Closer Than You Realize

Chapter 1

Closer Than You Realize

Chapter One

     I always loved the first day of school.

     To me, it was the best day out of the whole year, even better than the last. It was a new beginning - a fresh start - and that always sent a jolt of joy surging through my body.

     I loved seeing the early buzz of conversations, smiling faces, tan skin, and friends catching up with one another after a long and hot summer.

    But in particular, I loved the first day of Senior Year - the year that everyone looks forward to. The years that concludes with the last celebration of youth. The year that people realize life is about the change. And the year that truly changes everything.

     Before the start of first period, I was leaning up against my cold, metal locker with my cousins - Laurie and Carter - as we enthusiastically tried to fill our friends in on what we did over the summer.

     The twins and I were telling Adam about our hot and humid trip to the Bahamas while Hayden was attempting to recount to Adam a story from one of the many concerts he and I went to over the summer.

     Masked by our laughter and enjoyment of being in each other's company once again, we were left oblivious to the chaos surrounding us in the hallway, and our guards were lowered, enabling a random football player to successfully stick a poster on Adam's arm advertising a party that night.

     It was an Oak Hill High School tradition - one senior on the football team hosted a huge party on the night of the first day of school. I never took any interest in parties and thankfully, my friends shared the ideal that partying was overrated.

    I couldn't help but laugh at the horrified expression on Adam's face as I pulled the poster off of his arm - maybe we weren't ready to be seniors after all, if we couldn't even handle the advertisement of a simple party - but my as he shot me an irresistible smile when my brown eyes met his hazel ones, my ponderings were put to rest and I couldn't help but smile back at him.

     In the past, Adam had been such an amazing friend to me and I loved spending time with him more than anything. He listened to me when I needed to talk, he was there for me when anything went wrong in my life and most of all, he supported me in all of my decisions.

     "Guys," I said with a smile as I clapped my hands together. "Obviously we are not going to that party tonight. What do you say we all hang out at our house instead?" Our house being mine, Laurie's, and Carter's. We lived with our moms and our grandparents.

    Laurie's eyes lit up as a large smile made its way onto her face. "Yes! We should!" She clapped enthusiastically. "And I'll make food!"

     "No. No, no, no, no, no." Hayden chuckled slightly at his inability to refrain from speaking out against Laurie's cooking. "No way in hell will I ever trust you to cook for me again. I got so sick last time. Never again."

     I giggled along with Carter as Laurie shot her twin brother and I a glare. No matter how much my cousin loved cooking, she was terrible at it.

     "I'll help her," I whispered in my best friend's ear, getting up my tiptoes. "Don't worry."

    "Okay. I'm down for it then." Hayden declared, his smile brightening.

    "Me too." Adam said, glancing at me as if asking for approval. I shot him an encouraging smile as the first bell of the year rang.

  The five of us reluctantly made our way to our calculus class and took a group of seats in the back corner of the room. There was an open seat next to me, but none of us made a big deal out of it, knowing that we would be getting assigned seats anyway.