Chapter One

I guess life’s got too much ups and downs right now. I’ve always wanted a natural teenage life. You know, those typical normal girls who only think that parents are annoying and they’ll never understand, that popular guys will one day fall for them and think that the next zit will totally be covered with concealer.

But God granted me this life.

My parents are totally okay, they actually act like teenagers. And that’s something I’m never gonna be ashamed about. But of course, with this advantage, there’s a major flaw. I’ve got two sets. Let me explain that statement.

My mom and dad met in college. My mom was 20 and my dad was 21. They studied the same course: Psychology and well, my mom wasn’t really good at it. So my dad offered to tutor her and they totally hit it off. Eventually one thing led to another and you know the drill. They had me.

After awhile (Beware, this isn’t your typical story), my dad started seeing things differently. And… I mean differently. Instead of seeing love inside my mom, he saw love in what he called “the hot guy in leather” in Study Hall. Of course, he didn’t want to lie to my mom, especially while I was still a baby.

Well, for my mom, it sort of came differently too. My mom started noticing her classmate in Biology, her FEMALE classmate. Let’s just say things have been emitting “sparks” and now I’m stuck with my mom and her girlfriend Courtney and my dad and his boyfriend Peter.

It’s not that I hate Court and Pete. I love them. They’re totally alike with my parents. We all actually just live in my dad’s big estate in Northern Harley, the neighborhood in which I lived. It’s near a bay off the West Coast. My dad and mom are like Will and Grace, they actually still kiss each other’s cheek and all that.

Enough about my teenager-behaved parents. Secondly, the popular boy issue for me is totally annoying. You know the usual thing about the cheerleaders getting paired up with the high-class football jocks? I see them everyday. Why, you ask me. I live next to the worst cheerleader, in other words, the sidekick of the captain, and across the quarter back of the football team.

And another thing: The quarterback just so happens to like one of my best friends. My best friend, Alana Barton, is the head of the Drama Club and she’s the lead guitarist of the band we all share with my drama friends, Carla Warren, Michael Porter, Justin Moore, Lauren and Andrea Lynette, Michelle Halley and I.

Besides, I don’t have a thing for any of those popular fools and I don’t want to be popular either. You have to do what you’re expected to do all the time: cheer and win games. Life’s not about that. They’re supposed to look at the future, not stay stuck in their high school lives that won’t last forever.

Life is so much more than living in the moment. You have to prepare for any consequences that come your way. Things won’t ever be easy…

-

“RIANNA, WAKE UP!” four voices yelled simultaneously. I groaned and rolled over in my bed, inserting my head between the mattress and the thick fluffy pillow. After a few moments, two pairs of footsteps echoed in the large mansion and through my bedroom door.

“Hey, Ri, wake up.” My dad moved to my side and gently nudged me. Urgh. No, it’s too early. On the other side, Peter sat beside me and nudged me too. These two opposites, I don’t know how in love they are with each other, inseparable couple...

“Rianna, you’re gonna be late for the first day of school,” Peter reminded me. Oh god. I shot up in bed and glared with bloodshot eyes at my dad and his boyfriend. They both chuckled before walking casually out of the door, Peter’s arm wrapped around Dad’s waist.

“God, stupid gay people,” I muttered under my breath. I’m not a morning person, will never be one either. I trudged into the bathroom. It had nice blue colored tiles with spiral designs on it and to the side was a shower for when I’m in a rush (in a situation like right now) and a bathtub. To the other side was a toilet and in the middle was a sink with a large mirror filled with pictures of me, my drama friends and my academic friends.

I took a quick shower and picked a traditional black long-sleeved shirt and a pair of frayed denim jeans. I ended up trying to blow-dry my long hair and tying it up in a messy loose bun. I grabbed my dirty Chuck Taylor’s and tumbled down the stairs.

“Well, look what Godzilla dragged in,” Courtney drawled at me, a cheeky smile on her face. I grinned and slipped on my Chucks before sitting at the nicely carved mahogany table. My mom and Courtney were seated on one side of the table, fingers entwined. My dad and Peter were on the other side, Peter’s arm still around Dad’s waist.

“Thanks for the compliment, Court,” I replied dryly as I sat at the head of the table where two pancakes and a glass of milk waited for me. I placed some maple syrup on my pancakes and started eating. Yum. Peter made it today.

“Why do you look like that? Honey, it’s the first day of school, not a rock concert,” Mom said with a laugh. Mom’s the most mature one of the four, although at times she’s the most immature one too. Dad looked at me and eyed me up and down.

“Don’t worry, Beck, that makes the guys look at her more,” he said with a cheeky wink for me. I rolled my eyes at him and continued eating. “Come on, Rianna, I mean… You never want to be interested in any of the boys at your school. At that age, I dated half the female population of my high school.”

“And half the male,” Courtney added, winking at Dad. Courtney and Dad were close friends in high school but drifted away after senior year. They ran into each other one day and eventually Dad introduced her to Mom, who was heartbroken after breaking up with Biology Babe (that’s how Mom described it, and it made me shudder). Things hit off pretty well and they dated for a very long time. And I was seven when Biology Babe broke up with Mom, so you can do the math.

Dad blushed a deep shade of red, making me giggle. Sometimes seeing them act like this made me laugh. I sipped my milk and finished the first pancake. I stood up and brought my dish to the sink. “Well, I’m going to be late for high school, kids,” I said, laughing. “Don’t wreck the house while I’m gone.”

“We won’t, we’ll just wreck the rooms.” Four different laughs echoed in my ears as I walked out of the large estate and into the garage, grabbing my messenger bag on the way out. A nice sleek silver BMW waited for me. Heaven.

I started it up and drove out of my house. I still had to pick up Alana and Carla, maybe Justin. I checked my cell phone and dialed Justin’s number. “This is the Big J,” a voice said after two rings. I laughed and rolled my ice blue eyes.

“Hey Jus, will I still pick you up? I’ve only got the BMW,” I remarked as a greeting, putting on my shades. Damn, the sun bites. A hearty laugh came from the line.

“Sure, so I won’t have to endure Michael’s boring talks.” I could almost picture Justin grin at that. “I’ll be ready in a few, so go ahead and pick up L and C. Later, Ri.”

“See ya, Jus,” I said before hanging up and turning right at Buckingham Avenue. I stopped first in front of the cozy two-storey house where Alana lived in. At first you think it’s small, but wait till you see the basement and backyard.

“Hey Rianna,” Alana greeted, coming out in a white shirt with long black sleeves and a nice plaid looking skirt that stopped slightly above the knee. She placed her guitar in the trunk and slid into the passenger’s seat. She sipped from her coffee. “Who are we picking up today?”

“C and J,” I answered as I drove past two houses and into a narrow dirt road. I stopped my car and got out, Alana following me. We walked down the narrow dirt road until we reached a castle-looking old beauty of a house. Carla was just getting out in a black turtleneck and denim jeans. Her long brown hair was down loosely around her shoulders, making her lanky figure look better.

“Hey Ri, Lana,” she acknowledged, saluting us teasingly. We walked down the dirt road until we saw my car with Justin leaning against the driver’s door. I rolled my eyes before going up and surprising him senseless. I covered his green eyes with my slender hands.

“Oh my god! Am I gonna get kidnapped?! Oh no!!! But L, C and Ri still need me!” he wailed teasingly and I sighed before removing my hands and earning a smirk from one of my close friends. “You grow more pathetic each try, Rianna.”

“Shut up,” I groaned before piling Carla’s and Justin’s stuff in the trunk before getting in the driver’s seat. Justin and Carla got into the backseat while Alana slid once again into the passenger’s seat. I drove easily around the streets until we reached the main road. Alana was blasting on rock music while Carla and Justin were singing along.

“Listen, you guys, we’re gonna get a gig soon,” Alana said, toning down the music. Carla and Justin let out hoots and whoops while I merely grinned, turning at Versailles Avenue. “It’s gonna be tough, I mean, we haven’t had a gig in ages.”

“Hey, no big, we can do it,” Justin said, grinning. “I mean, come on, we’re Stolen Sin, we can do loads of stuff… Aside from the upcoming school play.”

I laughed. “Yeah, relax, Lana, besides, we can just round them up and fix some times for band practice. It’s gonna be like prom or something,” I included, stopping in front of three large buildings loaded with different types of people. I parked into a space and twirled the keys around my finger.

Oh Lord, please don’t ruin this school year.

“We’ll catch you later, Ri,” Alana said, giving me a hug. We all have different classes, so we just meet up every once in awhile. Justin sent me a farewell smirk and a wink before walking into the school and Carla smiled at me and hugged me.

“Hey Ri, guess who’s back!” I heard someone yell. I turned around and saw Carmen del Valle waving frantically at me, pulling someone by his shirt collar. My eyes widened.

It was Kyle Xavier, my so-called ex-boyfriend who refused to meet my eye.