Chapter 1- Rooftop Chats

Author's Note- So this is my new story that you guys voted for. The Boy Next Door won by one vote, beating out Starry Nights. I tallied the votes at midnight on Friday instead of posting anything because people were still voting. I did get a vote this morning but I didn't count it because I had already started writing this, so I'm sorry. :P What you need to know for this story is that it is a high school AU. Emma does not have OCD but still is herself, like in character and stuff. And it takes place in present time, like not the 90s or anything. So I hope you guys all like this. ;)

Emma glanced at her phone to check the time. 12:30 am. She let out a sigh of relief as she pulled into her driveway. Luckily, the teen girl had just made her curfew. Not like she ever really missed it. Emma was more of a wallflower; only going to a few parties a year and having a tight-knit circle of friends. She wasn't one to drink or even attempt drugs and she was usually asleep as soon as she hit the pillow. Emma was currently single on account of her mom didn't approve of her last boyfriend, Matt, and his obsession with Call of Duty. Her mom wanted her to date someone who had the same goals as her; someone who was driven and determined to make something of their life. Of course, her mom also wanted Emma to be driven and get good grades and be practically perfect. Only Emma wasn't good at being perfect, but her sister, Melissa, was. Melissa was going to be a sophomore at Ohio State University, received almost all A's during her first year, and always had the perfect guy wrapped around her pinkie. It was safe to say that Melissa was following in their mother's path.

Emma closed the front door behind her and spotted a light on in the family room. "Mom? Are you up?" Emma asked, walking into the room.

Rose Pillsbury was curled up on the couch next to her boyfriend of three weeks, Darren Hastings. Emma's mom and her dad, Rusty, had divorced early on. Emma was around five when it happened so she didn't remember all that much. Just that there was a lot of fighting and a lot of her dad sleeping on the couch and trying not to cry. It wasn't a fun time but like usual, Rose adjusted and soon Melissa and Emma learned to as well.

"Hi honey," Rose greeted, sleepily, nuzzling her head deeper into her boyfriend's shoulder.

"Hey kiddo," Darren smiled lazily.

Emma resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She was so over the whole act of her mom's boyfriends trying to act like her dad. She knew they were just trying to be nice but it was annoying to her and she was surprised it didn't annoy her mom. "Hi," Emma started, faking a yawn. "I'm going to go to bed. I'm tired."

"You sure you don't want to watch Law & Order with us?" Darren offered, gesturing to the TV in front of them.

"It's good training if you'd ever want to be a lawyer," her mom smiled.

Emma bit her lip, the last thing she'd want for her future was to be sitting in a court room all day taking charge of someone else's. How was she supposed to be figuring out someone else's future, when she couldn't even figure out her own? "Nah, I think I'll just hit the sack. But you two have a good night," Emma replied.

"Okay then," Rose murmured. "Good night, Emmie."

"Night," Darren saluted, goofily, her mom gazing at him like he was the greatest thing ever.

Emma nodded her good nights and pranced up the steps to her room. Emma's room was at the end of the hall, across from Melissa's old room. She turned the knob and threw her American Outfitters bag onto her desk and pulled off her Nine West flats. Emma walked into the bathroom connected to her room and pulled off her clothes, throwing on an old pair of Nike running shorts and last year's cross country t-shirt. She proceeded to then brush her teeth before putting her hair into a loose bun.

Emma walked back into her room and sat on her bed, about to turn on her cell and check for any texts. She smiled a bit and her eyes widened with curiosity as she could hear the familiar sounds of her next door neighbors coming from her window. Emma opened it wider and climbed out of it, sitting on roof. It wasn't completely dangerous; underneath the roof ledge there was a ladder. But of course, her mom still wouldn't approve of her being out here. It was a good thing she didn't know that Emma came out every night.

Especially since the fact that Emma came out was to watch her neighbors, the Schuesters, carry on with their carefree lives. It wasn't like she was their stalker or anything, she just liked to watch them and imagine what living like them would be like. The Schuesters had eight kids and two parents still happily together. Their house was always loud and messy from what she could see and all of their kids seemed to have their own reputation among their small town of Lima, Ohio. Their dad owned the local hardware store and a few of the older boys worked at it with him. Emma was pretty sure that their mom was just a stay at home mom. The kids were all generally happy and Emma could often hear echoes of laughter late into the night. Emma hadn't picked up on all of their names but from watching them, she learned some of them. She had seen all of them at one point or another and had heard them talking to each other or about one another. For instance, Emma knew that the youngest one's name was Sofia and she was one and a half. She was pretty sure that Harry was around six and knew that he was the troublemaker of the family. Emma was constantly hearing his mother chasing him around and heard his older siblings laughing about his escapades. Emma knew that there was another boy in between Harry and Sofia but she couldn't remember his name. She knew that the oldest was Jake and he was attending college at Ohio State on a football scholarship. He had been a phenomenal player for McKinley high school, a few years back and was always in the papers. Emma also knew that there was a boy her age, which she could also not remember the name of. He had a reputation for being a nice guy and cute which were both things Emma liked in a guy. She was also pretty sure that he was a football player at McKinley as well.

The only reason that Emma was only "pretty sure" about all this was because she didn't attend McKinley. Her mom would never approve of her going to a public school, because they apparently weren't the best for her education. Rose wanted only the best for her girls, which annoyed Emma most times. So, Emma attended the McKinley Academy; an expensive private school with only about 80 people in each grade. She had friends there so it was okay, but she had always wondered what the public high school would be like.

There was one more thing that her mom couldn't stand. Well, not really a thing, but instead, a family. The Schuesters. Ever since the Pillsburys moved to Lima after the divorce, Rose couldn't stand their neighbors. No, they weren't bad neighbors at all. In fact, they had brought cookies for the Pillsburys when they first moved and even tried inviting them to barbeques and such. Back then, the Schuesters only had four kids but their house was equally as loud and messy. The problem was Rose just didn't approve of their lifestyle or how they handled things. Instead of disciplining a child, they just told them not to do it again instead of grounding them. When the house was a mess, they had all the kids pitch in to help, instead of their mom just doing it. There was no such thing as quiet in the Schuester household or their backyard for that matter, and Rose hated that. She didn't believe they were raising their kids the right way or that they had anything good going on for them. That and the fact that they had way too many kids, Rose and the other moms at the country club would always joke that that family had never heard of birth control. Basically, the Schuesters were chaotic. Rose hated chaos, therefore, Emma had never been allowed to associate with them or make friends with them. Sometimes, Emma had wished that her mom had been different when they were younger. Perhaps, some of her best friends could've lived next door.

Emma's thoughts were interrupted when she heard a rustling coming from somewhere below. She furrowed her brow; it couldn't be leaves. It was the first week of summer vacation so that weather was nowhere near anytime soon. Emma turned to her left to see if it was just an animal when something tapped her on the shoulder.

Emma screamed, her head whipping around to find a laughing boy. "Holy crap," Emma breathed, realizing that it was one of the Schuesters. It had to be the boy that was her age.

The boy coughed, the lopsided smile still on his face. "Sorry about that," he apologized. "I didn't know you scare easily."

"What?" Emma's eyebrows shot up. "I do not."

"You kinda do," the boy shrugged.

"You don't even know me," Emma replied, trying to a hide a smile.

"You're right," the boy exclaimed. He held out his hand to shake and grinned. "Hello, my name is Will Schuester. I live next door. I'm guessing you are Pretty Girl on the Roof?"

Emma shook his hand, laughing, and for the first time noticed how attractive he was. Will had a dimple on his chin which actually looked cute on him. He had sparkling blue eyes and curly brown hair, along with a lopsided smile. "I'm Emma Pillsbury," Emma told him, smiling. "I also live next door."

"And why are you alone on your roof, Ms. Emma?" Will asked, a playful tone in his voice.

"Wait. How did you even get up here?" Emma countered, looking from the ground to the roof.

"Okay, since we're being honest now," Will started. "I have to tell you my secret."

"What secret?" Emma wondered. She really hoped that it wasn't something like I see you all the time on the roof and I think you're stalking me.

"I'm really Spider-Man," Will declared, feigning seriousness.

Emma burst out laughing. "Really? I had no idea."

"Yup," Will nodded.

Emma looked him in the eyes, a smile on her face and shaking her head. "You're not Spider-Man."

"No, I'm not," Will replied. "But don't tell my little brothers that, they think I am."

Emma smiled, shaking her head. This boy was getting to her. "You used the ladder, didn't you?"

"Ohhh, you're a smart girl," Will teased. "I like smart girls." He winked, jokingly.

Emma laughed. "Ohhh, you're a funny boy," Emma mocked.

"And do you like funny boys?" Will questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Not when they climb up to my roof while I'm in my pajamas," Emma smirked.

Will gave her a quick once-over before shrugging. "I didn't notice."

"Yeah, well, I did," Emma rolled her eyes.

"I could change into my PJs if it made you more comfortable," Will suggested. "But I have to warn you, I sleep in my boxers."

"Ew, no thanks," Emma laughed. "I'm good."

"Just checking," Will grinned. "So, why are you out here? You still owe me an answer."

"I go out here to think," Emma informed him.

"And what were you thinking about tonight?" Will continued, hugging his knees.

"Stuff," Emma said. "My mom's new boyfriend, college…boring stuff." Emma of course left out the part where she was wondering about his family.

"Oh right," Will nodded. "This is going to be senior year for both of us."

Emma made a mental note that she was right; he was her age. "You forgot?" she asked, incredulously.

"I don't think about school during summer," Will chuckled. Emma smiled; her mom would be appalled. "Sorry to hear about your mom's boyfriend, that can't be fun."

"It's fine," Emma assured him. "My parents got divorced a long time ago."

"Oh," Will nodded. "Mine are still together."

"I know," Emma replied. "I see them a lot."

"Probably," Will smiled. He looked down at his backyard and saw a few of his siblings still splashing around in their pool. "Wanna go for a swim?"

"What?" Emma cried. "No way, Will. It's like one in the morning, practically."

"I know." He glanced back down at the pool, the goofy smile still on his face. "So, are you up for it?"

Emma shook her head. "Sorry, but I should probably be getting back inside." There was no way her mom would approve of her taking a swim with the Schuesters at one am.

Will made a pouty face. "Okay...but we should hang out sometime."

"I just met you," Emma laughed. "Why do you want to hang out with me? We barely know each other."

"You're seventeen, I'm seventeen," Will gestured to the two of them. "It's summer…why not?"

"Wow," Emma replied, resisting the urge to laugh again when she saw the dopey smile on his face. "I have to go to bed." She began opening her window back up, slowly.

"So…is that a yes?" Will asked, hopefully.

Emma now had her feet in her room and was leaning out, looking at Will. "Yes to what?"

"Hanging out," Will replied.

Emma ducked her head, blushing a bit.

"Oh, I think that was a nod," Will exclaimed, happily.

"Wait, what?" Emma asked, confused.

"Okay," Will nodded. "I will take you up on that and I will see you soon."

"Will, wait!" Emma called after him, as he made his way down the ladder.

Will looked up, that lopsided smile never leaving his face. "What?"

"What'd I just agree to?" Emma asked.

"I think you agreed to the possibility of a summer with the Schuesters," Will laughed, before hopping off the ladder and running across the yard.

Emma smiled, as she watched him jump the fence. She was starting to think that this could turn out to be a great summer.

I hope everybody liked the first chapter. It's going to be based off a book called My Life Next Door by Huntley Fitzpatrick that I highly recommend to those who haven't read it. I would like to thank everyone who voted on the last chapter of Count on Me. It went very well, and I think I'd like to do that more often because people seemed to enjoy it. Update days for this story are on Fridays. :)

Please leave a review letting me know what you thought! It helps me write more. :)

See you guys Friday! Have a wonderful weekend. :)

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