Goals

Title: GOALS

Chapter 1: From the Snow to the Sun

Anastasia "Nastya" Petrova was born in a small village in the Ural Mountains of Russia. The village, surrounded by snow-capped peaks and dense forests, was a place where everyone knew each other, and life was simple but tough. Nastya was only eight years old when the unimaginable happened—a freak accident during a local festival caused a stampede that claimed the lives of her parents. Left orphaned, she had no choice but to move to America, where her aunt Irina and uncle Viktor had settled years before.

Irina and Viktor lived in an unexpected corner of America: the lively, unpredictable city of New Orleans, Louisiana. They had moved there seeking a fresh start, and the city's unique blend of cultures, jazz music, and vibrant street life made it an exciting, if chaotic, place to live.

Nastya's arrival in New Orleans was a shock to her system. The air was warm and humid, a far cry from the biting cold she had known all her life. The sounds of the city were a constant backdrop—people talking in rapid English, street musicians playing jazz, and the occasional rumble of the streetcar passing by.

Irina and Viktor's home was a charming old Creole cottage, painted in bright colors with a small, untamed garden out front. It was a far cry from the wooden dacha Nastya had known in Russia. Despite the warmth her aunt and uncle offered, Nastya felt out of place in this vibrant city. The language was different, the food was strange, and the people were loud and expressive in ways that made her feel like she was from a different planet.

But Nastya was determined to make this new life work. Her parents had always taught her to be strong, to set goals, and to never give up, no matter how difficult life became. She clung to those lessons as she navigated her new world.

School was the first hurdle. She was enrolled at a local high school, a sprawling brick building that seemed to buzz with energy. On her first day, she was introduced to her class, and the room fell silent as the teacher announced her name.

"Everyone, this is Anastasia Petrova. She's from Russia, so let's all help her feel welcome."

Nastya stood there, feeling the weight of a hundred eyes on her. The students looked at her with a mixture of curiosity and disinterest. She wished she could disappear.

One of the students, a tall boy with unruly dark hair and a mischievous grin, leaned back in his chair and said, "Hey, Russia! You play any hockey?"

The class erupted in laughter, and Nastya felt her cheeks burn. She mumbled something in Russian and sat down, hoping the ground would swallow her whole.

But not everyone was unkind. The girl sitting next to her, a petite blonde with bright blue eyes and a soft Southern drawl, smiled warmly. "Hi, I'm Lily," she whispered. "Don't worry, you'll get used to this place. It's not as bad as it seems."

Lily became Nastya's first friend, and through her, she began to slowly adjust to life in New Orleans. Lily introduced her to the quirks of the city—like beignets at Café du Monde, late-night jazz sessions in the French Quarter, and the wild spectacle of Mardi Gras. Nastya found herself both fascinated and overwhelmed by it all.

As time passed, Nastya started to find her place in this new world. She joined the school's soccer team, where her athleticism and determination quickly earned her a spot as a starter. Soccer became her escape, a way to channel her grief and confusion into something positive.

But New Orleans was a city of secrets, and Nastya soon found herself tangled in a web of drama she never saw coming. Viktor, her seemingly kind and gentle uncle, had a dark side that began to reveal itself in small, unsettling ways. She noticed the tension between him and Irina, the whispered arguments, the bruises her aunt tried to hide.

And then there was Jack Sullivan, the boy who had teased her on her first day. Jack was the school's star athlete, charismatic and infuriatingly charming. Nastya couldn't stand him at first, but there was something about him that she couldn't ignore. Their paths kept crossing in the most unexpected ways, and despite her best efforts, Nastya found herself drawn to him.

One night, after a particularly intense soccer match, Jack offered to walk Nastya home. As they walked through the dimly lit streets of the city, the tension between them was palpable.

"You know, you're pretty good for a girl who's never played hockey," Jack said with a smirk.

Nastya rolled her eyes. "And you're pretty full of yourself for someone who thinks they're God's gift to soccer."

Jack laughed, but there was something serious in his eyes. "I don't know what your story is, Russia, but I can tell you're carrying a lot. If you ever need someone to talk to..."

Nastya cut him off. "I don't need your help."

But as she walked away, she couldn't shake the feeling that Jack was different from what she'd thought. There was more to him than the cocky persona he put on, and for some reason, that scared her.

Meanwhile, back at home, things were growing more complicated. Irina confided in Nastya one night after Viktor had stormed out of the house in a rage. "He's not the man I married," Irina said quietly. "There are things about him, things I didn't know..."

Nastya was caught in the middle, torn between her loyalty to her aunt and her fear of what her uncle might be hiding. And just when she thought things couldn't get more complicated, she discovered a secret about her own past that threatened to unravel everything she thought she knew about herself and her family.

As the layers of New Orleans peeled back, revealing the darkness beneath its vibrant surface, Nastya realized that surviving in this new world would require more than just setting goals. She would have to confront the ghosts of her past, stand up for the people she loved, and decide who she really wanted to be.

But in a city where nothing is as it seems, and everyone has something to hide, the truth might be more dangerous than she ever imagined.