Five Years Without You (HIATUS)

Chapter One

~Five Years Later~

My siblings are an extroverted, good-hearted bunch. I'm not much like them.

Autumn, my oldest half-sibling, crossed the sibling-parent line a long time ago, because she had to. She's outgoing, persistent, and a real caretaker.

Roean is my half-brother. He's a fun, easily laughable guy, who spends most of his time at parties or out with friends.

Renae, my little fourteen-year-old sister, is the most selfless person you will ever come across. She is so sweet and has made a habit out of herself to always put others first.

Jasyn has very recently turned fourteen, but he is very frequently asked: 'How old are you?' because he looks around my age. I hate to admit it, but it's humiliating. Even so, it's hard to get mad at Jasyn. His good looks (which, by the way, he is very aware of), charismatic jokes, and charm get the better of you.

Zavier is my annoying baby brother. He's a wild, mischievous eleven-year-old. Pretty stereotypical, if you ask me.

Then there's me. My name is Raelyn, in pattern with my parent's apparent liking for names with ae or ea in them. Even though my name isn't actually Raelyn. That's my middle name. My real first name is America. Like the country I live in. When I was eleven, I decided I didn't want to be called America because I thought, and still think, that 'America' is kind of a big name for a human so small and insignificant. My siblings told me to brighten up, but they accepted it all the same. I wouldn't describe myself as 'bright', which is an adjective I could only assign to any of my other siblings. My thoughts are deep, my clothes dark, my books and poems utterly disturbing.

Autumn calls "Raelyn!" from downstairs.

"Coming!" I call back. Autumn will very regularly call me downstairs to do a chore or run an errand or something to get me out of my room. She thinks I'm a depressed sixteen-year-old, comically.

"Your constant summoning me downstairs is vaguely antagonistic," I tell Autumn as I reach the bottom of the staircase.

She smiles, and her smile is light. Autumn looks like her name and not like me in the slightest. She has ginger hair, brown eyes, freckled skin, and looks more seventeen than twenty-one. She looks just like her mother. I, personally, have dark brown hair that goes down to my hips and blue eyes, the former from my father and the latter from my mother.

"I need you to go outside and help Ren with some boxes," Autumn says.

"Sure," I reply, heading for the door.

Us siblings (Autumn, Renae, Jasyn and Zavier and me) are in the process of moving into a smaller house, as we don't need the extra room we did when Roean still lived in the house, and I am seriously considering living on my own when I turn seventeen in December, and we don't really have the funds for this house, etc. I'll miss this house. It's my first refuge from my parents, the place I made most of my memories, and there's also the girl next door. I don't know if I will ever get her name.

My younger sister is outside, moving boxes from the garage to outside and waving at passersby on the sidewalk while saying "good afternoon!" to them.

"Hello, Renae," I say as I approach her.

Renae finishes bringing another box outside before replying, "Hey, Rae."

"Autumn said you needed help out here."

"Yeah, with the boxes," Renae says, throwing me a smaller one.

I'm so unprepared for the throw I almost drop the box. Renae giggles, her hand covering her mouth.

I roll my eyes at her playfully. "Warn me next time," I say.

"I didn't know you would almost drop it!" Ren replies, laughing a bit.

"Stop laughing at me!" I say, laughing along with her.

She hits my arm lightly, and I ruffle her wavy blonde hair.

"Rae!" Renae complains.

"Payback," I reply jokingly.

"Payback is child's play at assault."

Renae is really like me in the witty aspect. But she's nicer and more selfless and more likable and all the things I could never be. This is all I think of as I help Ren with all the boxes.

After Renae goes back inside, I look for the girl on her driveway. She's not there. My heart sinks a little for some reason, then I go back inside.

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A/N: This is the first (real) chapter! Hope you enjoyed. This chapter and the next one will be a little short because I'm using them as just as an introduction to the two main characters (Raelyn and Marissa) so the rest of the chapters after chapter two will be longer don't worry. Also, I would appreciate any feedback you have about my story so far :)). I'll be back for the next chapter soon. Until then, take care! Bye :)

- PFJ