The Promise: Fighting Destiny

Sprawled out across the soft grass, Talia stared up at the towering trees above her watching as their leaves blew in the gentle wind. Her bright brown eyes sparkled with awe as she immersed herself in the peace and quiet that was this part of her father’s orchard. Arlen, her father, was somewhere in his twenty acres of land. Her sanctuary was this lovely garden, filled with laurel trees, white stone benches, colourful flowers and sprinkled with tomato plants. Closing her eyes, she stretched out her arms, intertwining her fingers with the grass. She felt so connected to this place, to the trees and land, they called to her in a way nothing else did. The beeping of her alarm stirred her, sitting up she looked around for her tote, spotting it a couple feet away near one of the benches. She shook off her laziness, rising and striding over to her bag to fish out her phone quietly shutting off the annoying sound. This meant she needed to hurry home for dinner, her father would be eager to have dinner. Slinging her bag across her shoulder, Talia began her trek across the various sections of the orchard, dusting off her dress as she went. A fifteen-minute walk later, their Cabin style home came into view. The log styled walls, large windows and wrap around porch was a welcomed sight. She broke into a job, rushing up the steps onto the porch and into the kitchen. “Hey dad,” she said happily, rushing over to the sink to wash her hands so she could help him make dinner. “Hey kiddo, how does a hamburger and salad sound for dinner?” Her dad was already putting together the hamburger, how could she say no? Shaking her head, she grabbed a pitcher of lemonade out of the refrigerator and took it into the dining room filling up two glasses for them. “Sounds good!” With her working on the salad they quickly finished up dinner, both scarfing down their meals and rushing off to their various tasks. Talia started putting her books for school tomorrow into her bag, and choosing her clothes, she opted for a pair of grey jeans, a flowy white blouse and silver sandals. Not bothering to change, she dove onto her bed, sinking into the softness and quickly falling asleep. The smell of pancakes and eggs woke her the next morning, her stomach making noises as if she had been starving herself. She brushed her teeth and took a quick shower, rubbing in her vanilla lotion and slipping on her clothes. Tugging her wild caramel curls into a very messy bun, curls falling to frame her heart shaped face. She rushed down to breakfast, greeting her father and filling up her plate. “Easy there Lia, the food isn’t going anywhere. You’ll choke,” Arlen teased, patting her head as he grabbed his hat and went off to work on the Orchards. He had a busy schedule of tours running this week, yet he still managed to find the time to head off to Elderly care center to volunteer. She rolled her eyes as he left, finishing up her food and grabbing her bag to head to school. ****** Parking her car in the lot, she entered the bustling halls and went to her locker to find her best friends Adam and Cherry waiting for her. “Oh no, what happened?” She mumbled as she opened her locker and prepared for her first class. She was a small five feet tall, slender with wider hips and gentle curves. While Adam towered over Talia and Cherry at six feet tall, shaggy black hair, tanned skin and blue eyes, Cherry with her pale skin, freckles and bright red hair, was a little over five feet six inches tall, but she always wore high heeled shoes to give her a little extra boost. Cherry began to speak animatedly, filling her in on the new school gossip, “There’s a new student joining up today, I heard his family just moved into the old Walsh house, next to your orchard! Have you seen them yet?” Scrunching up her nose, Talia shook her head no to her friend, catching Adam rolling his eyes and smiling brightly at her friends. If only Cherry would realize that Adam had feelings for her, but Cherry seemed all too content to be just friends. Most other students waved or greeted them as they passed by, the small group of friends were very well liked. As they all started down the hallway to their first class of the day, Biology, she began to feel uneasy, as if someone were staring at her. Turning around to glance at her school mates, she saw a boy perhaps a little older than she was, watching her intently. She quickly turned back to her friends and continued her way. ****** Just one more class for the day, Talia was excited to get home and head out to the garden to work on her assignments. Unfortunately, not all things go as planned. “Talia Mason, please report to the principal's office immediately.” Grimacing, she shut her locked and walked to the principal's office, a feeling of dread settling in her stomach. When she saw the Police Officers standing in the office, she immediately knew something was terribly wrong. They escorted her into the principal's office and instructed her to sit, one of the officers, a burly man with a very scratchy voice, started addressing her, “Ms. Mason, we have some news, your father had an accident a short while ago, he is currently at the hospital. We’ll take you to him, do you have any other family we can call?” Talia stared at him in shock, mumbling a no. The rest was a blur. The next moment she can recall with clarity was sitting in the hospital waiting room and staring at the surgery wing doors. Her father did not make it, he had been speeding, no one knew why or where he was headed, but his car had swerved to avoid hitting a puppy and spun uncontrollably for a bit. He died in surgery. She sobbed hysterically for what felt like weeks but was in fact just a day. Her friend Cherry had usher her off to stay with her family for a while. But this would also be short lived. Within a week social services showed up to discuss options, since she had no relatives, she would be put into the foster care system. Naturally, Cherry’s parents applied to foster her, but the process was long and arduous. Her case worker, Ms. Sylvia, came to see her one day to discuss an important matter, “Talia, we have found your great uncle, your father’s uncle. He has volunteered to care for you, he is flying in tomorrow. Of course, you will return to the Orchard for now, he will reside there for a while until things settle.” Talia felt mute, an uncle. She had never heard her father mention any relatives, nor had she met them. Why was this relative suddenly here now? Just when she could have stayed with Cherry and her family. The following day, Talia met her great uncle Allister, a wrinkled old man with fully grayed hair and curious eyes. He seemed very reserved; he had said possible ten words to her since they met. It was however nice to be home again, she slinked off to the garden hoping for a reprieve, shocked to find her uncle Allister sitting on one of the white benches there. “Uncle Allister, I didn’t know you would be out here.” He smiled politely at her and waved her over, “Come Talia, sit. Let us have a talk.” Straightening her skirt, she sat on the other end of the bench, looking at him. Uncle Allister cleared his throat, the words which came next would change her life forever, “Arlen tried to hide you, after everything that happened with your mother. But it is time now Talia, you cannot break the promises your parents made. The boy will come for you.”