Chapter 1: A New Beginning

"Jesse, you need to wait up!"

Jesse scampered ahead, the breeze roughing up his bleached-brown hair as he jumped up and grabbed the nearest branch he could find. Laughing, he missed, but managed to scamper up before his brother caught him.

"Miles, you're just mad because you can't catch me since I had my last growth spurt." Jesse laughed and continued to climb the ash tree that must've been there for a thousand years, it was so tall.

"Miles, let your brother run," their mother, Mae, panted as she set down the pack she had been carrying. "Though Lord knows how he has enough energy to run at this time. We've been walking for almost 7 hours."

She may have said more, but Jesse could no longer hear her. The leaves and sky surrounded him, and he could swear he could see for miles in every direction. The sun was setting in the west, burning a crimson hue in the sky, melting into the blue with splashes of pink and gold. There was an old silo in the distance; it had to be only a mile away. He made a mental note to find it so he could climb it – it was even higher than the trees, and he needed to know what it felt at such heights.

"Jesse! Come down from there. You're worrying your mother."

It was Angus, his father. Jesse considered his options, but decided that fighting this time wasn't worth it. Sliding down the trunk, he saw his brother carrying firewood from the far end of what looked like what was going to be their camp for the night. Running up to Mae, Jesse caught her in a bear hug, laughing while she struggled in vain to escape.

"Were you worried about me, Ma?" He asked coyly, pecking her on the cheek.

"Of course I was, Jesse, though I don't see why I should be. You're a regular monkey, aren't you?" She fondly kissed his forehead, then turned him and swatted his behind. "Now go help your brother find more wood. It's getting chilly and I want a nice fire before dark falls."

Miles stumbled into camp, bearing a large load of wood. "Ma, Pa, I found some water!" Jesse's ears perked up when he heard that bit of news. It had been hours since they had finished their last supply of water, and he was parched.

"Where, Miles? Where's the water?" The three other travelers cried, and, after Miles pointed out the direction, they all began to sprint towards their savior.

A few minutes later, Jesse cried, "Come on, I think I see water ahead!"

Mae tripped over her dress, pleading for the boys to slow down, but Miles just kept sprinting ever faster toward their destination.

"You kidding, Ma? We're dying of thirst!"

Jesse managed to reach the spring first, and falling to his knees, he began to gulp as though his life depended on it. Not long after, Mae and Angus were next to him, splashing their faces and laughing at the refreshment.

"Miles, c'mon, drink!" Jesse beckoned to his brother, and Miles knelt beside him, only to be greeted by a splash directly in his face.

"JESSE!" Miles was speechless, gazing at the smirking face of his brother, only to take his hand and repeatedly throw water on his younger brother, ignoring the pleas of their mother to behave themselves. Eventually, the boys were reduced to a heap of giggles in the grass, having quenched their thirst, thoroughly soaked.

"Ha, look at Whistle," Miles wheezed as he pointed at their cat. "He's thirsty, too."

"A spring is a good omen," Angus said with a smile. Jesse rolled his eyes, but his father continued, Where there's water, there's opportunity, and where there's opportunity, there's our new life." He tenderly let his gaze settle on his wife, and after a few seconds Miles raise a cup in the air as a toast.

"Let 1808 be our best year yet."

It didn't take long for the travelers to pack up their belongings, having only brought what they could easily carry, and they were soon snuggled under various blankets and articles of clothing trying to keep warm.

Miles and Jesse were slightly apart from their parents, under an oak tree that was slightly shorter than the others.

"Jesse?"

"Yea, Miles?"

"You awake?"

"No."

"Okay."

Thirty seconds pass, and Jesse sat up, leaning on his elbow.

"What do you want, Miles?"

There was a pause, and Jesse almost thought his brother must've fallen asleep, when Miles answered quietly, "Are you afraid that maybe moving was a bad idea?"

"A bad idea?" Jesse was taken back by the question. His brother had seemed just as excited by the move as he was, and Jesse couldn't wait to leave Kansas and find a place that had higher terrain than flat plains and wheat fields. "Why would you think it's a bad idea? I know it's a lot of walking, but we're almost there, and besides, I've never been in better shape."

Miles chuckled, but still looked concerned. "I know, but I just have a sinking feeling in my stomach, and I don't know how to get rid of it, and I don't know what is causing it except for this move. Maybe it's getting more real for me now that it's almost through."

"Yeah, well, stop worrying," Jesse yawned, "and get some sleep. You're gonna need it." His snoring ended the conversation.

The next day, the family reached the town of Treegap. At least that's what they learned from a young man by the last name of Foster. The town was at least five miles down the road, but the woods were full of game and the lake was full of fish, and Angus was able to spend many an hour cultivating a friendship with the man who introduced them to the woods.

Miles managed to find a job as a carpenter in the town proper of Treegap, while Jesse preferred to roam the woods and became a delivery boy for the inhabitants of the less cultivated areas of New Hampshire, sometimes covering 20 miles in one day. He didn't spend much time at home, but that made his stops at home all the more special for Mae.

One day two years later, Jesse stopped by his home, but someone was there who normally wasn't. It was a girl, and he would've suspected his ma, but her laugh was lighter, and cooler in a way.

"Oh, Miles, tell your mother about when your scarf got caught in the mill, and I had to cut you out for an hour."

Jesse peeked through the window, and there was a young woman sitting at there dining room table, her black hair pinned up halfway and flowing down her back in soft waves. Her cheeks were pinched, almost as though she had tried to make them pink, and her smile was forced, at least in his opinion. Why was she here? What did she want?

Opening the door, he made a show of coming in, so as not to look like he had been spying.

"Ma, I'm home!"

"Jesse, my boy!" Ma cried as she ran and hugged her younger son, kissing him on the cheek as she wiped flour off her hands. "How was your trip? Did you meet any new people? Did you get paid?"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Ma, slow down. Yes, I did get paid, I met a man who told me I was 19 just by looking at me, and I fell out of a tree –"

"YOU WHAT?!" Mae shrieked. Jesse tried to interrupt, but she kept yelling, hitting him with a hand towel. "Jesse Alan Tuck, what in the name of all that is holy were you thinking just dropping that information on me? Are you all right, did you break anything? How long did you lie there?"

"Mother, mother, I'm fine, I swear. I wasn't hurt at all. It was sort of a miracle, actually." Turning to the table, he continued, "Speaking of miracles, who is this? Did Miles actually make a friend?" He winked at the young woman, and she blushed, glancing sideways at Miles.

"Well, erm, yes," Miles stammered, covering the woman's hand with his own. "This is Margaret, Jesse. She – she's rather more than a friend, actually. She's –" and he seemed to have a hard time saying the words, "she's my fiancée. We're engaged to be married this summer."

Dumbstruck, Jesse dropped the apple he was about to bite into. He quickly picked it up, embarrassed. "Congratulations, you two. Miles. A word."

Miles stood up and nodded at Margaret before following Jesse into the family room adjacent to the kitchen. Before he could say anything, Jesse began.

"Engaged, eh?"

Miles shrugged. "I felt it was time."

"Time? Time!? You barely know this woman! I know because I barely know this woman!" Jesse began pacing back and forth, tapping his fingers on his arms, trying to make sense of what was happening.

"What do you mean, I "barely know this woman"? I've known her for six months and have been courting her for five. I should think I know this woman."

"How have I never met her before then?"

"YOU'VE BEEN GONE FOR ALMOST NINE MONTHS, JESSE!" Miles screamed at his brother. He didn't care if Margaret could hear him; he was sick of Jesse always having to be a part of everything he did, having control of everything he wanted to do. "You didn't meet her because you haven't been around. And I love her and I want her to be part of our family. You're not losing me, Jesse. You're not. You're just getting another sibling, and I'm sure you'll love her as well if you get to know her." He sighed, sinking into an armchair. "Do you remember when we first came to Treegap? How I felt that something bad would happen?" Jesse nodded, so he continued, "Well, I don't feel that way anymore, and that's because Margaret helps me feel happy. I'm not worried when she's around. I feel like I don't have to worry about you as much, because I have someone to care for."

"I don't know if I should be offended by that or not," Jesse laughed, "but I'm glad that you're happy, Miles, I truly am. It's been a while since you've genuinely had joy in your life, and I guess I'm just jealous that you're getting that joy from someone else. But I suppose it is only natural." He ruffled Miles' hair, then ran when his brother jumped up to beat him up one last time.