Chapter 1 | Moving Forward
Grace paused there for a moment, on the bottom step outside Upton Sinclair High. Standing beside her was Eli, who slipped a comforting arm around her waist as Grace looked up at the building in front of her.
It had been over 3 months since she had last stood there, three very long months. Things had changed, that's for sure, Grace thought to herself sadly. Who could have known that an instant, just one split second could change everything.
She felt herself shudder as memories (which was never far from her mind) of the accident flooded her mind. Although it had been quite awhile she still wasn't able to remember much other than the screech of wheels, and the sickening crunch of breaking glass as the other car hit theirs.
"You okay?" Eli asked gently, as he saw the look of emotion on her face.
Grace shook her head, trying to wipe the images out of her mind "I will be" she said, forcing a small but sad smile. Pulling away gently she turned to him, "I never got a chance to say thank you" she bit her lip, her eyes on their floor.
"For what?"
"For being there for me, these past few months" Grace shrugged, looking up into his eyes, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "Without you, I don't think I could have made it" she shook her head as Eli began to protest, "No Eli. I mean it. Thank you"
Eli nodded with a smile, "You ready to go in?" he asked.
Grace took a deep breath and nodded, "I guess so"
~ / / ~
[AT THE SAME TIME]
"Are you sure you have everything?" Rick asked his daughter, who sat nervously in the seat next to him.
Jess nodded, having already triple checked her bag to make sure, books, pens, money, makeup, yep it was all their, she thought with a deep breath.
"She'll be okay won't she" Jess said, looking out the window she could see Eli and Grace sanding on the bottom steps to the school, Lily having dropped them off just minutes earlier.
"It's going to take time Jess. And being back at school won't be easy for her. She's only been out of hospital for three weeks. The doctor wanted her to stay home longer to rest but she really wants things to get back to normal. So I think the best thing we can do to help her s try and act like nothing has changed, or at least for her anyway" Rick smiled suddenly, "But look at you, I can't believe my daughter is actually starting high school, I just wish your mother had been here to see you" his eyes clouding over slightly.
It had only been a week after the accident when Karen had received the call. Her father, who was living in Germany, had become ill very suddenly. So Karen had moved there temporarily to help look after him.
Karen leaned over and kissed her father on the cheek as the bell rang, "I better go, I don't want to be late on my first day" she said forcing her voice to sound, or what she hoped sounded cheerful.
"Love you!"
~ / / ~
"Locker 213" Jessie mumbled to herself, as she walked through the crowded hallway full of unfamiliar faces. She knew that most of her friends from middle school would be there, but she hadn't yet found a face that she recognized.
Having finally found her locker on the third floor of the school (year 9, what do you expect?), Jessie peered at her combination then spun the dial.
"Um excuse me?" Jessie heard an unfamiliar, male voice behind her.
She let go of the lock and turned around to find herself facing a boy with the most amazingly clear blue eyes she had ever seen.
"Sorry but I think you've got the wrong locker" the boy said, his words barely registering as Jessie took in his tall dark looks.
"Are you okay?"
"What?" Jessie shook her head, "sorry. First day" she offered, checking her locker number again. "213. Yep, this is mine" Jess shrugged, unsure of what to say.
"Yeah it's my first day too" the guy gestured around the hallway, "I think all the year 9's got stuck up here. But anyway, my names Tad. Looks like were locker partners."
"I'm Jessie" she said with a shy smile, turning back and opening her locker. It was going to be an interesting year.
~ / / ~
"Eli, man it's great to see you" Coop laughed, wrapping his arm around Eli's neck as they passed each other in the hall.
"You too" Eli laughed slapping his friend on the back, "How you been?"
"How have I been" Coop laughed again, "Great man, amazing, ever since that article" Coop shrugged, a smirk creeping onto the corners of his lips, "the chick's man, they love me. What can I say?"
Eli slapped himself on the forehead, "Shit, I totally forgot about that, with Grace and" Eli paused for a second, "and well everything. How'd it turn out?"
"Amazing man, Remixx was like even offering us a second set and everything man, but we can talk about that later. How's everything going with Grace?"
~ / / ~
"Here let me get that for you" a guy called Josh offered for what must have been the hundredth time that day. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate it. Who wouldn't appreciate having gorgeous guys fawn all over you all day. But she was sick of them treating her like ... like glass.
"Josh, really it's okay. I can carry my own book, I'm not going to break or anything" Grace said a little bit more strongly than she meant too.
"I ... I just ... sorry" he looked down at his feet embarrassed.
Grace shook her head, reaching on she put her hand on his arm, "No I'm sorry. It's just that, everyone's been so nice to me today. Trying to help me out, carrying my books, holding doors open, and even trying to open my locker for me. And it's not that I don't appreciate it" Grace offered, turning to the people, some friends, other unfamiliar faces, standing around her, "But I think what I really need is just for everything to be normal. To get back into routine. Because coming back today has been one of the hardest days of my life" Grace paused, "well not hardest, I've had a lot of those in the last few months, but it's been really hard. Not because of any of you, but because of everything that's happened. And I'm scared that if I can't get that routine back, if my life can't go back to way things used to be, then I will break"
Grace stopped speaking, looking down at the ground as people began to mummer words of understanding and encouragement. It had been something she wanted to say since just minutes after waking through the door, and after finally getting it off her chest she felt so much better.
Smiling she slipped her arm around her friend Leah's waist, "So you gonna walk me to class or what?" she said forcing a smile onto her face.
"You bet" the girl laughed, slipping her arms around Josh's waist. One by one the group of people weaved their arms around each other, some friends, or friends of friends, mere acquaintances, or even strangers, and that's how she arrived at her English class, a group of 30 or people, their arms interlocked, smiling.
Grace paused there for a moment, on the bottom step outside Upton Sinclair High. Standing beside her was Eli, who slipped a comforting arm around her waist as Grace looked up at the building in front of her.
It had been over 3 months since she had last stood there, three very long months. Things had changed, that's for sure, Grace thought to herself sadly. Who could have known that an instant, just one split second could change everything.
She felt herself shudder as memories (which was never far from her mind) of the accident flooded her mind. Although it had been quite awhile she still wasn't able to remember much other than the screech of wheels, and the sickening crunch of breaking glass as the other car hit theirs.
"You okay?" Eli asked gently, as he saw the look of emotion on her face.
Grace shook her head, trying to wipe the images out of her mind "I will be" she said, forcing a small but sad smile. Pulling away gently she turned to him, "I never got a chance to say thank you" she bit her lip, her eyes on their floor.
"For what?"
"For being there for me, these past few months" Grace shrugged, looking up into his eyes, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. "Without you, I don't think I could have made it" she shook her head as Eli began to protest, "No Eli. I mean it. Thank you"
Eli nodded with a smile, "You ready to go in?" he asked.
Grace took a deep breath and nodded, "I guess so"
~ / / ~
[AT THE SAME TIME]
"Are you sure you have everything?" Rick asked his daughter, who sat nervously in the seat next to him.
Jess nodded, having already triple checked her bag to make sure, books, pens, money, makeup, yep it was all their, she thought with a deep breath.
"She'll be okay won't she" Jess said, looking out the window she could see Eli and Grace sanding on the bottom steps to the school, Lily having dropped them off just minutes earlier.
"It's going to take time Jess. And being back at school won't be easy for her. She's only been out of hospital for three weeks. The doctor wanted her to stay home longer to rest but she really wants things to get back to normal. So I think the best thing we can do to help her s try and act like nothing has changed, or at least for her anyway" Rick smiled suddenly, "But look at you, I can't believe my daughter is actually starting high school, I just wish your mother had been here to see you" his eyes clouding over slightly.
It had only been a week after the accident when Karen had received the call. Her father, who was living in Germany, had become ill very suddenly. So Karen had moved there temporarily to help look after him.
Karen leaned over and kissed her father on the cheek as the bell rang, "I better go, I don't want to be late on my first day" she said forcing her voice to sound, or what she hoped sounded cheerful.
"Love you!"
~ / / ~
"Locker 213" Jessie mumbled to herself, as she walked through the crowded hallway full of unfamiliar faces. She knew that most of her friends from middle school would be there, but she hadn't yet found a face that she recognized.
Having finally found her locker on the third floor of the school (year 9, what do you expect?), Jessie peered at her combination then spun the dial.
"Um excuse me?" Jessie heard an unfamiliar, male voice behind her.
She let go of the lock and turned around to find herself facing a boy with the most amazingly clear blue eyes she had ever seen.
"Sorry but I think you've got the wrong locker" the boy said, his words barely registering as Jessie took in his tall dark looks.
"Are you okay?"
"What?" Jessie shook her head, "sorry. First day" she offered, checking her locker number again. "213. Yep, this is mine" Jess shrugged, unsure of what to say.
"Yeah it's my first day too" the guy gestured around the hallway, "I think all the year 9's got stuck up here. But anyway, my names Tad. Looks like were locker partners."
"I'm Jessie" she said with a shy smile, turning back and opening her locker. It was going to be an interesting year.
~ / / ~
"Eli, man it's great to see you" Coop laughed, wrapping his arm around Eli's neck as they passed each other in the hall.
"You too" Eli laughed slapping his friend on the back, "How you been?"
"How have I been" Coop laughed again, "Great man, amazing, ever since that article" Coop shrugged, a smirk creeping onto the corners of his lips, "the chick's man, they love me. What can I say?"
Eli slapped himself on the forehead, "Shit, I totally forgot about that, with Grace and" Eli paused for a second, "and well everything. How'd it turn out?"
"Amazing man, Remixx was like even offering us a second set and everything man, but we can talk about that later. How's everything going with Grace?"
~ / / ~
"Here let me get that for you" a guy called Josh offered for what must have been the hundredth time that day. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate it. Who wouldn't appreciate having gorgeous guys fawn all over you all day. But she was sick of them treating her like ... like glass.
"Josh, really it's okay. I can carry my own book, I'm not going to break or anything" Grace said a little bit more strongly than she meant too.
"I ... I just ... sorry" he looked down at his feet embarrassed.
Grace shook her head, reaching on she put her hand on his arm, "No I'm sorry. It's just that, everyone's been so nice to me today. Trying to help me out, carrying my books, holding doors open, and even trying to open my locker for me. And it's not that I don't appreciate it" Grace offered, turning to the people, some friends, other unfamiliar faces, standing around her, "But I think what I really need is just for everything to be normal. To get back into routine. Because coming back today has been one of the hardest days of my life" Grace paused, "well not hardest, I've had a lot of those in the last few months, but it's been really hard. Not because of any of you, but because of everything that's happened. And I'm scared that if I can't get that routine back, if my life can't go back to way things used to be, then I will break"
Grace stopped speaking, looking down at the ground as people began to mummer words of understanding and encouragement. It had been something she wanted to say since just minutes after waking through the door, and after finally getting it off her chest she felt so much better.
Smiling she slipped her arm around her friend Leah's waist, "So you gonna walk me to class or what?" she said forcing a smile onto her face.
"You bet" the girl laughed, slipping her arms around Josh's waist. One by one the group of people weaved their arms around each other, some friends, or friends of friends, mere acquaintances, or even strangers, and that's how she arrived at her English class, a group of 30 or people, their arms interlocked, smiling.