Hello there! I don't own MDBC. Enjoy!
Phoebe
The first day of school.
The first day of middle school.
The first day of my brand-new middle school in a brand-new city in a brand-new state.
I've been up for hours, pacing and praying everything goes smoothly and I don't die or pass out. I look at the clock - 6:33am - Mom will be leaving in about ten minutes.
As if summoned by my thoughts, my mother appears in the threshold of my door. She's in a rush already, and the sun is barely up.
"Morning, Phoebe," Mom smiles weakly, kissing my forehead. "First day of 6th grade, huh?"
I swallow nervously and nod.
"You'll be fine," my mother reassures. "I remember how nervous I was on the first day of middle school - but everything worked out for the best. I didn't pass out or die or anything, and you won't either."
"You had Aunt Jess," I remind her.
My aunt Jess is the best person in the whole world. She's funny, she's smart, she has a million animals and she has the most beautiful voice I've ever heard. In fact, she's the only one of Mom's childhood friends that Mom actually keeps up with. I know how hard the divorce is on her. Heck, it's hard for me, and I was just four when they split up.
"And you'll have your cousins," Mom replies. "Naomi's your age, isn't she?"
Naomi Hawthorne is my best friend and cousin. We do everything together, even though we've spent the past seven years on opposite sides of the country. But even with Naomi there, I'm still freaking out. This is going to be a disaster.
"I'd better head out," Mom says, kissing me. "Get on the bus, eat breakfast - you know the drill."
Mom opens the front door, but I have one more question.
"Mom? Do you think any of your other old friends' kids will be at school?"
My mother doesn't even pause to consider. "I highly doubt it. Last time I checked, everyone had moved away."
Of course, last time Mom checked was about a decade ago. I head to the kitchen to eat my usual - a frozen waffle. If I'm feeling healthy, I'll throw in some microwave bacon. I don't eat too much today, just in case anything happens.
The big yellow bus pulls up right on schedule. I lock the front door and head to my doom. The bus is loud and cramped, but I hear a familiar voice and a hand waves me over.
"Phoebe! Over here!"
Smiling, I take a seat next to my blonde-haired, blue-eyed best friend. I don't recognize a single other face on the bus (not that Iwas expecting to), but with Naomi Hawthorne by my side, I'm suddenly confident that this may not be the worst day ever.
It is.
I don't have a single class with Naomi - not even lunch! My teachers are okay and everything, but they're all determined to draw me out of my shell - something I'm not okay with. The kids are pretty obnoxious, and I can already tell who's popular and who isn't. I can tell who not to mess with and who's pretty decent to be around. I can tell who's a spoiled brat and who's actually nice. And I can tell that Naomi is going to be my only friend this year.
It's the first day of school, but we still have homework. That's a bummer, because I was planning to hang out at Naomi's house until Mom gets off work at the high school. Now, I'll be doing homework instead of playing out with their goats.
On the walk to Half-Moon Farm (Aunt Jess and Uncle Darcy's farm), a tall, blonde woman stops me.
"Are you Phoebe?" she asks. She's got a daughter with her whom I recognize from English - Hannah.
"Yes," I reply nervously.
"I knew your mom back in school," the woman smiles. "I'm Rebecca Rochester. This is Hannah, she's in your grade, I believe."
"Hi," Hannah greets me and gives a little wave.
I relax a little. "Hi," I reply.
"Tell your mom I said hello," Mrs. Rochester says. "You too, Naomi."
We tell her we will and continue on our way home.
"Do you know them?" I ask once the Rochesters are out of earshot.
"Hannah? She's pretty nice. She hangs out with Josie Berkeley and doesn't talk to a lot of other people though."
"Mom told me all of her friends had moved away."
"They did. Well, Hannah moved back like eight years ago or something. And everyone else flocked back to Concord, I guess."
"So now that we've moved back, does that mean our moms are going to get their old book club back together?" I asked, kicking a rock like a soccerball.
"Probably," Naomi shrugs We reach her house, and she grins at me. "Race ya!"
The inside of the Hawthorne house is just like I pictured it. Messy, busy, and loud, but I also instantly feel at home the minute I step through the door. I've never been to Half Moon Farm (flying or driving, a trip across the country is almost impossible on one income), but I feel like I've been here a million times. Between FaceTiming, calling, pictures, and Naomi's vivid descriptions, I feel like I've lived here my entire life.
A little girl with short blonde pigtails darts past, and Naomi grabs her and tickles her. "Stop!" the little girl squeals, but she's laughing. It takes me a few seconds to realize who the girl is - I haven't seen her in years.
Naomi sets the eager child down. "Kylie, remember your cousin Phoebe? You met her when you were just a baby, when we went to Yellowstone National Park with Aunt Emma and Phoebe."
Yellowstone has been our family tradition every summer except last summer, when I went to Band Camp and the Concord Hawthornes went to New Hampshire.
Kylie is all over me in an instant. Being an only child I've never hung out with kids a ton, but Kylie is hard to resist because she's so adorable. She's also hard to resist because she's sitting on my foot.
I laugh. "Hi Kylie!" I scoop her up and hold her, with my little cousin giggling the whole time. I turn to Naomi. "Where's everyone else?"
"I'll get them," Naomi answers, and cups her hands over her mouth. "Nick! Alex! Will! Come downstairs and meet your cousin!"
It sounds like a herd of elephants lives upstairs as my three cousins jump down every single step before finally dashing into the living room. Will is just like I remembered him - 8 years old with curly blonde hair and freckles. He's wearing a Manchester United football jersey that's streaked with dirt, and he's wearing a pair of ratty old tennis shoes. Alex has shot up, he's almost my height, even though he's just nine. He's wearing a t-shirt with "Emerson Elementary Spelling Bee" on it and glasses too big for his thin face. He still has that know-it-all appearance - it has something to do with the way he looks at you, like he's deciding if you're a decent person or not. Nick, good ol' Nick, hasn't changed a bit. Sure, he's taller, better-looking, and ten years old, but he's still got a mischievous grin and plenty of freckles. He grew out his hair to his shoulders, and it looks decent. He looks like he just came from basketball practice - or at least he smells like it. I smile at the thought.
And then Aunt Jess comes around the corner, wiping her hands on a dishtowel.
"Phoebe!" she exclaims, enveloping me in a hug. "How was school, dear?"
"Fine," I reply. "I've missed you all so much."
"And we've missed you," Aunt Jess responds gently. "Come on, let's fix you girls something to eat. How about cookies?"
I crack eggs and pour milk while Aunt Jess stirs, Naomi is defending the batter from the fingers of the four younger cousins. Aunt Jess is humming a tune I don't recogize but eventually hum along to too. I smile down at my egg whites. This is the family I've always been missing.
