Bridge Between Us

Chapter 1: Bridge Between Us

I started writing this in 2017. Had it up for a few days lol then took it off. Anyways I'm 26 now so there's that. I have about 7 chapters not posted so far but trying to fix everything up so I can have them posted within the next few days. Enjoy!
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The sound of a weed whacker buzzed somewhere down the block as Remi James stepped out of her house, her black flats spotless against the freshly power washed concrete. Her hair was curled into a smooth, intentional flip, her sweater perfectly coordinated with her skirt. Everything about her from the glossy sheen on her lips to the cassette player clipped to her hip had been thought through.

She didn't believe in accidents.
Or at least, she'd been raised not to.

"Remi, sweetheart, don't forget your audition packet!" her mom called from the kitchen.

Valerie James's voice carried through the screen door like a soft gust of hairspray and ambition.

"I've got it!" Remi called back, lifting the manila folder as proof. She took a careful sip of her iced Pepsi and scanned the street.

Mornings in Rosebridge were always the same. The steady hum of sprinklers. The dull thump of a basketball bouncing somewhere down the block. The mailman with the shorts that were definitely too short. Mr. Laney hosing off the sidewalk in front of his insurance office like it was holy ground.

Their street sat on the north side of town, past the country club entrance, two blocks from the newer model homes with manicured hedges and pastel paint jobs. Their house, a five bedroom brick colonial had been featured in Midwestern Living once. There was a framed copy of the article in the hallway, like proof they'd done something right.

Remi turned as her brother Jett came stumbling out the door, a Pop-Tart clenched between his teeth and irritation already written all over his face.

"Tell Juliet she left her dumb dolls on the stairs again," he muttered.

"She's seven, Jetty," Remi said. "Her brain's still full of glitter and nonsense."

He rolled his eyes and kept walking, backpack swinging as he headed down the driveway. Remi smoothed her skirt, adjusted the strap of her tote, and made her way toward her dad's waiting car.

The license plate read WASHKING, a custom detail Elliot James never stopped finding hilarious.

The James car wash empire was modest but successful James Jet Wash on Main, and James & Co. Auto Shine on the east side near the grocery plaza. Remi didn't love the branding, but the name was everywhere. On signs, pens, fundraiser banners, even the back of the school theater programs.

And for a girl like her, that kind of visibility came with a price.

⸻

Across town, on the far end of Rosebridge where the roads dipped into gravel and the air always smelled faintly of motor oil, Rowan Rhodes was already awake and already sweating.

He stood in the narrow trailer hallway, dragging a comb through his damp hair while Clover sat cross legged on the couch he used as a bed. She wore a sparkly nightgown with a unicorn on it and held a half eaten bowl of cereal that had long since gone soggy.

"Bus'll be here soon," he muttered, pulling a faded band tee over his head.

Clover kicked her legs and hummed under her breath. Rowan glanced at her, the corner of his mouth twitching despite himself.

He wasn't great with kids, but Clover was different. She was bright and weird in a way he liked. She thought his drumming made him famous. She also thought his band, Graveyard Exit, sounded better than Bon Jovi, which he knew was total bullshit, but he appreciated the loyalty.