Clockwork

one.

POV: Alexandria Colbin

My head jerked to the side, causing me to bolt awake.

Again, my head jolted towards my right shoulder.

And again.

And again.

Gosh, I hate waking up to tics.

I didn't suppress them, though, knowing that I'd be doing that all day, and I don't want to suppress any more than I have to.

I glanced at the clock. 5:42. My alarm should go off in three minutes.

I climbed out of bed and headed towards my bathroom, which I shared with my older sister, Bennett.

I brushed my teeth and returned to my bed, slapping my phone as it started ringing, telling me to wake up.

I ticced again, clicking my mouth a few times before jerking my head to my right shoulder.

Someone knocked on my door.

"Come i-*click* in!" I called.

Bennett opened the door and peeked her head in. She was 18, and she finished her senior year in the spring, but she decided to do a gap year before heading to college.

"Hey, Xandri, ready for your first day of junior year?" The smile on her face was way too bright for 5:46 in the morning.

"Ready as I'll ever be. *click* What are you doing up so early? You don-" My head jerked, cutting me off. "Don't have school."

"I'm driving you today! Mom has work, and Dad's... uh... actually, I don't know. But I'm taking you!"

I smiled, then huffed out a breath of air-another tic.

"That's great! I'll sh-*click*-shower, and then I'll meet you downstairs?"

At her nod, I stood up and stepped back into the bathroom, stripping off my clothes and climbing into the shower.

×

I rushed down the stairs, almost slipping when I lost my balance for a second.

"Hey, *click* Ben! Whatcha making?" I asked Bennett, seeing her stand over the stove.

"Well, I was going to make an omelette, but, uh, I couldn't flip it properly, so now it's scrambled eggs. Want some?"

My head jerked. "No, thanks, I'm just gonna h- *click, click* -have some toast."

She nodded, grabbing the bread out of the cabinet. "Could you throw a piece in for me too?"

"Yeah, sure." I reached over, pulling three slices of bread out of the bag. But after I dropped two of them into the toaster, I ticced, and threw the third one across the room like a frisbee. It smacked my little brother TJ in the forehead as he walked in.

His real name was Tyler, middle name James, but he's been going by TJ since he was five. He's almost eight now.

"Ow. Why are you throwing bread at me?" He pouted.

"Sorry, TJ, it was a tic." I smiled, retrieving the bread from the floor and popping it into the toaster. (I know, it's gross, but Mom just mopped last night.)

"How do I know that you're not just saying that to get away with it?" He attempted to raise an eyebrow at me, but he just ended up making a really weird "kid" face.