"Honestly, I thought it was gonna be different this time," I said as I crouched down to cram my favourite sweatshirt into the small blue luggage. It's definitely not going to zip up at this rate.

"I mean it kind of was. You had a pretty hot boyfriend, and you got to stay here for nearly two years. But most importantly you met me." I looked up at my best friend Jayden, while she stared down at me with a sympathetic smile plastered on her face and her arms crossed casually across her chest. I guess she was right; about most of that anyways.

My dad worked in the US military. He had tried to explain to me exactly what he does on a day-to-day basis so many times, but I never understood it. To be honest, I don't think any kid really knows exactly what it is that their dad does for work.

Because of his job, we had to move to a different city that was beside the new military base he was transferred to every couple of months.

But my dad was never really around because his job was so taxing, so most nights he just slept over at the base. I used to be okay with it, when my mom was still alive, because at least she was always with me, no matter which city we were in.

But five years ago, when I was only 11, she passed away due to a slow case of lymphoma. It was so hard for me after that, especially because instead of growing closer together, my dad and I just seemed to grow further apart.

Every time that my dad and I had moved to a new city in the past, we only stayed for about six or seven months. That's why coming to Philly two years ago had been the best chapter of my life. I actually got to meet people, make friends, and I even have a boyfriend for fucks sake.

But now it's all over. Just like all the other damn times. Moving around the country, picking up my life every time I was just starting to settle down, all because of my dad's job. But what about me? I feel like he doesn't even give two shits about me and my life anymore, and I have no idea why.

I looked up as I paused my lousy attempt at stuffing my sweatshirt into the stubborn luggage.

"Look Jay, I love you so much so I don't care if I'm moving to the shittiest dump on Earth. I will come back to Philly after high school is over, we will go to UPenn together, and we will have the best time of our fucking lives while doing it, okay?"

Jayden grinned at me and moved to grab the sweatshirt I was still trying to cram into my luggage, out of my hands. She tossed it on my bed and sat herself down on my carpeted floor right in between me, and the overflowing luggage. Then she shuffled in closer until her curly brown hair was all over my face, and looked me dead in the eye.

"Kinsey Margo Miller. Stick out your pinky finger right now you little bitch, and pinky promise me that you'll stick to our plan."

I laughed out loud at the way Jayden had said that to me with a stone cold glare on her face, but stuck out my pinky finger regardless.

"I pinky promise," I said as we intertwined our fingers with each other's, "It's not like I have anything to lose anyways."

"Oh, shut up. Look, your life is probably gonna suck for the next two years of high school, I'm not gonna bullshit with you. But the biggest reason that it's gonna suck, is that I won't be with you all the time, and as we both know, I am the best part of your life." I rolled my eyes in an unsuccessful attempt to hide my smile.

"You're probably right Jay, but I'll FaceTime you all the time. We only have to wait for the rest of junior year, and then senior year until UPenn. After that it's just you, me, and my little friend I like to call Mr. Tequila, all stuffed in an overheating, wayyyy overpriced, dorm room," I say with a wink in her direction.

Jayden laughs, and returns the gesture by blowing a kiss in my direction. "Okay let's finish up packing before your dad looks in here and regrets letting me come over to help you."

As we both got off the floor and started picking up the clothing garments scattered all over the room, I watched Jayden grab my old pair of pastel green vans and toss them into the throw-away pile. She just knew I didn't need to bring them with me, without me even having to say anything to her.

I was so lucky to have a friend like her. She was my soulmate, and usually I don't believe crap like that. But Jayden is so into crystals, zodiac signs, and all that stuff- I mean she literally never shuts up about how Leos are superior to pretty much everyone; she's a Leo, obviously. She's always telling me how we were meant to find each other in each and every lifetime. I would tell her that stuff like that isn't real, and we would argue over it, throwing random information at each other trying to prove our points. Neither of us would budge, but deep down, I knew she was my soulmate, and there was no one out there who would ever understand me as well as Jayden does. Ever.

No matter how different we are, she has been the one consistent thing in my ever-changing life, and I couldn't be more thankful. Even my boyfriend doesn't gel with me as well as Jay and I do.

Oh shit. My boyfriend.

All of a sudden, my palms started to sweat, and I was quickly finding it increasingly harder to breathe. My room started to feel really hot and my heart was pounding so loud through my chest, I thought there was no way Jayden couldn't hear it. I didn't have time for a stupid anxiety attack right now, I needed to figure this out.

"Jay, I am so fucking stupid," I paused as it all came rushing back. She turned her head so she was looking at me with an expectant expression on her face. She must have seen my flushed cheeks, because she dropped the jeans in her hands on the ground, grabbed my hands in hers, and sat us down on the bed.

"Kinny, calm down and tell me what's wrong," she demanded in a gentle, but firm voice. "I can't help you if you don't tell me what you just remembered."

I looked at my best friend who had helped me through my anxiety attacks ever since they began last year. She was with me through all the shit that happened, all the shit I had put her through, and I still haven't told her why they even started in the first place. I knew that I could trust Jayden with anything, but the incident was something I wouldn't even think about myself, let alone tell another person.

"What is it Kinny? C'mon you can tell me. Whatever it is. You know that," said Jayden, still gripping my hands in hers on the bed.

I could do this. I had Jayden by my side. I took as deep a breath as I could manage at the point and blurted it out.

"I forgot to break up with Tyler."

•

Author's Note

hey so this is the first chapter of my first book EVER, so i'm sorry if it really sucked lol :)

this chapter really just sets the scene for the book, and gives u the information needed to understand what's going on, which hopefully explains why it's kinda boring and so short.

anyways i'll shut up now but please vote and leave comments so i know what you're liking!

p.s. i wonder what the "incident" is...