Beacon Hills was a lot prettier than she had given it credit for. Granted, most of Genie's first few days were spent inside trying to help organize the house, but she was making up for that by walking home after school so she could get more acquainted with the town. Her house was close enough, just a fifteen minute walk, so she took her time, winding her way through backstreets and getting herself thoroughly lost in her new home.

By the time she was walking down her own street, it had been over an hour since school had ended and the chill in the air was making her nose run a little. She bounded up the steps, pulling out her key and fumbling to get it in the lock before pushing her way inside. The house was toasty and warm, if not a little bit of a stranger to her still. It was slightly older, but the entire chunk of the town they lived in was the same. Each step made the floorboards creek; the walls were cream colored and waiting to be painted; the banister's rich wood gleamed with a new polished shine. None of their pictures had made it out of the boxes yet to adorn the mantel over the fireplace, or the walls, but they would in time. It was impersonal and bare, but Genie was sure her mother planned to fix that in the coming week.

"Is that my peanut?" a booming voice called through the halls. Genie laughed, throwing her head back and dropping her bag and coat on a box near the door. She slipped off her shoes and padded down the hall, smiling widely as she rounded the corner and poked her head through the doorway into her dad's study. Her father was older than her mother by a few years, his sandy blonde hair peppering where her mother's was still a rich dark brown. His face was worn from smiles and laughter, but not grief. Marcus Cary had lived a life of travel and sunshine as a teenager, choosing not to go to college and instead travel the west coast writing. That writing, an absentminded activity, turned into his life's passion. He was comfortable almost anywhere, as long as he had a pen, some paper, and his family by his side.

"It is my peanut!" he cried, dropping his pen and standing up from the chair shoved behind his desk. The grin on his face grew as he huddled her close, rocking them from side to side and squeezing her tight. "How was your first day? Did you make lots of friends? Do you hate any teachers yet or is it too early for that?"

Genie pulled back from his hold, shoving his shoulder so he would go back to his seat and curling herself up on the floor by his feet with a laugh. She rested her head against the outside of his thigh, humming contently when he stroked her brown hair out of her face.

"It was, surprisingly… good," she admitted, pressing her face against his slacks as he practically crowed in excitement. She couldn't help but be happy around him, laughing easily as he nearly bounced in his seat.

"Well, now you've got to tell me everything. I think that's the first time I've ever heard you use the word good about a first day at school, Genie!" he joked. Genie rolled her eyes, hearing the pattering of smaller feet coming her way. Her little brother Paul burst into the room with a bound before flinging himself at Genie with a high-pitched screech.

Rolling back and away from her father, Genie lifted the little boy into the air with her hands and feet, tickling under his armpits until he collapsed in her hold. She pushed herself back upright, keeping her brother curled in her arms as she brushed his blonde bangs from his face. Paul was a near replica of their father in his coloring and features, but he shared the same tiny frame as Genie and her mother. Her older brother, Julien, had her mother's complexion, but her father's face and frame. Genie herself looked almost identical to her mother. Old photos of her mother as a teenager had astounded her when she had first found them, as they could almost pass for photos of herself.

"Of course, dad. But first, I want to hear all about this man's day," Genie compromised, tickling her brother again as he squirmed in her arms and shrieked with laughter. When he finally broke free, he clambered up into their father's lap and turned to Genie with wild, excited green eyes.

"My teacher, Ms. Hickerson, is awesome! Her classroom is really colorful, and there's a rug at the back with all these books, and at recess I drew Pokemon with my friend Will!" he gushed, wiggling when his excitement couldn't be contained anymore. He dropped from their father's lap and sprinted out of the room. Paul had always been the rambunctious child, his energy unbound and like a wildfire in intensity. Her older brother was nearly the same way as a child, but had mellowed when he reached high school. She had never had the same intensity as her brothers, always a little more subdued than the boys, but their enthusiasm was infectious and she found herself being dragged into their fun more often than not.

Genie let out a quiet snort, brushing herself as she stood and sat on an unoccupied edge of her father's desk. Her father gave a quick squeeze to her knee before leaning back and crossing his arms over his chest, smirking at the happy look on her face.

"It was good. I mean, I was really nervous most of the day, and I don't even want to think about going back tomorrow yet, but it was good," she said, tilting her head and grinning as her hair fell over her face.

"C'mon, give me more than that! I'm reliving my youth vicariously through you," her father teased with a grin. Paul came rushing back into the room, shoving a handful of papers at Genie to look at.

"See, see! Look at all the Pokemon I drew, Genie!" he demanded, mouth opening in a wide grin and showing the gaps where he had lost teeth. Genie took the papers with a giggle, rifling through them and praising his skills. She picked out one in particular, a drawing of Wailord, and holding it up for him to see.

"Paul, this one is so good! I love how you colored it," she beamed, holding it away from herself so she could look at it again. Paul bounced in place, unable to stop smiling at his sister's reaction.

"You really think so? You keep it!"

With a gasp, Genie hopped off the table to gather her brother up in her arms and spin him around. He giggled uncontrollably, their father's laugh booming in tandem. "Oh, really Paul? Thank you so, so much! I'm going to hang it in my room!"

He grabbed the rest of the papers, flying out of the room with a triumphant cry and disappearing with loud thumps up the stairs to his room. Genie smiled, her cheeks aching with the sudden inescapable happiness. Her father groaned, pulling her closer to sit on the desk again and goading her to talk more.

"Okay, okay! Well, there was a girl in my first period who seemed nice. She's a little blunt- oh, her name is Malia- and we didn't talk much, but that was fine. I didn't really talk to anyone all day-"

"Genie," he groaned, throwing his head back and frowning.

"You didn't let me finish!" she bit out, kicking at his calf before continuing. "Anyway, I had a free period in the library, and Malia was there too, but she had these other people with her, so I felt kind of awkward-"

"Meaning you wanted to hurl," her father substituted, hissing when she hit him again to get him to go quiet.

"But they all sat down at my table and the other girl, Lydia, wants to be friends. She's really popular though. Like, it was scary even walking with her to lunch and I thought I was going to have a panic attack and-"

"You went to lunch with her?" he exclaimed, beaming up at her suddenly as she rolled her eyes and sighed, but feeling her cheeks go red all the same. "You went to lunch on your first day? You had such a hard time at Jefferson, peanut, and your mother and I were so worried about you this morning. She said you looked like you were going to faint. This is great!"

Genie squirmed a little, a tiny proud smile flitting across her lips. It wasn't news to her that her parents worried about her. Moving had always been hard on her growing up. When she was little, she would get so attached to people that when it came time to move it was like ripping out a piece of her heart. As she grew older, she tried to seclude herself a little more, choosing to only get attached loosely, just enough to fit in and make it through school unscathed. Being able to settle in a little quicker, make friends a little faster, was a huge step for her.

"Lydia pretty much forced me, dad. You don't say no to that girl. I almost bailed, but this guy Scott told me it would be fine and that I didn't have to worry about anything," she explained, leaning forward to rest her elbows on her knees as she continued to talk. "He's really nice. I don't think his friend Stiles likes me very much, and I didn't talk much to the girl next to him, Kira, either. Their friend Isaac was nice too, and we have a class together after lunch."

Her father almost looked like he was about to start crying. "Oh, I'm so proud of you, peanut. That's a lot for you to take in!"

Shrugging a little uncomfortably, Genie sat up straighter and pulled at her hair, tying it into a messy bun low against her neck. "It was a lot. I'm a little worried about trying to actually- I don't know- become friends with them. I get so nervous. Everyone was really nice, though. I-" Genie cut herself off, blushing and curling her hands into her cardigan. "I hope it works out. It'd be fun- I mean, it'd be nice to just- I don't know."

"Have a group? Like a real, hang out on the weekends, have sleepovers, hide things from your parents group?" her father guessed, leaning forward so he could pat her cheek. She breathed out, unable to stop a wry chuckle at the last category her father had said. Her parents knew everything about her. What would she hide from them?

"Yeah, dad. A group," she agreed with a hesitant smile. He grinned back at her in full, standing up and pulling her into another bear hug.

"Aw, peanut. I love you," he breathed, squeezing her tightly against his chest. Genie hummed, curling into him with a peaceful smile.

"I love you too, dad," she whispered, pulling back a little to look up at him. He smiled, pushing her away and swatting her out towards the common room. They spent the rest of the day organizing what they could of the downstairs.

ooo

The next day passed in a blur, including some of Lydia's forced shopping adventure. After a few hours of circling around the mall, trying on countless outfits, and people watching, Genie admitted to herself that Lydia, despite being a force of nature, was a good person for her to be around. It was surprising how much more relaxed she had felt around Lydia during their shopping trip. She forced Genie to talk, quizzing her about her life traveling around as well as her family and interests the entire trip. Genie didn't ask many questions in return, still too cautious to pop the unstable bubble that was surrounding her newly-formed friendship. Something had happened to the group of friends, that much she could figure out from the uncomfortable silences and the vague phrasing of the past semester, but she chose not to force the topic.

"So," Lydia drawled, side-eyeing Genie as she drove her home. There was a small, almost devilish smirk on her face. Genie felt herself go suddenly rigid at the change of tone. With a waggle of her eyebrows, Lydia continued. "Anyone you have your eyes on?"

Genie slumped in her seat, rolling her eyes and turning to look out the window with a huff. Lydia squawked, stopping the car abruptly on the side of the road and turning to face her. When Genie looked back at her, there was a glitter in her eyes that unnerved her.

"You do! There's someone you like! Tell me who it is, so I can tell you if you're allowed to date them. I need to preserve the reputation we're slowly building for you, so you can only date the best. Are they a sophomore? Or is it junior, maybe someone I know?" she teased.

"Lydia, oh God, please stop!" Genie begged, her face a mixture of disgust and amusement. Lydia frowned and crossed her arms, giving Genie a determined look. "Seriously, there's no one. I can hardly even make friends, Lydia. If you think I'm even going to be interested in someone and try something, you're crazy."

With a sigh, Lydia reached out to clamp a hand down on Genie's shoulder and fix her with a kind smile, a striking difference from the teasing looks she had been giving. "You've made plenty of friends," she said, her lips pulling up even more.

"It's been a day. I can barely even look at some of the people at lunch without feeling like I'm going to have a panic attack," Genie countered, grumbling and sliding down in the seat even more. She was hardly sitting anymore, looking up at Lydia pathetically as the girl raised an eyebrow at her. Lydia rolled her eyes and motioned for her to sit up, which she did with a frown. Curling her hands together, Genie took a deep breath and looked out the window at the fading light, watching as a few stars began to try and poke their way through the hazy twilight sky.

"Well, you're my friend now, which means that you'll their friend soon enough. If it takes a little time, then that's okay," Lydia assured her. Genie could only sigh tiredly again, leaning forward to put her head in her hands as she began to mumble quietly, a blush rising on her pale cheeks.

"I can count the number of friends I've had in the past two years on one hand, Lydia," she confided, her voice a little breathy with the admission. "I don't even know where to start. I think Stiles already hates me. Kira's nice, but she's attached to Scott, and Scott is great, but he's attached to Kira. Malia is a little rough around the edges, but she's also obviously close with Stiles. Isaac doesn't really talk. You guys are all so close, like really, really close and I don't want to intrude on that. I don't want to mess up the balance or anything-"

A frustrated scoff interrupted her rambling and she looked up at Lydia, sitting back in her seat as her shoulders dropped. "You're not going to mess up the balance, for God's sake. That's a little dramatic," Lydia interrupted, tossing her strawberry blonde curls over her shoulder with a huff. "Look, do you want my advice on where to start?" Genie nodded hesitantly, sucking her bottom lip into her mouth. "You're going to start with one person. Start by making a concentrated effort to be friends with one person, other than me."

Blinking at her slowly, Genie took in a deep breath and nodded again. "Who do you think- I mean, Stiles would probably ignore me, so not him, right? And does that mean I should stay away from Malia?" she asked nervously, looking down at her hands as she picked at her nails. Lydia let out a sigh beside her and reached over to pull her hands apart.

"Don't worry about Stiles not liking you. He'll come around. He's a bit wary of newcomers is all. Once he decides you're worth it, he's never going to leave you alone," Lydia remarked, a small, sincere smile on her face. Her eyes seemed a little distant, as if she was stuck somewhere else for a moment. With a deep breath, she focused back on Genie and kept talking. "Malia doesn't care what other people think, so there's no harm is continuing to try with her. She liked you enough to sit us down at your table in the library, so I think you're golden."

Genie groaned, leaning back and covering her eyes with her hands, rubbing her palms over her closed eyelids. "Lydia, how the hell am I supposed to do this? I feel nauseous even talking about it," she complained, dragging her hands down her face. Lydia fixed her with an unimpressed stare, one eyebrow raised.

"You're being melodramatic."

"I am not!" Genie protested, sitting up straighter. She blushed when she realized how her voice at surged up a little in volume, her answer an automatic outburst instead of a calculated response. "I don't know how to do friends, Lydia. I don't."

"You're doing it right now!" Lydia cried back, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms over her chest. She still looked unconvinced. When Scott had said that no one said no to Lydia Martin, he was right. The girl wasn't giving Genie any wiggle room. She had decided the day before that she was going to be Genie's friend, and so was everyone else in the group. "Literally, this is friendship. I tell you what is best for you, you deny me, I tell you you're an idiot and that you're going to be fine if you just follow my instructions."

With a grumble, Genie turned to look out the window again. She breathed in slowly, trying to calm the small wave of nervousness that had built up over the course of the conversation. Her eyes stayed trained on the row of houses down the street they were parked, watching as porch lights were flipped on in silence and the sky became darker. The car still didn't move, however. Genie could bet that Lydia wouldn't move the damn car until she agreed with everything the bubbly girl said.

"Well then, what are my instructions?" she asked begrudgingly, narrowing her eyes at Lydia as she turned her head to stare at her. The girl grinned triumphantly, leaning towards Genie with that mischievous sparkle back in her eyes.

"Lacrosse try-outs."

A/N: As always, comments and suggestions and anything are welcome and appreciated. (Special shoutouts to cecld16 and gyunikim for their reviews and for generally being sweethearts.) ^^