New town. New school. Same routine-until Charlotte Galloway catches the attention of Lucas Andrews and Aiden Woods, two of Brookhaven High's most notorious bad boys.
She never expected to be caught in the middle of their game. She definitely never e...
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It was one of those overly bright mornings that illuminated everything with an almost mocking intensity. I sat in the driver’s seat of my white Honda Civic, watching as the city I had known for nearly all seventeen years of my life faded into the background. The sound of my younger brother, Liam, arguing with our eight-year-old sister, Grace, drifted to my ears from the backseat. The symphony of their squabbling was a familiar one, yet today felt different. Today was the day we would leave it all behind.
“Charlotte, why is the car so slow?” Grace whined, her bright blue eyes peering up at me like a lost puppy. “I want to see our new house!”
“Because we’re stuck behind this truck,” I replied, shooting a glance at the enormous moving van that trundled along in front of us, its back cramped with our furniture—the remnants of our life in the city packed tightly like a can of sardines. I felt a tightness in my chest, a resentment toward the truck for being so imprecise and slow in ferrying away the last bits of my childhood home. It was as if it had taken on a personality of its own: lurching at a snail’s pace, dragging out my departure.
Liam leaned forward, his freckled face barely visible over the top of Grace’s curls. “You should be excited, Lottie! A whole new place to explore, new friends—”
“Yeah! New friends! They might even have a trampoline!” Grace added, her excitement bubbling over. But inside, I felt like a deflated balloon. I had been the new girl so many times that I could write a book about it. How to navigate the politics of middle school lunch tables, or how to awkwardly join a group at recess. As we drove away from everything I had known, I knew that my heart just wasn’t ready for another uprooting.
Ahead of us, my parents’ car signaled a turn, leading us out of the heart of the city. The buildings began to shrink, morphing into a landscape of sprawling green fields and quaint houses. Brookhaven was supposed to be a picturesque small town, a far cry from the hectic bustle of urban life. But to me, it felt like a prison of loneliness waiting to swallow me whole.
After what felt like hours, we finally pulled up to our new home, a modest two-story house with a white picket fence that seemed to cheerfully wave us over. I parked, still clutching the steering wheel, my heart pounding as the engine idled.
“Hey! Last one in is a rotten egg!” Liam shouted as he flung open the car door, racing toward the front steps. Grace squealed and followed at lightning speed, her pigtails bouncing behind her like cheerful little flags. I sat still for a moment, absorbing the sight of them tumbling excitedly up the steps, a dynamic duo consulting only their spirits of adventure.
I stepped out of the car, feeling the heat of the sun wrap around me like a thick blanket. Everyone was already piling into the house, laughter and shouts echoing within its walls. I hung back, watching the spectacle unfold, until finally drawing in a deep breath and walking up the path.
The front door creaked as I pushed it open, and I entered the house to find it in chaos. Boxes labeled with indecipherable scrawl were strewn across the room, while my parents attempted to wrangle the furniture into semblances of order. “Charlotte!” my dad called, waving me over. “Can you help us unpack? I could use an extra set of hands.”
“No thanks,” I mumbled absentmindedly before slipping past him, that familiar pang of guilt bubbling up. I wasn’t tired. I was just… overwhelmed. I climbed the narrow staircase, taking each step almost reluctantly, my new surroundings dimming my enthusiasm.
From upstairs, I could hear Grace’s laughter—great peals of joy accompanied by the thundering of little feet, most likely finding her way into the room she declared would be hers. Liam’s voice joined in, probably trying to distract her from exploring every little nook and cranny she could find.
With a push, I opened the door to the first bedroom I came upon, heartsick by the absence of any charm or personality—the bare walls practically humming in loneliness. It didn’t feel like mine.
I wandered through a couple more rooms, each more uninspiring than the last, but soon found a space at the end of the hall. The sunlight streamed through a small window, casting soft shadows across the floor. I inhaled the stale scent of paint and dust, and it felt—right.
As I set my heavy backpack down, the corners of my mouth twitched into a smile. This would be my sanctuary, my escape when everything felt too much. I walked over to the window, staring out at the little garden below, marred by weeds but still bursting with potential.
Voices from downstairs interrupted my thoughts, and my heart sank. I could hear Grace squealing about her room, while Liam jested about how he wanted to have a basketball hoop installed. They didn’t need me for that— they had each other. I held a scab of longing that only seemed to thicken when I tried to peel it away.
I closed my eyes and leaned against the wall, the resonance of laughter echoing in my ears. I could almost picture us standing together again in the backyard of our old house, climbing into the gnarled branches of the big oak tree that had stood as our secret fortress for years.
I took a deep breath, forcing myself to step back into reality. It was time to be Lottie, the big sister. That meant I needed to help them settle in, even if my heart wasn’t truly in it.
As I exited my new, empty room, I felt the cool air rush over me, reminding me that change was just a breath away. I drew up the courage—and I stepped back into the fray of laughter and uproar that would be my new normal.
Perhaps Brookhaven wouldn’t be so bad after all. Maybe, just maybe, there was room for me in its story, too.
I trudged downstairs, ready to join the chaos in my own embarking adventure, but tucked away the gnawing feeling at the back of my mind. To move again was always a risk, but it was one I was willing to take. After all, who knows what Brookhaven would bring?
