Chapter One

My eyes opened slowly, shaking off the bits of dust and ceiling plaster that had fallen on them during my slumber. I stared long and hard at the ugly brownish-cream colored stain slowly spreading over my ceiling like kudzu. Cheap pipes were slowly destroying this place. My foot inadvertently hit the power button on the TV remote, which had been carelessly tossed away following the conclusion of last night's premiere of a new South Park episode. My speakers had been left turned nearly all the way up, something i attribute to the company ripping up the old asphalt on my street. I quickly sprang off the bed, scrambling to find the remote and end the massive static assault on my eardrums. After a few moments of tearing through the scattered soda cans and grease-stained fast food bags on the floor, I located the elusive black rectangle. I quickly brought the volume down to a non ear-shattering level and turned the channel away from the static. It was some news channel that I never bothered to remember the name of. The anchorwoman was attractive for her age, she looked not a day over 35. Not that I pay attention to ages like that, but she was a looker. The ringing in my ears subsided after a moment, and I began to hear what she was saying. A picture popped up on the screen. It was faint and fuzzy, of a cluster of lights. I began to understand what the newswoman was saying. "National Guard fighter jets were scrambled earlier today in response to what eyewitnesses describe as a fast-moving cluster of lights that were sighted over eastern Virginia. A father and son on a hunting trip managed to capture several still images that seem to yield no clues to exactly what they are. The government is staying very tight-lipped about th-". I shut off the TV as I let out a massive yawn and turned to walk to the bathroom. I took a step onto the cold, cheap imitation tile floor and turned to the mirror. I stared myself down for what seemed like hours, studying every piece of stubble, every wrinkle in the bags under my eyes. It was my first week off in nearly seven months, and it was showing. I was only 26, and I looked like I was in my late thirties. I work at a cargo warehouse owned by Barnes and Noble about twenty minutes outside of Peoria, Illinois. It's grueling work if you're not in tip top athletic shape, and I surely wasn't. Lifting, sorting, loading all day long. And it's not your typical day. My normal hours are 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. Monday to Friday. But I've been taking all the weekends I can to get a little extra cash so I can finally move out of my grungy apartment into a small townhome closer to Peoria. Another couple of months and I would be just another happy face on a square green lawn in the american suburban sprawl. I was definitely happy to catch up with my favorite shows and to try a few new games out on my 360. I shoved these thoughts aside as I stripped and turned on the shower.

Reviews

[Sunflower 20]

great start. my only advise would be to think about seperating this into paragraphs. this is will do 2 things:
1. make it less intimidating to the eyes
2. easier to read.

but overall, great job.

[trainwreck]

This is a great opening. I can't wait to see where this goes.