Unexpected Expectations

Prologue

My cheeks were starting to hurt from the amount of smiling I was being forced to do, mostly from my parents. I glanced over at Charlotte and Noah and they were with their own families, both their parents talking, everyone looking happy. I looked back at my own parents and both of them had deep frown lines on their faces. They were trying to control Ethan, but as usual, they were failing miserably.

I took one look back at Charlotte and Noah and let out a quiet sigh before I went to help Mom and Dad control Ethan. When he saw me his face lit up and I bent down so that I could whisper in his ear while he was sitting in his wheelchair.

"Hey little buddy how are you doing?", I asked Ethan, quietly so that only he could hear me. I was always the only one who could calm him down when he was in a situation that he didn't like.

He replied with a cute little pout, showing that he wasn't very happy. I knew from years of experience that bribery is the only way to get him to cooperate.

"Hey Ethan guess what?". His face lit up again and he raised his eyebrows wait for me to tell him what it is.

"I was given this amazing bag full of sweets from my teachers, but I don't like sweets. So I was thinking you could have them". The corners of his mouth almost reached his eyes but then his face dropped again, knowing that there had to be a catch.

"You can only have them if you sit still for five minutes while Mummy and Daddy take pictures. Agreed?". He reluctantly nodded and I stood back up dusting my dress off. I smiled at Mom and Dad who were both staring at both of us with troubled expressions. Yeah, they really are going to be lost without me when I leave.

*****

When all the pictures were done and Ethan was happily chomping down on the sweets, I strolled over to Mom and said I was going to go find Charlotte and Noah.

"Sure sweetie, tell us if you're going home though", she said with a strained smile.

"Yeah of course, talk to you later Mom". I hurried away before she could say anymore. The past two weeks she's been breaking down crying almost every day. It made me feel so guilty I almost wrote to Harvard saying that I changed my mind about the scholarship. Harvard and music was always my dream, but seeing my mother so distraught made me feel selfish.

On my way out the door I passed friends giving both real and fake congratulations and good lucks. I always got along with everyone even if I was only really close to Noah and Charlotte, but I knew I was still going to miss everyone.

I left the gym hall where the music and food was and went to search the car park. I spotted Noah's black Jeep Grand Cherokee with him and Charlotte in the back with Charlotte playing guitar. She had always inspired my music, I was always the lyric producer and she was the one who actually made the music.

They didn't hear me when I walked up behind them, so when I started to sing along to Charlotte's low playing of I'm Yours by Jason Mraz, they both jumped with fright.

"Willow where on earth have you been all day?", Charlotte cried, jumping out of the back of the car and pulling me into a bear hug. I chuckled into her neck. Damn I love this girl, I thought to myself.

"Heya Noah what's up?", I asked Noah when I pulled away from Charlie. He smiled sweetly, his eyes twinkling.

"Do you not remember who my parents are Charlie?". Both Noah and Charlotte know that my parents are pretty uptight when it comes to family time.

"Yeah Jonathan and Maria can be pretty controlling sometimes", Charlie replied with an eye roll.

I jumped onto the back of the car and lay down on the blanket they laid out. The sky was starting to turn an orange-pink colour and I gazed up at the cloudless sky. We sat in silence for a few moments until I looked over at Noah who was looking at the sky too. I knew immediately by the glint in his eye that he did it. He was completely in love with this girl in his biology class and the past six months he has been talking to her non-stop and they had become very close. Just by seeing that glint and little smirk, I knew he had asked her to be his girlfriend.

"You did it didn't you?", I said with a smirk and his head whipped down and his expression softened and the corners of his mouth tugged upwards into a smile. I couldn't help but mirror him and I looked back at the sky tracing the streaks of red, orange and yellow with my eyes. Charlotte started the guitar again, playing Train's Hey Soul Sister. My mouth took over and I started to sing along with the guitar.

"Your lipstick stains on the front side of my left side brain. I knew I wouldn't forget you and so I went and let you blow my mind". I lost myself in the song and barely noticed when Charlotte started singing with me.

"Hey soul sister ain't that Mr. mister on the radio, stereo, the way you move ain't fair, you know", Charlotte and I threw our heads up to the sky and blasted out the rest of the lyrics.

"Hey soul sister I don't wanna miss a single thing you do, tonight".

Charlotte finished the song with one long and loud strum of the last chord. We sat in silence for a few minutes before Charlotte got up and started the car. Noah hopped into the passenger seat while Charlotte buckled herself into the drivers seat.

"You good there sunshine?", Noah asked me. I noticed they had the usual blanket laid out on the floor of the trunk, just like it always has been. Noah and Charlie always ride up the front, while I lie down in the trunk with the blanket. I smiled at the gesture and looked back at Noah.

"Yeah I'm great here. Just like always." Charlie turned around and grinned at me and Noah's mouth broke into a smile.

*****

So this is the official beginning to Unexpected Expectations I'm really really nervous about this and knowing me I'll go back and change some things but for now I'm pretty happy with it.

I have no idea if this is too long or too short or too detailed or not detailed enough but anyways I'll learn as I go : ))

-Ally