2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Lacey

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

Trip's jaw drops as she enters the study room, a deep blush hitting her cheeks before she turns to my brother with a scowl.

"You told me you were keeping it low key!"

Wesley grins, popping out his dimples, "I'll take that as a thank you."

Trip rolls her eyes before turning to the rest of us with a shy smile. There's only six of us in the small study room, but Trip gets nervous being the center of attention. Unlike my brother, she struggles to feel comfortable in social situations, although she has come a long way since they started dating last year.

As if reading my thoughts, Stella lets out a shriek and runs over to give her roommate a hug. Cody watches the interaction with a grin, the old lacrosse captain waiting to take his turn to wish the birthday girl a good day .

Nico sighs beside me, the birthday hat pinned to his dark hair perfectly matching the stripped dress shirt he's wearing.

"My idea was so much cooler. I said we should throw a rave in the library."

I pat his shoulder in sympathy, "Your party ideas are legendary, but this is perfect for Trip. I'm surprised Wesley resisted inviting all his friends."

"Babe, that's what happens when you're pussy whipped."

I adjust my party hat and give him a knowing smile, "You're just mad Mo couldn't make it. Where is he anyways?"

Nico sighs, "Working. But at least I'll get to play out my CEO fantasy later."

"Mo's a CEO now?" Cody joins us with a juice box in hand, the tiny carton a comical contrast to the stocky build beneath the plain white t-shirt he's wearing.

"Hell no. My man's a financial advisor but we like to role play."

Wesley lets out a groan, "Dude. What did we say about keeping the sex talk to a minimum? It's disturbing when it's our assistant coach."

"And my older brother." Stella chirps in hopping up on the desk beside Cody and stealing his juice box. Her platinum blonde hair hangs in loose waves, the ends brushing the top of her leggings.

Both the O'Brien siblings are attractive in very different ways. Where Mo is tall and built like a gladiator, Stella is small and lean .

Wesley and me, on the other hand, have been mistaken for twins on countless occasions. I missed out on the dimples, but the midnight-coloured curls and green eyes make it hard to convince people he was adopted.

Nico waves his party blower like it's his royal sceptre, "Taber University is so small it's one giant incestuous pool. You either fuck a friend's sibling or your own."

Cody chokes and Stella slaps him on the back.

Wesley does a full-body shudder, "Too vivid, man. Take it down a notch."

Trip tilts her head thoughtfully, "He's not wrong. We all ended up being related to each other in some way."

"See? This right here is why the birthday girl is my favourite." Nico grins and saunters over to give her a kiss on the cheek, "Happy Birthday, Gorgeous. Thanks for putting up with our class clown."

My brother flips him off and I laugh.

"Can we get to the presents now? I've been dying for her to open them." Stella shimmies on the table, her hands clapping with excitement.

"Presents? You guys didn't need to get me anything."

The flush returns to Trip's cheeks, but before it can give way to discomfort, Wesley swoops in and picks her off the ground. He swings her around, Disney-movie style, and by the time her feet are back on the ground, there's a smile shining in her grey eyes .

"Don't worry, there's only a couple of things for you to unwrap." Wesley grins, planting a kiss on her lips, "Until later anyways."

"Wait. He can talk about sex, but I can't?" Nico sniffs, crossing his arms, "I'm calling double standard."

I lean over and tap his shoulder, "If it makes you feel any better, I just threw up in my mouth."

"That does make me feel better, thank you."

He grins at me, and I can't help but smile back. Wesley and Nico have been best friends since the second grade, but Nico has always been a brother to me as well.

"Quiet down everybody! It's time for the birthday girl to open her presents." Stella claps her hands and Cody stifles a laugh.

Nico raises his hand, "Are we doing the big one or little one first?"

Wesley groans, "Dude. We went over this."

"When did we go over this?"

"Yesterday. You were in the shower, remember?"

"Why would you tell me important details when I'm in the shower? You know that's not when my brain is in active mode."

I catch Trip smothering a giggle across from me. Cody is biting his lip and Stella looks like she's about two seconds away from pummelling the both of them.

"So, when you say the big one first do you mean the actual big one or the other one? Fuck, now I'm confused. "

Wesley shakes his head remorsefully, "This is why we can't have nice things."

"Because of me?"

Taking matters into my own hands, I ignore the bickering friends and walk over to the makeshift cupcake display. Nico insisted everything had to match, from the tablecloths to the frosting on the cupcakes, so it took us over two hours to hunt down the appropriate party favours and a plastic tray big enough to hold a dozen cupcakes.

The end result was worth it, though. The High School Musical theme Wesley wanted works perfectly with the small study room, with East High streamers dangling from the light fixtures and cute pictures of Troy and Gabriella taped to the wall.

I grab the white envelope from the table and walk over to where Trip is standing. She doesn't give me a chance to say anything before she pulls me in for a hug.

I smile into her oversized t-shirt, "Happy Birthday, Trip."

"Thanks Lacey." She pulls back and looks at me with a smile, "Are you enjoying your first semester at Taber?"

I hesitate, the truth catching in my throat. I thought moving away from the people who hurt me would help me move on, but so far all I've felt is alone. Besides Nico, the only friend I've made this year is Skylar and we only talk once a week.

Forcing my lips into a smile, I give her a nod, "It's been good. I'm lucky to be here."

Grey eyes scan my face, but before she can respond, Stella lets out an impatient huff, "Can we please get back to the present opening? Wes and Nico, if you two don't stop fighting I'm going to get Cody to kick your ass."

Cody grins, "Newly appointed ass-kicker, at your service."

Trip holds up the envelope I handed her and glances around the room, "Just to be clear, it's okay if I open this one first?"

A chorus of "YES" goes around only for Nico to scrunch his nose.

"So, the little one goes first?"

Stella's eyes start to bulge and Nico throws up his hands, "Just kidding! Rip her up, Trip."

Trip shoots a glance at my brother who gives her an enthusiastic thumbs up. She rolls her eyes and opens the envelope, pulling out two concert tickets.

"What is… OH MY GOD!"

Stella laughs, her body vibrating with excitement, "Do you know what it is?"

Trip nods, tears glistening in her eyes, " When We Were Young is the biggest annual rock festival. It's held in Las Vegas every year."

Nico grins, "You know what that means."

Wesley pumps his fist in the air, "We're going to Vegas, baby!"

I laugh, watching the mismatched group celebrate together. There's something beautiful about a group of people who end up together by choice instead of circumstance.

Making myself comfortable on a desk in the corner, I watch the couples intermingle and let my mind wander. As always, I end up thinking about Skylar and the last message she left me .

Pretty is not normally what people say when they find out my name but yes, I do like to draw. I find sketching helps relieve some of the pressure inside me.

By pressure, do you mean anger?

I didn't want to assume, so I thought it would be better to ask the question outright. Skylar had hinted at being familiar with anger in one of our earlier correspondences, so it felt like a safe guess on my part.

I wonder what my friend looks like. Whether she's tall or short, an extravert or an introvert. Maybe she likes reading romance novels like me.

Although she probably doesn't cross out the sex scenes like I do.

Before my train of thought can get any darker, I hop off the desk and wander over to start lighting the candles. I light the first cupcake and pause, a hopeful idea glowing in front of me.

Sneaking a glance over my shoulder, I turn back to the burning candle and make a wish. Blowing it out as fast as I can, I take out the used candle and replace it with a new one before anybody can notice.

Skylar

"Are you an albino or something?"

The man squints at me, his receding hairline blocking my vision as he leans in closer, "Pretty sure white hair and weird eyes make you an albino. "

I hold back a sigh and look at my watch. Three more hours until closing.

"I'm not an albino. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

"The hell is wrong with your eyes then?"

"Heterochromia."

"Hetero what?"

I don't bother smothering my sigh this time, "It means I have two different coloured eyes. Now, if that's everything…"

"That's not normal." The man squints at me again, as if he can't comprehend why one iris doesn't match the other.

I stare at him, wondering why strangers feel the need to voice unwanted opinions. My pale hair and mismatched eyes are unusual, but when you compare them to the rest of my life, suddenly they seem pretty mundane.

The man shakes his head, "You gotta get that checked out. Can't be healthy."

"I'll keep that in mind. Are you looking to purchase that?"

Pointing to the piece of shiplap in his hands, I manage to distract him long enough to ring up his order and send him on his way. Pulling up the inventory list, I cross out the latest supply and abandon the till to head towards the warehouse.

Brock's Bolts & Beams is the only hardware store in Silverwood and is run by Brock Jr., the son of the original owner. The store hasn't changed much over the years, the long aisles of wooden panels and hardware supplies are covered with a thick layer of sawdust that has probably been here since the store first opened.

Brock's B&B prides itself on being the town's one-stop-shop for all things construction, so every few feet there's a bin of miscellaneous power tools that you may or may not need to complete your home renovation.

A loud laugh hits my ears when I pull open the door to the back office, Mila's signature cackle bouncing off the bare walls of the tiny room. I slow to a stop when I see who triggered the reaction.

"Hey, Sky." Vector grins at me while Mila bends over, trying to catch her breath. Her dark hair creates a curtain over her face, the outline of her shoulders shaking with laughter.

I don't acknowledge him before turning to my co-worker, "We need to place another order for shiplap. Make a note to call Vipco tomorrow morning."

"Sure thing." Still wheezing, Mila pushes herself back up to standing and gives Vector a beaming smile, "Fuck, you're a riot. You should come around here more often."

He glances at me and smirks, "Maybe."

My shoulders tense as he walks towards me, the height difference giving me the choice to either stare at his chest or tilt my head back to make eye contact.

I choose his chest.

"Why are you here?"

"Always so hostile. Remember when you used to like to see me?"

"Remember when you used to be a good person?"

Mila snorts and a ghost of a smile crosses Vector's face.

"One of these days, little brother, you're going to be grateful for who I turned out to be."

I tilt my head back, finally making eye contact, "Will that be before or after you wind up in jail?"

His lip twitches and I look away. We've both had to make sacrifices over the years but it doesn't seem to weigh him down the way it does me. While my brother seems to cruise through the shit storm that brought us here, it feels as though I've been dropped with the anchor and pretty soon I'm going to run out of air.

Letting out a sigh, I drop my gaze back down to his wide chest.

"Why are you here, Vector?"

"To give you this." Reaching over the desk chair, he grabs a plain plastic bag and passes it to me. I take it without a word and Vector shakes his head.

"That's my cue to leave. My good deed is done for the day."

Mila chortles, coming round the desk to give my brother a hug goodbye. She has to stand on her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck, the orange reflection vest hanging loosely over her strapless crop top.

The dress code at Brock's B&B was pretty casual before she started working here, but now it's practically non-existent.

"Don't go soft on us now, Vec. Come back soon, yeah?"

"Just for you, Mila. "

Vector takes his leave, letting the door slam shut behind him. My co-worker turns to me with a grin, "He's so hot."

I stare at her, taking in the easy smile, smooth brown skin, and long dark hair. We got together a few months after Mila started working here but it didn't last long. She had her heart set on falling in love with a tragic hero and I fell short.

I had the tragic part down but not the hero.

"You know that's my brother, right?"

She juts out a hip, the skin-tight blue jeans outlining the curve of her waist.

"That doesn't make him any less hot."

"He's a bully."

"He's a hot bully. That makes a difference." Mila flashes me another grin, "I've always loved a good villain."

Guess I wasn't much of a villain either.

"Whatever you say."

I shake my head and wander over to the desk that has definitely been here since the store opened. The bulky wooden frame makes it impossible to move, so we've had to adjust the rest of the room accordingly.

Running my eyes over the stacked papers, I pick up the time sheet that tracks all the employee hours.

"Let me put it to you this way: a hero would charge into battle to save his girl, but a villain would destroy anyone who touches her. Now, which one sounds more romantic to you? "

"Neither. They both sound violent." Flipping the pages until I find my name, I snag a pen from the desk and fill in my allotted time.

Mila flaps her hands, "Wrong answer. Everyone wants a guy who will burn down a kingdom for his true love."

I lift my head, "I didn't realize arson was the new romance standard."

"It's not about the arson, it's about the act itself. Wouldn't you want someone willing to throw away their morals to save you?"

My teeth clamp together, silencing my response.

Even if Mila hadn't been disappointed with my lack of heroic acts, we never would have worked out. She's too idealistic to realize that sometimes the cost of being saved is too high. Sometimes the morals you trade and the secrets you keep don't make you the hero or the villain.

It makes you the monster.

Mila sighs, "Learn to lighten up and have some fun, Sky. It's not good for you to be quiet and moody all the time."

"I'll keep that in mind." Turning on my heel, I leave the room and walk back to my spot by the till.

The plastic bag Vector gave me bumps against my leg as I slide back into the booth. Reaching into the bag, my heart stops as the crisp edges of a brand-new sketchbook greets me.

He bought me a new one.

Just like he promised .

Frowning against the lump in my throat, I flip through the pristine pages, thinking about what my next project is going to be. Normally, I do a collection of drawings related to an overarching theme, one that typically results in gruesome images of unleashed anger and cruel violence. The kind I grew up witnessing.

But I want this one to be different. I want this one to be a step towards a better future. The start of a better me.

And I know exactly what the theme is going to be.