Luna

|| Chapter 1 ||

       "Come on, Camryn! Push yourself!"

       My feet thud against the grass, sweat beading down my back, my jersey sticking to my clammy skin. I glance to my left and meet the determined face of my opponent, her eyes trained on her target in front of her. We sprint down the field side-by-side, my muscles working themselves to their max. I can hear the crowd surrounding us, some chant her name, some mine. Others sit impatiently on the edge of their seats, waiting to see how the final seconds of our game will go down. Don't let her score. Don't let her score. My goalie meets my eyes and gives a small nod in my direction, trusting me in handling our oncoming threat. I take a deep breath, supplying much needed oxygen to my heaving lungs. Then I lunge.

       The girl beside me lets out a surprised shriek as I side-step into her body, effectively cutting off her pathway. The ball at our feet, gets caught in our mess of cleats and spins out of her possession as we topple to the ground. I wince as I hit the ground rolling, her body landing on top of mine with an 'oomph'. The shrill sound of the whistle blows three times, causing the people watching to erupt in cheers. We won. In seconds, the girl's weight is hoisted off of me and I'm yanked upwards into the arms of my teammates. We won.

       I scan the mass of people, locking eyes with my parents. My father is busy packing up while my mother claps happily. I'm distracted by a strong slap to my butt and I turn before I'm engulfed into a hug.

       "You did it! Crazy bitch, I really don't see how you do it." My best friend, Sage, beams at me. I hug her back, laughing at her form of a compliment.

       "Thanks, S. Can you tell Coach I'm leaving?" I nod my head towards my parents.

       "Yeah, of course! Oh hey, there's a social tonight, I'll call you with details." She winks and bounds away to join the rest of the celebrating girls. I roll my eyes and walk over to the sidelines to grab my bag. I ignore the slight limp on my ankle and head to the car where I know my parents have already retreated to. I slide into our over-sized SUV and am immediately hit with commentary from my game.

       "You know, Camryn, you shouldn't let them get so close like that. Maybe the other girls can teach you better ways to handle yourself."

       I bite my tongue, trying to tune out their 'constructive criticism'. I've been playing soccer since I was 7 years old, now 10 years later and they still felt the need to discuss my faults and things to improve after every competition I had. My family hated mistakes, which might explain why they were so constantly annoyed with me, even though I tried my best to live up to their expectations. My iPhone buzzes from my bag, graciously distracting me from my thoughts.

*how was the competition -P*

*bad. r u home?? -C*

*yea i'll see u soon -P*

       The front doors slam shut, making me jump slightly as my parents exit the car, signaling we are home. I head up towards the back door of the Victorian style house and go right up to my bedroom to get ready to leave again. I turn on the shower and shimmy out of my navy blue uniform, a white number 15 painted on the back. My hair-tie is pulled from my thick hair, allowing it to fall over my shoulders in sweaty waves. Once the water reaches the desired temperature, I lock the bathroom door and step into the shower. The steamy water runs down my body aiding in washing away the sweat and grim from the dirt and hot sun. After spending 30 minutes standing underneath the water, I step out careful to avoid slipping with my ankle. I tug a fluffy white towel from the rack and wrap it around my body, tucking the end under my arm and running a comb best I can through my now tangled hair. My reflection stares back at me in the wide, foggy mirror. My big hazel eyes stand out against my pale skin tone and ginger red hair. I make a face and with one final tug, the comb runs freely through my hair and I smile in satisfaction. I unlock the door, freeing the humid air from the small room and make my way over to my closet. I throw on a pair of black yoga pants with the signature PINK symbol on the fold, along with a white t-shirt with Brain Camp written in purple cursive. I grab my duffel bag and stuff it full with a change of clothes, pajamas, my cosmetics and anything else I might need for the weekend. It's not unusual for me to leave for the weekend, as long as I go to a friend's. Parker always lets me stay with him, which is where I almost always end up no matter where I start.

       Parker and I have been best friends since the 3rd grade when he decided to share his FigNewtons with me. Varsity swimmer, captain of the lacrosse club, president of student council. He seemed like your typical jock until you got to know him, then he was a sweetheart. He was kind to everyone and surprisingly wasn't after all the cheerleaders in their short, peppy skirts and fake tans. Parker was like the brother I never had.

       "I'm going out!" I call from the stairs as I make my way down to the main floor and retrieve my grey Ked's from the shoe bin. I'm starting to doubt they heard me since I still haven't gotten a response. I shrug, pulling my car keys from the hook by the door and hoisting my bag over my shoulder.

       "Alright!" I hear my dad's voice yell from upstairs, probably from his office.

*on my way -C*

       I climb into my little black Cruze, sticking my key in and waiting for the engine to roar to life. I back out of the garage and pull out of our driveway heading down the road to Parker's. I turn onto his street and pull into his driveway next to his car. His house is similar to mine, except much older looking on the outside. If you ask me, it looks like something still standing from generations of the 15th century. I walk up the grass, ringing the doorbell as I reach the porch. Within seconds, the door flies open to reveal my smiling best bud.

      "I thought I told you that you could use the spare key?" With a roll of his eyes, he steps back to allow me inside the house. His brownish blonde hair is slightly ruffled, like he just rolled out of bed even though it's almost six o'clock. His light blue eyes are warm and inviting in contrast to the small stubble collecting on his prominent jawline. One look at Parker had every girl at our school drooling, shame he didn't date them.

       "Yeah, well I got lazy." I shrug, stepping over the welcome mat. I can feel his eyes on me as I kick off my shoes and place them by the door.

       "What happened to your foot?" He asks, nodding at my leg with a frown.

       "Some girl landed on me. No big deal." I wonder how he noticed. I stopped limping a while ago.

       "Cam, why are you so clumsy?" He slings an arm casually over my shoulder, steering us towards the couch.

       "Hey, it's not my fault you never get hurt." I defend myself even though he's right. He plants himself on the couch next to me, pulling my legs up into his lap.

       "So, what happened? Did you guys win?" He pushes up my pant leg, rubbing my ankle.

       "Yeah," I nod excitedly, "Another amazing save by yours truly." I smile proudly, earning myself another eye roll from him.

       "Okay, hot shot." I stick my tongue out at him childishly as my phone buzzes from the coffee table beside us. He stretches over to retrieve it, dropping it into my lap.

       "Yes ma'am?" I answer, putting the device on speaker after reading the caller ID.

       "Cami, where are you?!" Sage shrieks over the line, electronica music playing in the background. I met Sage through Parker a couple years ago and we instantly clicked even though we are total opposites. She was boy crazed and outgoing, changing the colored streaks in her dark brown hair often. Then there was me, with distinctive red hair and a closed off personality.

       "With Parker, why?" I raise my eyebrows and Parker just shrugs in amusement.

       "Adrian is throwing a party tonight. You have to come!" Sage's voice is choppy like she's distracted.

       "I don't know S..." I trail off, chewing on my bottom lip. I've never really been to a party party. Social events were not my cup of tea. I'd much rather stay at home in my pajamas.

       "Get your ass over here now, Camryn!" She says through the line, no longer posing a question, "You too, Parker!" With that, the line goes dead and I scowl at the use of my full name.

       "I guess we're going then..." He chuckles, standing up from the couch, my legs dropping to the ground along with my jaw. Oh no.