𝐥𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐳𝐞 | 𝐧. 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐫

𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐮𝐞

Two Years Earlier...

Being the youngest of three kids can be a lot knowing that you have two older siblings that had a head start to set the bar high in terms of accomplishments. For me, unfortunately, that bar was over the fucking moon once I was a teenager. My parents, Catherine and Callahan Briar are two of the wealthiest people in Connecticut all because of a business they created straight out of college. Growing up, I'd had my fair share of attending gala's and extravagant events with my family simply because we were expected to be there, perfect and ready to serve as the image of what the ideal "family" should look like. These events were miserable for me since I never felt connected to the lifestyle my parents indulged in heavily. Being forced to wear dresses worth thousands in an uncomfortable pair of heels all while wearing a fake smile is enough to make anyone hate it too.

My brothers Logan and Reece are the apples of my parents' eyes. They've done anything and everything my parents have wanted of them up until now. They both went to Ivy League as business majors and came back to a job in our parents' company. From the moment we were in the womb, my parents pretty much planned out our lives step-by-step. As the only girl in the Briar household, my parents were harsher on me than they were on my brothers. I only ever seemed to stress them out whenever I had made it clear that I wasn't interested in following the path they had laid out for me. Some nights were full of screaming matches and things being thrown at me whenever I expressed any thoughts of wanting to veer off the oh-so-golden path of success.

Catherine and Callahan had tried anything they possibly could to get me to go along with their life plans for me which resembled that of Logan and Reece when they were my age, but it always failed. Eventually, they sent me off to another Ivy League to major in business management, which was a living hell. Imagine being in college and not even going for something you choose, you're just expected to sit through boring lectures and graduate. To the horror of my parents, I dropped out, fed up with the idea of going to school just to please them and get whatever they called "love". The night I showed up at their doorstep once I dropped out proved to be the last straw for them. After at least an hour-long shouting match and various vases and thrown objects, I was sitting in my car with just a single suitcase and small cuts littering my arms and my cheek.

Since I was a kid, they'd always called me the family failure. Nothing I ever did was enough or amounted close enough to my brothers. Everything I did or every step I took was looked at through a microscope and analyzed. My brothers were always partial when it came to my relationship with our parents, our parents always ended up on a higher pedestal every time. Driving away from my hometown didn't hurt a single bit. I was finally getting away from the life I hated and the people who were supposed to love me unconditionally but never did. I had no idea where I was going, but anywhere was better than here.

~

Three hours and a few gas stops later, I was in New Jersey. A sign reading "Welcome to New Jersey" was enough to bring a slight smile to my face despite not knowing what was waiting for me here. The sunrise filled the sky, trucks, and cars passing by, preparing for the day ahead. Looking over at my phone placed on the car mount, the GPS tells me that I've made it to Newark. Driving into the city, I see a couple of businesses lining the streets and the first one to truly catch my eye is a diner with a small parking lot next to it. Right on queue, my stomach growls, as I pull into one of the parking spots closest to the entrance. Walking in, "Here Comes The Sun" by The Beatles fills my ears. The diner has a retro look and feel to it, with a few booths full of elderly diner regulars and a few sitting at the counter overlooking the kitchen. Multiple conversations are happening amongst the patrons and I can't help but let out a sigh of relief and a smile at all the people seemingly enjoying their morning over cups of coffee and a warm breakfast.

Too entranced in the warm atmosphere of the diner, I fail to notice one of the waitresses walking up to me with a menu in hand. "Hey, need a seat?" A girl about my age had a smile on her face with a curious look in her blue eyes waiting for my response. Her hair was up in a ponytail with a few strands of hair loose at the front, framing her face. "Uhh.. yeah sure." Sending a smile back in confirmation, she turns around leading me towards an empty booth at the corner, by a window. Placing the menu in front of me, I look down at it and expect her to walk away to leave me time to pick out what I want, but I feel her unmoving figure standing in the same place she was when I looked down.

"I've never seen you around here before. If I had then I would've surely recognized you. Are you new around here?" Although I was a little hesitant to answer, I knew that it would be rude to not say anything when she was being nice. "Yeah, I just came into town. It was an unexpected trip, but I plan on staying. I just need to find a place to stay." She nods her head slowly, eyes far off in thought. I probably said too much and she probably thinks I'm just some crazy person that came off the street.

I don't miss the look on her face when a lightbulb seems to go off in her head once she processes what I've said to her. "Well I have no idea why and I know we're pretty much strangers to each other, but I have been looking for a roommate and I do have an empty room at my apartment. If you'd be up for paying half of the rent, you can have the room." My eyes widen at the thought of someone I've barely known for three minutes offering me as long as I paid half the rent. She must have noticed my hesitance in accepting the offer, so she quickly added, "You know what, give me a minute and I'll be right back." Before I can even get a word out, she's already on the other side of the counter talking to an older woman serving a few patrons coffee.

"Huh... that was strange." Whispering to myself I go back to looking at the menu and the next thing I know, the same waitress slid into the booth on the opposite side of me. "I'm gonna try to introduce myself to make this less awkward," she sticks her hand out in front of me, "I'm Celine or you could just call me Celi, Cel, or just whatever you'd like." Her face wore a warm, welcoming smile as I shook her hand. "Well, in that case, I'm Gabrielle or you could call me Gabi if you'd like." I return the smile, feeling a little more comfortable. I'm not used to having someone be so open and cheery in conversations. Growing up, I was always surrounded by people that believed that speaking less was more so this was completely new to me.