war of hearts

chapter one

"Next time I'll ask the train to ride a little faster, just for you." She enjoyed her own sarcasm while Tyeson simply reacted by rolling his eyes.

Autumn looked around, deciding to ignore his reaction. She saw a lot of people around the same age as her. Seventeen. Even though the weather was mostly bad in this town, she had to admit she did like the young spirit around here. The presence of bookstores, little restaurants, cozy bars and many clothing shops didn't go unnoticed either.

While she was still taking in her surroundings, Tyeson was putting her heavy suitcase in his trunk. She noticed how a lot of people walked slower to take a look at him, but he didn't even notice. Or he just didn't want to pay too much attention to it.

If she was a stranger, she'd probably stare at him too.

Seconds later they both took a seat in his car. The radio was softly playing when he drove out of the parking lot. Autumn was happy but frightened at the same time to be here. This was what she had wanted all summer. She, Autumn Harper, had wanted change. A true surprise, really.

But after all, she was just glad to be away from Dawsbury, away from Ashton.

He had been her best friend since they were little, but she had clearly developed different kinds of feelings towards him over the years than he had for her. She couldn't lie about the fact that it had hurt her, because it had hurt her extremely. She was heartbroken, and she hated to admit that he was the biggest reason she left the awful town.

Especially because she felt guilty towards Brooke who she had left behind too. She promised to call her from time to time, but they both knew that staying in contact was going to be harder than they had thought at the beginning of the summer. She was going to miss her bright and spontaneous feature, especially on days she doesn't remember the bright side of teenage life.

The silence in the car wasn't an awkward one at all, instead Autumn enjoyed how comfortable it was, but on the other side it surprised her how Tyeson was this silent. He hadn't asked her anything yet, and knowing his curious nature, it truly amazed her.

He seemed so concentrated on the road, frowning at the sight of a kid crossing the street. It felt like he was annoyed about having to stop the car and wait, and that did make Autumn anxious. Was something wrong? Did she do something or was he just in a bad mood?

Even though he was arrogant and sulky, he was also an optimistic, energetic and curious person at the exact same time and it bothered her how he didn't seem to be any of those right now.

She sighed silently and attempted to start a conversation. "How was your summer?"

"Good." He answered almost instantly, not bothering to tell her anything else. She nervously tugged at the fabric of her black sweater. The comfortable silence just turned breath-taking. She hated it, but just like most of the time Tyeson seemed to be uncaring.

After a very uneasy thirty seconds he surprised her by deciding to add something anyway.

"How about you?" He glanced sideways, sounding uninterested but somehow trying to show interest anyway.

"I have had better ones, honestly."

"How so?" For the first time in this conversation, his curiousness caught up with him. He glanced sideways for a second time, looking at the tiny, forced smile on her face.

Autumn gulped audibly, taking the time to think before giving him an answer. "A lot of things happened and I'm just relieved to start school over here."

"You don't regret wanting to start your last year of high school in a town where you know absolutely no one?" His eyebrows were raised.

"I know you." She whispered. He nodded softly, focusing back on the road.