I firmly placed my hand on the door knob, wincing as the door inched open with a creak. The inside was dark, and the light that I turned on a second later, didn’t seem to help much.

        The house was the same, the first room on the first floor, and the second room on the second floor along with the bathroom and shower.

        I breathed in, everything was the same, everything was older, weaker, and the carpet had been taken out…but it was the same.

        I once again brushed my now soaking wet hair out of my face, walking up the stairs as they creaked beneath my weight.

        It wasn’t long before I reached the second floor which led to a small room. Dust layered the wooden floor, and the spring bed was set crookedly next to a clouded cracked window.

        I walked inside setting my bed at the bottom of the bed, as I leaned under a large cob web. “I’m back…” I whispered to myself. I closed my eyes for a moment, the silence of the room haunted by the soft patter of the heavy rain.

        I breathed in again opening my dark brown eyes, to relocate my bag.

        Unzipping it I rummaged through the old belongings, and removed a large jacket along with a pair of old pants.

        “I need my sleep.” I thought laying down on the dusty old mattress curling in my jacket as I used the pants as my pillow “I’m back…but I have school after tomorrow.”

The next morning I woke up late, dim beams of clouded light breaching the barrier of my dirtied window. Stretching my arms as my shoed feet lightly landed against the dusty wooden floor. My back ached from the uncomfortable mattress, and I was both hungry and thirsty, but of all things, I needed a bath. I has remembered running away on the trees when I was younger, and I found refuge in a clearing a ways in the woods, that’s where I could find most of what I needed.

        Standing up I calmly shifted my hair over my left shoulder, my dark hazel eyes, watching the dark hallway that led to the living room. I breathed in lightly closing my eyes, this was going to a long day.

        Opening them again, I quickly began to start my day, grabbing some clothes from my bag, and carefully making my way down the stairs and out the door.

        The day was clouded, and was now begging to clear up, bright rays of light warming the ground were the clouds separated. I made my way through the quiet town, no one seemed awake. The concrete was wet, and the air had lost its scent. All seemed to clean, but I knew the filth of this place all to well for it to be pure. The town was small and there was only one school, with nearly 1,000 students.

        Gangs, were popular here, their insignias littered the place, the most popular know as the Street Wraiths. This town was also well known for clubs, and bars. In this small town, there were about five major bars, and seven different major clubs. Street racing was popular in the neighborhoods, and graffiti was an art. No one cared what others did, and in this forsaken place none of it mattered. Everyone lived and survived for, and by themselves.

        I gasped as I finally reached the clearing. It was indeed a ways into the forest but that was for the better in this situation. It was just as beautiful as I remembered. A small pond was in its center, the water clear, and thick white sand layering the bottom. The water, always seemed to be warm, especially after rain, and its surroundings were always so green.

        Hovering over the water, was a beautiful apple tree, the apples that it grew, reaching an amazing size, and their red color was as vibrant as the sun.

        Quietly I walked over to its edge, removing my shoes and sock as I sat my change of clothes on a lowered limb of the tree. I breathed in deeply tiptoeing over the dewy grass to the edge of the pool. Steeping in I felt the cold leave my feet, it was a warm as ever. Slowly I removed my clothes and slid into the water. I gasped lifting my head up as I blew bubbles into the warm water from my mouth. “So warm…” I lifted my mouth above the water “I haven’t felt this good in years…finally, a bath.” I ducked my head under soaking my hair with the clean water. After a few minutes of cleaning off, I could feel the looseness in my muscles, and amazing the soreness in my back was gone. I leaned back against the edge of the pool feeling my hands against the dewy grass “Its amazing what warm water can do.”

I had closed my eyes and was nearly prepared to doze of when something hit the water hard in front of me. My eyes snapped open to see a large red apple floating on the waters surface in front of me. “Oh…” I glanced up at the tree above me “I forgot.”  Slowly, I reached my hand towards the floating apple lightly clasping it in my palm, and lifting it up to my mouth. Taking a small bite I began to ponder over the familiar taste. “It’s sweet…just like I remember.” I took a second bite, the thick juice dripping into the water under my hands.

Afterwards I didn’t hesitate to eat a second one, and by then I had already changed clothes.  

“I should come back tomorrow when I have the chance.” I whispered bending down over a set of winding roots that had managed to catch a small pool of rain. Dipping my hands into I removed them, drinking from it before it leaked out of my hands. I had to be prepared, this was going to be a long day.

That morning I was quick to return home, my old change of clothes wrapped around a few apples that I had saved for later. I left all of them in my room, and spent most of the day on the house. I managed to repair the microwave, and almost the refrigerator and stove, but I needed to buy new parts to get them to work correctly. I also managed to clean the dust out of my room, and take out the cobwebs that covered the house. I went to bed early that night, but as a last change I removed all of the stuff from my bag, and spread it over my room were it belonged.

The next morning, was a Sunday, and I accomplished more than expected. I visited the store and managed to steal a hammer, a few pack of nails along with a set of glass panes, and a set of sheets and covers that were to big to steal so in had to buy. I also visited other shops and was able to pickpocket a few shoppers, which later allowed me to call the electricity company and the water company to put my appliances back on again. I fixed the stairs so now they didn’t make as many sounds, and amazingly found the parts to completely fix the refrigerator and stove. I replaced the glass pane in my room, and put the sheets on the bed along with the covers after cleaning my mattress. Most of these activities took the day, and before long I found myself dozing of to sleep in the comfort of my now covered bed, after washing of at the pond.