Disclaimer: I do not own the copyright, MTV does.
When I first found out we were moving to Beacon Hills, California I was completely crushed and felt as though my entire world was crashing down around me. Dramatic, I know but I didn't want to leave my friends behind, yet as my fate finally began to sink in I couldn't help but feel a little excited at the same time. I was going to be seeing my grandmother more than once a year, but what I didn't know at the time was that my father wasn't coming with us. I knew my parents were having problems although I thought it was just a little bump in the road and in time they were going to be fine... I was very wrong.
"Hello, my beautiful granddaughters'," My grandma Eleanor greeted us with a hug as we stepped out of the black Mitsubishi Lancer while my mother practically ignored my Grams altogether and started to transfer the boxes from the boot of the car into the house.
Most of our luggage had arrived the day before, in the moving van and Grams had already started unpacking giving me and Belle the biggest room to share. Her house had two and a half bathrooms, a small study, kitchen, lounge area, and dining room but only three bedrooms to my dismay.
It was going to be torture sharing a room with Belle. I was used to my private space and I didn't want to lose that, but the couch seemed even less appealing than my bed. At least the house hadn't changed. It still had that warm and cozy feeling that made you feel at home instantly.
The red brick house was three stories tall including the attic and had a large balcony on the second floor which was surrounded by a white railing and supported by four tall white columns. When I was younger I used to pretend I was Juliet and I would recite the iconic dialogue as I imagined Romeo was calling out to me from beneath the balcony. How lame was I? Wait don't answer that.
"Hey, grams I'm going to go set up my half of the room," My sister Belle left Grams with a kiss on the cheek before she rushed into the house bouncing along with her strawberry blonde curls.
"Well she seems to be taking it well," Grams squeezed me one last time before she put an arm over my shoulder in an attempt to comfort me.
"That's because she is excited about having two birthdays' and Christmas'," I tried to hide my resentment but failed. Belle was acting like it was the best news she had ever heard and it was driving me insane. I wanted to slap some sense into her but I was afraid I wouldn't be able to stop once I started.
"Don't be too hard on her, some people find it easier to live in denial rather than face the truth, but she will eventually, and she will need you to be there for her," Grams spoke her usual words of wisdom. I knew she was right, but at that moment the last thing I wanted to do was comfort Belle who was working my last nerve.
I sighed, "Yeah I know."
Grams and I had always had a special connection, it was like she could read my mind. No one understood me like my Grams did.
"Come on we should help your mother," Grams steered me towards the boot of the car although every time I looked at my mother I felt like screaming at her until my throat was raw and bleeding. I was so angry I even thought about dying my dark hair strawberry blonde and getting brown eye contacts like my father and Belle just so I wouldn't look so much like my mother. We both had the same dark hair and matching eyes along with my older brother Alex although we got my father's tan instead of my mother's pale white skin. Thank god.
The first night was just as awkward as I expected it to be. No one talked during dinner besides Grams who tried her hardest to start conversations but we all just grunted and nodded in response. I felt bad but I didn't want to talk to my mother or my sister. The road trip forced upon me was bad enough.
After Mom and Belle had left to go shopping the next morning Grams promised me she was going to take me somewhere fun. I was expecting maybe an archery course, shooting range, pizza followed by choc chip mint ice cream, a new video game, or even a movie in town but not a creepy old house in the middle of the woods.
"These are old friends of mine and they are looking forward to meeting you," Grams spoke as she parked her old red Volkswagen which was older than my mother, and boy did it look it. Rust wasn't its only problem.
"So why haven't you taken me here before?" We visited my Grams every year during summer break and she had never mentioned them once before. I couldn't help but wonder if they were freaks or something.
"Let's just say your mother is very judgemental."
"She doesn't like them?" I asked. It was hard to hide the sudden excitement from my voice. I liked them already even if they lived in a creepy house that belonged on the set of a horror movie.
I couldn't help but go out of my way to piss off my mother. Childish I know but it was my father who was begging for a second chance but she refused, of course, both were unaware of my eavesdropping. What can I say I was good at it.
"No so you cannot tell her we were here."
I sighed dramatically, "Fine," my smile instantly disappeared as the disappointment no doubt was reflected in my voice, there went that plan. I wanted to tell Mom all about my visit hoping to see some steam coming out of her ears, maybe we would've even gotten into an argument.
I was good at them too.
"Come on," Grams practically lunged out of the car and rushed up the stairs. I had never seen her move so quickly before in my life. She was like a freaking ninja.
The wood house looked to be three stories tall with a widow's walk, front veranda, and concrete stairs and all I could think about was how creepy it still looked, menacing even. Although I had the feeling I would probably think differently if I wasn't a fan of the horror genre.
Don't think about Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Don't think about Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I repeated to myself and got out of the car.
"Hello Nora, it's so good to see you," An old lady emerged from the front door and used my Grams' preferred nickname. Immediately I noticed her long hair which reached past her elbows. It was the same salt and pepper colour as my grams although Grams preferred her hair short.
"This must be Kristin. It's so good to finally meet you I'm Penny," She smiled and greeted me with a hug as I reached the top of the stairs. I peered over her shoulder into the house expecting to see someone with a deformed face lurking in the shadows ready to kill me, but I saw nothing to my relief.
"You too," I replied and wondered how having tea with a stranger was going to be any fun. Be careful the tea might be drugged. My inner voice teased but I ignored the thought.
"I'll race you," A guy who looked to match my 17 years emerged from the house and ran around us. His dark hair was short and spiky and his green eyes seemed to almost glow like a light in the darkness. He was definitely cuter than my ex-boyfriend Marty Barnes who I realised I didn't miss in the slightest.
"Careful Derek you nearly knocked us over," Penny warned sounding unimpressed by his behavior.
"Sorry Nan," he apologised as he hovered near the bottom of the cement stairs.
"You couldn't even beat me if I was blindfolded," A girl who also looked to be the same age as me bolted around us and stopped near the guy. She had the same dark hair and green eyes.
"Who's the new girl?" She asked politely and I could hear the curiosity in her voice.
"This is Kristin, Nora's granddaughter," Penny gestured to me with her hands.
"Hey I'm Laura," She smiled and all my thoughts of Texas Chainsaw Massacre disappeared. They seemed cool and nice, and the opposite of Leather Face or any of his family from the multiple movies.
"Hey," I nodded and tried not to stare at Derek but I couldn't control myself. He was very cute, to say the least. My day had just gotten a lot more interesting.
"Where are you two off to?" Penny asked and I had to admit that I was also curious. I mean what was there to do out here anyway. Running around the woods didn't sound like fun.
"The river," Laura replied and Penny raised an eyebrow before glancing at me. I felt like a dog being thrown a pity bone although because it meant hanging out with Derek I didn't mind.
"Come on we gotta go," Derek interrupted and I felt slightly irritated. I wasn't the type of person that needed people to like me but I did want to know what his problem was since he didn't even know me and had only just met me.
"Wait!" Laura practically growled at Derek, "Do you wanna come?" Laura asked me with a hopeful smile on her face, the kind that you couldn't refuse.
"Like she could keep up," Derek spoke before I could and I scoffed instantly. Cockiness was such an unattractive quality in a guy, well most of the time.
"I think you mean like you could keep up with me," I snapped.
"Yeah right," Derek chuckled before he turned his back and started to run. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at his behavior. All the guys I had encountered seemed to be the same; so competitive to the point of being annoying.
"Come on his big head needs squishing," Laura smiled and waved me over and I couldn't help but respond. Laura seemed so nice and nothing like Derek. They also looked like they could be twins with the only difference being Laura's skin which was slightly less tanned.
"Just get back before dark," Grams shouted as we walked after Derek.
"Will do Nora," Laura replied and started to run once I was by her side leaving Grams and Penny behind.
As we got further into the woods the fresh air almost felt like it was cleansing my soul and taking away all the negativity and rage from my body and mind. I always felt like that as if I was at peace, especially at the beach as the waves crashed on the sand and when I went hiking with my father. Even the sound of snapping twigs under my feet helped comfort me and I couldn't wait to reach our destination and hear the flowing water.
"How are you settling in?" Laura asked as we ran side by side while Derek ran a couple of meters ahead of us. I inhaled the fresh air and the subtle aroma of the trees, bushes, and dirt that somehow seemed to smell magical when mixed together.
"Fine, it seems like an alright place," I jumped over the log and ducked under the tree branch. I wasn't sure if my Grams had filled them in on the separation, and I didn't want to ask either although I was just about to ask if they were twins before Derek beat me to the punch and opened his big mouth.
"At this rate, I could crawl and still beat both of you," Derek shouted from in front of us and that was when I decided I couldn't let him win. My competitive side kicked in and I started to sprint ahead instead of hanging back. I wanted to wipe the smug smirk off of Derek's face.
"Remember not to cheat Derek," Laura yelled as she caught up to me with complete ease. I guessed it ran in the family. They must've been star athletes.
How often does he cheat? I kept the thought to myself.
"But where is the fun it that?" He yelled over his shoulder and I was hoping he might get smacked in the face with a branch or trip over one but no such luck. I was going to have to push myself even harder just to catch up and even the odds.
Come on legs move it! I ordered for what seemed like an eternity when in reality was only a few minutes. It was impossible.
It felt like every time our strides met he had some invisible rocket stuck on his backside that sent him a few feet in front of me almost instantaneously. I didn't even think it was humanely possible to run that fast but I kept trying until the very end.
I didn't beat Derek unfortunately but that was because I wasn't part machine with turbo boosters stuck up my arse.
"Not bad you didn't suck as much as I thought you would," Derek smirked as he stretched his arms towards the sky. That troublesome smirk made my heart skip a beat, and I had to focus the rest of my energy on making sure I didn't blush. The last thing I needed was for Derek to know about my pathetic crush. I had only known him for two seconds basically.
"Is that meant to be a compliment?" I asked in between breaths as I hunched over and rested my hands on my knees. I felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest although I tried my hardest not to show how exhausted and worn out I was feeling.
"That's the closest thing you will ever get to a compliment from Derek," Laura laughed and made her way to the edge of the river where she splashed some water on her face.
I had to resist the urge to dive into the shallow river and roll around in it. I was so overheated it felt like my internal organs were boiling. I wasn't unfit in fact I ran all the time. It was the only instance I truly felt free but I felt like I had just sprinted for an hour non-stop.
"Well, then I guess I will take it," I tried not to make it obvious as I rushed to the edge of the river beside Laura and splashed water on my face. Nothing had ever felt so good in my entire life. The cool sensation felt like pure bliss, and I savored each drop as it slid down my face and dripped from my chin and back into the river.
"How long were we racing for anyway?" I asked and it hurt. My throat and lungs were burning but I wasn't sure if the river water was drinkable. After a few seconds of deliberation, I decided to take the chance anyway. I had to soothe the burning sensation.
"Over half an hour I'm surprised you're not rolling around on the ground with a stitch," Laura playfully splashed me with water before she stood to her feet while I cupped the water in my hands and gingerly sipped from it savoring each drop.
"That happened to her last boyfriend," Derek clarified and I had to make sure I wasn't drooling. The sweat seemed to enhance his toned figure as his shirt clung to him in all the right places. He may have only been seventeen, maybe eighteen at most, at least that was what I assumed at the time, but he had the body of a twenty-five-year-old. Whereas I wasn't dressed for running at all. I was in my jean shorts, black sneakers, and a grey singlet top, and now that I had stopped running the small cuts on my legs from the outreaching branches had started to sting.
"He was the kind of guy that preferred to spend all day playing video games?" Laura shook her head and laughed and I instantly knew they would've been complete opposites. For some reason, I couldn't even imagine a controller or keyboard ever touching Laura's long and slim fingers.
I however was the opposite.
"Well I might spend a day every now and then doing the same thing," I admitted as I ran some more water over my stinging legs. My father was an avid gamer, and I couldn't help but follow in his footsteps. In fact, the first game I played was James Bond 007: Goldeneye on Nintendo 64, and I loved the other classics like The Legend of Zelda, Mario Kart, and Mortal Combat just to name a few.
"You like video games?" Derek asked with a raised eyebrow and I gathered he didn't believe me.
"I do. Why don't you?" I always thought it was written into guys' DNA; the love for video games and anything violent.
"They're ok," He shrugged indifferently and Laura laughed.
"Oh please you get addicted to every new game that comes out," Laura continued to chuckle at Derek.
"I don't get addicted I just happen to enjoy the occasion video game," Derek spat and I felt a sibling squabble was about to take place. I had more than enough experience myself. Belle may have only been ten years old, but she was already acting like a teenager.
"You are such a liar," Laura disagreed.
"Your face is," Derek retorted.
"So are you guy's runners on the athletics team? Or is it like a hobby?" I changed the subject and disrupted the argument while I made sure to keep my eye contact with Derek short. I wanted to seem distant, the opposite of interested, and the opposite of how I was really feeling.
"It's just something we are good at. It runs in the family," Derek snickered and I knew it was an inside joke that I didn't understand.
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