You don't turn your back on family, even when they turn their back on you.Friends come and go but family will always be there.It

If there’s one thing in this world I’m afraid to lose, it’s you. I am so in love with you that I can’t afford to lose you! You turned my life into a journey of love and happiness. Every second I spend with you; I fall in love even more with you! If you ask me when I want to be with you, my answer will be – now and forever. Every time you look into my eyes, you melt my heart and make me fall in love all over again. I love being loved by you. If only you could see yourself through my eyes, you would understand how special and lovely you are. Love you my princess. My life is full of daydream. I tried to stop thinking about you but I failed each time. I need you here my love. I miss you. For everything that you have blessed me with, I can only promise that my life, my love, and my world will always be for you! I am so lost in loving you that I don’t know the right words to express what I feel for you. No word can describe my love for you! You are the strongest and kindest soul I have ever met and I am lucky to have you as my companion. You own my heart. I dream of a world where you and I would live for a thousand years to love each other. I know I’ll never be tired of loving you. Life without you is impossible. Life after you is unimaginable. Even after death, I want our souls to be reunited! Now the life seems a burden to me. I am so tired of my life. I am the problem and the solution of the problem is “You”. So, I need you to get the pace of life. I still love you and miss you so much. Our packages give you everything you need to reach your publishing goals, combining the most powerful tools and services to help you create a professional-quality book. We pair our top-notch editing, designing and marketing features with award-winning editorial excellence and recognition programs that get your book the attention it needs. Find the perfect combination of professional services for your book. We remove the hassle and uncertainly from self-publishing. Publishing with iUniverse, you gain the years of experience and industry knowledge that we've built into our packages. No need to track down designers, editors and distributors on your own! Simply find the best fit and follow your passion. Study Novels Page 1 of Shielding Lily Around the Web Ads by Revcontent Florida CEO to Help Publishers Grow Revenue; Improve User Experience Florida CEO to Help Publishers Grow Revenue; Improve User Experience Sarasota Herald Tribune 1 Lily Video Player is loading. PauseUnmute Fullscreen VDO.AI The sounds of banging cabinets startle me awake before my alarm can go off. Rolling over to my side, I see I still have thirty minutes before I need to get up. I’d set my alarm a little earlier than I should have because I’m nervous about my first day. I’m going to a new school and have no idea what this one is going to be like. You never know what you’re going to get. Most of the time I can blend in and let myself get lost in the crowd of other students. No one notices me for the most part, but it doesn’t always work. I should be used to changing schools by now. I think this is the fourth time I’ve moved in the past two years. The schools are starting to run together, but I hope this is the last. Only months separate me from graduation, and only days from my eighteenth birthday. I’ll be able to make my own choices then. A sound of something shattering in the kitchen followed by a string of curses causes me to hold my breath. I can only hope he doesn’t call out my name. Monday mornings are the worst. Dad’s always coming off a weekend bender, because alcohol seems to be my father’s reason for living. It wasn’t always like this, but it is now. Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves, I slowly sit up and listen for his movements. Things have been getting unstable lately, and it’s only getting worse. Dad used to be able to drown his sorrows in the bottom of a bottle and pretend I didn’t exist. But recently his anger has been rising and flying my way. I’m constantly walking around on eggshells, waiting for the other shoe to drop. I don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s the look in his eyes, but I can see it. I can feel it deep inside me, like he’s waiting for me to do something wrong so he can strike out. But I always make sure there isn’t a reason. I desperately don’t want that change to come. I’m a skittish rabbit in my own home. When I finally hear the front door slam closed, all my muscles release, and an all-too-familiar tension within me relaxes. I pull myself from the bed and get ready for school. I go with a short button-up blue jean dress with wool leggings underneath. They’re soft and warm and will help with the chill on my mile-long walk to school. It’s early January, and the Minnesota winter is raging. The more layers I can put on, the better. Looking in the mirror, I part my hair a little to the side so more falls to the right, before putting in a small clip to hold it in place. I make sure the scar by my ear is hidden as much as possible, then I look myself over, double-checking everything. The scar is all I ever see when I look in the mirror. It’s the bitter reminder of the day that changed my world. My mom might have died in the car, but she dragged my father with her into the grave. Nothing has been the same since that day. Now when I look into the mirror, the scar isn’t the first thing I see. I see my mother. When I was unpacking boxes last night I pulled out a photo album of my parents when they were younger. I look just like her at my age. From my white-blonde hair, to my too-big blue eyes that take over my face, to my front teeth that are a little bigger than the rest, and my small upturned nose. We almost look like twins in pictures of us at the same age. Reaching out, I touch the mirror, wishing it was my mother. But all the wishing in the world can’t turn back the clock. I spent the first year after she died wishing for so many things. Wishing gets you nowhere. I wipe at the tear that’s somehow escaped. I miss when I looked in the mirror and I only saw the scar. It was easier to deal with. Grabbing my bag, I head downstairs knowing the mess my dad made will still be there. Since my mom died I’ve sort of taken her place when it comes to the household chores. I make sure everything is kept clean, the laundry is done, and dinner is on the table before my dad gets home from whatever job he is doing. Normally it’s some kind of security since he lost his badge after one too many DWIs. I don’t know how he can drink all night and still get up for work, but he does it. I finish cleaning up the shattered coffee mug from the floor and make sure everything else is in its place. I pull a pack of hamburger meat out of the freezer and sit it out on the stove to defrost. I’ll make something with it when I get home. Bundling up the best I can, I pray that the weather won’t be too bad when school finally lets out. I need to see about finding a job on the weekends. Maybe I can fill out most of the applications online during lunch at the school library. I’ve seen a few small places in town that are on my way to school. I can see about popping in and applying on my way home. They’d be the best bet being so close. Maybe I’d get lucky and could even work a few hours after school, making it home before Dad. Dad will never go for me working through the week if it means no dinner on the table, but the weekends he seems okay with. I’ve been pooling every penny I can and saving it away. I feel like time is running out and I need as much money as I can get to try and get a place of my own. I want to be able to afford college next year and to put a roof over my head. I have to get out of here. I can’t watch my father kill himself. I already watched my mother die. 2 Ren My mom comes in my room asking me to help shovel the driveway so she can get her car out. I roll out of bed and manage a quick shower before throwing on some jeans and a long-sleeved henley. I grab my big winter boots and coat, and I go outside and see my dad working up a sweat. I don’t say anything, I just walk over and take the shovel from him and go back to the area where he was working. “Thanks, Ren. I’ll make you something to eat.” He pats me on the back, and I finish up as my mom is ready to leave for work. She’s an emergency room nurse who works what they call three-twelves. Three days of twelve-hour shifts, then off for four. She’s been doing it for almost twenty years, so I know even when she complains, she loves her job. My dad owns the hardware store in town, and everybody loves him. He’s the kind of man I hope to be one day, if I ever figure out how. My mom backs out of the garage and stops in front of me to roll down her window. “Dinner’s in the fridge, with a note on how long to cook it.” She turns her head to the side, and I try to fight a smile. “Knock your mom a kiss and get inside. It’s colder than your Grandma Grace.” I lean in, giving her a kiss, and shake my head. “Grace died ten years ago.” “Like I said.” She winks at me and rolls the window up, backing out and driving away. When I get inside, I see Dad has left me some eggs and oatmeal on the counter. I sit down and eat all of it, thinking that I could probably go for seconds. Looking at my watch I see I’ve got about twenty minutes before I need to leave for school, but I remember I need to get gas. Dad comes in wearing his khakis and work sweater with Hendricks’s Hardware embroidered on the breast. “I’m heading out. You going to be home after school?” I nod and grab my backpack. I hear him sigh, but I don’t say anything. I don’t want to start right now, because I need to be on my way. “Ren,” he says, and I know that tone. I wait, and sure enough he has to say something. “Football season is over and you’ve got a great scholarship to Minnesota in the fall. Your mom and I are so proud of you, son. I just want you to make sure you’re doing what it is you want to do and that you’re not playing football because you feel like you have to.” Around the Web Welcome!” she says in a half-squeal, making Mrs. White roll her eyes. I can see why she’s a cheerleader. She can really flip that pep on and off. “Hi,” is all I say as I stand, grabbing my backpack. I still have on my coat, having shoved all my other winter stuff like my hat and gloves into my backpack. They don’t have a locker ready for me yet. “I’m Kristen.” She reaches out her hand, and I take it. “I’m student body president and captain of the cheerleading squad.” She says it like she’s a politician. “I’m Lily Parker,” I tell her, because that’s all I am. I don’t have a list of things to trail behind it. Not that anyone would care about it. “It’s nice to meet you. Let’s get to our first class, then I can show you around.” I follow her out of the main office and down the hall. Her mood changes the instant we are out of the office, and she hands me my schedule. She doesn’t give me another glance or say another word until we enter a classroom. The whole room goes quiet, and I swallow. I keep my eyes down the best I can and pray for it to be over quickly. “Sorry, got stuck in the main office,” Kristen says. “It’s fine, Kristen. Welcome, Lily. Please find a seat anywhere. We’ve already started,” the teacher says. “Thanks,” I tell him, glancing towards the rows of desks filled with students. I go straight for the back of the room. There’s one empty seat and I grab it, dropping my backpack and taking my seat. When I glance to my left, I see a man that can’t possibly be a student sitting next to me. He’s a freaking giant. And he’s staring right at me. 4 Ren The new girl walks in, and I recognize her. Well, not her, but her coat. She’s the woman I saw walking this morning. I wonder if that’s why she’s late. Maybe she had car trouble. I can’t get a good look at her since her head is down, but that’s her. I don’t catch what Mr. Cole says to her, but I see Kristen give me a look and a wink before she takes her seat. But I don’t pay her any attention because the new girl has all of it. She walks down the aisle right beside where I’m sitting and takes the empty desk next to me. I sit up and look over at her, watching as she takes her coat off. She’s small, and I wonder for a second if she skipped a couple of grades. My eyes trail down what I can see and check her out. She’s probably only five feet tall, with wavy white-blonde hair. She fumbles with the buttons of her jacket, and I wonder if her hands are cold. Something in me wants to reach over and hold them so they warm up. She’s wearing a jean dress and my eyes trail down her legs, seeing the knee of her leggings are torn. Then I start to wonder if she fell, because I can see a small scratch where the fabric is missing. At least she’s wearing winter boots and I don’t have to worry about her feet. As my eyes move back up to her face, she turns her head and looks at me. I feel my pulse speed up as our eyes connect and we stare at one another. Her big blue eyes are doe-like. So perfect and round with thick, black lashes around them. Her cheeks are pink and her lips are rosy, and I have the incredible urge to kiss them. I’ve never felt this kind of attraction to anyone before, and it takes me by surprise. She looks away nervously, and I realize I’ve been staring at her like a creep for a solid minute. I feel bad that I made her nervous, and I want to make it right. Sitting up in my chair, I lean towards her, and whisper as quietly as I can. “Hey.” She looks at me and then looks up at the teacher. My eyes glance in Mr. Cole’s direction, but he’s in his own world, giving a lecture about King Lear and the importance of Shakespeare. He’s not so much as spoken ten words to me in the past six months, and I doubt he’s going to start now. Seeing that the teacher doesn’t notice anything, she looks over at me in confusion. “You okay?” I say, looking down at her knee. I don’t want to go full stalker on her and tell her I saw her on the side of the road, but I have this overwhelming desire to make sure she’s all right. She reaches down with one hand, covering the tear in her tights, and nods at me. After a silent moment, I see her pull out a notebook and pen. She opens them up and starts to take notes. I lean back in my seat, clearly dismissed, but I keep my eyes on her. I watch every movement of her small fingers and the way she holds her pen. She’s left-handed, and for some reason I like that. Occasionally she pushes a strand of hair away from her face, and I look on with fascination want to ask her questions, which is weird, because normally I avoid talking to anyone. It’s not that I’m not interested in things, I can just usually find them out for myself. Small talk with assholes in the locker room who compare the girls they f****d, or girls who try to get with me because of what I can provide for them, don’t interest me. And yet for some reason, this girl has my attention. She seems like she needs someone to watch out for her, and I’m starting to take a personal interest in that. Before I know it, the bell rings, and I realize I’ve been staring at her the whole time. I sit up and move closer to her, intending to ask her a question, when I’m nearly hit in the face by a cheerleading uniform. “Hi, Ren. Looking good today. Want to sneak off campus with me for lunch? I was thinking of hitting Joe’s for a burger,” Kristen says, leaning down towards me. “No thanks.” I stand up and grab my backpack, trying to move around her. “You sure? We could take the afternoon off and you can take a spin behind my new Mercedes. My dad got it for me for my eighteenth birthday last week. I’m legal now.” She winks at me, but it does nothing to make me want to go with her. Besides not wanting her, that car is impractical in this kind of weather. “No.” I grit out wanting Kristen to get lost. The blonde stands up and grabs her coat, and I don't know how much more time I have. “Hey, I’m Ren.” Her big blue eyes meet mine for a second, and then she looks down. “Lily.” The one word is spoken so softly and sweetly I almost don’t hear it. “Yeah, this is Lily Parker. The new girl. Must really suck starting a new school halfway through the year,” Kristen says and elbows her like they’re best friends. “Want to walk with us to her next class, Ren? We can drop her off and you can walk me to Spanish.” I want to say no, because I don’t want to go with Kristen, but I do want to talk to Lily. She looks at Kristen and then up to me before looking away quickly. She’s silent, so I nod, and Kristen bounces on her feet. “Sweet. Let’s get out of here.” I walk out beside Lily and see her pull out a piece of paper. I see it’s a class schedule and I try to read it as we walk. Kristen is talking, but I don’t pay attention to what she’s saying, I just keep watching Lily for even the smallest movements. I reach to Lily and hold my hand out and wait for her to give me her schedule. She hesitates for a second and then hands it to me. I see we’ve both got Advanced Calculus next. After that we’ve got lunch, then Physics, and a free last period. I smile at her and hand it back, wondering how I got so f*****g lucky. “I’ll take her, Kristen. We’ve got the same schedule today.” I see a ghost of a smile on Lily’s lips, and we fall into step together. When we walk down another hall, I realize that Kristen left us as some point without my noticing. “Thanks for showing me around,” Lily says softly and holds her jacket to her chest. /> “Sure.” I grab the door and hold it open for her as she walks through. I point to the seats in the back. “Is there always an empty seat next to you?” she asks as she drops her bag down beside her. “Not anymore.” 5 Lily I can feel his eyes on me through class. My normally downcast eyes have to fight to stay that way, because I want to look at him. I try to concentrate on what the teacher is saying and follow along as he maps out the math problem on the board. But all I manage to do is copy his work from the smartboard onto my paper, all his words going in one ear and out the other. Study Novels Page 3 of Shielding Lily Around the Web Ads by Revcontent Sign Up With Revcontent To Boost Your Content Sign Up With Revcontent To Boost Your Content Revcontent I give in and glance over at Ren, and he gives me a half-smile, showing off his perfect teeth. I snap my head back down to my paper, and all the numbers on the page look like a freaking mess. I hear him move his desk a little closer to mine. The thing lets out a groan, and I have to bite my lip to keep from smiling. I’m not sure how he fits in it. Ren isn’t small by any means. He doesn’t look like a high school student, although he still has some softness in his face that is partially obscured by stubble. I know he’s the same guy Kristen and Carrie were talking about in the office this morning. The one who got the football scholarship they all were wanting a piece of. He definitely looks like he belongs on a football field, snapping people in half and bursting through walls of bodies, but even with his size, for some odd reason I’m not intimidated by him. In fact, he put me at ease when he offered to take me to the next class. When the bell finally rings, I stand and put everything away in my bag, wondering what to do next. I know I need to find the library. Looking over, I see Ren does the same, but he reaches down and grabs my coat. “Lunch?” he asks. I reach to take my coat from his hands, but he shakes his head, then takes my backpack from me, too. “No, I’m not going to lunch,” I protest, wanting to go to the library instead. I don’t like to waste my money on food if I don’t have to. Lunch is a meal I can skip. I need to see about finding some kind of job or something. I try to take my coat from him, giving a little tug. It only makes him smile even more at me. His dark brown eyes are filled with humor, and I can tell what he’s thinking. No way I’m getting this thing from him unless he wants to hand it over. I stare up at him, still not a lick of unease within me, even with him dwarfing me. “You have to eat. You’re tiny.” My cheeks warm, feeling a little embarrassed at being criticized. It’s something I should be used to by now, but it still hurts. “I don’t mean it like that. I just mean you’re small and you can’t get any smaller.” He fumbles over his words. “s**t. I didn’t mean it like that either.” I c***k a smile at how flustered he becomes. I shrug and try to explain. “I’m sure you eat in one meal what I probably eat in a whole week,” I tease him, knowing he wasn’t trying to be rude with his comment. I want him to know it’s fine. I don’t think he’s used to being uncomfortable. Uncomfortable is the story of my life. I always feel that way. “Come on.” He grabs my hand, wrapping his fingers with mine and pulling me from the class. He walks a little too fast for me to keep up, so I have to double-step so I don’t trip. “Where’s your locker?” he asks as I try to keep pace with him. He looks back and down at me, slowing his speed and mumbling an apology. He doesn’t letting go of my hand though. In fact, he tightens his hold. I have to spread my fingers wide to fit his between them. “They’re getting me one.” He stops suddenly, and I almost run into him, but catch myself at the last second. “Sorry. I have to be more careful with you.” He says it like he thinks he might break me or something. “This is my locker. Our locker.” He lets go of my hand, ripping some football decorations off the front of the locker before rolling them into a ball and throwing it into a trash can across the hall. “Twelve, thirty-four, seventeen,” he says to me as he turns the dial, then opens the locker door. He puts my coat inside and looks at me. “Anything else you want to put in here? Make your backpack lighter? Never mind. I’ll just carry it. You remember the number?” He looks down at me and I stare at him. He’s all-consuming, and it’s different having someone look after me. Or at least that’s what it feels like he’s doing. Looking out for me on my first day at a new school “Forget it. I’ll be with you. You don’t need to remember the combination.” “Twelve, thirty-four, seventeen,” I repeat them back to him. “Do you always answer your own questions?” My words surprise him. “No.” He c***s his head to the side like he’s thinking. Then he grabs my hand again, pulling me with him. “Your hands are warm now?” His thumb grazes along my hand like he’s testing the temperature for himself. “I’m fine.” “You shouldn't be walking to school. A good wind would blow you over.” “How do you know I…” I trail off when I realize we’re now in the lunchroom. Students turn to look at us. People whisper, and a knot forms in the bottom of my stomach. I don’t like when people stare. I feel my breathing pick up, and I try to pull my hand from Ren’s, but his hold is unbreakable. He leads me to a table. “Sit here, I’ll go get our food.” There is no question in his words. He drops both our bags on the ground next to me and turns to leave. I glance around the room, seeing everyone is still looking, the whispers growing louder. I reach up and smooth my hair on the side that is covering up my scar, making sure no one can see it. I debate grabbing my bag and making a run for it. Ren I keep a watch on her out of the corner of my eye as I go to the line and grab two trays. I can see her indecision from here, and I know if I don’t hurry she’s going to ditch me. Luckily the ladies here know me and load me up. I’m quiet, but they know I can put away food, so two trays isn’t unusual for me. Lily fidgets and then moves her hand to her bag. She looks over to me, and I stare her down, telling her with a look not to move. I can’t protect her if she runs from me, and God knows where she would end up if she got lost. Our high school is huge, and I hate the thought of her being lost and alone. I nod to her, letting her know I’m almost finished, and she takes her hand off her bag and places it in her lap. I walk to the end of the line, and they ring up my food and charge my school badge. My parents put money in an account for me at the school, and the cost of it is taken from that balance. I help my dad at the hardware store some nights and on the weekends in the off season to earn money. So if I need to add extra to the school account, I can. But I’m not worried about making sure Lily has enough to eat. She will have whatever she damn well wants. I take the trays over to where she’s sitting and place them both in front of us and sit beside her. I could easily sit across from her, but I want to be as close to her as I can. I feel like my body is so much bigger than hers, so I can shield her from something if necessary. These thoughts about protecting her keep popping in my head, and I don’t know where they come from. I’ve never felt so strongly about someone so instantly, but the need is overwhelming. “What are you in the mood for?” I ask, nudging a fry towards her. “This is a ton of food. Let me give you some money.” She starts to reach in her bag, but I place my