So this is my first attempt at fan fiction. I've always been a decent writer, but just got interested in writing stories and scripts. This story will be fairly lengthy, at least 10 chapters. Let me know what you guys think.

Late October

The crisp autumn leaves fell to the ground in a swift swirling motion. It was October; late October, and Clare tried her best to walk faster to get out of the brisk chill that was washing over her heavily clothed body. Not fast enough however, seeing as she was already shivering. She was always cold. No matter the day, month, or season. Just always cold.

As she walked quicker, she let her mind wander. She had so much to do. She had to finish 3 articles for the school paper, a project for her Family Studies course, then she had her ongoing independent study for English, not to mention the large task of coming up with unique page ideas for this year's yearbook. How did she have so much to do when school had just started a month ago?

She had always been this way though; always taking on more than she could handle. She was stubborn, and determined. A bad combination for a smart girl like Clare. These qualities that she strongly possessed meant that she pushed herself for excellence. It was very difficult for her to accept anything less.

She always had a million things on the go; taking advanced courses - only in Grade 11, she was already taking college level courses. Added onto the stress from her academics was her involvement in many extracurricular activities; newspaper, yearbook, drama, and school council. She was a busy girl, but in her mind, it was the only way.

As Clare approached her house, she saw that bright red truck sitting in the driveway; mocking her. Her parents had divorced a little less than a year ago, and her mother had already remarried. The shock of the divorce had severely rattled Clare, but God forbid she let anybody see that. No, Clare did not want anybody to perceive her as weak. She had to be strong. She had to push herself. She had to succeed in life. She would not let her emotions get the best of her; so she bottled them up, and never let anyone see her strong facade falter.

As she entered her home, she saw her step dad, Glen sitting on the couch with his seventeen year old son, Jake. She smelt the familiar scent of her mother's famous roast chicken coming from the kitchen.

"Hey guys." Clare stated flatly.

It's not that she didn't like Glen, or Jake for that matter. At this point she actually felt rather indifferent. She had no feelings towards them, at least she wouldn't allow herself to feel anything. This is how things were now. Like it or not. There was no point dwelling on things that were not going to change.

Her parents used to be happy; then they started to fight and got a divorce. Her mother was at the grocery store a few months after the divorce was finalized, when she bumped into Glen Martin, an old family friend, whom she hadn't seen or spoken to in over 10 years. One thing led to another and they were married within 6 months.

Before she could even process anything Clare had a new stepfather and stepbrother. This was a fact that could not be changed. She had accepted it and moved on.

"Hey Clare. How was school?" Glen asked, seemingly distracted by some large guy tackling another guy on TV.

"Fine. Where's my Mom?" Clare asked the two distracted boys.

"I think she's upstairs..." Jake responded absentmindedly.

As Clare climbed the stairs, a familiar memory came to her mind of when her and Darcy were kids they would have to sit on these same stairs for at least half and hour on Christmas morning taking pictures before they could continue downstairs and open their presents.

Clare smiled for a quick second before quickly pushing the memory from her mind. Darcy. Yet another thing that she would not let herself dwell on. Darcy left. She wasn't here. She hadn't been home in 2 years. She left for Kenya, and wasn't coming back. That was it.

Clare approached her mother's bedroom door and softly knocked before entering.

"Mom?" Clare called.

Clare's mother emerged from her attached bathroom in a bathrobe.

"Hi, honey. When did you get home? " Her mother asked sincerely.

"Oh just a few minutes ago, when's dinner?"

"Well the roast needs about another hour or so, probably around 5:30 or 6 ish." Her mother responded while running a brush through her damp hair.

"Okay, I'll be in my room." Clare responded while quietly closing her mother's door and heading down the short hallway and into her own bedroom.

As she dropped her bag beside her desk, she allowed herself to continue to her bed where she sank down and closed her eyes for a few moments; destressing.

Clare Edward's life was complicated and stressful. She knew it. But she wouldn't allow herself to feel it. Or anything at all. All that did was distract her.