There were approximately 24,896 miles between Mae and her previous foster parent. Not that she minded much. It wasn't as if Mr. Brant actually cared for her. He was too busy sticking cocaine and mephedrone up his nose.

She hadn't been disappointed to find out that she was being sent away three days ago. That same woman with the nasally voice demanded that the girl pack her bags before storming out of the house she had the pleasure of calling hell for a little less than six months.

Mr. Brant probably didn't even know she was gone yet. He had been hidden in his closet, high as a kite. Honestly, Mae felt bad for the guy. Addiction was a big deal. Then again, so was stealing- but that hadn't stopped her from sneaking the seven thousand dollars he had hidden in his sock drawer.

What could she say? It was his drug money. He needed serious help.

Now, with the money in her bag alongside a few personal items, she was on the move again. Mrs. Anderson hadn't said a word to her since she'd started this long drive but Mae felt like bothering the poor woman.

"How much longer until we get there?" she asked curiously.

Mrs. Anderson inhaled deeply before letting out a wheezy noise Mae assumed to be a sigh.

"Must you be so annoying?" the woman answered in reply.

Mae grinned. "Only doing my job, Miss. Can't say you've been doing yours much better, though. This is the fourth home in the past year."

It was obvious that her statement annoyed the woman. Her long nails, not in any way shaped or cared for, tapped against the steering wheel.

"I cannot help it if the family dislikes you. You aren't very easy to get along with."

"Mr. Brant never complained about me."

"I'm sure he would have if he were able to. You're not an enjoyable child," she clicked her tongue as her jaw ticked.

Mae decided not to let the comment hurt her. Instead, she shrugged and lazily slumped into her seat. Her eyes moved toward the window. A bright green sign whizzed by, which she somehow managed to read.

Jasper, Nevada

Below it had been a number that the girl only assumed to be the town's population.

145

"This place sounds like a dump," she admitted without thinking.

When Mrs. Anderson said nothing in return, Mae rolled her eyes and dug into her bag for a piece of gum. The woman's face twisted as the girl smacked loudly.

The surroundings got worse and worse to look at until there wasn't anything at all to look at. There was nothing but dust and dirt, and some large rock that sat in the middle of nowhere.

About an hour passed before they pulled into the actual town. As Mae looked around, she suddenly realized she had been right.

This place is a dump.

There wasn't much to look at in the town itself. A large brick building sat on one corner. Jasper high school. Mae made a face as she thought of, once again, walking the halls of an overpopulated prison with cliques and gossip.

She had always been smart. Too smart. Before she started living with families Mae was at the top of her classes. It was obvious she knew more than most her age so she had been bumped up two grades.

That was before everything happened. Before she was thrown into the foster care system and had to skip school two school years in a row. Some foster parents were crummy. They cared more about themselves than Mae's education and she quickly fell behind.

Now, instead of being graduated two years early and pursuing a career in college, she was a senior in high school being thrown into a new school in the middle of the school year.

It felt easier now to just pretend like she knew nothing so she could get by with being lazy. Teachers wouldn't actually pursue a child and their academics unless they proved that they wanted to push forward. Years ago Mae had wanted to succeed. So many teachers would give her praise and help her get access to online college classes.

Now they wouldn't blink an eye to a girl with borderline failing grades. She didn't seem important, so they didn't pay attention to her.

"We're here," Mrs. Anderson announced suddenly.

Mae blinked a few times and cursed as she realized she had been spacing out. Her gaze fell upon a small house. It was an older brick home with broken shingles and an outdated aura to it.

A woman stood patiently on the porch with a large smile on her face. Mae felt like scoffing. They always acted excited at first but she knew that smile would disappear after day one.

"Grab your things-"

"I know the drill," she sighed as they stopped in the small driveway. She opened the car door and hauled her backpack up as she climbed out slowly.

"Hello!" Mrs. Anderson approached the woman with a sickly sweet voice, "I assume you are June Darby?"

"That's right."

June Darby was a small woman with pitch-black hair. She was dressed in scrubs and tennis shoes. That surprised Mae. Normally the families would dress up and try their best to impress her. This woman looked like she was exhausted and in her work clothes.

"This is Meldrid Miller," Mrs. Anderson introduced.

"It's Mae. I don't like being called by my first name," Mae said bluntly.

"Right," June Darby's smile never faded. "Well, you can call me Mrs. Darby. Or June, if you want."

"Okay June," Mae said. She felt bored with the conversation. She'd had more than enough introductions to last her a lifetime.

Mrs. Anderson walked back to her car, but not before handing June a card.

"Call if she becomes too much to handle."

Mrs. Darby looked offended at the offer. Her tired eyes hardened at the woman and her voice was short and clipped when she spoke, "I can assure you I am more than capable of taking care of her."

"They all say that," Mrs. Anderson chuckled.

Mae and June watched as the woman pulled away, leaving the young girl stranded. June sighed and ran a hand through her dark hair before turning.

"I can show you your room if you want."

"Sure."

Though she didn't want to admit it, Mae was exhausted. They had left her old home early that morning and were stuck in the car for the rest of the day. Sitting without moving in that cramped hunk of junk made her joints ache, and it wasn't like she'd gotten much sleep the night before anyway.

She followed June into the house, which- thought she didn't want to admit it- looked pretty nice. The rooms were clean and tidy. A candle was lit somewhere, giving off a small fragrance she couldn't quite place.

Up the stairs, second door on the left, was Mae's room. June stepped aside and let her enter. A small bed was pushed into the corner, along with a dresser and nightstand.

"There's food in the fridge if you want anything. I'm not always home, so you don't have to worry about me being around all the time," June admitted as she crossed her arms.

Mae dumped her bag onto the bed and sat down. She was sure that this woman would show her true colors with time. But there was no reason to be uncivil in the moment. At least she had offered alone time and food.

"My son should be home in a few hours. He attends the same school I've enrolled you in," June continued as she stood in the doorframe.

Wait, what?

"Son? I didn't know you had a son," she didn't bother to hide the disdain in her voice.

"Yes. Jack is a little younger than you. He's going to be a senior next school year. You'll hear his motorcycle here in a little bit so don't be startled."

Mae stood quickly and opened her bag, dumping everything she'd ever owned onto the bed.

"I actually wasn't planning on staying long. I'm going to look around. Check out the town. I start school tomorrow right?" she asked.

June opened her mouth to argue but thought better of it. This wasn't her daughter- if she wanted to look around town, she had no reason to object.

"Yes. School starts at eight-fifteen and ends at three-fifteen."

"Perfect. I'll just get going then. Don't worry- I'll be back before ten. I like to go to bed early," Mae admitted as she shoved some clothes into her new dresser.

A picture of her mother fell out of her backpack as she slung it back on. June bent down to pick it up but Mae grabbed it before she could.

"Okay."

June watched as the girl pushed past her and made her way down the stairs. Thought pleasantly surprised at how nice the home itself was, Mae knew better.

Plenty of foster homes seemed nice at first. Every single one of them proved to be the opposite after some time. No one wanted to take care of a kid that wasn't theirs.

Don't think about it. You're strong. Just keep moving forward. Soon you'll be on your own, she told herself.

It was true. Within a few months she would be eighteen years old. Then she'd be able to live on her own. Home free- quite literally. But for now she would have to wait.

A few hours passed as the girl inspected the tiny town. There was nothing more than a school, grocery store, gas station, and a few fast food restaurants. One empty, abandoned building had a half flickering sign that read "Crazy Lanes", which Mae could only assume used to be a bowling alley.

At the edge of the town there was a small trash yard surrounded by a metal fence. After that, there was nothing more than dirt and dust.

"I'm trapped," she said jokingly to herself.

It was true. She truly was trapped. Mae sighed and flopped onto the ground next to an old tire. She dug into her backpack and grabbed the picture of her mother. It was old and wrinkled, with a small tear in the bottom left corner.

Sadness gripped onto her as she tried to close her eyes and imagine what her mother looked like without a photo. She had died when Mae was nine from a drug overdose. The woman had serious depression and mental issues but no one wanted to help. Mae's father included.

Then, Mae's father died shortly after her mother. It was a car accident on the way home from a business meeting. At first she was devastated- losing two parents so quickly. After a few years passed she finally realized how awful they were as both parents and people.

She was sent off to her Uncle, who was no better than her mother. As it turned out, he was the one who started his sister on drugs in the first place. It wasn't long before the police found out what he was up to and took him into custody and removed Mae from the picture.

As if foster care was a real solution.

Everything was supposed to get better. Instead, things got worse and worse as the years passed. But soon it would all be over. She would be eighteen and living on her own.

Sure, she'd have to work a couple of jobs to survive on her own two feet but Mae wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty and work her butt off. It was the way she was raised- always working. At least her parents managed to teach her something.

Mae sat in that trash yard for several hours before finally deciding to return back to her temporary home. The sky was dark and the stars were beginning to shine.

She was deep in thought by the time she walked through the front door. Her conversation with June was completely out of her mind as she loudly slammed the door and locked it.

Without much warning, a hand grabbed Mae's shoulder and twisted her around. Her instincts instantly kicked in as she grabbed the person's wrist and twisted. She ducked her body underneath the arm and yanked it behind their back while simultaneously kicking them in the back of the knee and roughly sending them onto the floor.

"Ow! What the heck?" a young male voice shouted in pain and surprise.

"Who are you?" Mae pushed up on the arm.

"Who am I? Who are you? You're in my house!"

The boy was tall. He had pitch-black hair and an oval shaped face, with dark eyes to match. He was the spitting image of June Darby.

"Oh," Mae immediately dropped his arm and took a step back. "You must be Jack."

Jack held his arm close to his body in pain as he stumbled away.

"Yes, I'm Jack. Who are you?" His face was red in both embarrassment and anger.

"Didn't June tell you? I'm the foster kid that'll be living with you," Mae said sarcastically as she walked to the fridge. She grabbed a pudding cup and ripped it open.

"That's my pudding!" Jack exclaimed.

"Nice to know." She squeezed the cup and sucked out the chocolate, not even bothering to try and find a spoon. It was empty within seconds. "Next time buy vanilla. It's the better flavor."

Jack sputtered as she began to walk up the stairs. Before he could argue or defend his precious pudding flavor, Mae was inside her new room.

The girl flopped into her bed and rubbed her eyes. She already dreaded tomorrow. A new school with new people. There would most definitely be moments of embarrassment and lack of friends. Possibly even a bully or two. Not that she hadn't had any before.

Mae groaned in annoyance before finally deciding to go to bed. It would soon be a new day. New beginnings. She scoffed and rolled her eyes before pulling the covers over her head.

New beginnings suck.