"Mine. All mine," Zoë whispered softly to herself as she rested her weight against the floor-to-ceiling windows of her small bedroom.
She had never had her own place before or lived on her own, for that matter. Her parents had pleaded with her to reconsider the move to Evansdale. Lucky Palms had its own community college, didn't some of her friends plan on going there? A big city on the other side of the country was no place for an 18 year old girl. Maybe after college, when she had saved up a little more money, maybe that was a better time to go.
They had been right, of course, Zoë had to concede. A glance out of her window was all she needed to be reminded of the fact that she had not picked the easy road. Still, she had never been happier than right here, looking down into that dumpster filled concrete jungle full of cigarette buds and dog poop.
Zoë had spend most of the afternoon cleaning the appartment and the furniture that came with it and then unpacking her own things. It wasn't all that much, four boxes total, but it made the place look a little more like home. She had brought mostly knicknacks and clothing and a few books. Her most valuable items were her coffee machine, the laptop her parents had given her as a farewell present - to stay in touch - and the Hikon camera she'd bought when she was 14.
She felt grimy after all the work but a real shower would have to wait. She was going to explore the town, snap some shots while the sun was still up. First she would have to email her parents that she had settlement in though. That would make them happy, she thought to herself, just as long as she didn't mention the dumpster view.
