(n) - the kind of beauty that is more than skin deep; inner beauty
Pronounced: kuh-lon
A little side note. Winter, Wonder, and her friends are in their sophomore year of highschool.
•Winter's pov•
After the whole cheating fiasco with Brady, Elizabeth and I figured out that we have some of the same classes together. Right now, we're on our way to the library to wait out the rest of the lunch period. We ask questions to get to know each other while we walk and she tells me about her relationship with Brady.
"We were together for 3 years, since we were 13 in 7th grade. I just thought that me and Brady would've been together for... I don't know, forever I guess? It just seemed like he was my only option. Whenever I thought about proposals, marriage, having kids... I always imagined my future with him. I never thought he would cheat on me with Claire." She explains sadly. "It's not her fault though. Brady practically accused her of raping him when he's the one who led her upstairs."
I stay silent for a moment before asking a question. "Claire isn't one of those bitchy cheerleaders who thinks she's the queen bee of the school and rules over everyone, right?" I ask her and she laughs a little before answering.
"No, she's not. She's actually really nice. Most people in the school are. She doesn't wear anything too revealing and would actually make a good friend. I never talk to her too much though." She says. I nod before grabbing her hands.
"Well, enough about what happened. It's time to stop sulking and get back on our feet. My name is Winter by the way. I literally just realized I haven't introduced myself."
"It's nice to meet you Winter. You can call me Lizzy or Liz if you want." She says. I smile at her and she cleans her tear stained face. As it turns out, we have 1st, 4th, lunch, 8th, and 9th period together. I don't know why I didn't see her in first or fourth.
We spend the rest of our lunch period in the library before we part ways and go to our 7th period class which, for me anyway, is Chemistry. I make it to the classroom and walk up to the teacher. I greet her and she tells me which table to sit at. Apparently, the people we sit with at the tables are going to be our partners for the entire year. Not to mention that she assigned our tables. My group consists of 2 guys and 3 girls.
The teacher explains our assignment for the week and then lets us talk within our groups. The first person to introduce themselves is one of the girls. "Well, my name is Daniella, but you can call me Dani."
"I'm Vienna, or Via."
"I'm Ember but my friends call me Em."
"Trayvon, but call me Tray."
"...Lennox."
They introduce themselves. They all look at me expectantly, so I introduce myself too. "My name's Winter." After the introductions, Dani takes charge.
"Ok, so let's figure out who's going to do what, yeah? Who here has artistic talents?" She asks.
"I do." I speak up. She nods and continues asking questions. Throughout the class period, I find myself enjoying the company of my group mates. They each have different personalities. Dani is a leader and isn't afraid to speak up first. Vienna is more on the quiet side, but once you get to know her, you notice how bubbly she really is. Ember is a bit of a jokester. She seems like the kind of person who can make anyone having a bad day laugh. Trayvon is playful, but serious. He understands that there's a time for play and a time for being serious. As for Lennox, he is definitely more on the serious side. He may seem like a bully, cold and hard, but I can tell he's a big softie on the inside. He reminds me of myself.
We continue working for the entire class period. My job is to create a poster that represents the birthstone we're researching. Basically, we have to choose a birth stone and do research on its origins, who discovered it, when it became an official birthstone and such. We've chosen Opal (my birthstone).
The class soon ends and I find my next class which is English. I have English with Elizabeth, Ember, Vienna, and Wonder. I'm sitting in between my twin and Vienna. The teacher begins to speak and informs the class that we have a test in two weeks on grammar, vocabulary, spelling, synonyms, and antonyms. As she's passing out the packet that'll be our study guide, I look over to see my twin sleeping. I kick his chair and he jolts up, looking this way and that. I chuckle as he glares at me.
The teacher finishes handing out the packets and gives us the rest of class to work on them. A little more than 30 minutes later, I glance at my phone to see that we have only a couple of minutes before the bell rings, so I start packing up. When the bell goes off, Vienna, Ember, Elizabeth, Wonder, and I walk to the library since we all have Study Hall last period. When we arrive, we find a secluded spot in the library that has bean bags, a sofa, and a coffee table. I sit on one of the bean bags as Elizabeth sits on the floor next to me. She lays her head on my bean bag as I take out whatever homework I have. I don't have much since I finished most of it at lunch and during my other classes.
Soon enough, the others, Trayvon, Lennox, and Dani, walk into the library as well. They see us sitting in the corner and come over. I introduce whoever doesn't know each other before the others sit down on the bean bags and sofa as well. The rest of the period is filled with small conversations, sounds of video games on phones, pencils writing on paper, and snacking on unfinished food from lunch. I begin packing up when I see that we have 3 minutes until the last bell. When the bell rings, I walk to the art room where the Art Club is meeting since it's Monday. The boys have their sports after school Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 3:25 to 4:30, so I don't have to worry about them waiting for me.
I make it to the art room and take a seat in a random chair in the middle of the room. Soon enough, 3:20 hits and the teacher walks in. He talks about what kind of art we'll be working on, when our first art competition is, and how we'll be doing either paintings or drawings at home, bringing them into school, and talking about how they relate to us and why we chose to paint or draw that. Overall, the 40 minutes I was there made me glad that I joined the Art Club. Our teacher, Mr. Alinsky, will give us our first assignment on Wednesday.
Now that Art Club is done for the day, I walk to my locker to put away the books I don't need and the homework I finished before closing and locking it and making my way outside to the football field. Demitrius and Emiliano have football while Wonder has soccer. I sit on the bleachers and finish up whatever homework I have left. The boys finish up practice soon, so I walk to my new car and get in the driver's seat after putting my backpack in the backseat. I scroll on random social media sites until my brothers get in the car. Once everyone is buckled in, I drive out of the school parking lot and towards home.
When we get there, I park the car in front of the house because I plan on going out again. The boys walk in the house and go to their rooms while I go to mine. I walk into my closet and pick out a more comfortable outfit than what I'm wearing now. I pick out a pair of black biker shorts, a black sports bra, a cream, long sleeve crewneck, black sneakers, and a white Gucci purse which has my keys, Airpods, and wallet inside. I walk towards Lorenzo's office and knock on the door.
"Come in." He says shortly. I open the door and pop my head in.
"I'm going out for a little to meet up with a friend." I say.
"Ok, make sure you come back home safe and don't stay out too late. Call me when you get there and when you're on your way home. " He replies, looking up to smile at me. I smile back before closing the door and walking out the house. I get in my car and turn on the heat as it's starting to get chilly out. I put my seatbelt on and drive away from the house. I drive for about 20 minutes before I park in front of a cafe. I turn off the car and walk inside while calling Lorenzo to inform him that I've arrived at my destination. I look around when my eyes set on Charlie, who's already sitting at a table, and I walk over, sitting across from him.
We don't talk much about gang related things, we mainly talk about how our lives have been here in Greece. I tell him about my family, who I've met, what I've done, and who I've bonded with. I tell him about my first day of school and what I'm participating in. He's happy to hear about my new acquaintances as well. We continue to catch up for about an hour and a half before we walk out of the cafe and go our separate ways, but not without a hug first.
I get in my car and begin driving towards a nearby bakery while calling Lorenzo to tell him I'm on my way home. While I'm driving, I look at the sidewalk to see Elizabeth walking and shivering. I quickly roll down my window and call out to her.
"Lizzy!" I yell as she looks over at me. She walks to my car seeing as I'm sitting at a red light. "What are you doing out here?"
"I was meeting with a friend who dropped me off here, but they had to leave unexpectedly because of a family emergency. I was supposed to be waiting for an Uber but they canceled on me." She explains.
"Well, I'm not going to just leave you out here in the cold. Hop in." She does as I say and sighs happily as she feels the heat. The light turns green and I continue driving to the bakery. I order a couple of cupcakes for myself, my brothers, and Elizabeth as well before driving to her house. We talk for the entire ride before I drop her off. I watch her go inside before pulling off and making my own way home. I park the car in the garage and walk through the door into the kitchen.
I place the cupcakes in the fridge and start looking through the pantries for ingredients. I find everything that I need to make Chicken Parmesan. While I'm cooking dinner, Chris comes downstairs and into the kitchen. He looks surprised to see me, probably expecting chef Devon (pronounced chef duh-von) to be cooking. He comes over to me and asks, "What are you making?"
"Chicken Parmesan."
"Need any help?" He asks. I reply to his question with a nod and we begin cooking together. Soon enough, dinner is ready and the table is set. Chris puts the food on everyone's plate while I yell upstairs that dinner's ready. I Walk to Vincenzo's office and knock on the door. I hear a 'come in' and walk inside.
"Vincenzo." I say sternly as he looks up at me. "Put your work away, turn off your computer, and come downstairs for dinner, now." He looks at me with surprise before a smile forms on his face. He laughs a little before saying,
"Ok Maria. I'll be there in a minute." Feeling accomplished, I walk to Lorenzo's office and the same thing happens. Once I'm sure that both of my eldest brothers will come down for dinner, I go to the dining room myself. I sit in between Wonder and Emiliano. Surely enough, Vincenzo and Lorenzo come down to the dining room, each sitting at each end of the table. Once they sit down, we all dig in.
Throughout dinner, small conversations are made. I talk about my day at school, the people I talked to, my first Art Cub meeting, and when my first skating practice is going to be held this Sunday. I listen to the boys talk about their day as well and learn their sports schedule so I can attend every game.
When I finish dinner, I put my dishes in the sink and wish my brothers a good night before walking upstairs to my room. I change into some comfy pajamas and do my night routine. I end my routine by applying moisturizer to my skin and putting everything away. I put my phone on the charger and start playing my playlist of calming music. I've had this playlist for years. It helps me sleep, and it especially helped when I first started living with Aunt Val and Uncle Lios. Although, I can't say I regret being given up. You know what they say.
"The days that break you are
the days that make you."
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Daniella (Dani)
Vienna (V, Via)
Elizabeth (Lizzy, Liz)
Ember (Em)
Trayvon (Tray)
Lennox (Len, Knox)