Chapter One - Greystone
It had been an accident. Lily knew it was an accident, but knowing didn’t make the weight of it any lighter.
The screams still echoed in the hollow spaces of her memory. The grit of dust still clung to her tongue. And sometimes, like now, her chest tightened as though the air itself had turned to smoke, burning her lungs every time she tried to breathe.
She lay in bed, unmoving, eyes tracing the sunlight as it crawled across the ceiling of her new bedroom. Her fingers clutched the thin fabric of her T-shirt at her chest, as if pinning herself to this moment—this house, this town—could keep her from slipping back into the wreckage.
A soft knock cut through the silence.
“Lily, you awake?” her mother’s voice called gently through the door.
Lily propped herself up on her elbows, forcing a small smile when she met her mother’s eyes.
“Breakfast in ten,” Selene said, warm but brisk. “Get ready. We’re dropping the boys off first.”
“Okay,” Lily murmured, her voice quieter than she meant it to be.
She lingered for a moment after the door closed, letting the quiet stretch. The house still didn’t feel like home — not yet. The walls were too clean, the air too still, carrying no history of laughter or arguments or slammed doors. Greystone was supposed to be a fresh start. For the boys, it probably would be. For her… she wasn’t sure yet.
By the time she’d pulled herself out of bed and into jeans and a sweatshirt, the smell of toast and eggs had crept up the hallway. Her thick, black curls had been gathered into a half-up, half-down style, the loose strands framing her face the way her mother always liked. A small piece of normal in a morning that didn’t quite feel like one.
The twins were already at the table when she stepped into the kitchen — all long limbs, brown hair, and boyish confidence that filled every inch of the room. Ezra sat with one leg hooked over the other, leaning back in his chair as though gravity had less claim on him than everyone else. Hazel eyes, sharp and restless, flicked toward her, then back to his phone. Elias, beside him, had his honey-colored eyes on their mother, grinning through a mouthful of toast while Selene scolded him for talking with food in his mouth.
They were, undeniably, heartbreakers-in-the-making. Earrings catching the light — one left, one right — they exuded that effortless charm that turned heads without trying. But Lily knew better. Beneath the bravado, her brothers were good boys — protective, loud, annoyingly endearing.
“Don’t forget,” Selene said, waving a spatula like a warning, “have fun, make friends, and behave yourselves.” Then, with a pointed look at the twins, “That goes double for you two.”
“Why not me?” Lily asked, raising an eyebrow as she took her seat.
“Because I don’t worry about you,” Selene said with a quick smile. “Them? I have to keep an eye on.”
The boys just laughed, pushing back their chairs and snagging their backpacks. “We love you, Mom!” they chorused on their way to the door, already in motion, their energy barely contained.
Lily shook her head, trailing after them with a quiet smile. Toast and eggs made into a sandwhich.
The morning air was crisp as they stepped outside, the quiet streets of Greystone just beginning to stir. Walking, Ezra had decided, would help them get a feel for the town — and for once, Lily had agreed.
A few other kids were scattered along the sidewalks, their eyes lingering a little longer than polite as the twins passed by. Lily noticed the glances, the whispers. It figures. Ezra and Elias carried that easy, untouchable confidence that made them impossible not to look at.
Lily pulled her sweatshirt tighter around herself, content to walk in their shadow, unnoticed — for now.
By the time they reached the high school, the sidewalks were busier, alive with chatter and motion. Students clustered in groups, laughing, shoving, scrolling on their phones.
“Thanks for walking with us, Lil,” Elias said as they reached the front steps.
“Yeah,” Ezra added, leaning in to kiss her left cheek while Elias kissed her right. “Couldn’t have asked for a better escort.”
Lily rolled her eyes but smiled, nudging them both lightly. “Behave, please. Don’t make Mom regret letting you out of the house.”
“No promises,” Ezra teased, already backing away.
Elias grinned. “See you later, sis.”
She watched them go, their heads already turning toward groups of girls waving at them, and shook her head with a quiet laugh before turning toward her own campus just a few blocks away.
The closer she got, the heavier her stomach felt — that nervous churn of being new, of knowing no one, of hoping no one noticed how tightly she held her bag to her chest.
She was watching her steps, weaving through the clusters of students, when someone bumped into her shoulder hard enough to make her stumble.
“Oh my god, I’m so sorry!” a girl’s voice exclaimed.
Lily looked up, catching sight of bone-straight burgundy hair that brushed neat shoulders, glossy nails wrapped around a designer tote. The girl was dressed like she owned the sidewalk — stylish, confident, with that effortless mix of high fashion and personal twist. The kind of girl who could pass for mean without saying a word — but her eyes were warm, apologetic.
“I wasn’t looking where I was going,” the girl said quickly. “Totally my fault.”
“It’s fine,” Lily said, adjusting her bag, a little caught off-guard.
“No, really,” the girl pressed, a small smile tugging at her lips. “Let me make it up to you. I’ll show you around later, introduce you to a few people.”
Lily blinked. “Oh — that’s okay, you don’t have to.”
“I insist,” the girl said, playfully dramatic as if refusing wasn’t an option. “It’s the least I can do. Consider it a bump-tax.”
That got a small laugh out of Lily despite herself.
“Maria,” the girl added, offering her hand with a perfectly polished smile. “Fashion major, professional apologizer today, apparently.”
“Lily,” she replied, shaking her hand, still a little dazed by the sudden shift in her morning.
“Well, Lily,” Maria said, already looping her arm through hers as though they’d known each other longer than a minute, “welcome to Greystone University.”
And just like that, Lily’s day — maybe even her entire start here — felt like it had shifted.
