Chapter Two

Ally P.O.V-The year is 1946, a year after the Second World War. It's Ally's 17th birthday.

It's my birthday today and I know I should be excited and looking forward to another year of happiness right, but not this time. I probably need to tell you a bit about the background of my life.

I'm Ally Dawson and my name is pretty famous in the city that I have grew up in called New York in America. I was born to Lester and Penny Dawson on the 12th of December 1934 and I had a pretty easy childhood, but unfortunately my father wasn't really around most of the time because he had work so I did learn to have to do things by myself but my mother stayed home to look after me. The upside to this was I got a easy life, with food and water upon the table, a roof over my head and clothes on my body. But the downside was I hardly saw my father.

My father is a millionaire, he owns one

of the most successful car businesses in the country.

It's called Dawson Motors. My family is very much part of the high society and our family is very much respected in the country, and as my Dad

said 'We have a reputation to maintain'

I did get on better with my mother than my father, probably because I hardly ever saw him and I was brought up by my mother. But when my Dad did come home, he would always head into his room, lock the door, have a quick smoke and drink and only really come out for dinner, which my mother made.

I never went to school like a normal teenage girl, which irritated me because I wanted to learn and form an education but my mother wanted me to stay home and learn about what it's like to be a stay at home mother. My mother taught me how to cook, clean and sew. But to me that just wasn't enough. I wanted to learn more, I wanted to learn how to paint, I wanted to read and write. One of childhood dreams was to be an actress but my mother and father forbade it saying it was not a 'lady like' job, and that I should put all my focus into learning how to be a house wife and mother.

It really annoyed me and my mother lectured me and lectured me until I gave in.

I wanted to accomplish goals in life and I didn't think I could do that from the prison of my own home.

I finally gave in to them for a while but at the back of my mind i still had dreams and ambitions that I wanted to accomplish. I wanted to be an actress and so in my spare time I would secretly read plays, books and poetry. And that sparked my love in writing and I took that up as a hobby but my real passion lied in acting

But things took a turn for the worse a few days before my 17th birthday. My mother called me into discuss important plans or so she put it.

Flashback

"Ally dear I need to talk to you about something important"

I got up from my bed, I was in the middle of reading a book.

"Yes mother what is it"

She gestured me to sit down on the sofa. Then she sat down as well.

"Ally, this might come as a bit of a shock because it's in such late notice, and also before I tell you I want you to know that what I'm doing is best for your well being"

I was really worried by this point, what was it that was so important that she had to make a big speech before telling me.

"Mother what is it"

"As you know Ally dear in a few days you are going to be seventeen, which means you need to start looking for a suitable man to become your husband to help us continue our famous family line"

I was speechless, how could she put all this on me, let alone telling me days from now. And besides I will be only 17, I am way too young to be married, I have only just started life, I need to make the most of my young life before I can even think about settling down with someone and even then if I do marry I want it to be because of love not money.

I tried to contain my annoyance

"Mum... you can't do this... I have my whole life ahead of me, I can't just settle down now at 17 and marry someone, I need to explore life a bit more before that happens"

Hopefully she will understand,she is more understanding than father.

"Ally dear this is what's best for you. I'm thinking of you and how you will survive in life. You need a rich young man to help us continue the family line".

"But mother why can't I marry later why does it have to be 17"

"Because Ally 17 is the perfect age to settle down and start a family, and besides your not doing anything with your life so what does it matter"

That took everything in me not to burst my top.

"Mum that was the perfect age for you to settle down but not me, I want to do things with my life"

Her face was trying to hide annoyance but it remained plain.

"Ally I love you so please do as your told. On your birthday you will go to a party that me and your father have arranged and you will find a suitable suitor"

At this point I was at complete mercy of my mother. I was still very much angry with her but I didn't want to make the situation worse by saying anything else so I just got up and left trying to hold back the tears in my eyes.

"And by the way Ally dear in about half an hour I will have lunch ready"

I only just heard her as I went back into my room and crashed onto my bed. It was here that I was allowed to be myself, completely alone in my own thoughts, feelings and emotions. I felt the tears slowly fall down onto the silk pillow on my bed. I sat up and saw wet drops across the surface of the pillow.

I sniffed and wiped my eyes to try and make myself look presentable for lunch. I knew if they saw me crying they would ask me why, I would explain why and then they would go into a huge lecture about why it was the best thing for me and they were doing it because they loved me.

I leaned over and picked up the book that I was reading before I got interrupted by my mother. I turned to the page that I was on and started reading.

All the while thinking about the dreaded day that I was turning 17 and how I should be excited for it because birthdays are supposed to be a special day but in reality it felt like I was being shipped off to prison.

Austin P.O.V

Hello my names Austin Moon and I'm 18 years old. I live with my mother, my father and my little brother called Luke. I was born on the 16th of June 1933 to Mike and
Mimi Moon. My childhood was rough and life still is. Finding enough money for food is difficult at times. But its the love that we have together as a family that
keeps us going. My father works at a local mill and my mother stays at home to look after Luke and do the house chores.
I have a close relationship with my family, we stick together through thick and thin we never
let anything tear us apart. I sometimes stay at home to help mother with chores and to help look after Luke, but sometimes to help my family out with money issues
i took up a job as a part time car engineer. It doesn't pay much but it's enough to get us by. Luke my younger brother is 10 years old so he is not so dependent on us
anymore but he still needs someone with him at home because he can't be left alone in the house. My mother and father are very loving and caring with us, they always
make sure we have proper food before them even when I tell them they need to eat they tell us we need food more than them.

I have dreams of my own. I really love music and in my spare time i play on the piano that came with the house that we live in. I started playing it when i was about
9 when i found the piano sitting in the corner of the living room. I started with simple chords and melodies but as I played more often and became better at it, i
started writing my own pieces of music. It's one of my passions and one of my biggest dreams is to be a famous composer.
My family have always been supportive in my dreams and in my love for music and they are always there to compliment me when i play one of my pieces. It means a lot that
I have such a loving family.

I have never attended school because I have always had to look after my brother and help my mother around the house. But at times during my childhood my mother would
sometimes read to me and home school me when she could. I told her not to take on too much but she insisted that she wanted too if it meant that I get some education.

I love my family and they mean the world to me. Life can he tough at times but I have my family and that's enough for me. I believe that nothing is impossible and that
dreams are never out of reach like the furthest star, sometimes you have to shoot yourself the extra mile to reach that star. And when you look back down you can see
all that you have accomplished to get there.

A/N- This is just giving you a bit of background on Ally and Austin's lives. They might not meet in the next chapter, it might be in chapter four. As you can probably tell Ally is the rich girl and Austin is the poor boy. The next chapter will be longer.

Hope you like this chapter and feel free to review and message me.