C H A P T E R • E I G H T
It takes Lydia four years since moving to Beacon Hills to finally explore the woods surrounding her home. The Preserve, as she's learned it's called, surrounds the mansion like a thick blanket with a single concreted road that leads past the high, black, metal gates and through the forestry to the town.
She goes with Heather one Tuesday after school. The pair hiking the floor of the woods with their school bags and trainers on. The sun is hot, but the towering trees cast a pleasant shade over them, protecting them from the blistering heat.
Lydia has always wondered what was so dangerous about the woods. For years, her parents have told her to never go in there alone, that it's 'dangerous'. She scoffs at them now. There is nothing dangerous about a bunch of trees and bushes.
"Do you think we'll be able to find a lake?" Heather asks, a step ahead of Lydia as she easily steps over a particuarly large fallen tree.
"Uh," Lydia grunts as she catches her foot on a root, quickly righting herself and shaking her loose curls out of her face. "I don't know. I can't remember if my father said there was one."
The only person Lydia has really got any answers out of about the Preserve has been Stiles. Considering the 12 year old lived here all his life before he was banished behind planes of mirrored glass, Stiles had apparently wandered the forest grounds around the house all the time. He was allowed out alone, at the youngest age of seven to go and explore with his older brother and their friends. Stiles had mentioned about a rich family who used to live in the woods, and Lydia has secret determination to find it.
"There's a house, though," she says. "Apparently people used to live out here."
"Woah, really? Did your dad tell you where it was?" Heather asks as she stops, waiting until Lydia catches up to her.
Lydia falters. Stiles never told her where it was, nor if it was even there anymore.
"Uh, no," she feigns, throwing her hair over her shoulder and hurrying on with confident strides. "But I know it's here."
They walk on for a few more minutes in silence. The heat above them is smouldering, making the air stuffy and the physicality of hiking through the uneven woods even harder.
Heather is the first to break the silence.
"What happened with Tracy?" She asks, voice slightly breathless.
"Huh?"
"Tracy Stewart, from English class," Heather repeats slowly. "I thought you two were friends."
"Uh, no," Lydia licks her lips nervously, happy Heather is behind her. "No we're not."
"You guys seemed to get alone fine on the first day,"
"It's nothing," Lydia shrugs. Truth be told, she couldn't hang out with Tracy. She needed to be cool, and so far, the cool attempt was going fine now. It's been just over a week since they started Beacon Hills Middle School, and Lydia's popularity rank has risen like the sun on a winters morning. She struts with confidence, hair in curls that bounce like her ego. The girls in the upper year smile at her now, and the swell it causes in her chest is something she can never trade.
But being friends with Tracy would jeperodize that. Tracy is what the school class as a 'freak', and cool girls can't hang around with freaks or nerds or weirdos. Lydia needed to have standards, she knew this. Which is why she dropped Tracy like a hot brick and has turned to expensive bags and fancy shoes.
"Lydia, Tracy seems really sad you don't like her anymore," Heather continues, and Lydia resists the urge to spin around and push her over in attempt to make her stop.
She sighs with sassy exasperation. "Tracy will get over it," she says. "She'll find new friends, ones that actually suit her. We have nothing in common, Heather. We wouldn't be good friends even if we tried."
Heather is quiet for a moment. "But. . . you guys were talking about books, and medicine and history—"
"And I realise now that that stuff is so lame," Lydia retorts. "I don't even read books anymore. Studying is boring and Florence whats-her-face is nothing but a boring dead woman."
"Lydia!" Heather gasps. "You can't talk about historic legends like that."
Lydia does spin around that time with so much ferocity and speed her hair very nearly slaps her in the face. "I can and I just did. And, without those silly books, we're becoming popular."
"Lydia, we don't have anymore friends than we started with,"
"We will though," Lydia smiles. "Don't worry, we'll have loads of people lining up to be our friends in no time."
"I don't want loads of people lining up," Heather replies. "I just want a few true friends."
Lydia rolls her eyes, turning back around and taking a few more steps before something peaks through the trees, catching her eye.
"Is that. . ." Heather trails off, apparently seeing the same thing Lydia is.
"The house!" Lydia yelps in victory, running through the last of the trees to get to it.
She keeps her eyes on the ground, making sure she doesn't trip until she's bursting out the woods and into the clearing around the house. When she looks up, her heart almost sinks.
The house is burnt to a crisp. Rotting, collapsing. Only the skeleton of the home still stands.
"What happened?" Heather murmurs. "It's all burnt."
Lydia makes a mental note to ask Stiles about this later.
*
When Lydia gets home hours later, it's almost dark out. Her shoes are dirty and ruined, her clothes sticking to her skin from the heat.
She's surprised to find both her parents in the kitchen. Her mother is by the ancient stove, stirring something in a pot as the soft, quiet melody of the radio plays on the window sill. Her father sits at the dining table, typing quickly on the keys, eyes glued to the screen.
During dinner, they act as normal. As if they haven't spend the last eight months arguing every time they were in the same room.
"Lydia, me and your mother have decided that it would be best for everyone if things changed around here,"
"Are we finally getting a new hallway rug?"
"No," her father sighs, exasperatedly. "Something a little bit bigger than that is going to happen."
Lydia swallows. "What?"
"Lydia, me and your mother are splitting up, and I am moving out."
*
authors note: so so so sorry this took me so long to write and post. I have had other fics on here and AO3 that haven't been updated in months, so they took top priority.
anyway, I have finally updated, and I know it's short and sucks, but the next one will be so much better. as for the shortness, it was due to both me wanting to get this posted and I wanted the cliffhanger there.
hope you're all still enjoying! leave votes and comments <3
lots of love xxx