Chapter1

"Shekainah! Phone! I groaned inwardly at my brother's retort. All I wanted to do was float along lazily in the pool till I got tired of it, but peace in this household is like grasping an invincible gold piece. I dove into the deep end and held my breath, choosing to ignore him. "Shecky! I'm answering it! One, two..."

"Give it here!" The worst nightmare is to have a sibling grope your phone...from experience. I immediately grabbed it and answered. "Hey babe?"

"Oh, hi Larren?" I said, trying to sound enthusiastic. Larren, my boyfriend, was not really one I'd consider the perfect one for me. Honestly, he was just someone to keep me company and help me say 'I have a boyfriend.' We just met in the park a year ago on a morning jog with our dogs. Talked a bit, then 3months later, we're together. Nothing much really. "Oooh!" Arnold squealed at his name but I shooed him off, "Get lost."

"Huh?"

"No, not you Larry, it's Arnold." I walked over to the poolside bar and grabbed myself a lemonade, wiping my hair and holding the phone between shoulder and ear. "So how's it going?"

"I really missed you, that's all."

"Awww, me too." I seriously need to find him another hobby.

"I've got an idea, how about I come help you babysit the kids?"

"No, I couldn't do that to you. Plus, you're not that great with my dad."

"But he's not home...right?"

"My sisters' a tattletale."

"Right. Then how about we meet up?"

"Annet! So sorry, my sister's riling up. See ya next semester!"

"What-" I hung up before he could say more. Either that or he'd pull me into an endless conversation. Haven't I got myself one heck of a boyfriend. I mean sure my love life luck was bad, and by that I mean really bad. Even through high school, they either end up; boring, cheaters,users and gold diggers,clingy, too shy, cheesy Romeos. I'd even thought of going assexual.

Walking into the living room, three voices ganged up on me. "Shecky, I'm hungry!

"Shecky, what's for lunch?"

"Shecky, I think the WiFi's busted."

Arnold, Annet and Anna. The three foundation shakers of my life. I bit back my irritation. "Okay, what do want for lunch?"

"Curry and rice!" Arnold threw his fist in the air but Annet shoved him aside,

"No, we had that yesterday! Let's eat chicken **."

"You choose every time."

"I want **!" They started bickering so I pulled Anna, the smarter one, aside as I turned the wifi back on. " How about ordering pizza?" I shushed them so I could make a call. This was my life every summer holiday. My triplet siblings that filled my life. Annet, eldest,leader of the pack. Anna, the silent but deadly, the brains. Arnold, the sitting rocket, but if he settles down he's a sweetheart...IF. Ever since mom died 10 years ago as she had them, (must have been too much to handle) Dad being in the military as a general sends money home to spoil them rotten. With them looking more like mum, with thick coconut brown frizzy hair and sea grey eyes, except Anna. Dad and I who had Raven hair, and hazel eyes.

As soon as the pizza arrived, I grabbed a slice and sat to eat when Anna piped up, "Shecky, I thought you were on diet. Won't cheese make you gain weight?" The slice stopped midway. She'd definately been snooping in the kitchen, either that or she's some kind of mind-reading guru. The little runt. "So the pizza your eating is ours."

"I have the freedom to skip schedule once in a while."

"Does eating fries in your room count as once in a while?"

"Uh," Why you- "eat up, it's getting cold. I'm heading out." I rushed up to my room before they could think of another crude comment to throw my way. These kids will kill me one day!

Standing before the mirror I eyed myself. Shorts, loose top, t-shirt around my waist and sneakers. I loved my toned the moment I saw it and my curly pixie-cut hair fit me like a glove. So I had a small body, so what Not everyone has to have a D-cup size to be pretty. I didn't care either way. I came downstairs where they'd already finished the entire first box and Arnold was heading for the second. "Where are you going?"

"None of your business."

"What if Dad calls?"

"Tell him I'm busy. Bye." They definitely got my dad's investigative side. After making sure the gate was locked securely, I headed down the path and pulled my phone out. 'I hope Cody can cheer me up', I thought as it started ringing. "Yo Cody, you busy?"

"Hello? Is this the caffeine I ordered?" He said tiredly.

"You...don't sound so good."

" Tell that to my past two days."

"Okay, how about we meet up in thirty?"

"Sure," he hung up quick. I sighed, 'Well, there goes my excitement train.'

I found him stating on a park bench staring up at the trees. His lips were a thin suppressed line, far different from the usual smile. "Uh, Cody?" I sat next to him and held his knee patiently. His bright blue eyes looked shifty and watery, and he kept swallowing. His fingers in his red hair, his voice shook, "He's gone." My throat closed up. It was worse than I expected, "Ray? Is-is he..."

"What, no! No, he's back at his parent's place, he's going back to Spain."

"Oh. 'I thought he was dead,' -Well, that's okay."

"No! It's not! He leaves tommorrow at 4am!

"He'll come back.

"This time he's not. They're moving there permanently. I don't want him to go. He's my all. I mean, who will I talk to, who will share my thoughts when he's gone?"

'Wow dude, I'm sitting right here.' "You'll still talk to him on the phone, Skype too if you want see him. See you won't be alone." I've never been good at giving relationship advice when it came to this kind of thing. But I rely on what I read online. That always helped me when I was in a pickle. Cody looked at me with piecing eyes, "You're in a relationship, aren't you? Do you love who you are with?" In my head Iwas shouting a big Hell NO! But I didn't want to appear savage to my best friend, and at the same time I didn't want to lie so I just shrugged. He shook his head and looked up to the trees, "That's why you don't understand." His voice seemed to melt into the late afternoon breeze.

"You'll never understand until one day, when you have to go but you want to leave that person's side. Then you'll get what I mean."

'That was weird', I pondered as I walked. Cody was too bummed for a night out as usual so I had to occupy myself for the moment. When I had to leave but don't want to leave their side, what did that mean? If you had to leave, just go! Why stay if you have a duty to fulfill? I made a sharp corner to my favorite magazine store.

The smell of ink, printed paper and air freshener hit me as I pushed the door open. The fans did little to cool the hot stuffy summer air and a bored looking cashier stared at his phone not acknowledging the presence of a customer. I stood at the last stall looking for my one and only new release copy of PLUS-FX, the latest news on workouts, fashion with a few sections on gardening and pet care. 'Finally, I won't get bored anymore!' I hugged it to my chest and was about to turn when something caught my eye. A new magazine I'd never seen before, thinner than mine. It was the only one of its kind, HomeScant, it said. Usually it came in stock, so it had to be good to be sold out. Curiosity was eating at me so I raised my voice, "Can I open this?" He nodded. I tore open the polythene and skimmed through the pages. The new smell made my nose tingle, I liked that. Mainly recipes, mmhn...healthy ones too, but I had to save my money, so I put it back. But the cashier stared at me at the counter. "What?"

"The other one."

"But you said I could open it!"

"Store policy, open it, buy it."

"What kind of policy is that?"

"Store policy."

I took a deep breath, to steady my temper, "Look buddy, I came in and took what I wanted, and you said well that I could open and look through it, now you're trying to con me?"

"I didn't say anything but was nodding to the sign above your head."

"But I didn't see it!" He sneered.

"I guess we're not all smart and observant are we?"

In the end I had to give up my exclusive one for the other. Good thing Susan my halfsister was into culinary arts. She came from dad's first marriage, two sons and a daughter who was the only ne genuineness dad's. My phone rang, I rolled my eyes, Larry. Putting it on silent I let it vibrate till he got tired of it. I was on my way to archery clas, no distractions needed.

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