Playing With Fire

Chapter 1

Two words.

Dear.

God.

Here I am, standing in front of a crowd of searching faces—In Miami.

Don't get me wrong. I have absolutely no regrets leaving home. Although mom almost had a heart attack after nearly popping a vein out from all the yelling, I managed to hustle my way out of there with no sort of formal goodbye.

Man, If ogling was a crime, I'd be charged.

"Can you hurry up?" Someone calls out, their tongue clicking, "People are waiting."

I turn around while taking my headphones off, eager to see what was making these glorified human beings so impatient. To my great dismay, I notice that the person who spoke is staring directly at me.

A tall man, perhaps in his mid thirties, shoots me an expectant look, confirming my thoughts that he is, indeed, talking to me.

I resist the urge to roll my eyes before shoving my cart forward and setting slow pace. As the line begins to move along, I scan over the crowd of unfamiliar faces, my heart beating a mile a minute.

The thought of dad makes my stomach flop into a frenzy of nervous jitters.

Will he recognize me?

Better yet, will I recognize him?

After all, it has been many years since I've seen him.

I clench and unclench my fists, my mind going on a jitter of thoughts--from 'maybe he didn't show up' to 'he's probably right in front of your eyes'. My suspense was finally resolved when I met a pair of light blue eyes. Instantly, I'm bombarded with childhood memories. I remember him gently tossing me as a child in the air, while all I did was plaster a huge grin on my face and stare back into his big, round eyes.

It feels as if I'm that child again. His same eyes, the ones that were filled with the happiness I saw when I was younger, are now a mirror image—something I rarely saw when dad was with mom.

"Faye!" He hollers, waving his arms wildly in the air.

I show him a toothy grin and drop my bags on the floor. I look up and see him jogging towards me with his keys jingling in his hands. Standing up straight, I began to fast walk towards him, craving to wrap my arms around him like I had always done before he left.

Dad presses a kiss to my temple and brushes my hair away from my face.

"I missed you so much, Faye." He whispers.

"Me too," I whisper back, not being able to help it when a tear escapes.

When he pulls back, I watch as the excitement and happiness fades into concern and worry.

"Don't cry baby," He cooes, placing a hand on my cheek, "I'm here now, and I'm never leaving you."

I nod my head, and c***k a laugh despite my tears, "I'll take you up on that, dad."

He knits his brows together momentarily before saying, "Good, because I don't plan on taking 'no' for an answer."

I smile and go in for another hug, truly just wanting him to hold me and make up for all the time we've lost.

"We should probably get going sweetie," Dad says after a brief minute or so, "Laura and Layla are eager to meet you."

I tense and slowly unwarp my arms and fold them, "Laura and Layla?"

"Yes, my wife and my stepdaughter," He says, before quickly adding in, "Don't worry, they will love you."

"Do you?" I mutter under my breath, while turning to get my bags.

When I turn back around, Dad is staring at me with his mouth agape.

I look around, slightly confused, "What's wrong?"

He ignores my question and takes my belongings into his hands. Then, he places it down besides him and bends down so he is looking directly at me.

"Listen now and listen well, Faye Williams," He begins, as my heart drops, "I don't care that I haven't seen you in years. You can hold a grudge against me, I will understand, but that doesn't mean I wont be the father I should've been all your life. I have a wife and kid at home, but my obligation to you is far greater. I love you because you are my daughter, and nothing can change that. No matter where I am, you are my family, and Layla and Laura understand that. All you need to do is let that sink into your brain, because I am never leaving you again. Do you understand me?"

I nod my head, my eyes wide and my lips at a loss of words.

"Now that we've got that cleared up," He says lightly, "I believe there is a family waiting to welcome you."

Realizing that I'm stunned frozen, I shake my head and stiffly walk forward with my remaining items on my back.

What just happened.

"Dad?" I ask tentatively, my eyes trained on the shiny black beemer in front of my eyes.

"Yeah sweetie?" He calls out, his voice echoing in the huge space around us.

I point my finger towards the black beauty ahead of me, as if I am in a trance.

"That's a beemer." I state oddly, my face contorting into one of confusion.

I'm confused as hell.

"Yes, it is." He chuckles while taking those keys and unlocking the trunk.

I drop my bags near the back of the car and take the tips of my fingers and run them along its marvelous length. The smooth, silk-like texture puts me into a state of awe.

"Is this your car?" I finally ask, my eyes widening in excitement.

He walks around the trunk and opens the driver door, giving me a wink before sinking in, "What do you think?"

I eagerly open my door and jump in as he starts the engine, "I think...you're stealing this car."

Suddenly, my dad starts laughing uncontrollably. With the car still running, he leaves the key in its ignition and slaps a hand to his knee, his breath coming out ragged.

"Dad, I'm serious!" I exclaim, looking at him incredulously.

"I know sweetie, sorry," He breathes out in between huffs, "It's just-your face!"

After a few more ticking moments, he opens his mouth to speak.

"I promise you, I did not steal this. It's my car." He says nonchalantly.

"How did you..." I start, before realization dawns on me.

Like a dodge ball, the idea hits me hard in the face.

Laura.

He chuckles again and then mumbles, "I can't wait till you see the house."

"Faye?" Mom called, using her fake sweet voice.

Hopefully she wasn't too drunk.

When I reached the bottom, I expected to see mom on the floor, asking for help or something, but instead, I saw her holding up the new Iphone I got yesterday.

I felt my heart drop and the blood in my body freeze.

"Mom, where did you find that?" I ask icily, taking a step closer to my phone.

"What. is. this?" She demanded, ignoring my question.

I rolled my eyes, "What does it look like? It's a phone. I bought it with my own money."

Mom stormed up to me, her fingers shaking as she pointed angrily at me, "DON'T you dare try and make yourself sound innocent! I saw you yesterday and I immediately knew that my own daughter was hiding something from me. So, I checked while you were sleeping-"

My eyes widened, "You snuck into my room?"

She smiled, "I did Faye. I did, and guess what I found?" She held up the phone as if she caught me red handed, "A PHONE!"

I cringed and stepped back a little, "Mom! That's a phone! Not a g*n! It's no big deal. I bought it with my OWN money! I deserve to have it."

I guess that was her final straw, because before I could take a moment to recover, she drew her hand back and slapped me right on the cheek.

"You. are a SELFISH. LITTLE. BRAT!" Mom screamed, "This is now mine!"

I suddenly feel a hand on my shoulder as I am reeled back to reality.

Miami, Faye. Miami. I remind myself calmly.

"Faye, you okay?" I hear dad's worried voice next to me.

I glance at him and flash him a small smile, "Yeah, sorry. I was just thinking."

He removes his hand and places it back on the steering wheel. As he returns his attention to the road, he opens his mouth to speak.

"About mom?"

I look out the window and purse my lips before answering, "Yes..."

Without having to ask me, he nods his head and looks straight ahead, "It's fine, I won't talk about it. But I just want to know."

I sigh and nod my head.

"Do you want to call her and let her know you're here?" He inquires softly.

"No." My answer was harsh and instant. Even I winced at the tone of my voice.

"Sorry..." I mumble, feeling my cheeks heat up.

"It's fine." Dad says, chuckling, "I don't know why I asked anyways. I wouldn't have allowed it."

Not knowing how else to start, I jump right in, "I...um, I'm sorry for not giving you a chance to explain this whole marriage thing properly—"

"—I was so caught up with what was going on at home that—"

"Faye." Dad said, cutting me off with a disapproving tone.

I mentally face plant on the surface of the car, and sigh. I quickly give him a glance before averting my gaze to the trees outside again.

"Don't you ever apologize for that." He demands sternly, staring in my direction briefly before focusing back on the road.

That's it?

Didn't I hurt him? Tear him apart?

He notices my bewildered expression when he quickly glances at me again, and shakes his head slightly.

"It was hard for me, Faye," He assures me, his words not exactly having the soothing affect though, "but, I'm sure what you were going through was much more difficult. Things are going to change now though. I'm going to be there for you, no matter what."

I want to stop the car right then and there to pound it in his brain that I denounced him as a father too many times for it tp be forgivable, but I couldn't. I didn't have any right to not answer his calls for three years. I didn't have any right to block him out of my head.

Instead, I simply shook my head in denial and looked forward.

"Don't kill yourself over this Miss Williams." Dad lectured, "I should have been more careful. I should have let you know I fell out of love with your mom, not you."

Yeah? Well you're my dad. I should've been more aware.

I shrug and hear him sigh.

"Don't worry, you'll have plenty of other things to worry about once you get settled." He jokes, making me turn my head to see him smiling at me.

I roll my eyes, glad the tension was broken, and can't help it when a full on grin breaks way onto my face.

I didn't smile because he changed the subject, I smiled because he said 'once you get settled'. That means a family.

A real relationship.

Safety.

"There's that smile again!" Dad cooed mockingly, reaching over to tap my cheek.

I quickly slap his hand away when I feel a blush creeping up my face. His soft laugh rings in my ears and I look at our surroundings again to distract myself.

"It's beautiful." I mutter, entranced by the smell of the coastline water and sea life.

"It is right?" I hear dad agree, "Do you like the beach?"

I turn and look back at him and grin, "That's the best part."

"Well, I'm glad you like it, because that's pretty much your backyard..." He says casually, almost making his statement slide past my ears.

My heartbeat picks up its pace and I do a double take, "Come again?"

Dad looks at me and grins from ear to ear, "You heard me."

I stare at him incredulously, my mouth agape. "How in the world...Are you serious?"

He doesn't answer my question, but he motions with his head to turn around and take a look.

When I do as he says, I nearly fall out of the car.

"So, I take it that you like it here?"

I close my eyes and feel the breeze whip my hair, traveling all the way down my neck, leaving me cold at my toes. I couldn't help but feel excited. An irresistible squeal escapes my lips and I and jump in my seat, clapping my hands together like a four year old.

Dad shook his head and laughed, "Looks like we're home, baby. Look to your right."

As I did so, dad rolled in front of the most beautiful, half glass mansion I have ever seen.

The car dips, but I'm too dazed to notice anything but that huge mansion in front of my eyes. I blink a couple times, thinking that when I open my eyes, I won't see it anymore, but no. It's still there. The house with a dazzling landscape and fountain, an outdoor porch with lounging furniture, and a roundabout driveway at the very side...right at my fingertips.

"So..." Dad pops up in front of me, bending down so his face is blocking the view, "What do you think?"

I clap my hands over my mouth, surprised to see his face instead of the house in front of me. I didn't even realize he had gotten out of the car!

Dad laughs and gives my shoulder a quick squeeze, "Before we go inside, I would love for you to meet Laura and Layla."

I stare at him, silently begging him to let it go, but a very feminine squeal behind us interrupts us both.

"Oh, honey!" Calls a high pitched voice, "She's here!"

Dad turns around and I strain my neck to see a woman running in our direction.

It doesn't take rocket science for me to realize the live model is Laura. Her golden, blonde hair flickers in the breeze and the sun reflects on her skin, showing her perfectly even tans. When her icy blue eyes meet mine, her lips tug up into a stunning smile. Dressed in slouchy tight fit lounge pants and a loose cami, she stops in front of me with an even wider grin.

I fondle with my fingers while mustering up a convincing smile one of my own.

To say I am surprised is an understatement, but I hastily push the shock aside and stretch my hand out for a shake.

It's a start right?

"I'm Faye Williams, you must be my dad's wife."

From the corner of my eye, I see dad's lips twitch like he is trying to hold back.

Laura stares at my hand for a few silent moments before stepping forward and pulling me into a warm embrace.

I feel myself stiffen, mainly because mom hadn't hugged me ever since dad left, but I slowly relax and wrap my arms around her shoulders.

As she pulls back with a smile on her face, she says, "I'm sorry Faye, but I don't shake hands with family. It's too formal."

At that moment, I feel my heart swell up to the point where I feel as if it's going to explode any second. My cheeks instantly begin flaming, and I look down, too speechless to say anything.

"Wow," I hear her say aloud, more to dad than to me, "She's even more beautiful than you described her to be."

I snap my head up to dad's and see him nodding in agreement with a smile on his face.

He talked about me?

More importantly, he said I'm beautiful?

They both turned to look at me and I immediately felt heat rising up my cheeks again.

"For the record Faye Williams," She begins, stepping forward again and looking me directly in the eyes, "I'm Laura Wiliams, but call me Laura."

Her words echo through my ears like wedding chimes and I greatfully let an ear to ear smile stretch across my face.

"Laura it is, then" I agree with a smile, glad she didn't seem awkward about it.

She flashes me another one her smiles and opens the car door for me to step out, "Welcome to the family Faye!"

"Mom!" Someone else calls abruptly, ending the bliss I was feeling.

Laura immediately turns around, chuckling loudly when she sees the younger version of her half running to where we all were.

That must be Layla.

"Well, it isn't a family until she comes." Dad chimes in, laughing to himself and looking at the girl who was running towards us.

Laura let's go of me and brings her daughter to me.

Layla's long, ash blonde hair is tied into a fishtail braid like my auburn brown hair is. She flashes me a charming smile, her pearly whites flashing. I give her a meek wave, feeling a little more nervous about meeting her more than her mom.

"Hello, Faye. I'm Layla." She introduces herself gracefully, extending out her hand.

I look down at it and then slowly return the greeting. As we shake, a steady smile grows on my face, and she laughs slightly.

"Oh, hell." Layla exclaims, ripping her hand from mine, " I can't do this!"

I draw my hand back and stare at her in shock at her out of the blue reaction. It's so silent I swear if a pin dropped, it would be the sound of thunder.

I look at my dad from the corner of my eye, but he is too busy staring down Layla to notice my discomfort. Suddenly, Layla takes a huge step towards me and spreads her hands out.

"Oh come here, you!" she demands, "Shaking hands is for losers, hug it out."

My eyes widen, and before I can process anything, she wraps her arms around my neck and pulls me in for an embrace.

I nearly stumble into her and she whispers, "Gotcha there, didn't I?"

I hear laughing in the back but I'm quickly endorsed in worry and excitement to notice. I gladly hug her back and let my heart soar with overwhelment.

She pulls back gleaming, and grabs my hand for a mock handshake.

"I'm Layla Henders." She says while carelessly flopping my hand around, her pale blue eyes glowing, "your nightmere sister."

I giggle, feeling giddy at the thought of having a sibling that I've always wanted, "Well, I look forward to that Layla."

She beams while Dad pitches in, telling Layla to show me around while him and mom discuss 'matters', meaning me.

He gives me a reassuring smile, probably seeing my reaction, and motions for Layla to take over.

Layla nudges my shoulder, "We'll get your bags later. C'mon!"

∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞

"Dang, you suck at following directions." Layla exclaims, closing the gap I was trying to make in between my fingers as we walk up the stairs. She taps my head gently as a threat, only making me laugh more.

"What if I fall on my face?" I protest pointlessly. It's a pretty good excuse.

In less than two hours, I had managed to feel at home again. Okay, well, not quite at home, but better than I've felt in a long time. Whatever relationship Layla and I were forming, it was natural. I want to scold myself for worrying about how Layla would act around me, now that I know at least.

"Oh shush it, I won't let you fall." She lets out a tiny laugh, "And by the way, that little pout face of yours...not going to work."

I groan defeatedly, and focus back on the staircase that seems to be taking an eternity. By the feel of the stairs underneath my feet, I'm guessing it's granite or marble.

Suddenly, Layla places her hands on my shoulders and guides me to the left. She turns me one last time before stopping me.

"Okay!" She instructs, "Walk three more steps forward, and you'll be in your room."

I don't know whether I'm imagining things or not, but as soon as I take the third step, I feel a completely different atmosphere. It went from cool to warm and cozy in a matter of seconds. I anxiously wiggle my toes, wanting so bad to remove my hands.

"Can I look now?" I almost beg.

"Yup." She answers, popping the 'p'.

I drop my hands and gasp, my eyes going wide.

The first thing I see is white.

White walls, white floor, white everything.

"Holy..." I start to say. To be honest, I don't even know what I was going to say.

I spin around in circles, wondering when one word will snap me out of my dream.

I stop, frozen in place, when I realize I'm facing a glass window starting from the ceiling, and ending when it touches the floor. There is a thin, white curtain draping on each side. On the right side of the window, a tiny handle catches my attention and I curiously run to it.

"It's a door so you can go out." I hear Layla speak, coming closer.

I turn around to face her with wide eyes, "It's all mine?"

She gleams, nodding her head and gestures for me to unlock the door and step out.

I do so, stepping onto the polished wooden patio, and am hit with a chilling breeze. The late afternoon sun radiates on my face, leaving tingles all over my skin. From a close distance, I can see the ocean waves lapping over each other, and the palm trees wavering back and forth, almost like they are dancing. They surround the rims of the beach, growing from the rich, granite sand.

"It's really pretty." I state in awe.

"And you know what the best part is?" Layla asks, making me turn to face her as she sits in a lounge chair on the balcony.

She grins at my reaction, my eyes probably popping out again.

"As beautiful as these chairs are, that's not the best part." She muses, looking at me with her twinkling eyes, "The best part, is that my room is right next to yours."

I grin at her, and look farther down the hallway to see another glass window.

From the look in her eyes though, I can tell she isn't telling me everything. I look at her with an eyebrow raised and walk over to where she is sitting.

"And?"

She smirks, "Mom and dad's room is all the way on the other side of this floor."

From the devious look in her eye, I immediately catch on. I look around the room momentarily before bursting into laughter.

"Ohmygod," I say in between laughs, "How did they not realize that before?"

She stifles a giggle as she gets up from the chair, and motions for me to follow her. I do so and we silently skulk around the mini deck of ours. She jumps off the rails, landing in the sand, and then looks at me with a challenging look.

"Where are we going!" I squeak when she pulls me alongside her.

Layla puts a finger to her mouth telling me to 'shush', and ducks, pushing my head down.

Only moments before, I saw Laura and Dad sitting in the living room, chatting with milkshakes in their hands. My eyes widen and I immediately try to protest.

"Layl-"

"Shh!" She interrupts, turning to stare at me.

I clamp my eyes shut and clench my mouth, trying my hardest not to say anything I'll regret.

"On the count of three," She whispers, "we're going to run for our lives."

My eyes widen, "Wha-"

"One."

I narrow my eyes at her and look forward.

"Two."

"Three!"

She bolts up, pulling me with her and a yelp escapes my mouth out of an adrenaline rush. With our feet sinking in the sand, we probably look like ducks trying to fly.

I try not to let a smile form when we successfully run past our parents, but when I hear Layla start to laugh, I can't help myself.

We sprint all the way to the front of the house and come to an abrupt halt right before we step off the beach and onto the road.

Layla bends on her knees, and slaps her thigh, laughing like a maniac.

I giggle at how ridiculous she looks and try to catch my own breath at the same time.

"You... you should've seen..." She says in between huffs, "Oh my god, that was fun!"

I laugh and nod my head.

No matter how much I want to deny that, I can't. Honestly, that has been the best fun I've ever had for a while now.

I'm starting to learn now that she isn't as innocent as she seems.

"So," She begins after we walk and pant, trying to start a conversation, "you're from Boston..."

I catch up to her and nod my head, "Did dad tell you?"

"Yeah...he talked about you alot you know."

I glance at her from the corner of my eye, "He did? What-was it good things?"

She gives me the 'what else would he talk about look' and smiles, "Yeah, he told us you were beautiful-" She glances at me, "I can see why he says that."

"Thank you." I murmur, looking down as she continues to stare at me. The longer she looks, the more I feel the blush creeping up my face again.

"He also talked about your personality...conversations...your mom." She whispers the last part.

My gaze remains on the floor.

"It's okay," Layla urges, nudging my shoulder, "You're here now."

I offer her a weak smile, "Yeah I am."

She shrugs, a smile back on her face, "And besides, you're in Miami. You'll be fine."

I laugh at how confident and playful she sounds, but the thought of dad talking about 'mom' still lingers in my mind.

What did he tell them?

Layla seems to sense my discomfort and she clears her throat.

"Anyways!" She cheerfully says, "We're going to be going to the same school."

My face distorts into one of pure disgust because I nearly forgot that moving still means I have to go to school.

"Why the heck are you so excited about school?" I ask, bewildered at the thought that she might actually look forward to the endless drama.

Oh don't tell me she's one of those people...

"Because now you're here!" She squeals, "Finally something to look forward to."

I smile widely at her words. It seems like it's all I've been doing the entire day.

Smiling.

It feels good.

"Hey, let's turn back around. We can go out later tonight." She says abruptly, spinning me around and walking back in the other direction.

"Oh, okay." I mutter underneath my breath.

"Sorry, It's just that the park down there is somewhere I don't go often."

"Oh, no it's fine." I'm surprised she heard me before.

This time, I can feel the discomfort radiating off her, so I take the time to change the subject again.

"So, are you a junior?" I ask when she picks up her pace.

"Nope!" She says, popping the 'p', "Been there, done that, never doing it again. I'm a senior now."

I know she is referring to the level of stress because before I left, junior year was getting a lot more complicated.

"Oh that's cool. You probably know I'm a junior, huh?"

"Yeah," She snickers, "Dad."

I figured he might have gone over the basics.

Right as we are about to turn into our house, I feel a pair of eyes staring into my back. Those tingling sensations whenever I can sense it begin to wrack at my arms, and I spin around.

I fold my arms across my chest and meet a pair of eden green eyes. They are smoldering at me, and I narrow my eyes in annoyance.

I feel a presence behind me, and then an arm swings around my shoulder. I look to see Layla standing next to me, her eyes fixated on the boy I was originally having a face off with.

A muscle in his jaw ticks, and he runs a hand through his shadow brown curls before getting up from his seat and walking into his house.

Right before closing the door, he whirls around, his lips curling upward into a mocking smirk.

Layla tenses up next to me while I raise an eyebrow and then turn away.

I hear the door shut and Layla exhales a deep breath. I turn to look at her and notice how visibly pissed she looks.

"Are you okay?" I ask, frowning. I know it is a stupid question, but it's always a start.

She looks at me as we walk up to the front door, and then suddenly pulls me to a halt.

"Don't talk to him okay?" She demands, all signs of joking gone.

This only confuses me more, "What do you mean?"

She sighs, "He's goes to our school--he's bad, Faye. I want you to stay away from him. Everyone does."

I know I haven't known Layla forever, but the way she's acting now compared to before, there's a difference.

"Okay. I'll stay away." I assure her with a smile on my face.

She seems to visibly relax, "Promise?"

I nod, "Promise."

The creases on her forehead disappear and a smile grows on her face as she opens the door for both of us to enter the house.

The real door this time.