Arya sat at her balcony, watching the sunrise. As the sky glowed in golden beams, she admired the first rays of the sun being born from the horizon, throwing a wonderful warmth on her face.
Her cup of coffee sat on a small table and in her hand she held a magazine that had her photo on the cover page, reading, 'Arya Hunter, youngest lead zoologist ever'.
She saw her face, her blue eyes, and pink lips, and she remembered the day that she had been promoted.
She had worked so hard going into some of the most dangerous territories with her team of five doctors, two of who were working as field staff for the first time.
Her phone rang with its annoying tone, and picking it up, she saw it was her aunt Kimberly.
"Hello?," she said in a happy voice.
Her aunt and uncle were the people who raised her since she was ten.
"Hey Bobo, how are you?" Aunt Kimberly asked, her voice filled with its usual excitement. She always spoke in an amazingly enthusiastic voice, no matter what the situation. She was the most positive person Arya had ever met.
"I'm good aunt Kim. How are you and uncle Pete?"
"We're wonderful. We just saw you on the cover of 'Beauty with Brains' magazine. Your uncle wants you over; it is your day off, right?"
"Yeah, it's my day off today... but...-" "No buts! You have to come, even if you have plans, cancel them... unless it's with your animal friends, of course," Kimberly said, and Arya already imagined her aunt making those puppy dog eyes, like a little child.
"Oh all right, I'll come. Do you need me to bring anything?"
"Actually, yes! Your uncle Pete forgot to bring tomatoes. Do you think you could grab some fresh once from the market?"
"Sure. So what time should I come?"
"Surprise us. We'll be home all day... oh and if you don't find the fresh tomatoes, the canned ones will do... as long as we have tomatoes."
"Ok aunt Kim. I'll be there as soon as I can. Bye."
"Alright Bobo, see you soon." With that, the line went dead.
Arya smiled as she put her phone back on the table. Her plan was to relax by the pool outside her two bedroom house, listening to some music and probably watch some movies later on, but she liked the idea to visit her aunt and uncle.
By now the sun was out, and she decided to go in and do a few chores before heading out.
Her master bedroom had a twin size bed with many pillows, a dresser, a closet and a small balcony that she was in just now.
She had a photo of Kimberly, Pete, and her two cousins Marcus and Natalie, along with herself, standing on the lamp stand by her bed in a nice frame that said 'family'.
On her dresser stood another framed photo of her as a child, standing with her parents, and her grandfather.
Arya was just seven when her parents had died in a car crash, and this was the only photo she had of them, as there were no cameras in her little village, Moonsglow.
Arya went to put her cup, which still had her coffee, now cold, in the sink. She didn't have too many things, as she had bought this house, with the help of her uncle, just a few weeks ago.
Her kitchen and living room were just separated by a counter top, which was used both as a kitchen counter and a mail holder.
The living room had a TV and a chair, which she used like a sofa. She still had to buy furniture, which she planned to get in a few months, as she wasn't in any rush.
She threw three days of laundry into the washing machine, and wiped the stove top and counter before sweeping and mopping.
By the time she finished she saw it was almost 10 am and so she took a bath and headed out, wearing a casual pants and a sweatshirt.
She walked into the nearest supermarket and picked up a grocery basket. Walking straight up to the canned food section, Arya picked up two cans of tomatoes, then walked around to see if she could get something else.
After picking a few more items, she cashed it and walked out of the store and walked towards Pete and Kimberly's house, which was only about ten minutes away. This was one reason she bought the house... it was close to her uncle's home.
Her uncle opened the door and gave her a big hug, while calling out to his wife, "Honey, look who's here!"
He was a tall, handsome man, with brown eyes and brown hair.
"Come on in, sweetheart. Kimmy is waiting for you," he said to Arya, as he gave her way to enter.
"Thanks handsome," Arya said giggling. She remembered the first time she saw him when Kimberly came to introduce him to her grandfather and mother and father. She was around five, and she just blurted out, "he's so handsome aunt Kim."
Ever since that day, she had called him handsome. He was a father figure to her, since he adopted her legally; though Arya always called them aunt and uncle, and they never minded her.
"Oh, come here," Kimberly came up to her, wearing her apron and flour dusted on her arms. "I have a surprise for you," she said as she gave Arya a bear hug.
"Surprise?"
"Oh yeah. Wait a few hours."
"Ok...? Oh, aunt Kim, here... tomatoes and I also bought some wine," Arya said as she placed the grocery on the kitchen counter.
"Oh yeah, I'll need the tomatoes for dinner prep, and can you..., thanks."
"No prob," Arya said as she popped the wine into the fridge. "What can I help you with?"
"Don't worry about anything Bobo, your uncle Pete was helping your wonderful aunt in cooking," Pete said as he walked in behind them. "You know how she cannot do anything without me," he whispered.
"I heard that!"
Arya laughed, as she took out a bottle of cola from the fridge and took three glasses out of the cupboard.
She watched her uncle and aunt working together, stirring the pot, talking, sipping their cola and asking Arya so many questions.
Kimberly looked like her mother, same black hair, blueish green eyes, and a beauty that could kill. Pete was no different, straight jaws, brown eyes that matched his hair, and six pack abs. As a police officer, he had to maintain his physique. Kimberly worked as a teacher.
Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
"I'll go check," Arya said, walking to the door. Opening it, she was met with a girl and boy, who screamed with happiness taking her in a huge hug.
"Marcus? Natalie? What a pleasant surprise!" Arya said, breaking the hug. "How?"
"How'd you like your surprise?" Kimberly said from behind.
They hadn't seen each other in more than six months.