Where the heart lies

Chapter 1

It was the summer of my sophomore year. Sixteen and the only thing on my mind was hanging out with my friends and longing for the boy who had my heart. If only he knew how I felt. Or rather, if he even knew I existed!

Jeremiah.

That was his name. Green eyes that looked like emeralds, dirty blonde hair that you just wanted to run your fingers through, 5'11 and muscular, every girl's fantasy. At least it was my fantasy, but he was real. Oh so real. 

I was at my best friend Lily's house, like usual, getting ready for what was going to be the best night of our lives - at sixteen anyway.

"Lily can I try on that black dress?" I asked loudly over the music playing, "Sure, Freya! I think it'll look so hot on you!" She answered with just a touch of jealousy in her tone.

Lily has been my best friend since Elementary school - third grade to be exact - when I moved from Florida to New Jersey. She came up to me my first day and asked how I got to be so tan, needless to say we've been friends ever since. Little did she know then, that my tan was natural.

Lily's strawberry blonde hair and dark blue eyes, that glistened with a hint of green specs when the sun hit them, contrasted beautifully on her pale milky skin. I've always been jealous of her gorgeous features considering I've had brown hair and brown eyes for my entire existence but Lily always joked and said that she would always be jealous of my olive skin tone from my Hispanic side, so it works out that I'll always be jealous of her eye color.

I tried on her black dress and stood in front of her mom's floor length mirror. It was tight and just long enough to cover my butt, with skinny straps at my shoulders and a low cut, it showed what little breasts I had - yet another reason to envy Lily. She developed way before me, sixteen and already a C cup where I was just getting into an A cup. I frowned in the mirror as I lifted the dress up over my chest.

"Freya, it looks so good! You have to wear that to the party!" Her voice was filled with excitement from across the room. A mascara wand in her hand hovering in the air as if she stopped mid apply to scan my body, she stood there in awe.

"Isn't it just a little too big on top though?" I asked slightly embarrassed. Shuttering at the gap between my breasts and the thin material of the dress. Looking down I sighed, making the gap known by pulling it away and then pulling it tighter to show the extra material.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Lily never failed to put me in my place when I was feeling insecure, " I wish I had your butt! Your curves fill out that dress so well, don't worry about the top. I'll beat up anyone who says something!" she finished with a wink. Lily and I may have always been envious of each other for some things but when it came to other people, we would always have each other's back and no one would dare say anything about us.

Lily and I finished getting ready an hour later. Me in the black, skinny strap dress (that I secretly pinned to make sure my non-existent breasts didn't pop out) paired with some black converse sneakers and her in a yellow plaid skirt with a black crop top with high heels. She borrowed her mom's keys and we ran out the door before her mom, Deb, could get the chance to ask us any questions. We got into the blue ford minivan and drove to the beach where Chris, Lily's crush, was having his huge party. We were blasting music all the way down, singing at the top of our lungs that I swore we weren't going to have voices by the time we arrived. Everything ranging from Paramore, to The Fray, Evanescence, Beyoncé, Shaggy and Christina Aguilera. I had even gotten Lily hooked on some Spanish music.

When we finally got to Chris's party, it was like a scene from a movie. Bonfires on the beach-basically every single person from our high school was there - beer in bottles and kegs, loud music and people running into the ocean after throwing their clothes on the sand. My eyes took in the full scene in front of me and my stomach fluttered with excitement.