Reality

Chapter One

Gentle waves lapped against the smooth, rounded-off pebbles that crunched beneath Hunter's feet as she shifted in her chair. As the cold lake water rushed over her numb toes and the pages to her book crinkled when they were tugged by the wind, she could not help but feel a twinge of excitement fill her chest. She was not entirely sure what was the direct cause of the sudden emotion filling her every limb and sending her heart racing―perhaps it was the romance novel that she was reading or the light blue color of the sky or the thought of school tomorrow. Whatever it was, it made her smile.

She had never minded being alone, as it left her with more time to read her romance novels and create a plot on how to score the perfect girl or guy. Isn't that what every teenage girl did, though? Aline sure hoped so, as it was one of the only things that she truly did in her spare time. It was lonely at times, mostly after she finished one of her books and was left with nothing to look forward to. No matter how many books she read, she could never find a guy as dreamy as Fletcher King or Eric Potwickz. They were so gorgeous, inside and out, and she dreamed that her true love―her soulmate―would be just like them. Was that too much to ask for? Probably, but a girl could dream.

As she flipped the page, cringing at the way her dry fingers brushed against the brittle paper, her phone buzzed in her pocket. Her eyes practically rolled into the back of her head as she pulled it out and immediately set about reading the text from her best friend. Vicky always understood her better than anyone, she reckoned, and even shared her taste in men. However, she did not want to set her book down.

'Bored as hell,' the text read. The message made Hunter smile, as she could just picture her friend laying on her bed as she stared at the wall in despair.

'Come over. Almost finished with 'The Rapture' it's so good....'

Vicky's reply was almost instantaneous. 'omw!'

With another smile, Hunter set her phone down and turned her attention back to her book. Why couldn't every man be like Eric Potwickz? Maybe because the world could not handle all of that perfection.

As lost in her book as she was, she did not hear the car pull up or the sound of walking until Vicky plopped down on the lawn chair beside her. Due to their constant visits to the lake outside Hunter's house, her and her friends had permanently moved lawn chairs out onto the bank.

"So how do you like it?" asked an excited Vicky, her brown eyes bright with excitement as she looked rapidly from the book to Hunter and back again. "Love it? It's great, isn't it?"

"Why can't I have my own Eric?" Hunter whined, slumping in her seat, "Or even...what was the guy from the last book? Pierce Jackson? He was so amazing!"

Vicky smiled knowingly, pulling her black hair into a bun. For reason unknown to Hunter, her best friend was fond of keeping her hair as dark as possible. "I know," she told her, "I don't understand why we can't find guys like that?"

"You mean perfect? Sexy as hell?" supplied Hunter, her heart beating faster at just the thought of being with such a man. Why wasn't she lucky?

Falling backwards dramatically in her seat, Vicky looked over at her. "Protective?" she asked dreamily, her brown eyes focused on something that was just over Hunter's shoulder, but if she had her guess, Vicky was not looking at anything in particular. "Built? Dangerous? Loving?"

Hunter smiled sadly. "I wish we were lucky enough to have those in a guy."

"Hey! At least you found people worth looking at. I haven't spotted a fucking keeping within miles of this damn town. You have your eyes set on that Chris guy and...I don't remember the other."

"Her name's Heather," Hunter chimed in with a shrug of her shoulders, "but I don't know which one I like better. Heather's beautiful and funny but Chris is...athletic and charming. Why can't I have both?"

Vicky laughed at that, showing off her gapped teeth. "What? Like polygamy? I don't think either would like that much."

Hunter waved her off with a broad smile, smoothing her brown wavy hair from her eyes. "Shh. It doesn't matter what they want! It's all about me and my needs."

"Good luck with that."

A comfortable silence enveloped them as Hunter thought about what they had just been talking about. Why was it that she couldn't find someone like from her books? Surely there had to be someone out there for her, someone perfect for her. Someone smart and loving, but also protective and even a hint of possessive. She liked the thought of a guy loving her so much that he didn't want to share her with other guys, to let her go easily. It made her tingle with happiness and excitement. She'd just have to wait. After all, her mom had told her that college was the best place to meet people.

As long as her and Vicky sticked together, however, she didn't care what happened in college.

* * *

"Dinner!" her mother called up to her and Hunter released a sigh of annoyance. She didn't feel like going downstairs, leaving her comfortable cocoon of blankets. Her mother, however, would come up and drag her down if she did not hurry.

Setting her book aside, Hunter crawled out of her blanket and immediately trotted down the cold, hardwood stairs. Just behind her, she could her hear her sister stumble. Hunter suppressed a grin as she jumped down the last two steps and headed into the kitchen. Her mother was too busy spooning peas onto her plate to take notice and her father's nose was buried in the newspaper.

"What's for dinner?" demanded Kara as she shoved past Hunter and grabbed a plate from the cupboard. Their father made a noncommittal hum and took a sip of coffee as if that answered his daughter's question.

"Perhaps if you would help me, you'd know roast was for dinner," shot back their mom, her sharp eyes fixing on both Kara and Hunter. The disapproval there was enough to make her skin crawl in anger. "Fill your plates, let's go. It'll get cold."

After they got their plates, Hunter and Kara seated themselves at the table. Despite the fact that dinner had officially started, her father continued to read. Ever since Hunter could remember, her father had shown little interest in family activities. She knew the reason why, of course, and tried hard not to take offense. He did, after all, enjoy spending time with only Hunter and Kara. Just not when their mother was involved. Their marriage was rocky at best, but they stayed together in order to keep their kids happy.

"Put that down, Paul," their mother snapped, glaring at their father through the newspaper. She shoved a piece of roast in her mouth and chewed without looking away.

Hunter rolled her eyes and focused on her food. When she moved out and started her own family, she would never be like her family. They would be happy and her and her husband would love each other forever. Not see other people behind each other's backs and ignore each other for days and sleep in the same bed.

She would be happy.