I wanted to do something that I don't see too often. I think I'm crossing my boundaries with this one. Hope you likey!

Chapter 1-

6:15 AM. *beep beep*

The alarm clock arose from the dead. It beeped two more times before switching to the radio function. A voice soon followed. "Coming up on Kyle & Joe in The Morning, we have more comments and tributes to the late Marilyn Monroe, who was found dead in her California home yesterday afternoon..." There was a sudden knock at the door. "Wake up Spence! You'll be late for orientation!" A scruffy voice bellowed behind the door. Spencer Carlin stirred in her bed before sitting up. "I'm up Glen. I'm up." She said in a sleepy daze. By this time, Walk Like a Man, sung by Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, began to play on the radio. In less than three hours, Spencer would be an official Freshman at New York University.

The Carlin family moved from Ohio to Brooklyn, New York that previous March. Spencer received a full scholarship to NYU after a recruiter discovered her while acting in her High School play, The Wizard of Oz. The scout was blown away by her performance, and he had to bring her back to New York with him. Unfortunately, she wasn't willing to budge right away. That previous year, her father, Arthur Carlin, was deployed to fight in the Vietnam War. A few months into his service, his unit was ambushed. No one knows what happened to the group of soldiers since then. The US Army had declared that his group would be rendered as MIA, instead of hearing previous reports that they were killed in action. The Carlin family knew the inevitable, but they prayed that Arthur would come home safe and sound. But then, that faith turned into doubt. Her mother Paula, turned to drinking. She would drink as much as three bottles of Bourbon a night. Sometimes more. Spencer and Glen pleaded for her to stop, but Paula was as stubborn as a young child. In the end, they'd wish that she had listened to them.

It was a full moon out during the midnight hours of January 27th, 1963. Paula was already on her fourth bottle of wine. Spencer was lying in her bed listening to Glen and Paula argue. Seems like the child & parent roles are being reversed, Spencer thought. The echoes of Paula's angry, drunken sadness filled Spencer's somewhat quiet room.
"No Mom! You shouldn't go out there! Just go to bed!" Glen begged. Paula wasn't hearing any of it.

"I'm the parent goddammit! You do as I say! Now give me my car keys!" Paula hollered in a drunken rage. There was a slight wrestling match between the two, but it was obvious that Paula emerged victorious. Spencer stood at her bedroom doorway at this point. She heard Glen sigh heavily.

"Where are you going anyway? It's almost eleven!"

"Don't you worry about that. I'm going to the store for something. Just go to bed."

"Mom, no! You're drunk. You know what? Why don't YOU go to bed." There was a loud slap. Spencer ran to the kitchen in fear that something dangerous might happen.

"Do...do what I say Glen. Do what I say. Do..." Paula stopped speaking when she glanced over at Spencer. Her teary eyes pleaded for Paula to stop. "I'll be fine, just go to bed." Paula then left in complete silence. That was the last time the Carlin kids had seen their mother alive.

NYU's Freshman Campus was a flutter with new students. Glen had helped Spencer move some of her belongings to her temporary dorm. She was never really fond of living in, as well as paying for a dormitory. But Glen had insisted that she should try out the whole 'college experience'. Whatever that meant. The dorm Spencer was assigned to was pretty ordinary. A few windows showing the city's skyline, two single beds, as well as a desk and radio. Spencer looked around. "Looks really...plain." She said. Glen walked in carrying a few of her suitcases. "Well, you can always decorate your side of the room." He said. Spencer declined. "Nah," She said while looking out the window. "I'd rather save up for the real campus. I'll be living here for a year anyway." She watched parents and students walk in and out of the building. Some were carrying small things like backpacks and radios, while others that were more fortunate, carried televisions and other expensive items. It looked like hard work, but Spencer noticed that everyone seemed happy. Part of her wanted to feel the same, but she just couldn't. Glen was finished bringing up her clothes and favorite stuffed animals, and joined Spencer at the window. He looked at her before saying, "Where ever they are, I know that Mom and Dad are proud of you. They always have been."

"I know. It's just that...I'm scared."

"You? Scared? Never."

"Well, there's a first time for everything." Glen kissed her forehead before giving her a warm hug.

"You have every right to be scared. But I'm here, we have each other. I'll help you every step of the way. No matter what."

"I know Glen. I know."

PS: The story is set in the year 1963.