A Late Start.
1561 Words
The next morning;
Gemma woke up to the sound of something crashing downstairs.
She shot up in bed. “What now?”
Another bang.
“Chloeeee!” Julie’s voice echoed through the house.
Gemma groaned and fell back against her pillow. The ceiling fan above her spun lazily. Sunlight poured through the unfamiliar curtains, lighting up walls that still didn’t feel like hers.
Right.
Texas.
New house.
Hot brother next door.
She sat up immediately.
Okay. Maybe Texas wasn’t completely terrible.
“Gemma!” her mom shouted again. “Come help!”
“I’m coming!” she yelled back, even though she very much was not.
She dragged herself out of bed and stepped into the hallway. Boxes were still everywhere. Half-opened. Half-forgotten. The place smelled like cardboard and cleaning spray.
Downstairs, Julie stood in the kitchen, hair tied up, already dressed, phone pressed between her ear and shoulder while wiping down the marble counter.
“Yes, hi, I’m calling about new student registration… yes, we just moved here… yes, Austin… yes, I understand…”
Gemma slowly backed away.
“Nope.”
Julie snapped her fingers without looking at her. “Do not even think about it.”
Gemma sighed dramatically and grabbed a rag from the sink.
Chloe sat cross-legged on the floor, sorting through a pile of random things.
“Why are we cleaning already?” Chloe complained. “We just got here.”
“Because,” Julie said into the phone, “a clean house brings good energy. Yes, ma’am, she’s seventeen.”
Gemma froze.
Seventeen.
Diego’s school.
This was happening.
Julie shot her a look. “Transcripts? Yes, I emailed them last night. Yes… yes… tomorrow?”
Gemma’s head snapped up. “Tomorrow?!”
Julie covered the phone. “Shhh!”
Chloe gasped dramatically. “You start school tomorrow? That’s embarrassing.”
Gemma glared at her. “No one asked you.”
Julie turned slightly away again. “Yes, tomorrow is fine. Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.”
She hung up.
Silence.
Gemma stared at her.
Julie stared back.
“You start tomorrow,” her mom said calmly.
Gemma blinked once. “No.”
“Yes.”
“No.”
“Yes.”
“Mamá.”
“Gemma Isabella.”
Gemma threw the rag onto the counter. “We’ve been here one day! I don’t even know where the bathrooms are!”
“You will figure it out.”
“I don’t know anyone!”
“You will.”
“I don’t even have clothes unpacked!”
“You will unpack them,” Julie said firmly, crossing her arms.
Chloe slowly stood up. “Can I watch this argument from the stairs?”
“Go clean your room,” Julie and Gemma said at the same time.
Chloe sighed and dragged her feet upstairs.
Gemma turned back to her mom. “This is unfair.”
Julie softened slightly.
“I know you’re scared.”
“I’m not scared.”
“You are.”
Gemma looked away.
Julie stepped closer and lowered her voice.
“You are not hiding in this house because it’s easier. We moved here for a reason. Fresh start. New chances. You don’t get to run from that.”
Gemma swallowed.
There it was again.
That thing they weren’t talking about.
Julie clapped her hands once. “Now. Clean the living room. And after that, you are picking out something decent to wear tomorrow.”
Gemma groaned. “Can I at least pretend to be sick?”
Julie pointed toward the sink. “Clean.”
Gemma grabbed the rag again, muttering under her breath.
Tomorrow.
New school.
Diego.
Collins.
She wiped the table a little harder than necessary.
This was about to get complicated.
**********************************************************************
The Next Day..........
“Gemma! Get down here! You’re going to be late for school!”
Julie’s voice traveled all the way upstairs.
Gemma stood in front of her open closet like it had personally betrayed her.
“No. Not this. Definitely not this. Absolutely not this.”
She threw another top onto her already destroyed bed.
Clothes were everywhere. On the chair. On the floor. Hanging halfway out of drawers.
Why did everything suddenly look ugly?
“Mom!” she shouted. “I need to go shopping!”
Footsteps came up the stairs.
Julie appeared at the doorway and froze.
“What happened in here?” she asked slowly.
Gemma didn’t turn around. “I have nothing to wear.”
Julie stepped inside carefully, picking up a shirt from the floor. “What happened to your old clothes?”
“They’re old,” Gemma said flatly.
“They are not old. They look perfectly fine.”
“Well, I’m the one wearing them. Not you.”
Julie crossed her arms.
“Gemma,” she said gently but firmly, “I haven’t even started work yet. We just moved. I’m a little short on money right now.”
That made Gemma pause.
She hated when her mom said things like that.
It made her feel guilty.
“I’ll just… make it work,” she muttered, pulling out a red floral dress and holding it up against herself. She grabbed a blue jacket from the hanger beside it. “This?”
Julie’s expression softened. “That looks beautiful.”
Gemma rolled her eyes but didn’t argue.
“Fine.”
“Go get dressed,” Julie said. “Breakfast is ready.”
*******
Ten minutes later, Gemma walked into the kitchen, trying to act casual.
Chloe was still eating cereal, legs swinging under the chair.
Julie glanced up and smiled. “You look nice.”
“Thanks,” Gemma muttered, sitting down.
She grabbed a piece of toast and took a bite.
Okay.
Maybe the outfit wasn’t terrible.
“Mum,” she said carefully, “can I take your car to school?”
Julie didn’t even hesitate.
“No.”
Gemma blinked. “No?”
“I start work today. I need the car. And I have to drop your sister off.”
“Then how am I supposed to get there?”
“You could take the bus.”
Gemma stared at her like she had just suggested she ride a horse.
“You’re joking.”
“Nope.”
Julie checked her watch calmly. “You have thirty minutes. The bus leaves from Avenue Street.”
Gemma froze mid-bite.
“What?”
“You heard me.”
“Why didn’t you tell me I had to take a bus?!” she said, jumping up and grabbing her backpack.
“I was calling you downstairs for breakfast.”
“Yeah, but you could have said, ‘Hey, by the way, your entire social reputation depends on you catching public transportation this morning!’”
Julie raised a brow. “Drama.”
“Where is Avenue Street?!”
“It’s straight ahead, two blocks down. You won’t miss it. If you do, I’ll send you the map.”
Gemma shoved the rest of the toast into her mouth. “This is so unfair.”
She stormed toward the door.
“Have a good first day!” Julie called sweetly.
The door slammed.
Chloe burst into laughter.
“You got her good.”
Julie smirked slightly.
“She needs to learn.”
They fist-bumped.
*************
Outside, the Texas air hit Gemma immediately.
Hot.
Humid.
And now she had to find a bus stop in a neighborhood she barely knew… on her first day… wearing a dress she wasn’t even sure about.
She adjusted her jacket and started walking fast.
This could not get worse.
Right?
Gemma walked faster.
Then faster.
Then almost jogging.
Her sandals slapped against the pavement as she scanned every street sign like it had personally offended her.
Avenue Street.
Where was Avenue Street?
She kept walking straight ahead, squinting against the Texas sun. The heat already clung to her skin, and she could feel sweat gathering at the back of her neck.
“Of course this would happen today,” she muttered.
After a few minutes, she finally saw it.
A small green sign in the distance.
Avenue Street.
“Oh thank God.”
She picked up her pace, nearly breaking into a run,
And then she saw it.
The bus.
Already pulling away.
“No, no, no….,.
She waved her hand uselessly as the bus turned the corner and disappeared.
Silence.
Gemma stood there, breathing hard.
“Great.”
She kicked at the air in frustration.
Her phone pinged.
She pulled it out and saw a message from her mom.
A map.
And underneath it:
📎 Documents for school registration.
Gemma groaned.
She opened the map and zoomed in.
Ten minutes away.
She blinked.
“Ten minutes?” she muttered. “You’re kidding.”
Another message popped up from Julie:
Don’t be late. Smile. First impressions matter.
Gemma rolled her eyes so hard it almost hurt.
She looked down at the folder attachment her mom sent.
Transcripts. Transfer papers. Identification.
She sighed.
“Hopefully school starts late around here,” she said to herself.
She adjusted her backpack on her shoulder and started walking.
The neighborhood slowly shifted from quiet suburban homes to wider streets. Cars passed by. Students in different uniforms walked in small groups ahead of her.
Laughing.
Talking.
Already belonging.
Gemma swallowed.
Okay.
Fine.
New school.
New start.
She could do this.
Right?
- Writer
