Justice's POV
"Oh, my precious baby! All grown up and heading to college." My mother says as she smothers me with hugs and kisses. "Ok, ok, that's enough. You have to let her breathe a little hon." My dad interrupts and calls for Leo, my big brother. "Come on Leo, say goodbye to your sister before you head to work!"
"I'm coming!" Leo walks out with a suit on, looking sharp. "Aww, my little sis is all grown up. You know, when I was going off to college, Mom and Dad weren't nearly this sad." He gave our parents the side eye.
"Hush, boy." My mom smacked Leo on the back of the head. She wrapped her arms around everyone. "Everything is perfect right now. I love y'all."
Everything is perfect right now. I love y'all. My mom's words echoed in my brain.
Wait... something's not right. I watch as my parents walk away, shouting at me, and Leo vanishes. I started hearing my parents' voices surround me. If you had been more helpful, we could still be a family. Why would we stay with you after you ruined our lives? You are a disappointment, every moment spent with you is a moment of my life wasted. Mom and Dad's words kept replaying in my head until I shot up out of my bed, realizing it was all a dream.
Of course it was. I haven't seen mom since I was 5. And I've never met my father. It's just me and my brother Leo. Leo was the only real thing from my dream, except he's nothing like that in real life. I haven't seen him genuinely happy in years and the only time he goes out is if it's for work or with me.
Don't get me wrong, I love my brother. We really are alike, but Leo is just so closed off to everyone except me. I'm quiet and don't have any friends but I'm not cold and rejective of everyone like he is. He changed when we got put into the system. He was 17, so no one wanted to adopt him and he never lived with a different family. But I was 8, and a cute little girl appeals to families, at least at first. Behind closed doors, I was just another tax write-off. I was with 2 families over the span of a year, before my brother turned 18, got me, and became my legal guardian.
I don't know what happened to him in the year that we were apart, but my fun-loving brother, was gone. The brother that enrolled me in dance classes and took me for walks in the park had disappeared.
I turned on my side, about to let my thoughts take over me again when I saw the time. 7:48 AM. I knew I had to get up soon if I wanted to finish packing before Leo takes me to my new apartment for the year.
My feet touch the cold floor, and I shiver. I walk into my closet and pick out an outfit. I do my morning skin and hair routine and head downstairs to be greeted by the sight of my brother leaning on the kitchen counter.
"Hey." Leo waves in response. "You ready to go?" He asks.
I look up at him and sheepishly smile. "Why you making that face?" He asks. Then realization dawned on him. "I know I told you to finish packing last night."
"I know, but I needed your help with the big stuff, and you weren't here." He groaned and stood up off of the counter.
"Ugh, come on. Let's go." He starts walking up the steps to my room. I follow as quickly as I can with my short legs.
We spend the next hour boxing up the rest of my things. Leaving the bed, the dresser, nightstand, and desk, knowing I will have all those things in the apartment Leo bought me for my sophomore year.
After everything is loaded in Leo's truck, we start the long drive to my college, to get my classes for this semester, then to my apartment 10 minutes away from campus.
At my apartment, we unload all the boxes into the unit. I take a look around before unpacking. It's fairly small, and it's very homey. There is hardwood flooring and white walls in all the spaces. There is a small living room with a tv, couch, coffee, table, and fluffy rug, that was apart of the kitchen space as well. The kitchen had a fridge/freezer, a stove, and a microwave, and a few cupboards. Then there was a doorway that led to my bedroom. The bedroom had a full sized bed, a dresser, and a desk facing the window. The two doors in the room led to a closet and a full bathroom.
I ran back outside where Leo was sitting on the hood of his truck on his phone, and gave him a giant hug. "I love it!" I gave him a big cheesy smile. "Thanks for getting me this apartment. It's perfect."
"No problem J. Promise me if you run into any trouble, you gonna call me. And no boys. I don't want to have to come up here cause you don't know how to act."
"I promise no boys. And I know how to act dummy. But you know you're not gonna be able to keep me hidden forever, right?"
Leo pushes my head playfully. "You can get the rest of your stuff set up by yourself?" He asks as he prepares to leave. "Yeah, I'll be fine."
He pulls me into one last hug. "I love you sis. Be safe."
"Love you too!" He drove away after that. Leaving me to unpack.
Now... what to do with this room?
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First Chapter!!! So excited to start this journey with you guys. Give me your constructive feedback in the comments, or whatever (respectful) message you would like.
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Bye my lovelies,
Janelle Paisley
YOU ARE READING
Kingdoms & Ghettos
Romance"Justice!" I don't respond, keeping my back to the door. "You can't stop me Dylan." My voice breaking once I said his name. "It's the only thing that makes it feel better." "Would about being with me?" I can hear the hope in his voice, and I know t...
