Chapter 1: So What?
2:43 PM; September 15th, 2013
Esme speed-walked down the middle school hallway, her footsteps echoing in the wide, empty area. All the other kids must be in their classes by now… and I'm late again!
But, hey, it wasn't her fault she had to stop by the nurse every three days!
Esme opened Mr. Ferguson's door as quietly as she could, careful not to disrupt the class. Seriously, if a butterfly hit the window the entire class would riot.
"Ah, have you decided to join us?" Mr. Ferguson's gaze was speckled with interest, and maybe concern, too, if teachers happened to have a space in their heart that wasn't all homework and grades.
Esme only nodded as she slumped into her seat beside Connor and Jenny, the two biggest troublemakers in the entire eighth grade. Kids got in trouble for their chaos just for standing nearby, so her seat wasn't exactly ideal. Tessa was halfway across the room, too. It would be impossible to pass notes without getting caught, so the best they could do was mouth messages to each other.
"Class almost over?" Esme whispered under her breath, moving her lips grandly for every syllable.
"Chicken." Tessa mouthed.
Maybe this wasn't the best method of communication.
Seven minutes seemed to go on for forty until the teacher finally ended the class. Students were up and moving, all too eager to get out of this classroom and into gym, the last class of the day. It was a struggle for Esme to squeeze her way to Tessa through the tall bodies of the swarming teenagers.
"You all right?" Tessa asked quietly, as if she still had to adjust to using her voice to communicate.
"I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" Esme's eyes glared a challenge. Tessa wasn't going to bring up her visit to the nurse now, was she?
"Well, um, how about an easier subject then?" Tessa pulled her hair behind her ears awkwardly, and her brown eyes darted around the hall as she walked beside Esme.
"Dad's girlfriend is coming over today." Esme groaned. She, too, pulled her dark hair awkwardly. It felt as if all eyes were on her, whispering about the girl who visited the nurse every three days, the one whose dog died last year. Still, no one met her gaze. She had constantly been told when she was younger that her blue eyes were beautiful, just like her mother's. Now, with a challenge held in them, they were simply creepy to hold gaze on.
"Oh, not again!" Tessa sympathized. "With Tony?"
"With Tony." Esme tried not to remember how horrified she had been when she found out that Dad's new girlfriend happened to be her crush's mom. She tried not to remember how soon they would be brother and sister, literally only a bedroom or two away. She tried not to imagine how horrible it would be when boys dominated girls, three to two, the only other girl the Miss Perfect Girlfriend.
But, what do you know, she was remembering anyway.
Tessa shot her another sympathetic look, but she didn't say anything. They were already approaching the gym, and Esme was certain Tessa had other people she wanted to talk to than the miserable girl with the creepy eyes that only talked about herself and her problems.
Tessa walked away.
Esme ran her fingers down her dark-skinned, pink-scarred arm, carefully touching every groove and ridge, every black hair so as not to tug or pinch it. Her arm still ached from where she had injected herself earlier. Maybe she could get an early out from gym. Coach would understand, surely. Sitting on the sidelines with a water in hand; it was much better watching the other kids play dodgeball and sweat like crazy instead of doing it herself. She could just remind the coach she bruised easy and an already dangerous torture device like dodgeball could be Death Row for her.
Well, maybe not death, but saying it like that got her forty minutes of free time. No teacher wanted to be held responsible for a horrible injury to the girl with the problems.
"Hey, Esme, ready for after school?" Tony just had to make a beeline for her, of course, right after Esme had just gotten comfortable on the watching bench.
Esme felt herself go red with embarrassment. Stop it! If her and Tony were going to be siblings, this had to stop!
"Could you not?" Esme growled. "No one needs to hear about our stupid parents during school hours." When all the other girls, cheerleaders and nerds alike, saw Tony talking to the girl with the creepy eyes and horrible attitude, they couldn't help but assume that Tony had the worst taste ever. They all assumed that the dark-haired green-eyed boy was talking to Esme because he liked her, and not because his mom had a thing for her dad.
Tony shrugged, a bit of annoyance in his eyes. He was only trying to be nice, Esme knew that, but her negative attitude came out in all ways possible. He liked her little brother Liam more than her anyway, she knew it.
"Just get out of here, will you?" she snapped, waving her hand in dismissal. No more people today, no more talking. When she was home, all she wanted was to collapse into her bed and listen to music or something. "Just go, Tony!"
He was already gone.
4:55 PM; September 15th, 2013
Esme sat at the kitchen table, awkwardly spooning her cereal as her dad stared at her. She knew what was coming. This had happened all too many times before.
"So, Esme. I heard you hurt Lilly again."
"...how did you know?"
"The principal called me today. Mind telling me why?" Nolan Reyne's green eyes were narrowed.
"Yeah, I mind." Esme mumbled.
Dad glared.
"Alright, fine. She asked about Gunner again. But not just asking, she did it in a real snobby way like, 'my terrier is fifteen, but she'll live much longer than Gunner did because she's little'. So all I did was sock her under the chin. That's it! But then she had to get all whiny about it and tell the principal and..."
Nolan raised a brow. "You know how many times I've asked you to leave her alone. And don't you think it's time you start talking freely about Gunner again? You can't bottle up your feelings forever."
Gunner had been Esme's German Shepherd. She'd adopted him when she was two and he was four, and they'd stuck together since. But last year, when Esme was twelve and Gunner was fifteen, a curling iron left on caused a small fire while Esme and her family were away. The house had been okay.
Gunner had not.
"Okay, Esme, you can leave now." Nolan saw how his daughter itched to get upstairs and away from his questions. Or maybe just away from him. "But I won't tolerate any of this. Especially when Jessica and Tony come over."
As if on cue, the doorbell rang. Nolan's eyebrows shot up excitedly as he raced to the door, leaving Esme rolling her eyes in disgust.
"Jessica! How are you?"
Esme groaned at Dad's overly welcoming attitude. She raced up the stairs as Miss Perfect Girlfriend entered the room, accidentally slamming into Liam as he raced down the stairs. "Tony's not with her."
A tall, dark-haired shape came up beside Esme. "Actually, I am with her." Tony sent a glare Esme's way. "Liam, up for a game of Crazy Eights?"
The ten-year-old let out a squeal of joy as he led Tony into his Spiderman-decorated room.
"ESME! You're not going to say 'hi'?" Dad called from downstairs.
"NO, I'M NOT!" Esme yelled back.
There were a few hushed murmurs until her Dad yelled, "GET DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW AND SAY HI TO JESSICA!"
Esme poked out her head from the stairwell's end, locking eyes with a semi-shaken Miss Perfect Girlfriend. She had green eyes just like Tony's, with a ring of amber and flecks of brown. Esme couldn't get any messages from her eyes before she looked away. Ah, yet another person who wouldn't hold gaze with the challenging, creepy eyes.
"Hi."
Esme disappeared before Miss Perfect Girlfriend could even wave. She ran back up the stairs, into her room, and slammed the door behind her. Ooh, she'd hear it from her Dad once Miss Perfect Girlfriend and Tony left.
Esme slumped down onto her bed, iPod in her left hand and backpack on her right. She stuck her earphones into her head, and listened to Hall Of Fame for probably the millionth time that week.
She had only been staring absentmindedly at her fingernails and singing softly to the music when her curtain swished.
The words died in her throat, and she quickly shut off her music.
At the foot of her window, where the curtain still swayed, was a boy.
AN: Well, here it is! The first chapter! They'll get longer, I promise, but I'm just trying to stretch out what I've written so far so I don't run out of material and not have any chapters for the next few weeks.
There will be no swearing in my story. The worst word you'll find is 'stupid' or 'shut up'. Because of that, no cussing beyond that will be tolerated in any reviews or PMs. And please be aware that if you flame, I will simply delete your review. And if you are logged in and you flame, I will report you.
Okay, now happy things!
I struggle in stretching out scenes and fitting in sensory details and character thoughts in my writing. If there are any beta readers out there that can help me out with that and keeping the Warners in character, please message me. Any help to The Hideaway is welcome and constructive criticism is highly encouraged.
If you're reading this, please review and tell me what you think! It's not that hard to leave just a few words of criticism, and I will highly appreciate it!
