PROLOGUE

In the small courtroom I was body present and absent minded. I'd lost count of how many times I'd walked into the same courthouse for my father's trial. There was no excuse for what he did.

I didn't know what to feel as I sat there. I wanted to angry and yell profanities at my father but I just wanted everything to stop for a moment because I felt like I couldn't breathe. It pained me more to find out that my mom was killed for nothing.

As I sat there and listened, I eventually got tired of blaming my dad for what happened. He'd been dealing with cultists and criminals like this and we hadn't known. Not until they barged into our house and tooky mother's life.

Eventually, dad was sentenced to twenty years in prison.

Jay and I hadn't spoken since my mom's funeral. The only person I'd found myself talking to was Sebastian and I'd gotten used to that.

I didn't cry when dad was handcuffed and taken away but Sebastian did. He was closer to our dad and knew him better too. After all, dad had practically  raised him after he left my mom and I and made a new family—Sebastian and his mom.

Outside the courthouse while we waited for aunt Thelma to come pick us up, I couldn't really understand why life had suddenly decided to be so cruel.

I'd spent months regretting why my father had to come back. He'd abandoned my mom and I went I was little—barely six years old, and nine years later, he appears from nowhere with Sebastian who he introduced as his son.

Sebastian was thirteen years old. Meaning that he'd abandoned us before he even left us.

And when we finally thought he'd come back for us, we find out he's a cultist and drug dealer.

Till now, I still can't understand why those men had raided our home that night in search of my father and ended up taking my mom's life.

They shot her in front of me.

I couldn't help but think about Jay—the only good thing that was left in my life. We'd been childhood friends and next door neighbors and I'd recently realized that I was madly in love with him or at least, that's how I felt. I'd actually started feeling different after he'd returned from South Africa. He'd spent some years there and came back not long ago.

Now, I was leaving him. Leaving everything behind.

I wanted to put the past behind me but I was afraid of the unknown. I didn't know what the future had installed for me. Hell, I didn't even know anything about Aunt Thelma, the woman that would soon be our guardian. I only knew she was my mother's sister and that was it.

I didn't even know Sebastian well. His mother had died before he and my dad showed up and now, we didn't even have a dad. We were basically in the same ship.

Aunt Thelma took us home to get our remaining stuff. The house had been sold. My dad's supermarket had also been sold and all the money went to aunt Thelma for me and Sebastian's welfare which included our education.

The duplex was now empty. Most of the furniture had been sold and I'd managed to get all my necessities and valuables together.

I went into my closet and got the remaining clothes and shoes and packed them into my box. I zipped the luggage when something caught my attention. Jay.

I looked through my window directly into his room. Yes, from my window, you could basicallg see almost everything in Jay's room. Our windows were just that big.

He seemed to be packing his things too. "Where's he going?" I asked.

As if he knew I was looking, he turned around and saw me and gave me a sad smile. He then picked up his phone and began tapping on it. My phone began ringing in no time.

"You're packing your things?" O asked as soon as i picked the call. For some reason I wanted to cry.

"I'm going back to South Africa," he said. A tear dropped from my eyes. I was breathing heavy and fast. "Rachael?" he had a worried look on his face. He then cut the call and left his room.

I sat on the floor of my empty room and I felt angry, lonely and sad. The one person I thought I had was leaving me. I felt horrible. I felt like my world had ended.

My door flew open revealing a worried looking Jay. He ran to me, sat next to me and hugged me and I cried all my miseries away on his shoulder.

"It's okay," he was about to cry too.

"No, it's not okay. I'm not okay," I cried my heart, "I'm scared. I don't know what is going to happen to me without my parents, without you,"

"I'll call you everyday. I'll come back for you. I promise," I pulled away and he wiped my tears. "I have to go." He stood up and walked away reluctantly.

Not long after he left, Sebastian walked in. I was still sitting on the floor staring at nothing in particular.

"What's wrong?" he asked before sitting next to me.

"We're technically orphans. That's what's wrong," I turned to him and he had the same worried look on his face but only with a little bit of surprise. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

"You remind of myself when I'd lost my mom," said Sebastian "I turned bitter and cold. I shut everyone out. I blamed myself,"

I could see the tears forming in his eyes, "I'm not bitter. Just angry,"

"At everyone, everything" he added and I nodded in agreement.

"How did your mom die?" I didn't know if it was right for me to ask but I got my answer when he kept silent and looked away, wiping the tears that had succeeded in making their way down his cheeks.

"It's better we go now, aunt Thelma is waiting," he got up and I did the same. I grabbed my luggage and made my way to the door. I took one last look at my empty room before leaving and shutting the door behind me.

"So what's it going to be like living with your aunt?" Sebastian asked as we ran down the stairs. He also carried a small bag of his own.

"I honestly don't know. I don't know her that well but staying with my mom's sister is better than the orphanage," i replied and Sebastian nodded before we walked out of our empty living room.

Aunt Thelma's car was parked outside. Before I got into the car, I took one last look at the house I'd grown up in. I'd spent all my life in that house. It held both good and bad memories.

I finally got into the backseat with Sebastian and aunt Thelma drove off. When we had passed the Jacob's house. I saw Jay standing outside. He smiled and waved a little and I did the same. And even when we'd passed the house, I kept looking back. I wanted to get out of car and run to him. I didn't know when next I'd see him again but I didn't want to forget him.

"This is for you," Sebastian said while handing me a white envelope. He smiled weakly at me.

"What's this?" I took it from him and I discovered my name was written on the back.

"Jay asked me to give it to you when we get in the car," I'd already opened the envelope before Sebastian had finished talking.

I was a letter. And there was a bracelet took. It was a silver bracelet which had "Jachael" written with silver. I smiled to myself.

"That's really beautiful," Sebastian said with a smile before looking out through his window.

"What's that?" aunt Thelma asked looking at us through the rear view mirror.

"Uhm nothing. Just a bracelet I thought I'd lost," I lied. Sebastian gave me a knowing look and he shook his head slightly.

I open the note when aunt Thelma was finally minding her business.

Dear Rachael,
I would have loved to tell you this in person but I knew you wouldn't stop crying and I can't stand to see you cry.
The main reason I'm going back to South Africa is because I have a heart problem and I need surgery.
I don't know when I'll be back or how long I'll be gone but I promise to call you, always.
Don't worry about me, I'll be fine after the surgery and please don't cry anymore.
In the meantime, I had that bracelet made for you because I wanted something you'd look at and remember me. Jachael is a combination of Jay and Rachael but I know you'd figure that out.
I'm going to miss you a lot, Rachael but I'll never forget you.

The boy next door,
Jacob Jacobs.

I smiled. This time, a sad smile. I could hear his voice talking to me through the letter "I'll miss you too," I whispered to myself.