Chapter 1

Chapter One

 

I always thought that having my own look and a great personality is what made me irresistible.  I had no idea that it had something to do with my parents.  I have never met my real parents before and I don’t want to.  They left me in a park when I was a baby and they can’t track down who it is.  So this is my screwed up, messed up life in foster care.  It starts when I’m sixteen, on my birthday. 

 

School had been a normal day.  I got up at five-thirty, getting ready for morning cheer practice when I found a note with a check on top of it.  I picked up the note and didn’t recognize the hand writing.  It was on a pink piece of paper that had neat cursive writing across the front and had a sweet floral scent to it.  It said

                   “Dear Rose,

                   Happy sweet sixteen birthday! Take this check as a present for

the past sixteen years that your father and I haven’t been there. 

We’ve been there but you just haven’t seen us.  You’ll find out whom

we are, but for now, take the check and go to the mall with Rachel,

my treat.  I hope you have a great day and I’ll be seeing you soon!

Love,

                   Your mother”

My mother?  Why would she want to contact me after sixteen years of not wanting me?  If she wanted to see me, then she should have kept me.  All my life, I have made up a story in my head that my parents were going to show up and take me away to their home and we would live happily ever after.  But I doubt that would ever happen and now that I’m older, I don’t want it to happen.  I’m practically an adult now.

 

I picked up the check and brought it down to the kitchen were my foster mom was making breakfast for me and another girl who lived in the room next door to me who was named Sierra.  She was a cheerleader with me, another captain.  I was a captain as a sophomore and the other two captains were seniors.

 

My foster mom, Victoria, was probably the best foster mom I have ever had, and believe me, I’ve had quite a few foster families.  I’ve been with this family for two years.  When she saw me come down the stairs in my pajamas, she gave me a confused look.

 

“Why aren’t you dressed yet?  You have to leave in a half an hour.  Happy birthday, by the way,” she said walking over to me.  I gave her the note and crossed my arms over my chest.  She read it, and while she was, I looked at the check.  Holy s**t, one thousand dollars?  I don’t swear very often, and when I do, I really mean it.  Why would she give me that much?  And can she even afford to give me that much?  She must be pretty rich if she just randomly give me a thousand dollars.  And how does she know where I live?  Now I’m kind of freaked out!

 

“Do you know anything about this?” I asked after she was done reading the letter.

 

“No, I don’t know anything about this.  I would think if your mother wanted to talk to you, she would contact your social worker, Leon,” she said shaking her head and going back to sauté the potatoes and onions together.

 

“I don’t want to talk to Leon, he’s a jerk,” I said dropping the check.  Victoria bent down to pick up the check for me and her eyes widened as she realized what was written on it.

 

“One thousand dollars?!” she practically yelled, making a baby scream from upstairs, which I’m guessing Sierra took care of.  “Your mother must be rich or something.”

 

“That’s what I was thinking.  I’m not sure if I want to meet her, if she really does come back.  She left me in Shaefield Park when I was a baby, I don’t need her.”

 

We’ll just have to wait and see what happens.  But for now, go get ready for cheer practice,” she said as I started walking away.  “Oh, and your birthday present is on the dining room table.  I think you’re going to like it.”

 

I looked in the dining room and saw about two big boxes wrapped as presents.  I quickly ran over to them and ripped them open, pulling apart the contents.  Inside there was an abundance of clothing from all of my favorite stores.  I got my normal clothes that I wear: dresses, tank tops, sweaters, leggings, skirts, shorts, and a whole bunch of pairs of sandals.  Living in California, you need a lot of summer clothes, even in winter.

 

After going through the boxes, there was only ten minutes left for me to get ready.  I booked it up the stairs to get dressed into my most favorite outfit of all, a pink sports bra, white tank top, pink running shorts with white stripes down the side, and white and pink Nike shoes.  As you can probably see, my favorite color is pink.  I like yellow and blue too but pink is my favorite color.

 

Soon enough, Sierra and I were on our way to the school.  We had morning practice every day from six until seven.  It wasn’t mandatory but most of the girls go just because they want the next captain spots.  I was kind of a child prodigy when it comes to anything musical; singing dancing, cheering, piano, and guitar, stuff like that.  I guess that’s how I got captain over other girls older than me.  But none the less, I think I’m a fairly good captain.  The coache3s are the ones to pick the captains and on the first day of practice, I walked into the gym and they picked me right away.  I thought I was just going in for tryouts, but they threw me the captain badge and told me to go stand with Sierra and the other captain Lauren.

 

At the school, Sierra and I ran into the school and was bombarded with a happy birthday scenery.  There were banners and streamers, a table piled high with presents, and almost the whole sophomore class standing there, waiting for me.  When I walked in, they all yelled, “surprise!” at the top of their lungs I stood there in shock while two girls from the cheer squad ran up to me and placed a birthday crown on the top of my head and throwing their arms around me and hugging me tight.  Everyone started clapping for me.  I was still in total shock while everyone started leaving and going to their morning practices.  The cheer squad was left standing there clapping and smiling.  Sierra and Lauren came up and hugging me while the others circled around us.

 

“Instead of practice, can we have you open presents?  We can get the football team to bring them out to your car,” Lauren says.

 

“Of course.  I’m not sure if they will all fit in the car.  That thing is tiny,” I said.

 

“Just put the top down and you can fit more stuff in,” Sierra said.  “Remember, Victoria and Wallace got you a convertible?”

 

“Even though I can’t drive yet,” I said.

 

“Your parents spoil you so much,” Lauren said.

 

“They aren’t my parents, they’re my foster parents.  And besides, I worked for that car around the house.”

 

“Yeah, yeah, you’ve changed baby’s diapers.  Come on, you have so many presents to open.”

 

“Wait, I want to talk to her,” said a deep voice from behind me.  I knew that voice.  That voice one that I had known for almost ten years, Luke Robertson.  We had known each other since kindergarten and had always ended up in the same school system.  We were both in foster care and we were always flirting with each other.  Then again, everyone flirts with me, but Luke, I actually flirt back.

 

Luke is my age, only two weeks older than me and has the same features as me: blonde hair, green eyes, very fit, and girls find him irresistible.  He is the quarter back on the football team, point guard on the basketball team, pitchers on the baseball team, is a captain for all the sports he’s in, and is about six foot one.

 

“Well, well, well, Luke, I haven’t seen you in, what, a week or two? Did you run away again?” I asked walking towards him.  He pressed his chest against mine and I smiled.  He put his fingers in the waistband of my shorts, pulling my closer.

 

“I may have.  Or my parents may have come back into town.  I guess you’ll never know unless you’ll never know unless you come to dinner with me tonight,” he said softly in my ear.  He leaned closer to my ear and breathed in it softly.

 

“Are you asking me out?  On a date?” I asked, grinning.

 

“Yes.  Dress nicely.  But then again, you always do.  Without even trying you can look as sexy as a goddess.”

 

“Why, thank you, kind sir.  And by the way,” I said leaning up close to his ear. “Your breath smells rancid.”

 

We both burst out laughing as I pushed him away, getting the bad breath smell away from me.  This is just like one of our normal conversations: we start out serious or flirting, then one of us will say something funny and we’ll burst out laughing.  Our friends will just laugh at us and walk away, leaving us in our current state of laughter.

 

“Go brush your teeth, or get some gum or something,” I chuckled, searching through my purse for a pack of gum.  I handed him a piece of the minty freshness, which he accepted happily, folding it into his mouth with a smirk on his face.

 

“Thank you,” he said turning and walking away.  “Have a great day, happy birthday.”

 

I smiled as I walked back to my friends who were grinning at me.

 

“What’s with that look?” I asked when I reached them, trying to keep the smile off my face.  Luke can always make me feel better just by looking at me and smiling.  I guess that it is just his charm.

 

“You two are perfect for each other.  Plus, if you do get together, then it will guarantee your top of the social pyramid and prom king and queen, and everything else like that.  Luke is like the god of this school, and you would make the perfect goddess for him,” Sierra says linking her arm with mine.

 

“Everyone thinks that.”

 

“It would be a great honor.  No one has ever been able to hypnotize the whole school like you two can.”

 

“Oh sure.  Sometimes, I’m sure it can be annoying,” I said as we reached the present table.  The whole squad and the football team were standing around the table clapping.  Well, it’s only six-thirty in the morning, and I’m already sick of my birthday.  This is why I hate my birthday.

Author's Note

Tell me what you think! I'm just trying it out!

Reviews

[Coyote Poetry]

A very good opening chapter. You gave a lot of history of the character. Create a interesting situation. I like the doors you open to bring the reader in. Mystery and questions are needed to be answered in the next chapter. Thank you for a excellent chapter.
Coyote

[Kyle]

Sierra and luke need some serious tragedy....they seem to perfect so far!

I like the writing though. I like the font. I was interested throughout! I think the story definitely needs to realism though.