WHEN HAYDEN GOT HOME FROM SCHOOL, HER MOM WAS STILL WORKING.

Thats how it had always been. Her mom always worked with the two jobs that kept her busy. She was never home.

It's how Logan came to be her second mom. She taught her how to ride a bike, how to throw a decent punch, how to defend herself against bullies at school.

Maybe that's why she turned to drugs and alcohol. Maybe Hayden was just too much to handle. It would explain why her dad left, why her mother never wanted to be home, and why the one person who stuck around drowned herself in unhealthy vices.

She stared at Logan's room, biting the inside of her cheek. Hayden appreciated her sister, even if she didn't express it very well. She was trying to mend their relationship. It would take a while, but if Logan was putting in the work, Hayden figured she could do her part too.

She set her backpack down, walking towards Logan's room, leaning against the doorframe.

She furrowed her brows when she noticed nothing was unpacked, and the things she had unpacked she seemed to be putting them back into boxes. "What're you doing? Why haven't you unpacked?"

She looked to Logan, who immediately radiated guilt. She wiped her hands on her jeans, gauging Hayden's reaction. "I'm moving out."

Hayden couldn't help the fact that her mouth fell open at the news, eyes widening. She stumbled for words, mouth fluttering open and shut a few times before speaking. "We just got here." Her voice was low, wavering. "You're already leaving me?"

The way she worded the question made Logan flinch, frowning. She shook her head, taking a step closer but stopping when Hayden took a step back. "No," she stated, "I'm not leaving you, Hayden. You're more than welcome to come and visit whenever you want."

Hayden couldn't help the words that spilled from her mouth next. "You don't have the best track record financially, Logan. Where'd you even find a landlord that accepted a credit score like yours?"

Logan sucked in a deep breath. She reminded herself that Hayden was just upset. This is what Hayden did. She got defensive when she felt she was being abandoned. "You know I got my credit back on track, Hayden. I've been clean for two years."

Hayden let out a sound that Logan couldn't tell was a scoff or laugh. "I'll still be around, Hayden. I pr—"

"You promise?" Hayden laughed dryly, "Where have I heard that before?"

"Hayden, I promise. I will still be around. You can come to me whenever." Logan assured the girl, but it was obvious that Hayden wasn't buying it. Or maybe she was. Logan honestly couldn't tell because Hayden had completely shut down.

Another defensive mechanism she developed over the years. She got quiet, showed little to no emotion in her face so that no one could truly tell what she was thinking.

Hayden sucked on her teeth, pivoting. "I won't hold you back, then. I'll leave you to pack." And she walked out, going back to her own room.

She felt tears stinging at her eyes, but she was quick to blink them away rapidly. She lost her dad and her mom was basically estranged from her. But somehow, losing her sister hurt so much worse than any of that.

—

The Sanders girl didn't understand how she let Logan persuade her into helping her move.

One minute, she was picking up her skateboard to go to school and the next, she was standing in front of Logan's apartment complex with one of her boxes in her hands.

Maybe it was the fact that it got her out of school for the day. Or maybe it was the fact that, deep down, Hayden wanted to spend these remaining moments with her sister before they were no longer one room away from each other.

"I'm on the second floor." Logan walked past her with a box in her hands as well as they entered double doors and started heading up a flight of stairs.

They repeated the process a few more times before finally getting the majority of Logan's boxes into her apartment.

"I think there's one last box. I'm gonna go get it." Logan said before disappearing down the hall.

Hayden wasn't the judgmental type at all. Living in a rundown apartment, she would never judge someone else's living environment. But, this was her older sister and she felt like she had a little bit of a right to an opinion.

The lights to the apartment flickered on and off until they remained lit, the carpet smelled like stale old beer, the floors were collecting dirt, and she saw a cockroach crawling down the drain of the sink.

It was safe to say, this was a complete downgrade from what Esme managed to find on short notice.

She glanced at the door, deciding she'd go and see what was taking Logan so long. Turning into the hall, she let out a noise when she bumped into somebody, taking a quick step back. "Fuck— I'm sorry, dude."

She glanced up, being thrown off guard at the boy that stared back at her. This boy had a strikingly beautiful face, though it held a hint of anger. She tried to not let it show that her breath was truly taken away at his beauty, recovering quickly and clearing her throat.

He looked down at her, his once hard glare slightly softening at the sight of the girl. She stared back, raising a brow and he realized he had yet to say something. "Nah, you're good." Robby chuckled, "My fault, I'm Robby."

"Hayden," She nodded, taking a smaller step back.

"You just moving in?" He nodded over at the empty apartment she stood in front of, a smirk curving at his lips.

Hayden looked down at what he held in his hand, noticing the skateboard. "Nice board." She deflected the question, because while he didn't seem like a serial killer, she learned a long time ago not to let her guard down so easily.

He looked down, as if he forgot he was even holding it. "Thanks. You skate?"

"Yeah, a little."

"We should hit the skatepark one day."

Hayden didn't mean for the laugh that escaped her lips to come out as loud as it did, immediately clamping her hand over her mouth.

"Wow, that's one way to bruise a man's ego." Robby chuckled along with her, trying to not show his feelings were slightly hurt at her laughing.

"No, I'm sorry. I'm not laughing at you, it's just—" She let her laughter die down a bit, "I could be an axe murderer and you'd never know."

The question didn't seem to waver Robby, as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Are you an axe murderer?"

"Only on the third week of the month."

"Great, it's only the second. When should we hit the skatepark?"

Hayden smiled at his persistence, licking the inside of her cheek before nodding. "Can't get mad when I out-skate you, though."

"I won't get mad because that won't happen." Robby grinned, holding his hand out.

"Yes, Robby, you have some very nice rings. I might invest in a few myself." She looked at his outstretched hand, raising a brow.

"Your phone, Hayden." He let his eyes roll playfully, hearing her laugh made butterflies swarm in his stomach. It felt like a reward.

"But what if you're an axe murderer?" She voiced her exact thoughts, setting the question up to make it sound like she was joking even when she wasn't.

He took a step closer, so now there was a mere step in between them. Hayden flickered her gaze between his beautifully colored eyes, inhaling a silent breath.

He wet his lips before speaking, voice low. "Do I look like an axe murderer?"

"You look like..." Hayden looked him up and down, "Like I'm going to regret giving you my number."

And he did. From the graphic tee he sported with the flannel over it to the rings on his fingers to the mischievous glint he had in his eye that made Hayden's stomach feel warm inside.

"All I heard was that you're giving me your number."

Hayden let out a small noise of disbelief, before shaking her head, ultimately giving in and exchanging numbers with the boy.

They stared at each other for a beat before Hayden inhaled sharply. "Well, Robby, I guess I'll see you around." She nodded at him, walking past him slowly and making sure to brush his shoulder with hers as she did so.

Robby chuckled, licking the inside of his cheek. "Yes, you will." He responded under his breath before beginning to walk back to his apartment.

authors note.
This one's kinda short butttt it's okay, I promise longer chapters are to come:)