Chapter 1

New Face, New Place

Rating - T

The taxi pulled up outside The Dog In The Pond pub. Marie Roberts looked outside the window at her new destination. At 21, she was ready to spread her wings and fly away. Now she was looking at Hollyoaks Village and not knowing what to expect...

"Err...Are you sure this is Hollyoaks, Chester?" Marie asked, fiddling with one of her dark blonde pigtails.

"There's only one Hollyaoks Village, love!" laughed the large Taxi Driver.

He got out of his seat and headed to the boot of the car. He pulled out Marie's two pink suitcases and waited, tapping his foot. Marie opened the taxi door and steppedout. The sun was shining, gleaming on the buildings and houses. It looked like a nice village, but Marie wasn't so sure whether she had made the right move or night...

"Ah em..." said the Taxi Driver, clearing his throat

"Oh, sorry..." said Marie, dragging her suitcases over to the driver, "Whats the fare?"

"£32.50, love" smirked the Taxi Driver. Marie opened her handbag and reluctantly handed the cash over. The taxi driver counted the money, smugly, while Marie, £32.50 lighter, collected her suitcases and wheeled them along. She saw a free bench outside the pub, and grabbed it before anyone else could. As she sat down, she breathed a heavy sigh and watched as the taxi drove off away from the village.

"No going back now!" sighed Marie.

She opened her pink flower handbag and rummaged through its many compartments. At last, she pulled up the yellow Post-It note from the dark depths of her handbag. On the post it, was the address of Calvin Valentine - an old friend from school. Calvin and Marie had met up when they were in High School and had become mates ever since. Calvin had always liked Marie as more than a friend, but after a disasterous proposal from Calvin to be more than just 'good friends', they both decided just to be 'good mates'. When Clavin moved away, he promised to keep in touch with Marie and after a long phone-call, Calvin suggested to Marie that she come and live in Hollyoaks. Marie had recently decided to move away from the clutches of her neurotic parents, but with no roof under her head, she accepted Calvin's offer of a room. Marie agreed to pay some of the mortgage and to help around the house - it was the least she could do after the death of their mother...

Marie dusted her jeans off and stood up, rolling her suitcases with her. As Marie began to walk, she looked up at all the buildings: a shop called The Drive n' Buy, what looked like a nightclub called The Loft...

Suddenly Marie's phone rang. She stopped and started to rummage her handbag: if only to silence the embarassing ringtone her friends put on for her...

'I will have to sort that out...' thought Marie to herself. She looked at her phone. It was Calvin calling...

"Hello?" answered Marie, trying to pick up the contents of her handbag which she had now just dropped.

"Found your way here, yet?" laughed Calvin

"Yeah, the ripp-off Taxi driver just dropped me here...I'm pretty well lost though"

" Okay. Where are you now? Can you tell me the name of a shop or building you are close by to?"

Marie stood puzzled. "Errr...The Drive n' Buy?"

"Okay. You are nearly near the flat, just carry on walking until you get to a big wall. Don't go past it, otherwise you would have gone too far..."

Marie clutched her mobile phone as she tried to wheel the two suitcases. People in the street were starting to stare at her. 'Oh no... I'm the latest attraction...'

Calvin's voice suddenly chirped from her phone. "Marie, are you still there?"

"Yeah, yeah...I'm still here. I'm come to a wall, now!"

Marie stood looking at a massive brick wall. She looked up at the mass of stairs she would have to get up...

"Oh. Fantastic." Marie sighed

"What was that?" Calvin answered

"Oh nothing! Sorry, not you...Just the locals think that the Circus has come to town looking at my two suitcases and me!" laughed Marie, parking her suitcases near the wall.

"Oh! Suitcases! I'll come down to help you with those! Bye!"

Marie put her phone away and waited patiently for Calvin to come out of one of the two flats. She unbuttoned her coat and tied it around her waist. The temperature outside was starting to rise and Marie could instantly feel the heat on her. She had really done it. She had moved away from her parents and started a new life. Now she was starting to regret whether Hollyoaks was the place to start her new life in...She could have gone anywhere. London. Bath. Birmingham. Rome. But why she had chosen Hollyoaks, Marie would never know...

Calvin came down the stairs and flashed a smile to Marie. He looked different...He looked taller, or maybe it was just the stairs... He was wearing a white shirt and black trousers - it was obvious he was in his police uniform. Marie looked down at herself. She wondered if she had changed... Right now though, she looked like a wondering gypsy woman...

"Hey!" Calvin called as he gave Marie a hug. Marie smiled. The hug was reassuring. It made her feel a little easier...

"I am so sorry about Diane..." Marie said as she came away from the hug. "Are you sure you still want me here? Won't I be in the way?"

"Nah, of course not!" Calvin said picking up one of her suitcases.

Marie picked up her other suticase and started to drag it up the steps. "Look, I won't be a burden. I will chip in with the mortgage, find a job and find a new-"

"Hey! Relax... Don't worry! I can trust you...its just my father who I don't trust. He keeps trying to come and stay again." said Calvin sullenly

"Oh. Look, I don't want to come in between of you and your father. I'll find another place if you like!"

"No no no...You're staying here" said Calvin triumphantly

"Thank-you, again!" smiled Marie

Calvin and Marie reached the flat and Calvin opened the door. Inside, the flat was perfect. In showhome condition. The walls looked freshly painted and the house had a nice feel to it. Photos of the family were neatly on a wooden cabinet. A modern kitchen was situated to the side of the room. Two sofas were organised neatly around the TV. A dining table was situated near the window, with four chairs around it. A set of stairs led up to the bedrooms and bathroom.

"Here it is...home" Calvin announced. Marie looked around. The house seemed like how Diane would have wanted it to be. Marie had met Diane many times as she went round to Calvin's house a lot when they were teenagers. Diane was always very friendly towards her and Marie often chatted to her. Marie always remembered how Diane always used to be in the garden: either gardening or just sitting outside, reading a book and she would always offer Marie something to eat or drink. Marie felt it hard to believe that she was gone...

Sonny came tearing down the stairs. He was wearing a 'Lakers' basketball vestop and had a heavy gold chain around his neck. He also wore baggy khaki trousers with a chain from the pocket and some white pristine-condition trainers. He was also wearing a beanie hat. He looked at Marie up and down. He stared at her as if she was a creature from the Amazon...

"Sonny, you remember Marie?" Calvin said staring at Sonny, hinting for him to say hello.

"Yo.." replied Sonny and went off to the kitchen.

Marie waved back at Sonny, putting on a smile.

Calvin rolled his eyes and followed Sonny. "Did you remember to tidy upstairs and hoover the floor?"

Sonny grabbed a carton of orange juice and shut the fridge door. "Duh...If you actually went up the stairs, you would see it is tidy, yea!" He poured himself a glass of orange juice and gulped it down in one.

"Stop cheeking me, Sonny!" hissed Calvin, quietly. Calvin turned around and smiled at Marie again. "I'll show you to your room..."

Marie heaved her suitcase off the floor and carefully made her way up the stairs and nearly collapsed as she pushed her suitcase up from the last step to the landing. The landing lead to six white doors, three on the left, three on the right.

"I'll give you the grand tour..." smiled Calvin. "The first door on the left is..." He opened the small door "...an airing cupboard, where all the towels and linen are kept"

He closed the door and moved to the next door. "The second door on the left is..." He opened the door and Marie saw a brightly coloured purple and cream room with music posters and pictures of flowers in frames...

"Sascha's room"

Marie took one last look of the room. It was neatly kept and had a big double bed in the middle with purple sheets on. On the bed, were an MP3 Player and a notebook. There were two little purple lamps on nightstands on each side of the bed. In the far corner, was a massive wardrobe.

Calvin closed the door and moved to the next room. "The last door on the left is..." He opened the door and inside was a room with so much clutter; it looked like someone had burgled into it. Boxed filled the room and endless posters filled every inch of wall in the room. The room was painted, but Marie couldn't make out what colour it was. There was a small double bed, which took up lots of the space. A stereo was still switched on and was blasting loud rap music. Calvin's eyes widened and he quickly shut the door, ashamed of the mess.

"Sonny's room..." Calvin said under his breath. He moved onto the right side. "Now, opposite Sonny's room..." He opened the white door, "Is my room..." The room was plain white and had a black iron double bed in the middle of the room. There were black curtains and in the far corner was a wooden wardrobe. Some photos of family were on the windowsill. It looked like nobody lived in there. Calvin closed the door and moved to the next door down. "Next to my room...is the bathroom. You have to get up early if you want to use the bathroom first...Sonny and Sascha take forever..."

The bathroom was painted a baby blue shade. The toilet and bath looked sparkling white... however the sink had two bottles of hair gel floating on top of the water. A razor was lying next to the tap and bits of hair seemed to cover the sink...

Calvin's face looked horrified when he saw the sink. "I'll have him for this!...SONNY!" Calvin shouted down the stairs. No answer. Calvin sighed and stood at the last door. "Last, but not least...Your room"

He opened the door to reveal a lovely silver and white room. It had freshly put on white sheets and little silver cushions on the bed. There was a little lamp on a silver nightstand and there was a fitted white double wardrobe. "You get the luxury of the only room with the fitted wardrobes..." Calvin smiled. Marie smiled at the room. It was perfect. She wheeled her two pink suitcases in and looked out the window. She was going to have to grow to like Hollyoaks.

"I'll leave you to get settled in..." Calvin said as he closed the door.

Marie sat down on the bed and sighed. At least now she had somewhere to stay... She sat up and opened her handbag. She pulled out a notebook and a pen. She started writing a list:

'Things I have to do'

1. Get a Job!

2. Once you are earning, pay a quarter or at least half of the mortgage and utility bills

3. Start looking for any available flats - rent only

4. Join a gym

5. Find new friends

Marie didn't do too badly in her GCSE's: She got 2 A's, 5 B's and 1 C. She didn't want to do A Levels - which her parents constantly nagged about and so she decided to go to college and train as a beauty therapist. After finishing college, she got a job in a salon for a while: but after the boss from hell, she decided to quit and move away. Now, here in Hollyoaks, Marie kept asking this question to herself: 'What now?'

After a sleep, Marie went downstairs to find Calvin cooking. Sonny had re-appeared and was playing a video game. Marie walked down the stairs and instantly, Sonny stopped and stared at her again. Marie looked down at herself, to see what Sonny was staring at. Calvin walked over to Sonny and gave him a small shove.

"Oww, man! What was that for!" moaned Sonny

"Get. Back. To. Your. Game. Now..." hissed Calvin. He turned at smiled at Marie. "How was your nap?"

"Useful..." smiled Marie

"I've got some pasta for tea...would you like to join us?"

"I already eaten..." Sonny interrupted

"Sonny! You knew I was cooking!" protested Calvin

"I had a burger and fries before I came home..." smirked Sonny

Calvin shook his head and sighed. "Anyway, would you like to join the three of us for dinner?"

"That would be great!" smiled Marie

"Make yourself at home..." said Calvin, going back to the kitchen.

Marie sat down on the cream armchair. Her phone vibrated in her jeans pocket and she quickly got her phone out. It was a text from her friend, Amy:

'How's the new life in Hollyoaks? A xx'

Marie couldn't be bothered to reply back. She sighed and stuffed her mobile back into her pocket. As soon as she did that, her phone rang. She quickly grabbed her phone - her mad friend Rudi had put 'The Cheeky Song - by the Cheeky Girls' as her ringtone - after a drunken karaoke night when she sang that song and fell off the stage, Rudi found it absolutely hilarious and secretly put it on her phone. Now, she couldn't work out how to change it... Sonny stared as she tried to shut up her phone. It was her mum calling...

"I'll call her later..." said Marie quietly, "Oh! For the record, I don't like The Cheeky Girls...just some mad mate put in on my phone..." Marie laughed nervously. Sonny raised one eyebrow at her and then turned back to his video game.

The front door opened and Sascha came in. Sascha was wearing jeans, a purple vest-top and a white shrug over the top. She was wearing white beads and white trainers.

"Heya! I'm home..." Sascha called out. She suddenly saw Marie and almost jumped. Calvin came out from the kitchen, wearing an apron.

"Oh! Sascha, this is Marie. You might remember her..." Calvin announced

"Hi Sascha" waved Marie

"Hi..." said Sascha meekly. She turned to face Sonny. "What's for tea?"

"Pasta. And where have you been?" Calvin asked inquisitively

"I went walking around the village...Is that ok?" Sascha said, raising her eyebrows to Calvin

"You should have rung me..." Calvin said sighing

"Sorry..." said Sascha quietly. Calvin potted back to the kitchen and started stirring something in the saucepan. Sascha gave a small smile to Marie and sat down on the sofa next to Sonny. She grabbed the remote control and pressed a button. It changed to a music channel.

"Oi! I was playing my game, idiot!" shouted Sonny and he pushed a few buttons and his car racing game came back on.

"Yeah! But you have been on it for ages, so its my turn now!" Sascha replied and grabbed the remote and put the music channel back on.

"Give it!" Sonny shouted and started to try to wrestle the remote control out of Sascha's arms.

"OWWW! GET OFF SONNY!" shouted Sascha, "YOU'RE ON MY HAIR!"

"GIVE ME THE DAMN CONTROL, WOMAN!" spat Sonny, climbing all over Sascha.

"THAT'S ENOUGH, NOW!" boomed Calvin and he pulled Sonny off Sascha "YOU'RE ACTING LIKE FIVE-YEAR OLDS! SONNY! LET SASCHA WATCH WHAT SHE WANTS NOW AND GO AND CLEAN THAT GOD-AWFUL MESS IN THE BATHROOM!"

Marie sat trembling in her chair. She had no idea how scary Calvin could be...

"GET OFF MY CLOTHES, MAN!" shouted Sonny, trying to wriggle out of Calvin's grip.

"GO! NOW, SONNY!" said Calvin, letting go of Sonny.

"Whatever, man!" yelled Sonny and boomed up the stairs. Then a door slammed shut. Sascha, looking scared, sat on the sofa and quietly watched her music channel. Calvin turned to face Marie, who was practically shaking now.

"I'm sorry you had to see that...Sonny can be a right moody bugger..." Calvin sighed

Marie nodded and gave a weak smile.

"Tea should be ready in fifteen minutes, okay?" Calvin asked

Marie nodded again, unable to speak of what she just saw. "I'll just go and freshen up..." Marie said, getting up. Calvin went back to his cooking. Marie made sure he had gone into the kitchen and practically ran up the stairs. She reached the landing and exhaled sharply. Loud bass music was coming from Sonny's door. Marie tip-toed to the bathroom and quickly locked the door. She looked at the bathroom. It was all neat and tidy. She looked at the sink. All the hair had disappeared and the razor and gel bottles had been put away. The sink looked whiter than white. Marie looked at herself in the mirror. Lots of boys like Marie because she was naturally pretty. She had her hair in loose pigtails. Her hair colour was quite unusual. It was not light brown, yet it wasn't quite so dark blonde (although she classed it as dark blonde) and it looked naturally sunkissed. Her skin colour was an olive-y colour when she went in the sun, but she looked pale today. Her face looked white as a sheet after witnessing Calvin's temper. Her eyes were dark blue. She had a good complexion - no spots or anything. She didn't need to wear much make-up - although she had a bit of mascara, blusher and lip gloss on today. She was wearing a pink Ted Baker top and jeans with a silver belt. She had ballet style pumps on today with flowers on. She moved closer to the mirror and sighed.

"What have I put myself into?" Marie said, whispering to herself.

"DINNER'S READY!" called Calvin from downstairs

Marie looked at herself again in the mirror and walked out of the bathroom. Her life in Hollyoaks was just being to unravel...

END OF CHAPTER 1

A/N: I hope you liked my first chapter on Hollyoaks - there are going to be lots of twists and turns, plus romance and an explosive ending! I would love to hear from you on what you though - so, please review! Grace xxx