I Never Thought

Chapter 1

Chloe Madden

I gazed intently at my puzzled reflection in the large mirror on the wall across from me. My round face flushed, and my brown eyes flickered from one inch of my face to the other. I reached up to grab two fistfuls of my dark curls in an attempt to put my hair up into a tight bun. I didn't want them to think I had been a slob the whole time while they were gone; I couldn't have them come home from a three-month long business trip to find me like this.

I'd allowed myself enough time to slack off. They would think that their eighteen-year-old daughter walked around not presenting herself like the posh kid of a rich couple like the way they wanted me to.

I franticly stumbled around my room with one hand holding my long curls in a ponytail on the top of my head. I scanned my dresser and floor for a hair tie. An unexpected phone call from my parents was all I needed to throw my Saturday morning off. Just when I thought a cup of tea and a good book would start my day off peacefully, they called just an hour before they disembarked their flight back home from Australia.

When I found a hair tie, I managed to brush my hair flat onto my head and into a bun with a side part. I had already donned a light blue sweater with tan buttons down the middle and a pair of black pants. After I threw on some black leather boots, I had one last look in my full-sized mirror before I heard my twin brother, Christian yell my name from the bottom of the stairs.

"Chloe, will you get down here?"

I hopped down the stairs while trying to straighten the wrinkles out of my pants with my hands.

"Are they here?" I whispered, walking toward him.

"No," he sighed. "I just don't get why they decided to do this today, the guys were coming over to watch the game." Despite me not being fond of our parents' impulsive decision to come home, I was grateful to have a day without his heap of guffawing guy friends in my living room.

I joined him at the dining table and watched as he ran his hands through his dark hair, which was still in its twist out from yesterday. Slightly frizzy curls blanketed his head and partially covered his forehead. He was wearing a navy polo shirt and khakis. He too seemed to understand that he would be judged as soon as they stepped through the door, so he made sure to lose his typical black hoodie and basketball shorts. I could already hear the first words they would say before they even pulled into the driveway.

"Chloe, why don't you brush your hair? You might be half white but not fully, your hair should be brushed. You can't just leave it out to 'breathe', it doesn't look proper," and "Christian you need a haircut, and why don't you dress more like a gentleman? You'll never find a date to Junior Prom if you're constantly dressed like you're going to bed."

I rolled my eyes at my thoughts. "I wonder how long they're staying this time."

He shrugged. "Who knows at this point? Last year they only stayed for four months out of the whole year," he chewed on his lip while checking his Apple Watch.

"Yeah, that's what we get for having parents who own a worldwide business," I muttered and crossed my arms over my chest before leaning back fully into the chair.

The clock on the wall behind us ticked loudly in the silence that formed between us as we waited. Christian was seated directly across from me, half of his body hanging off the chair as he sat sluggishly. I picked at the light pink polish on my nails, feeling anxiety beginning to form in my stomach. About ten minutes went by when Christian's exaggerated sigh of frustration threw me out of my daze.

"Where did you go last night?" I asked him, remembering him coming through the front door at two am when I finally was about to fall asleep. "I almost grabbed the baseball bat."