Chapter 2

A few weeks later…

Alex POV

As Katelyn and I walked home, we saw some moving trucks pull in our street. Apparently we had gotten new neighbors. Minus the actual people. The movers brought all the boxes inside, which took about an hour, and then they left. Our new neighbors weren't here yet. We were dying to know if there were any kids. But we would just have to wait.

"Hey so I can stay until 4, but then I have to go home, ok?" said Katelyn.

"Yeah that's fine. We can make up our sleepover when you get back," I said.

Katelyn's family was going away for the weekend to Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

"And as soon as you find out who the new neighbors are, you have to text me and tell me if there are any kids our age," she said.

We were dying to have some kids our age. There weren't any other kids on our street, and we went to a very small school. There were 13 kids in Katelyn's grade, and 9 in mine.

"Haha, yeah I totally will."

We spent a few hours in my room before Katelyn had to go home and get ready to leave. We sat on the floor watching YouTube videos of R5. It was great having a best friend that loved the same band as me. But it was perfect, I liked Riker, she liked Rocky. I feel like there are so many fights between friends over who "owns" a specific celebrity. But for us, we liked different people, so that never happened.

Katelyn's POV

I paused the video on Alex's tablet. "Don't you think Rocky looks so hot in this clip?" I said.

"Yeah I guess, but Riker looks way hotter!"

Rocky and Riker were playing football at the beach in their swimsuits. Their bodies were so hot. Even Ross looked amazing. But I mean, when did he not look amazing. My favorite was definitely Rocky, but I liked them all. They were all pretty hot!

The next day…

Alex POV

I woke up at 6. I forgot to shut my alarm off for the weekend. Grrr… There was no chance of me falling back asleep, so I decided to put on some leggings, a tank top, some converse, and go for a jog. My street made a circle so I could continually do laps until I was tired.

During my jog, my mind kept thinking of different possibilities and combinations of people that could be the new neighbors. I thought first of the most perfect family. They would have a daughter our age and a son that was a little older. Older brothers were always awesome. I knew that because Katelyn had 2 older brothers, and they were pretty cool.

But knowing my mind, it also thought of the worst possible family, like a man who had a dark beard and creepy eyes. The kind of person that looked like he was secretly plotting to murder you… What if I got murdered while on this jog… Not likely, but possibly… My parents weren't even awake to hear me scream…

And that ended my jog. There's just something about kidnappers and murderers that freaks me out. A lot.

I went back to my house and took my dog out of his crate to go for a walk. He would protect me if I was going to get kidnapped or murdered. He was a good watch dog. I knew that if he needed to protect me, he would. I felt safe with him.

His name was Tank. He was a boxer-hound mix. However, his coat didn't look like those breeds. He had a tan and black brindle coat. Basically, he looks like a tan tiger, also good for my not getting murdered cause…

After walking around for a little bit, I got a little tired and just plain bored. I kept wondering about who our new neighbors. Now it wasn't a matter of wondering when and if we were going to get any neighbors anytime soon, it was a matter of who it would be, since we saw the movers yesterday. So I took Tank down to the beach and walked over to the docks with him.

It was about 7, but it wasn't too chilly out. I took off my flip flops and let my feet dangle in the water, while I stared down into it lost in my thoughts. Tank could sense that I was zoned out and laid down on the dock next to me. He knew we would be there for a while.

I just couldn't understand why people would move the day after their stuff was delivered. Or even days after, for all I knew. If I was moving, I would want to get there the same time as my stuff or maybe even before my stuff. I would be scared, being me, that my house would get robbed by someone, or even the movers, in between my stuff arriving and me arriving.

*SPLASH*

"TANK! NO!" I screamed, forgetting it was still early and people were still sleeping… I immediately sat bolt upright, staring at Tank in the water trying to get to the ducks that had swam up to us. Luckily, his leash was preventing him from getting them.

Tank had never jumped off the docks before, so I was a little nervous about what I was supposed to do to get him out. Right now he was literally doggy paddling around the edge of the dock wondering where to go and what to do.

I still held his leash and pulled it gently as Tank and I got to the other end of the dock near the shore. Tank got up on shore and shook out his very wet coat. All. Over. Me. Great.

I looked around, trying to see if the ordeal had woken anybody. I could see some of the summer homes and houses from my street from the docks. It didn't seem like anybody had heard. But knowing my dad, 1000 feet away, he would have somehow heard, and I would get yelled at.

I led Tank back to the edge of the dock I was on, and sat down again, still thinking about my day so far. I pulled out my iPhone and looked at the time. 8:22. I had been sitting here for a while. It didn't feel this long. I stared back at the water and wondered if the new neighbors were coming today…

Katelyn POV

"Katelyn. Wake up!" My brother was poking my shoulder with his foot. "Come on! We're all going down to the lobby for breakfast."

Oh yeah… I was at a hotel in Cape Cod. I looked at the time after throwing a pillow at my brother, Brendan. 9:37. "Fine. Tell mom and dad I'll be ready in 5 minutes," I said.

"Alright," he said.

I slowly got out of bed, pulled on my jeans, put on a hoodie, and grabbed my phone. As we walked down to the breakfast area downstairs, I texted Alex because I was bored, and to see if the new neighbors were here yet. No reply. Knowing her, she was probably out for a jog, or just waking up. I knew right when she woke up, she went out for a jog. She was a morning person. I was totally not.

Alex POV

When I finally decided to go back to my house, my dad was sitting on the porch with some coffee. Oh joy. Tank walked over to smell him and as soon as he got near my dad, he just had to shake his coat off again.

"UGH! Why is he wet!?" My dad was screaming at me, obviously not worrying about waking anyone up.

"We were sitting on the docks and some ducks came over, and he decided he wanted to eat them, so he jumped in," I explained.

"Well since he's already wet, you can give him a bath," he said.

I knew full well there was no point in arguing with my dad. If I argued, I would still end up giving Tank a bath in the end. My dad had to win the argument for life to go on as normal. I could wash him now or later. My choice. I reluctantly agreed and went inside to get the dog shampoo after I gave my dad the leash to hold Tank and keep him from dragging dirty water inside. I dropped my phone in my bed, said good morning to my mom, grabbed the shampoo, and headed back outside. I tied Tank's least to the side of the house and turned on the hose.

A few hours later…

After I washed and dried the dog, which by the way, took a lot longer than I thought because my dad was watching, my mom had made lunch, so I sat down to eat my salad.

After lunch, I trudged back to my room. I was tired from my very surprising morning. Angel, my cat, was laying curled up against my pillow. Angel was a gray, Siamese cat. She was my second best friend aside from Katelyn. She always slept under the blankets with me at night, keeping me nice and warm.

She saw me come in and meowed at me as if to say "hi." I flopped down on my bed and grabbed my phone. I had 3 new messages, all from Katelyn. She was just bored and wondering what I was up to, and if the new neighbors were here yet. I looked out the window… Nope!

Wait…