THE SINGER AND THE SIDEKICK
CHAPTER TWO

     THE BLONDE smiled warmly as Alana excitedly recounted her first week at her new school. It was Friday afternoon, and the two sisters were sitting on a worn wooden bench in Swellview Park, the sun lazily dipping behind the trees. Alana, swinging her legs happily beneath her, animatedly told Molly about a girl she had befriended at school.

"She's so cool!" The girl beamed, her face lighting up with excitement. "She invited me to her house tomorrow to hang out. Do you think Mom and Dad will let me go?"

Molly shrugged, her lips curling into a gentle smile as she listened. It felt comforting to see Alana so at ease in a place that had seemed so foreign to both of them just a week ago. "Won't know until you ask them," she replied, her voice light.

"I'll ask them at dinner." The girl nodded eagerly, then tilted her head to face her sister with curiosity in her bright blue eyes. "How was your first week, M?"

Molly exhaled slowly, pursing her lips as she thought about it. How was her first week? There were ups and downs—she'd made a few new friends, the staring from classmates had finally stopped, but Miss Shapen still seemed to have it out for her from day one. She knew she couldn't exactly explain all that to Alana, though, so she settled on the parts she felt comfortable sharing. "I made friends, too," she said, meeting her sister's gaze with a small smile. "Jasper, Charlotte, and Henry."

"Are they cool?" Alana asked, her eyes wide with interest.

"So far," she replied with a nonchalant shrug. "Jasper's a bit weird, but Charlotte and Henry are pretty cool."

The ten year old's face lit up. "That's great! What time is it back home?"

Molly tilted her head slightly as she thought aloud, glancing around the park. "Uh... I think it's like, around lunch time?" She mused, then looked at her sister. "Why?"

"Can we call Andre? Pleeeeease?" Alana begged, her voice practically bubbling with excitement.

The older girl chuckled, reaching up to ruffle her sister's hair. The sound of the wind rustling through the trees felt peaceful, a soft contrast to the whirlwind of changes they had both been through. Molly pulled out her new phone, glad her parents had let her keep her number so her friends could still reach her. She scrolled through her contacts until she found Andre's name and handed the phone to Alana, who eagerly pressed the screen.

"Lana!" The boy's voice came through the speaker, cheerful and a little surprised when her face lit up his screen. "Hey!"

"Lana?" Jade's voice chimed in from somewhere on the other side. There was the distinct sound of shuffling, and then Andre's phone was snatched away, revealing Jade's face and her usual sharp tone. "Hi, Lan."

Molly couldn't help but laugh quietly at the familiar dynamic. Jade West was known for her biting sarcasm and fierce dislike of all people—children included. But for reasons no one fully understood, she had always seemed to tolerate Alana. When people asked why, she would shoot them a venomous glare and change the subject, leaving them too intimidated to push further.

"Hi, Jade!" The girl greeted brightly, her voice filled with warmth. She shifted the phone in her hands, offering it back to Molly so she could speak with her friends as well.

"Hey, J!" Molly responded, laughing and waving at the phone's camera. She pulled a thick strand of pink hair behind her ear, the vivid color a reminder of her home, even in this new and foreign place. "Still got it."

"Good," Jade said curtly, but she could hear the humor in her voice. "I'd come out there and shave your head if you got rid of it."

Molly smirked teasingly. "Y'know, now that you mention it—"

"Molly!" Jade snapped, her voice cutting through the teasing.

"I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" She laughed, her shoulders shaking from the playful exchange.

The phone cameras were now positioned to catch everyone in the conversation, as the friends began to chat, catching up on the past week. It had only been a week since she left Hollywood Arts, but for a fourteen-year-old, it felt like an eternity.

"So, how boring is it without me?" Molly asked, her voice light but tinged with longing.

"Extremely!" Tori groaned from beside Andre. "Come back."

"Would if I could, TV. Would if I could," the girl responded with a sad smile, wishing she could slip back into the rhythm of her old life, even just for a moment.

Beck, who had been silently listening in on the conversation, finally spoke up. "So, you replace us yet?"

Molly let out a dramatic gasp, her hand over her heart. "Me? Never!"

Alana, always quick to share, piped up from beside her. "She made three friends!" She announced proudly. "Henry, Jasper, and Charlotte!"

She almost laughed at the collective eye roll from her friends through the phone.

"Ew," Jade muttered, her voice flat and bored. "Those are stupid names."

Molly rolled her eyes playfully at her friend's words, glad that she still had these moments of connection, even if the distance between her old life and her new one felt like an endless chasm.

The fourteen-year-old quickly glanced at the time, her eyes widening in realization. She gently took her phone from her sister's hands. "Guys, we've gotta get home for dinner. I'll talk to you all later!" She smiled, her voice tinged with urgency but still cheerful.

"Bye, everyone!" Alana beamed, moving behind her sister so that her friends could catch a glimpse of her face. Her bright grin was infectious, and even though Molly could feel the weight of the distance between her old life and this new chapter, she couldn't help but smile at her sister's enthusiasm.

The group exchanged goodbyes, and the girl quickly ended the call before slipping her phone into the pocket of her jacket. She and Alana started their journey home, Molly hopping onto her bike while Alana stood on the pegs at the back, her pristine blonde locks blowing freely in the air. The breeze was cool and refreshing, and despite the strangeness of their new surroundings, both girls couldn't help but feel a rush of excitement about the dinner waiting for them at home. Their mom had promised to make her famous lasagna, and it was one of their favorite meals—a comforting taste of home, even if everything else felt unfamiliar.

After about ten minutes of weaving through the quiet streets of Swellview, the sight of their large new house loomed ahead. Molly couldn't suppress a sigh as she looked at it. Yes, they'd been living here for a week now, but it still felt like a huge change. The house was nice, of course, but everything was so different. The streets felt quieter, the air heavier with unfamiliarity. Hollywood's vibrancy was far behind them, replaced by the monotony of this strange city.

They reached the front porch after a short ride, and Molly pushed open the door to find their parents' voices drifting from the kitchen. The sisters quickly made their way to wash up before heading to the dinner table.

As they entered the living room, Molly couldn't help but pause for a moment, taking in the new layout. Brightly colored lanterns hung from the ceiling, casting a warm glow against the soft afternoon light. Family pictures, along with abstract paintings they'd collected over the years, lined the walls. Her eyes were drawn to a specific photo—a candid shot of her during her first actual performance. It was a moment frozen in time: her blonde hair a little frizzy from the stage lights, her lips stretched into a genuine smile, and her eyes sparkling under the excitement of performing.

A pang of longing gripped her chest. She missed the music, the thrill of being on stage, the rush of the crowd's energy. She missed her old friends and the life she had back in California. Swellview still felt like a strange place, one that couldn't seem to compare to the excitement she once knew.

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, Molly made her way toward the dining room, where her family waited patiently at the table. The comforting scent of lasagna filled the air, reminding her of simpler, happier times. As she settled into her seat, she looked around at the people she loved. For a moment, it didn't matter how strange this new place was. This was home now. And maybe, just maybe, she'd find a way to make it feel like it.

✰

     Molly laughed softly as she followed her younger sister onto the porch of her new friend's house, her amusement sparked by Alana's barely contained excitement. The girl's enthusiasm was contagious, and Molly couldn't help but grin. Alana deserved a fun Saturday with someone her own age—a stark contrast to her usual weekends, which were spent trailing after Molly and her older friends. It was a refreshing sight, one that warmed the fourteen year old's heart.

     "Okay, okay!" The girl chuckled, trying to keep up as her little sister tugged on her arm insistently. "You're gonna rip my arm off!"

     "Then stop walking so slow!" Alana shot back, not breaking stride.

     When they reached the front door, the young girl didn't hesitate, ringing the bell with unrestrained energy. The chime echoed inside the house, and in seconds, the door swung open. A pretty blonde woman stood in the doorway, her airy smile almost too perfect. Molly couldn't help but notice a certain vacuous quality to her demeanor, something that became clearer when she spoke.

     "Hi, you must be Alana," the woman said in a sweet, almost airy tone.

     "Yes, ma'am," the ten year old replied, standing straighter as she addressed her friend's mom.

     "Piper!" The woman called over her shoulder, her voice carrying through the house. "Your friend's here!"

     As footsteps approached from inside, the woman's gaze shifted to Molly. Her smile brightened slightly as she extended her hand. "Hi, I'm Piper's mother," she introduced herself warmly.

     Molly reached out to shake her hand, her own smile polite but reserved. "Hi, I'm Alana's sister—"

     Before she could finish her sentence, a voice from inside the house interrupted her.

     "Molly?"

     The familiar tone made Molly pause, her brow knitting in confusion. She leaned slightly to peer past the woman's shoulder, and her gaze landed on the living room. Two familiar faces stared back at her from the couch—Charlotte, with her trademark smirk, and Henry, who looked just as surprised to see her as she was to see him.

     "Oh," she said, her voice tinged with both surprise and awkwardness. "Hi, Charlotte," she greeted, her eyes flickering briefly to the boy sitting beside her. "Henry."

     Mrs. Hart, oblivious to the undercurrent of tension, shrugged casually and stepped aside, leaving the doorway open before wandering off deeper into the house. Molly hesitated, standing on the threshold as uncertainty crept in. Even though Henry's mom had clearly given her permission to come in, she didn't feel right stepping into someone else's home without a direct invitation.

     "You know Piper's brother?" Alana called from the kitchen, her voice tinged with excitement. She peeked over the counter, her smile wide. "Cool!"

     Molly nodded slightly, her expression guarded as she glanced at Charlotte and Henry again. "Uh, I should go. Bug, be ready at four," she said quickly, addressing her sister.

     Charlotte stood from the couch and turned to face her. "We were just heading out," she said with a smile. "Wanna tag along?"

     Henry's eyes widened in what could only be described as alarm. Was Charlotte insane? She hadn't even given him a heads-up before inviting the new prettiest girl in school to hang out with them.

     Molly caught the look on his face and misinterpreted it completely. Her lips pressed into a thin line as she shook her head. "I don't want to intrude—"

     Charlotte let out a scoff, brushing off her protest. She crossed the room quickly, grabbed Molly's hand, and began pulling her toward the door. "You're not intruding," she declared with a laugh, her confidence unwavering. "You said you haven't had a chance to explore yet, right? So, let's explore."

     "Char, really, you don't have to—" The blonde tried to protest, glancing back toward the house.

     "You don't have a choice," The curly haired girl interrupted with a playful grin. "Come on! We have to introduce you to Nacho Ball."

     "Nacho what now?" Molly asked, her confusion evident as Charlotte practically dragged her down the sidewalk.

     Henry, recovering from his initial shock, finally managed a small smile. Whatever hesitation he had moments ago seemed to fade as he followed the two girls. "Oh," he said, his tone lightening, "this is gonna be great."

✰

     "Wait, why is Jasper so obsessed with buckets?" Molly laughed, her ocean-blue eyes flicking to the teens beside her with a mixture of amusement and genuine curiosity. "Is it, like, a kink thing? Or—"

     "God, I hope not," Henry groaned, his face twisting in mock horror as an unfortunate mental image flashed through his mind. "He's just always been kinda..."

     "Odd," Charlotte finished matter-of-factly, shrugging. "But he's harmless. An idiot, sure, but harmless."

     "Speak of the devil," the girl said, her lips curling into a playful smile as she spotted the ever-enthusiastic Jasper Dunlop bounding toward them with his signature energy. "Hey, Jasper!"

     "Hey, MJ!" Jasper greeted brightly, waving as if they hadn't just seen each other yesterday. "Hey, guys! Do you wanna see my new bucket?"

     Henry and Charlotte exchanged a silent, exasperated glance, both clearly debating whether they had the patience for another one of Jasper's bucket-related tangents. Molly, however, let out a small laugh, amused by his unbridled enthusiasm.

     "Sure," she said with a grin.

     As the boy launched into an animated monologue about his latest acquisition—a shiny, blue bucket with a reinforced handle, apparently a rare find—Henry and Charlotte both subtly edged away. Three quick beeps chimed from behind them, and Molly's brow furrowed as she noticed her two new friends retreating without a word.

     When Jasper paused to breathe, she leaned closer and asked, "Where are they going?"

     The brunette barely glanced in their direction, clearly unbothered by his friends' abrupt exit. "Probably work. Their boss pages them out of nowhere, and then, like, ten seconds later, they just take off."

     Molly blinked in confusion, her brows knitting together. "What? Who still uses a pager? This isn't 1995."

     Jasper shrugged, unbothered. "I guess their boss does. He owns a junk store. It's got all kinds of cool stuff! Oh, and the buckets there? You wouldn't believe the selection."

     "A junk store?" Molly echoed, intrigued despite herself. "Like, a thrift store kind of deal?"

     "Sort of, but it's way better," the boy nodded enthusiastically, walking beside her as they wandered in the direction of Swellview Park. "They sell more than clothes. They've got all kinds of random treasures. And there's this giant dinosaur by the front door—it breathes fire!"

     Molly cringed at the mental image. "That sounds like a hella safety hazard."

     Jasper just grinned. "Yeah, but it's so cool."

✰

The following Monday, Molly was surprised to realize she didn't dread school as much as she had the week before. Maybe she was starting to adjust to Swellview, or maybe it was the relief of having made friends on her first day. Whatever it was, she didn't feel the same heaviness in her chest as she had before.

Her gaze swept over her room, and she frowned at its chaotic state. Over the past week, she'd only bothered to unpack the essentials: clothes, her trusty CD player, her guitar, and the well-worn songbook that was practically an extension of herself. Her laptop and microphone still sat in their boxes, waiting for the day she felt ready to reenter her creative sanctuary and let them see the light of day again.

The sight reminded her of something she'd been putting off. A YouTube account. How had she not created one yet? It was strange, especially since she'd gone to a performing arts school back in California. There were even videos of her performances on the Hollywood Arts YouTube channel. Maybe she'd download a few of those and reupload them to kick off her own channel.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door. Her dad's head appeared a moment later, his easygoing smile greeting her.

"Hey, MJ. You ready?"

Molly shot him a deadpan look, her messy blonde and pink hair adding to the unimpressed expression. "Totally. It's pajama day."

Oliver Jensen chuckled, undeterred by her sarcasm. "Alright, smartass. Be downstairs in fifteen minutes."

"Got it," she replied with a mock salute, watching him close the door behind him. She waited until his footsteps faded before getting up and rifling through her clothes. All her flannels were in the wash, so she threw on a red T-shirt, a pair of worn jeans, and a leather jacket with a cloth hood. It wasn't perfect, but it worked.

Her phone buzzed, lighting up with a message from Charlotte. Molly smiled faintly as she read it. Over the week, the two had discovered they lived on the same street and decided to walk to school together—at least as long as they were still on good terms. Molly fired off a quick reply, letting Charlotte know she was about to head out, then grabbed her bag and hurried downstairs.

On her way out, she paused to give her little sister a quick hug. Their dad had agreed to drive Alana to school since walking her had almost made Molly late on her first day. As she stepped outside and shut the door behind her, a bright smile tugged at her lips. She was a morning person—most days—so long as she had coffee within an hour of waking up. Luckily, Charlotte already discovered this after just a week of friendship.

When they met up on the sidewalk, Charlotte brought up a coffee shop that was conveniently on their route. Molly groaned in relief and eagerly followed her new friend.

The two fell into easy conversation, swapping details about their lives as they walked. Eventually, a question popped into the blonde's mind, a lingering curiosity from the weekend. "Hey, where did you guys go on Saturday?"

Charlotte shrugged, her gaze fixed on the sidewalk ahead. "Work. Our boss sometimes calls us in out of nowhere."

"Is it fun?" Molly asked. "Your job, I mean."

"Eh, sometimes," the girl admitted. "Our boss is a total man-child, though. Sometimes he calls us in for the dumbest things, like fixing his nightlight."

Molly burst out laughing. She couldn't help it. "A grown man with a nightlight? That's who you work for?"

"Yup," Charlotte said, popping the 'p' with a smirk. "Henry worked there first, and he begged the guy to hire me too."

"That's kind of cool, though," the blue eyed teen said with a grin. "At least you get to work with your best friend."

Charlotte snorted. "Yeah, but sometimes I want to strangle him. He can be so dumb."

Molly laughed again, shaking her head. She wasn't sure how her week would go, but with Charlotte around, she had a feeling it wouldn't be boring.

✰

Molly stared in confusion as she watched Charlotte and Henry bolt through the school's front doors, leaving her behind with Jasper near his locker. The pair had been called into work again, an excuse she might have accepted if it didn't keep happening during school hours. It wasn't normal—not by a long shot—but every time she thought about asking for more details, a voice in her head warned her off. Sometimes, it seemed, the unknown was better left that way—hidden under lock and key.

The rest of the school day passed in a haze of half-hearted attention and nagging thoughts. Molly did her best to shake it off, exchanging a few small smiles and laughs with Jasper whenever he made a joke or ranted about one of his interests. But no matter how hard she tried, her frustration lingered. She'd expected her life in Swellview to feel strange because of the move, not because her new friends seemed to vanish every few hours like they were part of some secret mission.

What bothered her most was how easily Jasper seemed to accept their excuses. An emergency at a junk store? Really? Molly wasn't buying it, but the brunette didn't question it for a second, shrugging it off like it was completely normal. Was she the only one who thought this was weird?

By the time she got home, her head was buzzing with questions she couldn't answer. Groaning, she threw herself onto her bed, grabbed her phone, and immediately dialed Andre's number. Out of all her friends from Hollywood Arts, he was the one she felt most comfortable talking to. The others were great, but they came with their quirks. Jade was a relentless pessimist, Tori and Cat were so overly cheerful they made her teeth hurt, Robbie was socially awkward to the point of using Rex as a crutch, and Beck just didn't care about anything.

Andre, though? He was calm, mostly rational, and easy to talk to. He was also the only one with enough common sense to keep Molly grounded, and right now, she needed that more than ever. She prayed his grandmother's condition wasn't hereditary—she honestly didn't know what she'd do without him.

After a few rings, the boy's warm and confident voice came through the line. "Hey, MJ!"

"Dre," Molly breathed, flipping onto her back and putting the call on speaker. "Thank fuck you answered. I'm about to lose my mind."

Andre chuckled, his amusement almost enough to make her smile. "What's going on?"

"This place is so weird," she groaned, staring up at the ceiling. "I wanna come home."

She could practically hear the eyebrow raise in his voice. "I thought you said you made, like, three super-cool besties?"

"Honestly?" Molly sighed. "I've only hung out with one of them enough to actually call them a friend. Charlotte and Henry keep randomly running off—it's annoying."

"You think they're a thing?"

"I don't know," she muttered, running a hand through her messy hair. "Maybe? But Jasper's been friends with them since elementary school, and he doesn't seem to know anything about it."

"So... I can give Jade your address, then?" Andre teased.

"Fuck no," Molly laughed, her first genuine laugh all day. "My parents would actually kill me—if she doesn't first." Her laughter faded into a sigh, her tone turning more serious. "This place is so bland, Dre. Like, what kind of school paints its walls orange and gives everyone plain blue lockers? And don't even get me started on the fashion—no one here knows how to dress. My homeroom teacher wears neon cardigans over matching neon dresses."

Molly went on, venting everything she liked and disliked about her new home, and missed about her old life in Hollywood. Andre listened patiently, occasionally chiming in with a comment or a laugh. It felt good to let it all out, like opening a pressure valve on everything she'd been holding in.

But just as she was starting to feel a little lighter, a distant yell echoed through the phone. Andre sighed, muttering an apology. "Sorry, MJ."

And just like that, the call ended, leaving Molly alone with the suffocating silence of a room that still didn't feel like hers.

— b speaks!

i just absolutely refuse to have a henry danger oc that doesn't find them suspicious huh.