hey guys :) new story ! Okay so basically in the first chapter, Riley visits a psychiatrist because of her 'condition', which is related to the death of one of the characters ;) Lucas and Riley are together, and more about them will be revealed in the future chapters! The book is about how Riley adapts to a new environment, and whether her and Lucas are strong enough to make it.
I'm not sure whether i'll continue. It depends on your reviews :/ please, your feedback would be appreciated. Also, I haven't learnt to copy something and then change it to italics **yet** so bear with me here, I'm extremely sorry!
Chapter 1
"Good afternoon, Miss Mathews."
"Hi." I mutter.
He throws me a frown. I sigh and try again. "Hello, Dr. Friar." He leans back a little and opens my file before scanning it.
I take this time to look around. He's not a very clean guy - the rubbish bin is overflowing with crumpled up pieces of paper - but who am I to judge? I simply try and relax my shoulders as I sit back on the new leather couch, thinking of ways to kill my mother.
"How are you feeling today?"
The same I was feeling three days ago when I was last here.
"I'm good." I smile sarcastically. We carry on with out usual routine.
How did your day go?
- Good, Dr. Friar.
Did you try anything new?
- No, Dr. Friar.
How's your dad?
- He's great, Dr. Friar, thanks for asking.
Oh, puke.
"And how are things with Lucas?" He asks next. "Is he behaving himself?"
I cross my arms and then un-cross them. "He's your son. You should know."
Dr. Friar narrows his eyes. "You know, sarcasm is basically you avoiding the truth. A trait you have." I resist rolling my eyes. "That creates a barrier between you and your feelings."
Bottom line, he tells me, I'm not ready to face myself. Or rather, my feelings.
Dr. Friar purses his lips and puts down his pen. He knows me too well.
But I guess that's what you get when you spend every week 'talking to a specialist about your problems because your mom thinks you're cuckoo.'
No big deal.
I groan and look at the clock. Two hours. That's 120 minutes divided by four, so half an hour four times. Which means I have to go through ten minutes twelve times.
Kill me now.
"Did you go to the game on Friday?"
"Maya made me." I reply. My eyes are fixed on the clock, and if he notices, he doesn't say the game. I distinctly remember Lucas scoring two winning shots. And I knew nothing about sports in the first place.
"Why did she make you?"
"Because," I huff. "She believes I need social interaction in my life."
"She's not wrong."
I turn my eyes towards him. He smiles at me. In many ways, he's like Lucas. Same blonde locks, same built. In others, he's different. He doesn't have the same gray eyes Lucas does.
"Yeah well...just a week of hell left."
Dr. Friar nods. "What do you plan to do, after graduation, I mean."
Liar. He knows exactly what I plan to do.
I tell him that, and he furrows his brows.
"You're so blunt,you know?"
"I didn't realize." Sarcasm. Again.
Dr. Friar puts down his glasses. "Listen, Riley, if you don't want to be here today, then I guess I could let you off early."
"Huh?"
"You heard me." He says.
Then I realize what day it is.
Tuesday.
I narrow my eyes. "You just want to go out with Amelia early, don't you?"
He chews on his lip. "It's a win-win situation, right?"
Riiggghhtt.
"Okay." I smile at him and pick up my bag, getting ready to leave almost immediately.
"Riley." He snaps, and I turn back around ever so slowly. "I didn't mean right now."
"When the wifey calls, the wifey calls, right?" I chuckle nervously.
"The wifey can wait another twenty minutes." He glances at the clock. "Her shift ends at half past five anyways."
I groan and plop back down. Curse you, doctors timings.
"Now where were we?"
"You were telling me about your amazing wife." I reply.
"Sure, sure." He rolls his eyes. "On a more serious note," his voice softens. "How've you been holding up?"
"I'm good, I told you."
"Those doe-y brown eyes don't fool me, Miss Mathews."
I exhale, stopping and thinking for a moment about how I actually felt.
It was stupid, I know, but Dr. Friar said I needed to ask myself that every so often. He said I tended to keep my feelings suppressed so much that I didn't even know what I was feeling myself.
And that, lead to my condition.
God, I hated that word.
I wasn't always this way, you know, loony with a few screws loose. It's just... after her death I couldn't cope with anything.
It killed me from the inside, it really did.
"Has Lucas been telling you stuff again?"
"He's my son, he's supposed to." He replies. "But not this time."
For a moment, I thought I was going to have to murder that traitor.
A traitor with beautiful gray eyes and soft blonde hair.
Really, Riley, really?
Your boyfriend is so not in the picture right now.
"Can we change the subject?" I ask hastily.
"No." I hate that fact that he's so stubborn.
Just like Lucas.
Ugh. See my problem, here?
"I don't want to talk about this." I say, shaking my head.
"You know, Autumn is finally here." He continues. Why does he have to play bad cop right now?
"I know." Now I'm pissed.
God, why do I always end up crying when I'm angry?
Soon enough, tears start leaking out of my eyes. I can't help it.
I'm so stupid.
I feel them, hot against my cheeks.
.
.
"Autumn's my favourite season." I hear her willowy laughter ring through my ears. Feel the crunch of the dead leaves beneath our feet.
"Why?" I smile up at her. She's only a tiny bit taller than me, her back a little bent.
"New beginnings." She returns my smile. "I'm Isabella Laurénce."
She offers a frail hand. I hold it in mine, just lightly enough so that it doesn't break.
"Riley Mathews."
.
.
"Are you okay?" Dr. Friar asks me.
"Terrific." I spit out. My vision is blurry and my throat hurts, but I've grown accustomed to it by now.
There's a knock on the door and before Dr. Friar can even say 'come in' the door opens to reveal Amelia, still in her doctors coat.
Her eyes widen when she sees me,and she rushes over towards the couch.
"Baby..." she whispers, wrapping her arms around me.
"I'm fine."I sigh, rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand.
With a frown, Amelia turns to her husband.
"What is wrong with you?!" She snaps.
Dr. Friar holds up his hands in surrender. "I wonder where you got your degree from." She mutters.
She passes me a few tissues. "Are you alright, dear?"
I manage a weak smile. "I'm fine." I say. "I'd like to go home now."
Dr. Friar blinks. "Yeah, of course." He agrees.
"Shall I drop you?" Amelia asks me.
"No, thanks for the offer though." I pill out my phone as I get up. "Faroe promised me a ride."
I blink the redness away from my eyes - okay,that sentence wasn't even accurate, but whatever, Riley logic- and walk out of the room.
I text Farkle, and he replies back saying he'll be there in two.
I walk to the vending machines and pop in a dollar bill. A nurse walks by and smiles at me.
I don't smile back.
By the time I've finished both my Snickers bars and a packet of chips, Farkle's car arrives in the parking lot.
"It's time you learnt to drive your own ass around." He says to me as I climb in. "You're seventeen, Riles."
"In Dubai, you can't get your license until you're eighteen." I say to him.
"Well good thing we don't live in Dubai then."
He glances at the clothes I'm wearing, and frowns. "It's like 27 degrees." Celsius.
I shrug and look at my attire. Tights under my slightly ripped jeans. A warm hoodie on top of my favourite long - sleeved shirt.
I guess. But I felt warm and cozy, even though the weather wasn't even cold today.
"So." Farkle says. "Lucas's place?"
"Obviously."
He nods, and reverses the car,backing out and turning onto the main street.
It takes us fifteen minutes.
Outside Lucas's house, I ask Farkle if he's coming in.
"Nah." He shrugs. "You guys are probably gonna make out and stuff and it's gonna be so disgusting to watch."
I stick my tongue out at him. "That's what you do with Smackle all the time."
"Yeah but-" I don't let him finish as I climb out and shut the door. His theories and explanations go on forever.
Two minutes after I ring the doorbell, the door opens and Lucas is standing there, a wide grin on his face ashe realizes it's me.
"Thought you were supposed to be here by seven." He says. He wraps both his arms around me and pecks me on the cheek.
"Should I go then?" I ask, lacing my tone with humor.
"Nope." He leads me inside. "I was just making popcorn." He continues. Wearing a V-neck and sweatpants, he looked like the definition of the word hot.
He leads me to the kitchen and pours us a bowl. "What happened?" He asks.
I bite my lip and shrug.
"I know you." He murmurs, suddenly walking up to me and grabbing my hand.
"What happened? Did dad do something?"
I take a deep breath and manage a small smile. "Nope." I say. "The usual."
His expression changes, but he doesn't say anything.
"A movie?" I ask, pointing in the direction of his flat screen.
He nods. "Which one?"
And just like that, we're fine again.
Atleast for now.