Chapter 1: Once Upon a Time
The sun over the Lillian Bay was high above the children playing in the yard of their beach home. Giggles echoed in the air, but it was all one-sided; not everyone was having as good a time as the others.
“Kenny; give it back!" The boy yelled at his little sister, chasing her through the front yard. "You're being immature." She only laughed, trying to run faster away from the teen behind her.
Kennedy Cross, and her brother Rhys were only a year apart, Rhys being 13. They were trying to enjoy the last day of their vacation on the coast of the beautiful lake of The Lillian Bay. Their parents shared a beach house with 2 other families, who just happened to be childhood friends with them.
Each family lived a minimum of 3 hours away from each other, with the beach house resting in at the halfway point between them. They'd been coming here for the past 10 years, but something about this year seemed different: life changing.
"Kids, stop fighting," Mr. Evans came into view, but the siblings kept running. "I won't tell your parents if you stop now." They screeched to a halt. Winnie and Brendan's dad was always the coolest.
As Mr. Evans turned to make his way back inside to pack, Rhys ripped his possession from Kennedy's hands. "Whatever," she commented. "I have dolls of my own." She walked away from her brother and his "Action Figure!" as he yelled back.
She took a quick walk through the house before making her way through the back door and down to the beach. Taking notice of the lack of patrons, she joined her friends down at the beach one last time as a child: next year, she'd be a teenager. Next year, she'd be different.
"Hi, guys," she greeted, taking a seat next to her best friend, Mitchell. Though she’d always been close with all the boys, she and Mitchell had a special bond. Some people call it being best friends, but she calls it a crush.
“Hey, Kenny,” Brendan greeted her, brown eyes glittering in the sunshine.
Brendan was her brother’s age as Mitchell was her age. Brooks, the blonde boy next to Brendan, was a year younger than her, but was still able to hang out with the boys. Mitchell and Brooks were brothers, and they had a little sister, Jenna. Jenna was probably in the house, playing dolls with Winnie, Brendan’s sister.
Neither of the girls liked her because they claimed she was too much of a boy to fit in with them. If it weren’t for the boys taking her in, she’d never have a good time.
The 4 of them started talking, and decided to reminisce about the good times they’d experienced in the past 12 years. Soon, Rhys joined them, not forgetting to glare at Kennedy for her doll comment.
The next 5 minutes of that day are the most crucial to the way Kennedy would grow up. The next 5 minutes would change everything. “Do you want to go for a walk with me, Mitchell?” she asked him, looking up with what she thought were flirty eyes.
“Uh, sure,” he told her.
They excused themselves from the group, not noticing the curious, and somewhat disgusted, eyes of the other three. In a few moments, they were at the side of the house. Kennedy had been waiting all summer to tell Mitchell her feelings. She opened her mouth to express her feelings and…
The next 5 minutes were a blur. She recalled telling him, and as kindly as he tried to gently turn her down, all she felt was pain. The boys came up and started laughing at her. She remembered the words “ugly,” “fat,” and “creepy.” This wasn’t how she wanted to remember her last summer as a child.
Kennedy was right; next year, she’d be different. Next year, she wouldn’t come back.
