Cautious

Chapter 1

Pictured: Pain

Song of the Chapter: Cinderella by Steven Curtis Chapman

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A shout wakes me up and my eyes snap open.

What the-

I hop out of bed and pull open my drapes, showering the room in sunlight. Quickly tossing the blankets back on and making it look presentable, I brush my teeth and get ready for the day, going to my walk in closet to the right of my 'door' which is really more drapes, but they're controlled by a remote so I can lock the door. Grabbing a pair of capris and a baggy shirt from the hanger, I pull them on, tossing my pajamas in the hidden bucket under the beach in the middle of the circular closet. Before I leave my room, I grab a bottle of chilled tea and head down the spiral staircase to the kitchen. On my way down, I bump into someone.

"Sandrayn, watch it," I mutter, not looking up because I know my brother would be the only one up this early besides me.

"Uh..." I glance up to see a guy dressed in football gear staring at me.

"Sandrayn!" I shout, not bothered by the fact that there's a stranger in the house. My brother invites over a bunch of football guys, especially now that it's summer and it's quite annoying.

"Actually, I'm not your brother's friend. Well, I am, but..." he rambles.

"Aren't you guys supposed to be all cool and smart? Oh wait, you're hanging around Sandrayn. You are who you surround yourself with," I smirk.

"What?" Sandrayn comes in, dressed in football gear, his face covered with sweat, carrying a water bottle and he trails dirt across the sleek marble floor.

"Hey! Stop making the floor dirty!"

"We have housekeepers!"

"They do their jobs enough. Don't make it harder. You know the twins are filthy enough."

"Whatever. Why'd you call me? We have practice."

"Egeantin! Grentain! Quit slacking off! And Egeantin, I told you to get more water!" I hear my dad shout from our backyard.

Rolling my eyes, I follow Sandrayn and his friend to the backyard, but not before they get water. When I enter the backyard, I see a bunch more football players on our huge backyard, which, now that I think about it, is their size of a football field.

"Dad!" I exclaim.

"Morning, sweetie," he comes over and bends down to give me a kiss.

Okay, I'm not that short, he's just tall. I'm five foot nine, but he's six foot two.

"You brought work home?"

"I figured, you know, since you're Mom's in Thrain and... You're mad aren't you?" he trails off when he sees me glaring.

"Of course I'm mad! You brought, what? Twenty sweaty college boys home to tear up our backyard? I get that you're the coach, but please take it somewhere else. The housekeepers have enough to do as it is."

"I'm sorry sweetie, it's just that there are seven of you! I know you're the only girl and that can be difficult, just please. I'm trying to watch them and do my job, just cut me some slack. Please," he begs.

After a couple seconds, I give in.

"Fine!" I sigh loudly. "Just...don't ruin the grass."

"Promise," he smiles, kissing me on the top of my head again.

Smiling, I head to the patio and slide open the door to the bookcase before picking out 'Kill Me Softly' by Sarah Cross. Settling into a lounge chair, I set my tea next to me and begin to read.