Finally, it was the day of new beginnings. The moving truck was parked in our new freshly built driveway with the two backdoors open. Cardboard boxes were being transported like a train with each of us passing it to the next person.

The house was new. Very super-duper new. It had just finished construction a week ago. From here, I could see surfaces of white, glossy marble that iced over the kitchen, platinum-colored enforced walls in an uninspired manner. Most of the floor was freshly polished concrete, making it almost impossible to walk barefoot on.

Honestly, the entire house was such a muted, boring color that I definitely had to make adjustments. The windows were uncomfortably huge; I felt like anyone walking by could see into them. First thing on the list-- curtains.

"Lana, your knight in shining armor is here!" Ambrose kneeled and pretended to clutch onto the imaginary sword attached to his pants.

Meadow violently smacked his head, earning a loud groan from him. "Morning," Catalina and Meadow said in unison.

"Thank you for everyone making the time to come and help us." my father smiled, his left dimple protruding.

"Anything for Lana." Ambrose placed his hand out to my father. "Nice to meet you, I'm Ambrose, Lana's future boyfriend."

My eyes darted desperately, flailing my hands to keep my father from believing his odd lies. It's funny to think Ambrose and I have been friends for over five years, yet he never met my father. And this was probably why.

"Stop trying to win her father's heart and actually help," Meadow interjected, grabbing Ambrose by his hoodie and dragging him towards the moving truck.

"We can start with the other truck," I said, gesturing for Catalina and Meadow to follow me. "Be careful, it's pretty heavy."

"You know, Ambrose wanted to bring roses, donuts, and balloons, but we talked him out of it," Meadow informed, grabbing one of the boxes.

"Because of Declan's situation, he wanted to cheer you up," Catalina added, wiggling her eyebrows.

"I see," I replied, glancing towards Ambrose who must have felt my gaze on him and made eye contact with me. He cutely grinned, waving at me wholeheartedly. I couldn't ask for a better guy friend than Ambrose.

"Okay, while you kiddos stay outside and chat. I'm going to cook us something quick," my father said, happily smiling.

You would think after a long day of unloading boxes we would order takeout, but cooking was my father's passion. It never was a chore for him like it was to me. No matter how tired or stressed he was, cooking always helped soothe his worries. I think that's how he won my mother's heart-- with food.

I admired the view of our new lawn scattered with flowers, especially dandelions. They were my favorites because I loved using them to make wishes--though they never came true. Glancing inside, my Father was struggling to open the box and I couldn't help but laugh. The girls were distracted by Ambrose's random dance contest he proposed. So I took this time to go help my Dad.

"Let me help you," I said, grabbing the pair of scissors sitting right across from us.

"What would I do without you," he beamed, placing a soft kiss on my head. "I'm so happy for us finally making the first step. Because of my career, I put us in debt for years before I could muster enough money to afford a house. I know your mother is staring down at us, smiling."

It was hard whenever the topic came up about my mother for the both of us. For instance, I hardly recall any memories with her; it's like missing a ghost sometimes. Whenever we would visit her side of the family, they claimed I was so much like her, but yet I felt more detached from her. The one memory that stood clear in my mind was my pinky promise to her about my career.

And even if she was a ghost to me. I hold that promise dearly close to my heart and planned to achieve it.

"I wish I remembered more about Mom," I sighed, unfolding the handles of the box.

"You were so young when everything happened," he exhaled, pushing his glasses back up his nose. "Yet, you never once let it define you. The more time goes by, the more I realize how much of your Mom is still inside you."

"Maybe I'll feel more connected when I become a nurse," I shrugged, handing my father a pan.

"Are you sure about continuing down that path?" My father hesitantly asked.

"Yes, I promised," I answered.

"I'm sure your Mom wouldn't mind if you changed your mind," My dad pressed.

To be frank, assuming I was always going to be a nurse made everything easier. I never had a passion for school, which is quite funny since I would have to suffer at least four more years to even be a qualified nurse.

"I'm fine with my decision, Dad," I stated.

A rotten egg smell was coming from the kitchen, causing my nose to crinkle in disgust. By my father's scrunched nose, I think he smelled the same thing. One day in this house and it already stinks, why?

My Dad poured some oil into the pan to let it sizzle for a few minutes and walked outside. Why is he going out?

"Do you guys have anything specific you guys want me to make?" My dad asked loudly enough for me to hear.

Pulling out my phone, I clicked on the SlapFace icon to entertain myself with funny videos. The first video was a cat getting a brain freeze from ice cream and it never failed to crack me up. I need to try that sometime. Suddenly a strong burning scent wafted towards me and my eyes lit up.

Before I realized it, my lungs were inhaling black smoke coming from our gas stove. The coughing was instant, as were the tears that poured from my eyes. The howling sound of alarm bursted through the house, capturing everyone's attention.

"Oh my god, Lana!" My father yelled.

My legs stopped working, it was like courage flowing through my veins evaporative and I was left with nothing but fear. My vision was clouded by endless tears as I stumbled over the unpacked boxes. It was like the fire kept feeding on my fear, growing faster and faster, destroying our kitchen and heading for the dining room.

My lungs burned, and the coughs kept pouring out from me. Swifty, two scrawny arms were placed underneath my legs and shoulders and without thinking, I wrapped my trembling arms around his neck. Inhaling his Japanese blossom lotion, I knew exactly who came to save me-- Ambrose.

"I got her, Mr. Hart. Don't worry about it," Ambrose reassured, making a run out of the house.

The shining sun warmed my goosebump-covered skin, I stayed comfortably in Ambrose's arms watching my father already phoning the fire department. The flames burned with colors like I wouldn't imagine. With each new flame, I knew another one of our belongings alighted. Eventually, a powerful explosion occurred, wrecking whatever was left unharmed.

By the time the firefighters arrived at our house, it was reduced to nothing but ashes and charcoal. It was too far gone. The firefighters warned us that everything inside would've been destroyed. Every single thing we had was gone like it never existed.

My Father cried, engulfing me in a tight firm hug but I couldn't return it. I was left in such a state of shock that I couldn't move a muscle. He muttered about how worried he was when I froze in there. That no matter what we lost, we still had each other, and that's what will keep me going.

According to the firefighters, the fire was ignited by our gas stove which triggered the gas leak, and because of a constructor's mistake; we were left homeless. My father hadn't purchased the insurance for the house yet, thinking if he signed the paper after a couple of weeks moving in it wouldn't be a big deal.

Obviously, my father learned his lesson to always purchase insurance because we never can know what happened. All those pictures of my mother--gone. My favorite stuffed animal was transformed into a pile of fiery hot ashes. But I can't complain, I have to help my father pick up the pieces the universe threw at us.

For the past two days, we used his restaurant as a shelter, meaning no income was coming in since it was kept closed. I brewed a fresh pot of coffee and brought it over to the table my Dad was sulking in. He seemed so detached, lost since the fire, and it ripped my heart apart.

We were going to be, okay. He just had to believe in it.

"Cheer up, Dad. It's so hard seeing you like this," I said, pouring steaming hot coffee into his mug.

"I worked for ten years to purchase that house," he sighed.

"We can start over again. I'll even pitch in and apply for jo-,"

"No. It isn't your job to help pay the bills," he sternly replied, taking a sip of the coffee.

"But Dad, I can't let you carry this burden on your own. It's no big deal, everyone has part-time jobs," I explained, praying it would convince him.

"I said no, Lana. I'll figure something out so we could at least have an apartment." he twirled the mug around. "It seems like our luck has run out."

"That's not true. Weren't we lucky enough to make it out of the fire without either one of us getting hurt? I remembered you told me that." I arched my eyebrows, knowing he would have to surrender to my argument. "You could have lost an arm and then your fondness for cooking would've been destroyed. We should be grateful that we still have many annoying years with each other." I jokingly laughed.

My father chuckled, which made my smile even brighter than before.

"Why are you laughing?"

"I was just thinking of how much you resemble your mother. She was extremely optimistic too." He sipped his coffee.

"Extremely! I'm an average level optimistic," I giggled, dropping five cubes of sugar in my coffee. Maybe it's the sugar that's making me energetic.

"Sir, a customer has requested to speak personally to you," his receptionist said.

"Mmm... Alright." A crease between his eyebrows appeared.

"Hello? Oh my, Nolan, is it really you?" my father grinned, appearing happier than he has the past two days.

Glancing at my watch, I realized how little time I had left to get changed for school.

"Did you hear what happened to Lana's house?" the group of friends gossiped to each other on their way through the gate and completely ignored the fact that I was right behind them.

"First rejection and now homeless, I would want to disappear," another girl chattered.

Suddenly, I felt insignificant. Super self-conscious. It's like anything I do would be broadcasted to the entire school. Why was my life enjoyable for others?

"Don't get too close to her, she's probably possessed or something," one of the soccer boys declared.

Apparently, I was the cheese touch that no one ever wanted to have. Everyone's glances and laughter made my stomach form knots. For a second, I wanted to hide behind a tree but then hearing the two familiar voices brightened me right up.

"Everyone is gossiping about you today," Catalina warily said.

"I just want to disappear," I muttered, playing with hair sprouting from my braids.

"How long until you find a place to stay?" Meadow pondered, unplugging her earphones.

"Funny story, my father's long-lost best friend offered to let us stay in his house. Apparently, he's this big hot-shot President of a gaming company," I explained.

"Well, that was quick," Meadow replied.

"I'm happy for you, it's about time something good happens," Catalina expressed.

"I want to believe that shooting star actually worked and will stop my life from falling apart," I voiced.

My eyes bulged from their sockets when I saw the booth Ambrose had made in front of the gate. The booth had a photo of myself-- a pretty darn cute one might I add however along with the statement 'Donate to House Fire Victims.' He's insane for this! I knew he's trying to help, but this was absolutely unnecessary and only brought more attention to me.

"Donate to this beautiful victim who's in need of a home! Every dollar will help!" Ambrose yelled through an air horn.

Students stopped to listen to his message and quickly tried to sneak through them. However, Ambrose held some students back to keep them from leaving without donating. Why is he doing this? Did the thought pass through his mind what would Lana think? Because I don't approve at all!

"Donate, you rude snobs! Lana is struggling to find a home!" Ambrose shouted, receiving a few glares, not including the way I was sending daggers towards him.

"He's so dumb," Meadow laughed.

"Ambrose just doesn't think we know that," Catalina defended.

Tears crinkled in my eyes, and it took everything to keep them from falling. It's like my days get worse and worse rather than better. I didn't want to break down in front of everyone, but this was the last straw.

"Ambrose, what are you doing! Please stop this!" I pleaded.

"Everyone, the beautiful victim, is here smiling brightly even after such a tragic event. How can you not want to donate?" Ambrose screamed with enthusiasm. "She looks so pretty, too." He dramatically gripped his chest.

Breathing heavily, basically fuming with fury and sadness, I stole the air horn from his grasp. "Stop it! Ambrose."

"Why? I'm trying to help you!" he rudely yelled.

"I'm tired of people talking about me and you're not helping by doing this," I sniffed, my lip quivering and my face pinched together, struggling to keep my emotions under wraps.

"I hate to be rude but you're still making a scene." Catalina inserted her receiving a glare from me and she quickly pretended to zip her lips shut.

From my peripheral vision, I noticed a tall, firm-built figure now blocked the bright sun.

"Excuse me, can I get through?" He politely asked.

Instantly, I swung around, my eyes widened in horror at his sight. It took a few seconds to swallow the lump in my throat and process my sentences.

"Declan."

"How dare you talk to us like that? Lana is really hurt, okay! Do you wanna know why?" Ambrose outraged. My eyes rapidly darted between the both of them, completely horrified by this entire resentful situation.

"A gas leak? How inconvenient," he nonchalantly replied, gripping the one strap on his shoulder.

"She's hurting because you turned her down in such a cruel way and now everything is going wrong in her life," Ambrose ranted, spewing nonsense.

"You're saying the leakage accident which has less than 3% probability of happening happened because of me?" Declan raised his thick brown eyebrows.

Ambrose slammed his foot. "That's right!"

Earning a loud chuckle and a nod from Declan.

"That doesn't make any sense, Ambrose," I whispered, tugging at his suit.

"Damn, I never noticed how much power I had," he smirked, reaching into his pocket. A wallet emerged, and he dug into one of the layers, pulling out a five-dollar bill. His hand started moving towards the box attached to Ambrose before quickly shifting towards me. "Might as well cut out the middleman. Now, will you leave me alone if I give you this?"

Caught in a trance, my heart racing in my ears, the fury sinking deeper into my bones. This was the end of this! I tried swallowing the anger when it was a fire-seed, but it only grew strong in my abdomen. He's going to think twice before crossing me again.

I aggressively yanked his arm causing the money to escape into the wind to God knows where but I didn't care. I wasn't his charity case. And I certainly wasn't someone he can step on whenever he felt like it.

"Don't treat me like that!" I threw his arm down. "I can't believe I admired someone like you for four years. I rather stay homeless than take your disgusting money!" I fumed, my cheeks puffy like an angry squirrel.

"Are you sure about that," he sighed, placing his wallet back into his pocket.

"Heck yeah! You know what! I at least have friends who care enough to help me when I need it while you seem to have no one by your side," I spat.

"Good job, Lana," Ambrose whispered in my ears, putting a thump up.

"That's why I don't need you!" I stated with irritation.

And with a shake of his head, his chocolate shining eyes gleamed with joy and a gigantic smile appeared on his face. Nothing came out but hysterical laughter; Nice to see someone have a fantastic freaking time. He walked past us and ascended towards the school doors.

"Yeah! Next time pick on someone your own size! Don't think because we're in a lower class that we are dumber because we aren't!" I yelled, using the airhorn to project my voice.

"Only you would pick a fight with the most popular boy in school," Meadow stated, somehow standing right next to me.

Oh no.

What am I going to do now?

This wasn't what I planned.

Oh Lana, she just never learns! Would you guys freak out if Ambrose made the booth for you guys?
Is anyone on the hate Declan team?

Love you guys!! I hope you enjoyed this crazy freaking chapter!! ;)
Every single vote and comment makes Lana cry happy tears <3