Disclaimer:

The following story is completely fictional. It is merely the work of an over-active imagination from the mind of a bored and stressed author. I have no affiliation with A&E or the Chapman family. If I did, I wouldn't be writing this ;)

Introduction

Leland sat on his front porch, smoking a cigarette, as his new neighbors moved boxes from the driveway to the house. He watched the couple with indifference but his eyes were suddenly glued on the person who had exited the house.

She handed a piece of something to her mother and then let out a sigh as she moved towards a box. Her father said something to her, probably teasing, and her laughter floated over to him; a gentle, musical sound.

Leland watched, intrigued, as she picked up the box, her face straining slightly at the weight. Putting out his cigarette, he casually stood up and walked to the side of his house, where he could hear them.

"Be careful, honey."

"I know, dad."

"Are you sure it's not too heavy?"

"Dad, I'm fine!"

As she turned to go inside, he hastily turned away, but saw her smirk out of the corner of his eye. Once the two had entered the house, Leland turned around and leaned up against the fence. He wondered how he had missed her yesterday.

A few moments later, a car pulled up and four older teenage boys got out and ran up the driveway to the garage. Walking around to his backyard, he sat on the fence, occasionally glancing over at the girl's house. She wasn't like any of the girls he'd ever been with; the way she acted told him that much. She looked to be about his age and height but was physically smaller than he was. She looked like she had gotten a lot of sun, and her long brown hair curled in its ponytail.

Hearing shouts coming from the house, he looked over and saw the four boys run into the backyard, the girl not far behind carrying a soccer ball.

"Come on baby girl, you'll love it here."

"I still hate them for doing it now. Do you have any idea how hard it was to leave my friends and everything else I had? Do you know how hard it will be for me to fit in?"

"But you already know Erin, and she's a… what do you call them? 'Social butterfly'?"

"I don't know. But she knows everybody in school."

"You'll be just fine," one of the boys said, wrapping his arm around the girl's shoulders.

"Yeah, easy for you to say."

The boy grabbed the soccer ball from her hands and ran, laughing as she shouted after him. He dropped the ball and began to dribble it, then passed it to one of the other guys. The five split up into two teams and began a game.

Leland watched them for some time, noting how they interacted with one another. He figured that they were either really close friends or family. His eyes, more often than not, were on the girl, watching as she expertly handled the ball.

When the ball was intercepted, the guy, having noticed Leland earlier, purposefully kicked the ball towards the fence.

Leland noticed the ball as it rolled to a stop in front of him. He hopped off the fence and bent over to pick it up, meaning to just toss it back over to them. Standing up, he was startled to see the girl a few feet from him, and continuing to approach the fence.

"Hey!"

"Hi," he replied, suddenly nervous. He kicked himself mentally and as he was about to speak, she opened her mouth.

"I know you have no idea who I am, but you wanna come over and play? We need another player."

"Um, sure." Her bluntness startled him; he'd never met anyone like her before. As he looked at her, he noticed what it was that really pulled him in. Her eyes were intriguing and beautiful at the same time; they were a rich, forest green outlined by a deep chocolate ring with flecks of black and a little gold.

"Great!" She pulled on his arm gently as she led him over to where the other boys were standing. "So, these three are my cousins; Michael, Bryan and Jason and our friend, Nick. And I'm new here. My name's Brielle Johnson," she told him, a warm smile on her face.

"Leland Chapman."

"Nice to meet you. You can be on Bri's team, since she'll need the help."

"Excuse me!?" They all laughed at her outburst and the game continued.

A few hours later, Michael, Bryan, Jason and Nick left, but Brielle and Leland continued to play, throwing one of Brielle's baseballs back and forth. Leland was completely amazed by this girl who had moved in next to him. She defied all the rules and all the things he had been taught about the role of women. She didn't take crap from anybody, and she played hard.

"Leland, you okay?" He looked at her as she tossed him the ball, still caught up in his thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm fine; just thinking."

"You? Thinking? No!" She laughed at the look he sent her, but he smiled back.

"Hey, you wanna see something?"

"Maybe." Leland rolled his eyes and, after catching the ball, took her by the arm.

"Come on." Brielle shouted to her parents, letting them know she'd be back before dark, and let him lead her through his backyard.

They walked across the street and ended at a small stream with a few trees, most of which were large willows whose branches dipped so low they were floating in the water, and large rocks strewn about the bank. Brielle looked around, awed by the simple beauty of the place.

"Is this your favorite spot?" Leland merely nodded, letting go of her hand as he climbed up one of the larger rocks. Once he had a good foothold, he turned and held out his hand for hers, to help her up.

"It's a good spot to come to sit and think when you want some alone time."

"Thanks for showing me." Brielle gave him a gentle smile as she lay back on the rock next to him.

"You're welcome." Leland looked down at her, marveling at how she had drawn him in. No other girl had so captured his attention so quickly and kept it. He knew there was something that brought him to her, he knew there was a reason he was so spellbound.

"How long have you lived here?" she asked, her quiet voice breaking through his thoughts.

"Five years. I used to live in Texas with my mom, now I live with my dad."

"What's the school like?" The slight fear in her voice caught him off guard and sparked something within him. Looking into her eyes, he knewall he wanted to do was protect her.

"Don't worry. Everything will be fine." He reached out to touch her cheek, then, thinking she would shy away, insteadreached out to run his fingers through her hair. Brielle sighed contentedly and closed her eyes, completely relaxed.

Leland inched closer until she was lying in his arms and again he tried to figure out what it was about her that provoked these feelings in him. She wasn't overly beautiful and yet he loved her in a way he couldn't describe. Her hair felt like silk in his fingers and he brushed a few stray locks from her lightly tanned face.

Startled by the touch of his fingers on her face, Brielle opened her eyes and was met by a pair of warm brown eyes. She smiled and sat up on the rock. Thinking he had scared her off, he prepared an apology but the words fled from his tongue when she leaned her back against his chest, her head resting on his shoulder. His arms wrapped around her body, seemingly of their own accord, holding her loosely as he rested his head against hers.

"Leland?" He felt Brielle jump in his arms as his brother walked up to them. "Dad's home and… oh."

"Duane Lee, this is Brielle, she just moved in next door. Brielle, my older brother, Duane Lee." Leland jumped down and helped Brielle off the rock before she turned to smile at Duane Lee.

"It's nice to meet you."

"You too. If you don't mind my asking, where did you move from?"

"Chicago. I hope I didn't get you in trouble, Leland," she said, walking next to him as the three made their way back across the street.

"Don't worry about it, he'll understand."

"Okay. Well, I'll see you later!" She waved and climbed the fence before running into her house.

Duane Lee watched his brother as they walked back, noting how he had watched Brielle. He was shocked at the interest Leland had taken in the girl, how gentle he had been around her. He was glad there was someone that brought out that side of his brother but also worried about what she might get into.

"You like her?"

"Yeah, that a problem?" Duane Lee shook his head as his brother's attitude came back instantly.

"What does she have? Cigarettes, drugs, alcohol?"

"None of that. She's… I don't know what it is about her. She's so different." Leland's sudden switch of moods startled Duane Lee as much as the way his brother talked about her, the way his face suddenly softened. If this girl, Brielle, could do that to him after one day there just might be hope; she just might be the thing that could save him.

**A/N: If you would like photos , drop a review or send me an e-mail (AIM - ravenofnevermore) and I'll send you the link. For some reason it doesn't like my link.**