Boy *space* friend (Cameron Boyce)

my name is Margo Alexas Knight. everyone calls me Max. i'm 14 years old and i live with my brother Nathan here in Chicago. right now, we're packing up our final belongings cause tomorrow, we're moving to L. A.

"Max!" called Nathan.

"yeah?" i hollered back as i ran down the stairs to where he was. he was in the living room, sitting cross-legged  among stacks and stacks of boxes.

"hey." i said, sitting next to him. "what's up?" he was looking through the box of pictures in his hands. "so," he said.

"we're moving tomorrow. you nervous?" i sighed. "yeah, like crazy." he put his arm around me and kissed my temple. "me, too." he smiled. "just remember, i'll always have your back, kiddo." i nodded.

he turned back to the pictures. there was a family picture of us from 10 years ago. i was 4 and Nathan was 15. Nathan was standing beside my mom, his hands in his pockets. i was sitting on my dad's lap, grinning at the camera.

Nathan smiled. "you've got dad's eyes.... but you smile just like mom." of course, that brought a smile out of me.

i picked up another picture. it was a picture of my sitting on the tire swing in Aunt Leila's backyard in L.A. there was a boy trying to push me. he had dark curly hair and a sea of freckles across his nose. Cameron.

Cameron and i have been friends since we were 5. we used to hang out in L.A. in the summer when we went to visit Aunt Leila. the Boyces had a house across the street from her. i haven't seen him in two years.

"hey," Nathan said pointing at the picture. "i wonder how he is... we're gonna be neighbors with hem, you know."

i did a double take. "wait, what?" i asked. Nathan shrugged. "well, yeah. we're gonna be living next door to Aunt Leila. i'll be working longer hours in L.A. it would be good to have a responsible adult around while i'm not."  i laughed.

the truth was, Aunt Leila isn't that much older than Nathan. mom and dad were barely out of high school when they had Nathan. luckily, Papa and Nonni were good to them and they helped them get by. Aunt Leila is only 7 years older than Nathan. she's a really cool aunt.the rest of this summer should be really fun and on top of that i would get to hang out with Cam and Maya.... i was getting excited.

Nathan patted my knee. "go get some sleep." he said. "we're leaving early tomorrow." i nodded and kissed his cheek before i jogged back upstairs.

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i changed into my pyjamas and set out my outfit for the next day. i looked around my room for the last time before i layed down and closed my eyes.

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BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

i woke the next morning to the sound of my alarm. moving day. i got up and washed up. as i was brushing my teeth, my phone beeped. it was Aunt Leila.

hey squirt. excited to see you guys this afternoon! xo, Leila.

i laughed to myself. she never called herself Aunt Leila. neither did Nathan. i was the only one in the world who called her Aunt Leila which is why she always joked that i was her favorite niece. it was funny because well... i was her only niece.

i texted her back.

hey Aunt Leila. i'm really excited too! i hear we'll be next-door neighbors!

she texted back.

yeah! isn't that great? speaking of neighbors, the Boyce kids have been buzzing about you coming for the past week! Cameron and Maya are so excited to see you again!

i smiled at that.

i'm really excited to see them too! :) i'll see you guys when we get there. xx, Max.

i put down my phone and got dressed. i found an army green muscle tee with a big white star on it and wore it over a white cropped cami. i wore denim booty shorts and low-cut black Converses. i grabbed my sunglasses and my grey Nike sports bag.

i jogged downstairs and found Nathan helping the moving team load our boxes into the truck. sat down by the front steps as i pulled my wavy brown hair into a pony tail.

when the last of the boxes went into the truck, Nathan sat beside me, panting. "time's it?" he asked me, wiping sweat from his brow. i checked my watch. "7:30" i said. he got up suddenly. "shoot! c'mon we gotta go!"

he ran into the house and grabbed his backpack and dropped the keys into the mailbox. he grabbed my wrist and pulled me along. i hailed a cab and we set off for the airport.