Fighting to go on

First chapter of edited version

Hey everyone! I finally got the first chapter of the new version of this book done! It took waaay longer than I expected because I was trying to create a Sammy that I really liked. I think I finally succeeded. With this first chapter you can see that she's a much different person than she was in the original version. I'm also changing how the relationship with Jason, making it not the typical kind of abuse that you usually see in books. Let me know what you think of this chapter. I'll post the next chapter as well, since it'll be in Ryan's POV and you'll get a chance to see what he's like now. Enjoy!

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Prologue

They say everything happens for a reason. That when one door closes, another one opens. Or some people have to leave your life to make room for others. Quite honestly, I believed that was bullshit until I was seventeen. I mean, what possible reason could there have been for my mother to die when I was fifteen? And why would moving from place to place for the next two years open any doors? But when we made one final fateful move a few days before my last year of high school, I began to think that maybe what everyone said about fate and all that stuff was actually true. Because on that first day of school, my life changed forever. I just didn't realize it right away. It all started when I woke up that morning...

Chapter one

When the alarm went off, it took me a couple of minutes to get up. Normally I would bounce out of bed as soon as I woke up, but I was sore and tired so I wasn't as spry as usual. I finally managed to shut it off and heaved myself out of bed with a groan. I grabbed my robe and slipped it on before shuffling out the door and down the hall to my brothers room. I knocked on the door and then opened it without waiting for a reply. Charlie was one of those people who could sleep through an earthquake, so I knew it would take more than just a single knock to get him up.

Sure enough, he was sprawled facedown on his bed, the covers half flung off him. "Charlie, it's time to getup," I told him. His only response was a grunt so I went up to the bed and grabbed his pillow, yanking it out from under his head. "Get up, lazy bones. We need to get ready for school."

One eye cracked open to glare at me. "I don't want to go to another new fucking school."

I whacked him with the pillow. "Language! And I don't care if you don't want to go; we have to. Or do you want social services to come for a visit?"

He sat up and rubbed his hands over his face. "No, but only because I don't want them to split us up."

"Then get up and get ready. If you want to have a shower then you need to get your ass in gear. I'll get dressed then make you some toast."

After he grumbled his agreement I went back into my room and got dressed, then headed down to the kitchen. I put bread in the toaster and then grabbed one of the last few apples to munch on. By the time the toast was ready Charlie was coming down the stairs, freshly showered and dressed. We ate in silence, with Charlie watching me closely to see how sore I was. I'd popped some painkillers so it wasn't too bad anymore, and he obviously figured I was okay because he didn't say anything.

When we were done, he put the dishes in the dishwasher and then we grabbed our bags and headed out the door. Since I didn't have a vehicle of my own, we had to walk to the school. Luckily it was only a fifteen minute walk and the weather was still nice out, so it wasn't unpleasant.

We arrived at the school and stopped before going in the front doors. "Try to stay out of trouble," I told my brother.

"Try and make some friends this time," he replied.