awaiting limo.

Once in the limo, both Eileen and her mom sunk into the overstuffed, black leather seats in exhaustion. They had both gotten up quite early that day to finish packing and closing up the house. They had hurried to get to the airport just to find out that their 9:15am flight had been delayed and had to wait until 11:50am.

They heard the driver side door open as the young man took his place behind the wheel and then pulled the door shut. He turned around slowly to see that his passengers were comfortable and informed them that there were donuts, bagels, coffee, and orange juice awaiting them. Sure enough in the front left corner there was a small table with a fresh pot of piping hot coffee, a small plastic pitcher of orange juice and an oval plate with a variety of donuts, blueberry muffins, and onion bagels. The pair shuffled over and gathered up some of the warm muffins and donuts. Mrs. Morrison poured Eileen a small glass of orange juice, and herself a nice hot cup of black hazelnut coffee. As they settled back into their seats and began eating the delicious food, the driver began to slowly pull away from the curb.

The ride to their new home was very long and uneventful. After mother and daughter had their fill of the warm pastries, they both drifted off into a deep slumber. The hustle and bustle of the days' events had finally taken their toll on them both. They laid quietly side by side until they were suddenly woken up by the driver announcing that they had arrived at their new home.

"Sorry to have startled you both, but we have arrived at your destination." The driver said as both Eileen and her mom slowly sat up in their seats. Mrs. Morrision quickly ran her fingers through her long, flaxen blond hair trying to fluff it out while Eileen tried to rub the sleep out of her eyes for the second time that day.

As they looked out the tinted window of the limo their eyes fell on a huge, red brick, two-story ranch-style house. There were two very large Maple trees at either end of the property, and a wide concrete sidewalk leading up to the front door. As Eileen opened the car door and slowly got out, she could faintly hear the sound of the ocean water rushing up onto the shore behind the house. Something about the ocean calmed her and she surprisingly didn't feel as nervous and afraid like she thought she would coming to a new place. As her mother joined her, they waited for the driver to finish unloading their belongings and headed up the sidewalk towards the front door.

"Your father said that he was going to leave the key in the mailbox. Could you run up and check for me, Eileen?" Her mom asked as she peered up at the huge building that loomed in front of her.

"Sure, mom." Eileen darted ahead and ran up the sidewalk and over to the left side of the door to the mailbox. As she opened the top, she reached in and pulled out a small rectangular envelope. On the outside it was marked, "Front door key". She turned and waiting for her mom and the driver to join her. She opened the envelope and pulled out a long, brass key and handed it to her mom. Once the door was opened, the trio entered the house and into a large hallway.

"I will leave your bags right over here, ma'am." The driver told them as he walked over to the corner where a long, oak bench sat and laid the baggage down in front of it. As he walked back over to the opened door, Mrs. Morrison quickly turned around and walked over to him as she opened her small, silver purse.

"Thank you so much for the wonderful food and helping us with our luggage." She said smiling as she handed him a $20 bill for his services.

"Thank you, ma'am. It was my pleasure. I hope you both enjoy your new home, and have a good evening." He said with that bright smile of his and then he was gone.

Eileen looked down the long hallway. It was pretty empty accept for the oak bench in the corner. As she looked up towards the ceiling she noticed a small, crystall chandelier hanging down. The suns reflection through the windows onto the crystals displayed multiple colors of blues, greens, purples, oranges, and yellows as they danced over the white walls around her. It reminded her of the colors in a rainbow after a thunderstorm. Her attention slowly shifted towards the living room that stood on the right side of the hall and proceeded to walk over to it. She didn't even notice that her mother had disappeared.

At the entrance leading into the living room were three long wooden steps leading down into it. Eileen stepped down onto the soft burgandy carpet that covered the length of the room. As she began to walk through the room she noticed a large fireplace with red brick trim, and ceramic tile flooring. Scattered throughout the room were boxes and furniture that was shipped up from their home in Texas. As she walked over to some of the boxes she could clearly make out the markings on them. "Kitchen" was written on many of them. "Mom and Dad's Room" on others, and finally "Lee's Room" on the far boxes that she read.

"Lee, come into the kitchen!" Her mom suddenly yelled to break the silence.

"Coming, mom!" On the opposite side of the living room was another set of wooden steps. As she drew closer to them she noticed that they led to a large country-style kitchen. Step by step she walked slowly up into the spacious room. On the far wall was nothing but maple pantry doors for storage. In the center of the wall stood a small shelving unit which could hold a tv or stereo system. The middle of the kitchen stood a beautiful marble "L-shaped" island. Lining the one side were several black stools. Eileen plopped onto one of the stools and spun herself slowly around so that she could see the rest of the room. The one thing that she did notice was a huge stenciled mural on the wall that separated the kitchen from the living room. It was a picture of an outside cafe lining a cobblestone road with rows of small tables and chairs neatly placed awaiting the days' crowds.

"It's beautiful isn't it? You wouldn't expect to find a house like this by the ocean." Her mom blurted out as she re-entered the kitchen from yet another entranceway at the far end of the kitchen.

"Where did you just come out of mom? What's over there?"

"Oh, well, by the back door is a small guest bathroom", she turned to point in the direction of the door. "And over here on the right is a small guest bedroom." She explained as she motioned around the corner of the kitchen door.

"Wow, I have to admit this house is really awesome!" Eileen announced as she jumped down from the stool and headed over to join her mom by the refrigerator.

"Yes, it is." Her mom agreed. "Just think there is still a second floor we have to explore yet!"

Mother and daughter joined hands and quickly hurried out into the long hallway and over to the steps leading up to the second floor. Just like two giddy school girls they ran up the stairs together curiousity building up in both of them. As they reached the second floor landing they both stood in awe as they looked around.

The second floor was just a beautiful as the first floor, and just as spacious. There was a large sitting area at the top of the stairs with another elegant fireplace at the far end of the room. To the left sat a round oak table with four high-back chairs surrounding it, and the wall behind it was lined with shelves for books, figurines, or pictures for displaying. On the opposite wall hung a large flat screened tv for nighttime viewing. Around it were two large overstuffed brown suede couches with matching oak side tables and coffee table. On either end of the fireplace were two windows that went the length of the ceiling down to the floor.

As the women looked from one end of the hallway to the other they could see several closed doors on either side. They looked at each other and laughed as they started making their way down the hallways searching through each room. The back hallway had two large bedrooms and one huge bathroom with duel sinks, a shower, and a two-person sauna. Down at the opposite end was one large master bedroom and an adjoining bath which had a shower, another two-person sauna, and a large walk-in closet.

Just as Eileen and her mom walked out of the master bedroom they suddenly heard the front door downstairs slam shut. They both stopped in their tracks, and became very quiet.

"Hello, is anyone here? Jaime, Eileen, are you here?"

"Daddy!" Eileen yelled out as she began running towards the stairs. Her mom followed close behind her daughter as they both quickly headed down the stairs.

Eileen reached the first floor and saw her father standing by the front door with open arms. She quickly rushed over to him and his awaiting arms.

"Sam! Well it's about time." Jaime scolded playfully as she reached the bottom of the stairs and also hurried over to greet her husband. It had been two weeks since they had all been together, and it was a very happy and long awaited reunion for all of them.

"You didn't miss me too much did you?" He asked jokingly as they released their grasp and stood close together.

"Oh daddy, of course we missed you." Eileen said as he pulled her over and gave her another big hug.

"So, how was your flight? No problems I hope. Did you find the driver okay?" He asked as they all started to make their way into the living room. Jaime moved some boxes off of the large black leather couch and they all sat down to talk about the days' events. After bringing Sam up to speed, they decided to freshen up and head out to dinner.

Sam had a table reserved at a very quiet, out of the way restaurant so that they could talk and discuss what to do next. After they had ordered their meals, they started to talk about what they needed to do in the next few months. He told them about the local high school called Plymouth North High School over on Obery Street. He also told them about the local "hot spots" and where the shopping malls and grocery stores were. Last, but certainly not least, he informed Eileen where the closest beaches were.

Soon after that their food came and they ate hungrily, not leaving one morsel on their plates. They decided on chocolate mousse for dessert. They came in large glass plates and tasted heavenly. So rich and creamy it just melted in their mouths. Once they had finished up, Sam told the woman to go ahead out to the car and he would pay their bill and meet them. Since it was already close to 9:00pm, they all decided to wait until the next day to go driving around and start familiarizing themselves with the area. So Sam drove them back to their new home to get a good nights' rest.