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When a handsome and strange new neighbor movies in next door, Candice Brewster doesn't know what to expect until people start disappearing.
"I can't believe you won't even talk to me, Candi. We've been best friends since grade school and after all that, you've only got time for the Kardashian whores."
Candice Brewster tried not to listen to the difficult ramblings coming from her former friend and tried hurrying out of the school's south exit as soon as she could. Things were already stressed enough, her trig homework not being completed, the urges to smoke a cigarette even though her friends were constantly doing it and the fact her father couldn't stop flirting with that Vegas dancer from across the street. Trixie or Kitty, one of those stripper names.
"Why won't you just say something, Cand? Please!" Evelyn Lee said with desperation in her voice, ignoring the stares coming from other students at her dark look. The fact that she was wearing a short black corset dress and short black boots did nothing to stop her from trying to get a word from the girl walking ahead of her. Candice had never minded how she dressed but this persistency and her pleading attitude was really getting on her nerves.
"Look Evie!" Candice said abruptly turning around. Evelyn stopped in her tracks and curled her full, dark red lips into a frown. To say she was mildly upset was an understatement. She looked about ready to break down but Evelyn knew she didn't want her voluminous mascara or thin winged eyeliner to run.
"What part of I don't want to talk do you not understand?" She let out rather sharply and Evelyn crossed her arms and looked down.
"Please just leave me alone." She edged out before quickly walking away. She knew how upset Evelyn was but she didn't want to deal with.
Adjusting her black top that had one sleeve lagging off her left shoulder, exposing it, Candice sighed before crossing the street on the way to her house. It was kind of a far walk but it was better than dealing with Evelyn and everybody else's nonsense. The bus was always too hot to take because of the Vegas weather and she found walking a good way to loosen the thickness in her hips.
Not that she needed to lose weight, considering she was around one hundred and fourteen pounds and didn't have much frontal view anyways. No boy ever stared at her small breasts in any way, accept for that time she bent down to pick up her books when she caught Victor taking a peak. Her skinny denim jeans felt slightly uncomfortable as she trugged her way down the cal de sac where her house was located. Making a mental note to change into some yogas or joggers, Candice rushed up to her porch before coming to a hault.
Looking around she noticed the sun was still blazing before seeing a large, paint chipped green dumpster was located next door. Quirking one eyebrow she turned back only to see her father walk out from the open garage. "Hey Candice, how was school?" Joseph Brewster asked, smiling somewhat in a similar way that showed the resemblance between father and daughter. They both had the same brown coloured hair that was slightly wavy and the same ocean blue eyes. He crossed his muscular arms over his broad chest, still having some tone from wrestling years ago and from his time in the Marine Corps.
"Fine, if you count having to deal with the horrible smell of nicotine every you go." Candice muttered loud enough for her father to hear, making an obvious reference to Monica and Beverly, two girls she wasn't used to being around at all. Their constant puffing of those Newport cancer sticks had Candice wishing she had a nose plug. Joe chuckled under his breath before tucking some of her long hair behind her ear when she came closer.
"Things will get better, Candice. You've been able to not take a puff of those cancer sticks for a year now, I think you'll manage." Joe smiled and placed a kiss on her forehead, much to her embarrassment that someone - like their new neighbor - could possibly see. She glared into his blue eyes, not too happy about that.
"Daddy, not outside where people can see!" Candice hissed softly, trying to pull away from his arms wrapping around her shoulders. Her dad laughed again before he turned to face the large dumpster which was starting to annoy him over the last few days or so.
"Relax honey, you act like the neighbors are watching. And besides I'm sure their more focused on that large piece of metal to notice anyway." Candice laughed softly, "Dad, you need to relax too. Stop being so annoyed by a garbage hauler."
"It's an eyesore! I'm trying to sell houses here and with that piece of junk sitting in everyone's sight makes it harder for me to do my job. And besides Cand, you need to focus on getting a job as well, I know you've had some issues with your anxiety but you can do this. A waitress isn't the hardest thing in this world." She rolled her eyes at her father's nonsense. Yeah she worked as a waitress down at KeNoots on the strip and got harassed and got her ass pinched every two seconds. She was sure her cheeks had turned into a pin cushion after one a week.
"Yeah and coming home to soak my butt in a bucket of ice is pretty fun too." Shaking her head, Candice gave her father a small smile before looking up at the bright sky as his daughter headed inside.
Once she reached the cool and comforting confines of her bedroom, Candice tossed her purse to the ground before kicking off her flip flops. "I wish people would just let me be." She said softly, not believing she was letting everything get to her. As she thought about her friendship with Evelyn and Angie, even things that happened with her mother, hot tears pricked her eyes. She lay there for what appeared to be at least two hours before opening her eyes again.
"I wish things could be so much simpler." She huffed out, wiped her tears away with the back of her palm before hearing something clinking against her window. Sitting up in bed, Candice finished cleaning the wetness by using her sleeves before she opened her window to see a frantic looking Angelina standing below in the grass. Her light blue eyes were wide and shimmering even in the darkness. It got dark so quickly...
"Candice..." She trailed off, her curly blonde held up in a tight bun to keep her tears from tracking in her locks.
Candice couldn't believe this. First Evelyn tried to make her issues into nothing but a pity party and now Angelina was here trying to pull some sort of crying routine. Rolling her eyes, Candice leaned against the window sill before peering down at her. "I dealt with Evie about this earlier, so whatever you want please save it."
Angelina sniffed before looking around, as if to make sure no one was around.
"I'm not here for Evelyn or any of her stupid accusations, Candce! This is a serious matter and since you don't have the time anymore to even speak to me, I came to you. Why didn't you tell me that you were the last one to see Elly?" Candice looked down with bright eyes, knowing she was talking about her ex-boyfriend Elliot.
"Angie, I don't know what you want me to tell you. I saw him at school, he talked to me about some guy trying to kill him and then he took off. What do you want me to say?" The look of utter sadness in Angie's eyes at the moment revealed she wasn't over Elliot committing suicide about two month ago. It had shocked Candice to an extent as well but Angie just wouldn't quit in trying to relax and think this through.
"Someone could've killed him, Candice! And you know damn well he didn't kill himself! Elliot was too strong to do something like that." She shouted back up, her rising somewhat but sounding broken. Candice was sure she would've woken her dad or her new neighbor up, if he wasn't working. The last thing she needed was some pissed off man coming over and shouting at her dad. And because her dad is a bit of a hot head when he gets angry, the two would probably fight and it wouldn't be good.
"Angie, you need to be quiet! I can't afford my dad waking up and kicking my butt for this! And I'm so sorry for what happened to Elliot because you know he was my friend too but I don't know what else you want me to tell you! He didn't want to live and that's the only explanation I have." The look of pure sadness in Angie's blue eyes was enough for Candice to leave her room and head outside.
Not caring that her feet were bare, Candice reached the pretty blonde before pulling her into a tight hug. Angie cried into her friend's baggy top though they came out like muffled gasps, arms wrapped around her tightly. Stroking her bright blonde curls, Candice sighed before pulling back once she realized her friend was relaxing. Waiting for her shivers to stop and the hiccups to recede, she pulled back somewhat.
"I'm sorry about what Elliot did but he would never want to hurt you. And I really don't think some guy was trying to kill him!" She tried to reassure her friend but she still had watery and red eyes.
"I know he didn't kill himself... I know he was murdered, Candi." Angie said in a watery tone, looking away before she detached herself from her. Candice looked at her expectantly like she was about to do something drastic but all the blonde did was sniffle, look down at her fluffy brown Ugg boots before silently leaving her back yard. She sighed as she watched her go but as she headed back towards the fence where the garbage area was, she stopped when she felt like someone was watching her.
Candice glanced over at her new neighbor's oddly dark house, spotting a shadow of a man by his open garage door. Feeling slightly unnerved that he could have been watching them or the fact that it was so dark he was nearly invisible, Candice shut the brown fence door before hurrying back into her house.