Chapter 1 ~ The Sunny Sky.

Samantha Green stood over her father's grave on a cloudless day. 'It's not fair' she thought 'it shouldn't be sunny on a day like this. A good man, a good father, a doctor, just died! The sun has no right to be happy today! Where's the rain?' She asked herself sarcastically.

Jackson Green had died in a fire just over 6 months ago. The police took an eternity to investigate and wouldn't release the body until they finished. She hated them for it. Her brothers had decided to wait until the body was released before they had the funeral. The body was unidentifiable but it was her father's. He was the only one who would have been in the house and he had been missing ever since the fire. There was no doubt. A tear rolled down her cheek, she wanted to doubt. More than anything she wanted to doubt. She wasn't ready to say goodbye, and she never would be.

A hand griped her shoulder and her brother, Tomas Green's voice reached her ear. "Sam, we should go. Calvin and Kyle are in the car waiting."

She just shook her head and stared down at the grave, her gaze shifted to the grave beside her father's. Another tear rolled down her cheek. This was her mother's grave. Her mother had died when she was just a baby. Only 1 year old. She wished she could have known the woman she was named after. Her brothers remembered her. Tom was 28, Kyle was 26, Calvin was 24, and Sam was 15. Tom had been 14, Kyle had been 12, and Calvin had been only 3. Sam and Calvin had no memories of their mother, but Tom and Kyle had plenty.

Their father had raised them by himself. He had done a good job. Sometimes Sam felt he favored her over her brothers, her brother's weren't jealous, but rather showed her the same favor. They all spoiled her. Sam remembered a conversation with her father when he'd affectionately called her 'the enigma'. She'd asked him why and he'd told her 'someone as spoiled as you should be rotten, but you're not.' then he tipped his head to one side and with that smile that warned you he was about to say something sarcastic 'either that or I'm biased. The latter is more probable.'.

She missed him so much, and now not one tear but many flooded from her soul. She cryed into her hands and Tom took her into his arms. He ran is fingers threw her hair and held her. He didn't say anything, everything had already been said, and he knew just as well as she that none of it helped.

"He didn't deserve it!" She screamed into his chest.

"Of course he didn't babe." Tom comforted.

"Then why Tom, why?" She cried, her shoulders shook and a chill ran down her spine.

Tom was silent for a long time, and finally said, "I don't know babe. I just don't know."

Sam told herself she was being stupid and forced herself to calm down, she slowed her breathing and squared her shoulders stepping out of Tom's arms. She wiped her tears and looked up at him. "I'm ready."

They made their way to the car and Sam slid in the back with Calvin, Tom drove and Kyle sat in the passenger seat. As they drove, Sam thought about where they were going. They were going to the Billard's home. They were a family that was close to their own. They lived next door to her home, the one now in ashes. After it had been burned down the Billard's invited them to stay at their house until other arrangements could be made. So they agreed.

Tom was still looking for a suitable place. It had to be reasonably close to the hospital where Tom worked, it had to have room for all her and her brothers, plus Tom's wife Jessica, and a bedroom for their baby on the way. So understandably he hadn't found anything he liked. Tom, Jessica, Kyle, and Calvin had made the decision to stay together to help raise Sam. Sam couldn't care less, her dad was gone, nothing else mattered.

Her thoughts turned to the Billard's. Jerad, Mabel, and Jedidiah. Jerad was the father and husband, he wasn't at the house much, he worked a lot. Mabel didn't work, well not really, she painted and sold them but it was really just a hobby. Jedidiah, was 17 and him and Sam had been friends since Sam was 8. He was the closest friend she had.

They were always together, Sam felt she could always talk to him about anything and he confided in her as well. Some had mistaken them for a couple, Sam had never thought about him that way and she doubted he had either. But she loved Jed in a way that only someone who had a friend like him would understand. They knew everything about one another and could read each other like a children's book. Which with Jed was saying something, he kept his emotions closely in check, only showing you what he wanted you to see. The only person who had pushed Jed so far that he blew up was his father, Jerad.

Sam didn't know much about Jerad other than what Jed had said, which didn't paint a beautiful picture. Jed said he was arrogant, cynical, bad tempered, and never approved of anything Jed did. Jed pretended not to care, but Sam knew there was a lot of anger and pain associated with his father. Sam automatically formed a bad opinion. Mabel did what she could to compensate for this but it seemed to Sam, Jed didn't accept her. He loved her but wanted no comfort from her. Jed seemed to think that getting comfort was a weakness.

Sam watched the scenery pass by as they left the city behind and began to enter the country. Her home had been out of the city about 45 minutes, and so was the Billard's. She layed her head back of the seat and closed her eyes. When she opened her eyes she was being shaken by Calvin. She realized that she was at the Billard's and sat up and without a word went into the house and up to her room, she plopped into bed and was soon fast asleep. She was worn from a sunny day that didn't deserve to be happy.

Reviews

[Lamenting Illinguist]

I very much like this so far and I can't wait til I have time to read the rest! For 15 years old you have an amazing grasp on literary flow and construction. I remember when I was 15 I tried writing a book. I was about five chapters and 100 pages in and I decided to re-read what I had so far. I promptly deleted the file and hung up my book writing aspirations due to a complete lack of continuity, story line and plot! lol

I have been wanting to try another go at it recently and I think now I will have a better chance at doing it well since I've read about 10'000 books and have a better understanding of story construction and development.

But back to you! If the rest of this story flows as well and captivates me to keep reading as this chapter has then I'd say you are doing a spectacular job and you MUST keep it up! :)

[Lucas Grasha]

I liked it (although, i'm not much of a reader even if i love to write). You set up the beginning of the story fairly well, although there were a few spelling errors. But overall, just from reading the first chapter, I like this. Maybe try to put a little bit more substance in the scenery to paint a more vivid picture or put in a little more to enhance the beginning plot, but all in all, this was good.