WHAT IF! cole walter

CHAPTER ONE, silver falls

It was a normal day in Silver Falls and Jackie Howard didn't know what to expect when she arrived at the Walter Ranch. She had lived her whole life in New York, but since her parents and older sister died recently she was sent to Silver Falls, Colorado to live with one of her mom's best friend, Katherine Walter and her husband George Walter. She knew they had a big family, but she didn't realize how big until she got to the ranch.

It was a beautiful place. It was surrounded by trees, with a few hills. It was peaceful. It was a warm, sunny day, and the breeze was gentle. It was a bit chaotic at the Walter house, as it always is with nine kids running around, but she didn't mind. It was a bit overwhelming though, since it was all so new to her. Katherine and George had started bringing her suitcases inside the house with her, showing her around. She had met two of the boys outside, Danny had been sitting on the porch and Lee had skateboarded by her. Katherine and George introduced her to Alex and Isaac, who had been in the living room playing video games. Alex had also got up to help bring in the rest of her things after George had asked him to.

When she got to the kitchen, Katherine introduced her to the oldest, Will, and had Will finish showing Jackie around since she got called in to the vet clinic. She had apologized and reassured Jackie she would be back as soon as she could. George reassured Jackie if she needed him he would always be around there somewhere, but he had left as well, needing to get out to the orchid and Lee had went with him. Will introduced her to Nathan, who had been playing his guitar in his room. Then Will took Jackie outside to meet the rest of the kids. Cole was out in the pool, the dog Albert had been in the pool too. The youngest ones of the family, Parker and Benny, were playing by the pool as Jordan filmed them. 

But Jackie noticed the blonde-haired boy who had just gotten out of the pool was running towards a girl who was on a horse. The horse was a gorgeous chestnut with a blonde mane and tail. "That's Hollyn," Will spoke up, noticing who she was looking at. He couldn't help the excitement in his voice or the way his eyes lit up either at seeing Hollyn. She had been gone the past year studying abroad and he was happy to see her again, he knew the others will be too so he wasn't surprised to see the interaction with his brother and Hollyn. 

"She lives next door, she's great. She's Cole's best friend, we've all known her for years. I think you'll like her. But anyway, she's been gone studying abroad so if you see us all being happy and loud later, that's why. It's cause we're all glad she's back home."

"That's really cool. Where did she go study abroad?" Jackie asked curiously, watching the interaction with Cole and Hollyn. Laughter filled the air as Cole picked her up and spun her around. They seemed close, and it made her smile a little.

"France. She got this art scholarship thing she signed up for awhile ago. Got to go study and learn at a art school in France. We're all proud of her, she's a really talented artist." Will explains with a soft smile. "And she loves art so it had been her dream to go."

"She sounds great." Jackie admitted, smiling a little. She continued watching the scene, seeing the way Cole and Hollyn interacted. It was easy to see how close they were.

"Yeah, she is. Anyway, let me introduce you to everyone." Will said. He pause the music on the speaker, glancing at his younger siblings with a smile. "Hey, everyone, this is Jackie."

Jackie smiles a little at everyone and waves. "Hello."

"Hey." Parker smiled and she laughed when Jordan started filming Will and Jackie.

"That's Parker over there and that's Benny." Will explained.

Meanwhile, Hollyn had been hugging onto Cole tightly as soon as they had gotten closer. Her heart was beating fast and her stomach was doing somersaults. She hadn't realized how much she had missed him. She didn't even care that he was soaking wet, she missed him and she missed his hugs so much.