The Rainbow Shot

Chapter 1

Labor Day. The unofficial end of summer.

Clarke was riding her bicycle down Old Oaks Drive, leaving her friend Octavia's house after their last sleepover of the summer; a tradition they had been keeping every year ever since 1st grade when they vowed to be best friends forever, sealing the deal with a pinky swear.

Back then, she hated going back home after having spent the night at her friend's house, because it meant that their carefree days were officially over with the school district resuming classes the Tuesday following Labor Day.

Now, at the age of 16, Clarke couldn't wait to go back to school; in fact, she would've done pretty much anything to be able to fast forward the remaining two years of high school and get on a plane to Los Angeles. Considering that was not an option, all that was left to do was to train hard and get the attention of a basketball scout who would offer her a full scholarship for the University of California where she would get into the best Fine Arts Program in the country.

That was THE PLAN.

The big plan that was going to be her ticket out of Houston.

Something that she had been working on for the last two years and hadn't shared with anyone but her two best friends, Octavia and Raven, who had given her their full support and even considered joining her in her adventure.

Clarke felt more close than ever to making her dream come true, especially since she was recruited into Varsity a year ago, which was the high school basketball team, comprised of the 10 best players from all grade levels, leaving the Junior Varsity behind.

Her mother Abby was not a big fan of Clarke's enthusiasm for the sport, as she would've preferred seeing her along her two best friends in the cheer squad, supporting The Mustangs, the boys football team and pride of Memorial High School.

Her father Jake, on the other hand, was glad to see his older daughter excited about basketball, reminding him of his great potential for a career in football, which unfortunately remained unexplored when he sustained a devastating knee injury in his first year of college, forcing him to put his dreams aside and take over the family's very successful car dealership business.

Despite dreading the possibility of his daughter suffering the same fate, he felt proud every time he saw her on the basketball court and attended every single one of her games, giving her his absolute support.

As Clarke turned to Cobblestone Drive, she felt thankful for the tall oak trees on both sides of the road, keeping the hot Texas sun away from her light complexion all the way to her house. She couldn't help but notice the white rental van parked in front of the neighbor's house that had been empty since earlier that year, when its owner, Mr. Pike, was arrested for embezzlement of his company funds, leading it to bankruptcy.

It was something unexpected in the neighborhood, although Clarke was not surprised any more than Octavia and Raven with whom she had once spoken about their impressions after meeting him.

She never really liked Mr. Pike, in fact, she found him to be an arrogant and self-centered man, apart from that "something" in his eyes that made her so uneasy every time she crossed paths with him on the way home. Nevertheless, the truth was that despite her own impressions, he had managed to get in the neighbors' good graces, who had accepted him quickly, attending his occasional most ostentatious party that would be talked about for weeks.

"Appearances..." she thought.

She hated that in others as much as he hated it in her own mother, who did her best to make sure that the only thing everyone talked about throughout the year was her Annual "Labor Day" party - a federal holiday that was celebrated on the first Monday in September - and a party Clarke would hate with all her might if it weren't for her friends being there.