heyheyhey!

it's been a while since i published first chapter for any serious work of mine.

brrRRrRRRR!

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Catherine sipped her apple juice, silently watching her bandmates mingle with the crowd.

Nathan was feeling himself in the middle of the living room which unofficially became the dance floor. Moving in time with Shower by Becky G, the only bad thing about his dancing was his arms. They flailed around wildly, the cup of booze in one hand threatened to spill on top of the blonde girl next to him.

Catherine quietly waited for him to get slapped or worse.

Meanwhile, Jessica was with her boyfriend, Daren, at the pool table. Judging from the cash in his hands, he probably hustled everyone who wanted to play already. She really wanted him to teach her how to play but Daren literally told her, "Don't want you stealing my tricks, Rina."

Absolutely ridiculous.

Catherine kept her bottle back into her bag and turned back to walk out onto the balcony, looking up at the sky. Out here, the pounding bass of the music was way softer and felt less like it was trying to rearrange her insides. She amused herself by thinking she had created an invisible wall between her and the people inside.

The four of them had been invited by Daren's football buddy, Max, to play at his birthday party. They were getting paid fifty bucks from the parents because the family was actually a fan of their songs. Nathan had jokingly said that they should have been paid $100 instead but because none of the mini bars or coffee shops they had tried wanted them to play, this was the best and only deal they got.

And they sure as hell made sure they didn't blow it.

Catherine breathed in deeply and leaned over the railing, letting her head fall back. The belting for the last chorus had really strained her vocal cords. Her throat had tensed up so much that she panicked. The band hadn't spent all those hours of practising and making it through almost the entire song just for her to ruin it with a simple voice crack in the middle of the melody. A small mistake that would be amplified by the microphone and carried for miles away by the speakers on stage.

The blood rushing to her head and the recap of the entire situation soon made her dizzy. Catherine immediately stood straight up. When her vision stopped blurring, she finally saw Brandon standing in front of her. He was illuminated by the flashing lights inside of the house and, unlike the rest of the people at the party, wearing a simple, black tuxedo and a sleek black tie.

"You guys really put on a great show," he said, awkwardly adjusting his cufflinks. He just made it worse.

Catherine gave him a two-fingered salute. "Thanks. But you seem to be stealing the spotlight, Mr Reese. Them girls just can't take their eyes off of ya."

While the tux might have made Brandon seem out of place, some girls were definitely appreciating the guy's more formal look. From her perch on the second floor, Catherine saw that some had tried to advance onto him. Keyword: tried. Brandon had shut them down politely each time, a tight look on his face.

Brandon stopped fiddling with the cufflinks now. His eyes hardened as he said, "Har har, very funny."

Catherine gave him a soft smile. She didn't know it was still too soon. "Sorry. But anyway, where'd you go?"

Brandon came to stand beside her and sighed. "My cousin's wedding. The cake was so good - strawberry, by the way - that I ended up eating four slices. Who eats four slices at weddings? Me."

Catherine laughed at him, nudging him with a shoulder. "Hey, they can't blame you if you loved the cake. And besides, you'll run off all that extra fat in the mornings before school."

Morning runs were something that Catherine knew only Brandon did. No one in their right mind would force themselves out of bed that early just to be healthy. No one except Brandon. It was as if he needed to do it and if he didn't, it would be the end of the world for him. It was one of the reasons why she couldn't convince him to throw a sleepover.

The two of them stood there on the balcony, comfortable with just enjoying each other's company and watching the flashing lights.

Then Brandon asked, "How's Emily doing?"

Catherine had to stop herself from frowning at the guy. "She's... well, nothing you don't already know, Brandon. Um... she's doing okay."

Brandon stiffly nodded. "Right. Of course."

"Look, I know you're... you guys were really close but... just give her time. She just needs to... well, I don't know what she needs to do but uh - "

Don't panic. You're supposed to be helping. Not dying.

" - she'll come around. Eventually. Probably. Yeah." Catherine finished off lamely.

Her sorry excuse for a pep talk seemed to cheer Brandon up slightly though. He snorted and ruffled her hair. "Thanks, Rina."

Catherine slapped his hand away. "Dude! My hair!"

"Ah, fuck your hair. What about my feelings?" Brandon whined.

Catherine opened her mouth to reply when her phone rang. One glance at the screen had her groaning in frustration.

"What are feelings?" Catherine grumbled, holding a finger up at Brandon to wait. He raised an eyebrow as if asking 'who is it?' but Catherine glared at him until he backed down.

"Yes? What is it this time?"

"It's one-fucking-AM, bitch!"

"Oh, woah! Language!" Catherine scoffed. "Besides, tomorrow's Saturday. Pretty sure I can stay out as long as I want."

"Oh, sure! Until you come crashing in and yelling how you had such a good time with Randall - "

"Hey, that was one time. I'm being more careful. I even brought apple juice!"

Beside her, Brandon chuckled.

"I still don't trust you. Get back now -"

Catherine hung up and exhaled. Brandon wisely decided not to do anything and just wait for her to say something. But the girl stamped her foot and was about to throw her phone off the balcony when he snatched her wrist.

"Ah, no no no! Calm down. Relax - ow!" Brandon hissed, rubbing his shoulder. "Rina! The hell?"

But Catherine ignored him, pulling at her hair as she paced on the balcony. "I swear, if I didn't know better, I was living with a communist! The phrase 'free will' means nothing to her! Goddamn, how do people look at her and think, 'yup, that's an American'?"

Brandon rolled his eyes and said, "Emily?"

Catherine stopped in her tracks and gave him an exasperated look. "Yes! Do you know what it's like to live under her rule? As if she was a dictator - you know, I'd bet even the sisters listen to her sometimes."

Brandon huffed, a fond smile on his face. "That's just how she is. Was she asking you to leave?"

"Yeah, and I - "

"Then you really should leave," Brandon interrupted. Then, he added with a smirk, "Besides, the party's getting boring and you're low on apple juice."

"There's nothing wrong with abstaining."

"But apple juice? Really?"

"Oh, shut up."

Catherine headed downstairs and tried to find Nathan. He had left the dance floor and was busy with having his hands all over the same blonde against the wall.

Catherine shook his shoulder and shouted, "Nath. Nath! I gotta go!"

Nathan turned and gave her a dopey grin, "Oh, hey, Rina."

Nathan's eyes were still blinking rapidly and Catherine patiently waited for him to... well, get down from his high, she supposed.

The blonde calmed down much quicker and nudged Nathan gently. The guy stopped blinking like crazy and cleared his throat, whipping his head back and forth between Catherine and the blonde. "Ah, right. Uh... right! I was supposed to drive you home! Right. Uh, I'll see you next week?"

The blonde rolled her eyes and slipped him a piece of paper. As she walked away, Nathan's grin grew wider and he looked at Catherine. "She likes me, right?"

Catherine rolled her eyes and grabbed his wrist, dragging him out of the door. "Come on, Cassanova."

Nathan fumbled with his keys so Catherine shoved him aside and did it herself.

"Dammit, I hate that you're driving." Catherine settled herself in the passenger seat, putting on her seatbelt. "You better text us if you got home safe, okay? Nath?"

"Yeah, yeah. I heard you." Nathan yawned and started up his car. "Home. Safe. Text. I got it."

The drive was silent, except for Nathan's occasional yawns and Catherine's soft humming. Driving late at night or the early morning always felt special to her. There was something... she wouldn't say 'sacred' but...

"Rina? We're here." Nathan turned in his seat and Catherine unbuckled. They fist-bumped each other and Nathan lightly shoved her out. "You're in so much trouble, aren't you?"

Catherine didn't bother responding, throwing a grin over her shoulder.

As Nathan drove off, she stared up at the grey and white building. The paint was starting to fade, showing hints of the ugly red bricks it was made of. The thick wooden doors sometimes made her feel like she was entering the Great Hall at Hogwarts until she remembers what's inside. A large sign was placed above the doors, curving with the top of it.

'St. Mary's Orphanage' it said. More like 'Emily's Prison House', Catherine mused to herself.

The doors closed without a loud 'bang!' and Catherine made her way up to the third floor, her footsteps light so that the staircase wouldn't creak. On the third door in the hallway, four names were written on the sign card.

Emily Anderson
Heather Roberts
Jennifer Coal
Catherine Lee

Catherine hesitated but turned the knob. She almost sneezed when the smell of roses attacked her. A burnt-out candle sat on the small table right next to the door. Catherine waited for her nose to calm down before moving.

The window directly opposite her was open, letting moonlight illuminate the mess on the floor. Clothes, papers, shoes. Honestly, no one bothered to tell them to clean after themselves anymore. Two bunk beds stood against the other two walls. The one on the left was clearly occupied. Heather was curled up into a ball, her blanket wrapped tightly around her. On top, Jennifer looked like she was about to fall off. Her legs dangled dangerously off the edge, her blanket already kicked off and abandoned on the floor.

Catherine made her way up the ladder and pushed Jennifer's legs safely back onto the bed. She rolled the sleeping girl towards the wall and away from the edge, just in case. Jennifer's blue-black hair looked like it was strangling her but the girl continued to snore softly.

Oh well, at least she can breathe.

Catherine smiled softly as she climbed down and headed to her bunk bed... wait, where's Emily? Catherine frowned up at her bed at the top.

God, this was annoying. Holding back a sigh, Catherine climbed up and stared back at Emily. The girl was laying on her stomach with her head on her arms.

"I'll kill you," Emily growled.

Catherine snatched her blanket off Emily and snuggled down next to her, her back facing the edge of the bed. "You can try - Hey, this is kinda cosy."

Emily sat up. Probably just to look down at her and escape the cuddling. "I told you midnight. Do you know what time it is?"

"I don't know but we should really do this more often," Catherine said, smiling innocently. "We can be like penguins in the winter. Warm and fuzzy."

Emily raised her hands up, exasperated. "You're unbelievable."

Catherine nodded as Emily got off and climbed down the ladder. "I agree. I'm one of a kind."

Catherine didn't have to look back to know Emily had given her the finger.

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oKAY! hope you guys enjoyed this chapter!

see you guys whenever i finish the next one

-Isa Out-