《Second Chances》


 Prologue

    "Mommy, mommy, can you please tell me the story again?"


    "Honey, you heard it a million times. Aren''t you sick and tired of it?"


    "But Mommy, even if I''m 300 years old, I''ll never get sick of the story." Maria looks up at me while she is brushing her teeth. I''m doing what I do every night after her shower and combing her dark brown, curly hair. Unfortunately, she was cursed with my crazy curls that take forever to comb through. She is lucky that I know how bad it hurts when others pull on them. She is looking at me through the mirror wanting to hear the bedtime story I have told her since she was very little. She used to need a step stool just to be able to reach the sink. Man, where did my baby go?


    "Okay, fine, but you have to lay out your clothes for tomorrow. You know it is a big day for you." She turns around and gives me that famous eye roll. I can''t believe that tomorrow is her 12th birthday party. As we walk into her bedroom adjacent to the bathroom, she heads to her closet finding her birthday outfit that we bought last week for her. She lays the outfit on her little chair by the bed and gets right into her Shopkins matching covers. I make sure all the lights are out in the upstairs rooms, getting ready for the night. It feels like yesterday that she had her little toddler bed in here with her light green color walls that were covered in her Scooby Doo stickers and her Barbie collection over in the corner. Now, her room is covered with boy band posters with Christmas lights over the windows because she saw that one of her favorite YouTubers had them the same way.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    "Okay, I''m ready mommy." She is always so excited to hear this story. I give her a smile, walk over to her bed, and lay on the other side. I get into the covers, pull her to me, and cuddle her like I always do.


    "Alright my baby girl, here is the story."

 Chapter 1

    "Carly, hey, wait up." I turn to see Hannah running down the campus stairs toward me, leaving her last final for the semester. I noticed that she is wearing my top that I have been begging her to give me back.


    "Hey, how did your finals go today?" I ask her, giggling as she looks a little out of breath.


    "Oh you know, I just hate my life. I''m still considering dropping out and being one of those high end escorts that, like Senators go for. I know not to ask you, miss smarty pants as we all know that you passed them. Bitch." She hip bumps me and gives me a wink. She knows how I hate when she does that. She usually does fine in her classes, but she is the queen of dramatic. I can''t help that I study more than she does.


    "Well, for you to be an escort, you would usually be dating men that are your dad''s age. Is that really what you want?"


    She stops and looks at me. "Seriously, a wrinkly dick isn''t as bad as sitting in Professor Richard''s class. Can you tell me why I took Organic Chemistry again?" The thought of an old man naked makes me want to vomit.


    "Considering you need the credits to be the doctor you so desperately want to be, I think it is required." Even though she doubts herself, I know she would be a wonderful doctor.


    "Wellllll fuck." She rolls her eyes and stops at my car. We both get in my beautiful 2004 Chevy Impala. I''ve had this thing forever and I thank God that she still works. I''ve had her through some good memories. Late night Taco Bell runs, blaring Backstreet Boys on the way to the last day of high school, and after school activities. She is definitely meaningful to me and I couldn¡¯t afford another car if this one broke down. She¡¯s my ride or die, literally.


    "Get in you fucking drama queen." I roll my eyes and slide into the driving seat. Not refusing, she gets into the passenger seat and has the audacity to turn on MY radio. Thankfully, we have a similar taste in music as the windows are rolled down and we drive to our apartment, listening to the beautiful sound of Sam Smith.


    The ride from college to our apartment is less than 15 minutes which has been such a blessing. Hannah¡¯s parents know the owner and give us an unbelievable deal which was something I couldn¡¯t pass up. My grandparents always told me that it¡¯s not what you know, it¡¯s who you know. As we head into our apartment, I go to my room and drop off my college books. I am thankful for my sophomore year of college to be finally over with. I decide to take off my dark blue jeans, my favorite purple short sleeve Panic! At The Disco shirt, and my bra. I go to my closet to find sweat pants, a tank top, and head back toward the living room. Hopping on the couch to skim through Hulu, I hear Hannah in the kitchen. That girl is always hungry.


    I can hear her grunt and come to the living room. "We need to go grocery shopping! I need my Cheetos and I need them now!" Her all time favorite snack has been Cheetos Puffs and this has not changed since middle school.


    "Yeah, we can go later this evening when I go see my grandparents." We do not live far from them and I haven''t seen them for over 2 weeks.


    "Yes, that seems like a great idea. Your grandma always has the best cookies ever!" I know this to be 100% true. My grandparents are my rock and I love them more than anything. We live about 30 miles from my family. My grandparents lived in their home for over 50 years and my father lived in the house across the street from them with my little brother. My little brother, Teddy, is just about to start high school next year, and he is the total opposite of me.


    In high school, I was not the most outgoing, coordinated, popular girl. I was the girl that lacked total confidence in herself, was gifted curly dark brown hair that never seemed to cooperate, and definitely the curvy girl. Hannah was my friend even through my embarrassing years. Hannah on the other hand, had beautiful, wavy, dirty blonde hair that could do any style she wants. She still rocks the perfect hourglass shape with a little bit of an athletic build as she did softball for 7 years. She could wear a trash bag and have all the guys drool. She wouldn''t have trouble with picking a different guy every weekend. She was just blessed with God''s love, but she never really saw how amazing she truly was. She was always so bashful and has only dated 2 guys her entire life. All the guys wanted her, even Logan Newman.


    As for me, well, I''ll tell you that there were not many guys lining up at my door asking for dates, but I didn''t want all those guys. All I wanted was Logan.


    I had a crush on Logan since 6th grade when he sat beside me in history class. He had the boyish charm that everyone fell for. He had light brown hair just long enough for him to have some show when he put on a baseball cap on. He had dark brown eyes that could make you melt. He was on the football, baseball, and basketball teams. He was everything at that school. Everything to me.


    Of course, I never had the guts to talk to him. He was level 10 on the hottie list while I was lucky to be a level 4. There was no way in hell he would go for me.


    After high school ended, I decided that I was not a fan of how I was health wise so the summer before freshman year of college, I buckled down and lost weight. I have lost about 40 pounds and haven''t felt this good in a long time. I did not want to be hung up on a dude from high school, so I was determined to find my soulmate and start a new chapter.


    I did not know that my new chapter would end the way it did


    ***


    After almost 2 hours of Hannah¡¯s complaining about not having food in the place, we are heading over to my grandparents. I take over the radio and turn up the sound to one of my absolute favorite songs, ''Complicated'' by Avril Lavigne. Hannah sings the song like a pro while I sound like 2 cats fighting. With the day starting to end, I pull up our windows and think about this summer. I should go work at the local pet shelter again and earn some more cash. I am very lucky and have earned scholarships to pay for the majority of my schooling which allows me to not work as much. The apartment wasn''t as much since we did not go to a crazy expensive college. We went to one of the branches of the main University. We get the same classes, stay closer to home, while paying less than half at the main campus. Hannah and I have planned on coming here since our freshman year in high school. It just fit us so much better because we are super close to our families and moving to the main campus would have put us over 3 hours away from everyone we knew. I¡¯m not one of those people that want to be in my hometown forever, but I want to stay close until I can manage things completely on my own. Why leave the nest when I¡¯m not fully prepared to fly? If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    "Why is it when you drive you get into such deep thoughts?" Hannah nudges me trying to bring back to reality.


    "I don''t know. There''s something about driving the open road I guess." I say as we pull into the driveway.


    We pull into the circle driveway of my grandparent''s 10 acre home. It is the typical American home with the front porch, white picket fence, and open around fields. They used to farm and had over 80 acres, but with their age, they decided to sell the farm over 8 years ago.


    We get out of the car and head straight to the front door and I know that is where my grandma is waiting to greet us. She loved when we visited and she has viewed Hannah like her granddaughter since we started hanging out. Sometimes I wonder who she really likes more.


    "Hello, Wanda! I can smell your famous chocolate chip cookies from here." Hannah reaches for my grandma to give her a hug. She was always focused on the food.


    "Now you know I can''t have my 2 favorite girls come over without making sure you got your treats." My grandma says looking at Hannah was such happiness. She gives Hannah a kiss on the cheek.


    "As long as we know who your absolute favorite girl is, I''m good." I say while getting ready for my turn for the hug.


    "Of course Carly, we all know Hannah is number one." That cheeky woman. She shines her smile at me and gives me the biggest squeeze.


    "Well thanks, grandma." I say to her patting her light curly hair knowing damn well that she is the one who cursed me with them. We walk into the house, go straight to her kitchen, and grab the cookies. I can tell she just took them out of the oven because they were still soft.


    "Now save some for me, you pigs." I turn around and see Teddy coming in from the living room. Teddy has grown so much this year and was just taller than me by like 2 inches. He never lets it down.


    "Teddy, you get these cookies practically every day so back off." Hannah says with half a cookie in her mouth. Teddy goes up to her, looks her in the eyes, and takes 2 cookies from her hand.


    "Hey, give them back, you fungus!" She starts chasing after him to try and get Teddy to cough them up. Teddy dodges her and licks them both.


    "Eww. Who is the pig now?" Hannah says rolling her eyes.


    "Here, you can have one of mine." I give her my other one.


    "This is why I love you." She already has the cookie halfway gone. She is something else.


    "Now what is all that ruckus?" I hear my grandpa from the living room.


    "Noooothhiinnng." We three say in unison.


    We all head to the living room where my grandpa is sitting in his favorite chair, 2 feet from the TV. He¡¯s trying to watch Gunsmoke for the millionth time.


    "Hey gramps!" I say while giving him a kiss on his head. He, like all the Stone men, is bald and has been bald since he was in his late 20s. Not like he had time to grow his hair out as he went into the Navy at 17.


    "Hello, ginger bean. How was your last day of classes?¡± He pulls me in a side hug, giving me my little nickname since I can remember.


    "They were fine. I''m just glad they are done now."


    "I bet you are, ginger bean."


    "Where is dad? I thought he would be over here?"


    "He is in the garage trying to work on that stupid lawn mower again. The damn thing." He shakes his head and leaves it at that. Dad is always working on something.


    I head to the garage that is attached to the house and see him under the mower.


    "Hey dad, you gonna come say hello?" After he heard me, he tried to get up and ended up hitting his head. I hear him whisper under his breath.


    "You better be careful, wouldn''t want you to lose brain cells. The little bit you have." I am still laughing at his clumsiness. The trait I got from him.


    "Hahaha. Very funny." He gets up from the ground and wipes off the dirt from his clothes. My father is not the most fashion forward person. I mean, how many fathers are? He takes off his hat from his bald head and rubs some of the sweat off his face. My father has the family curse of baldness and has been bald since high school. I also give Teddy a hard time because he knows his fate and it¡¯s a family joke. He smiles at me and gives me a hug. Honestly, there is nothing like a hug from your father. My father isn''t the type of father that always acted tough and never showed emotions. He¡¯s the most considerate, loving, and caring person I know.


    We come into the house and we go to the living room where everyone is sitting. I sit on the light green couch that every grandma seems to own. I think every grandma is given a rule book on how they should decorate their homes. They have such the weirdest pattern combinations and the craziest wallpaper. I still love coming here. Teddy and I would spend most of our time over here playing in the yard, cooking with grandma, and helping grandpa with the TV. They are practically my 2nd parents.


    "So when does school start back up for you girls?" My dad asked, knowing that I really do not want to think about college right now.


    "Not until the end of August. We just finished our classes today. A well deserved break." I raise my eyebrows at him and hope he gets the hint.


    "I am so happy you''re in college. I wish I would have gone after high school." He really does. He did not go because he let my mom go and he would go after she was finished. She was not able to finish.


    "I know dad. I''m gonna make you proud." He pats my head and I give him a reassuring smile.


    "Of course you will. You always make me proud."


    My family have pushed and pushed for me to go to college since elementary school. Neither my grandparents, nor my dad went. Sometimes it scares me how badly they really wanted me to finish, but I know it''s because they care and want me to have a better life than they did.


    My dad and my mom were childhood sweethearts. They were voted "Most Likely to Succeed" in high school. They loved each other more than anyone I ever knew. They were the kind of parents who kissed each other every morning before leaving for work, danced in the kitchen while cleaning after dinner, and had date night every Wednesday. They were the perfect couple, but a few months after high school, mom was pregnant with me. They got married and had me. They decided when I was older, mom would go to college and follow her dreams of being an art professor. Mom loved to paint, draw, and take pictures of just about everything. Dad wanted to go to college for business, but he said he would wait for mom to get hers and then he would go. He wanted to own his own workshop, but when I was about 6, mom got pregnant with Teddy. She and my dad put their dreams on hold to raise us and when I was in middle school, mom started taking college classes. I can tell how happy she was going back to college, but those dreams were short lived.


    On Valentine''s day, my parents decided to take us all to dinner and go bowling afterwards. We ate at the best place in town and had a great time. While we were bowling, mom was starting to feel lightheaded, and being the stubborn woman she was, told us she was fine. In the middle of her turn, my mom just dropped to the floor and was passed out, scaring the shit out of all of us.


    Cancer. Stage 4 Breast cancer. She promised that she would beat it for us, but she lost her fight after a couple of years finding out. One of the last things my mom told me before she died was that we were her dream and she wanted us to follow ours no matter what.


    I miss her so much.


    "We better get back. We had a long day." Hannah says with a big yawn. I look up and shake my head in agreement. We give everyone hugs as we tell them we will stop by soon and head for the car.

 Chapter 2

    Logan¡¯s POV


    Honk, Honk!


    The damn car in front of me can''t go any fucking slower. Looking past them and not seeing any cars coming through, I hit the gas and go around the old man while giving him the middle finger.


    Getting back to the speed I want, I think about how much I hate coming home. It is summer break from my 2nd year of college. My mom and dad have been expecting to hear how classes are going. Don''t get me wrong, I like college. It is a lot more fun to be away from home and the girls are way hotter than I saw in high school. That was not what they were excited about. I was going to be a lawyer, exactly what my dad went for. He has planned for me to go to college, and be a lawyer since the day he found out I was going to be a boy. My mother, of course, was proud to have her perfect son being the perfect man that she always dreamt me to be. She was one that liked things her way and everything had to happen a certain way. I HAD to go to college, I HAD to be successful, and I HAD to marry the perfect girl. She wasn''t necessarily happy about me seeing some of the girls I did, but as long as I never knocked one up or married them, she kept her mouth shut.


    Driving closer and closer to my childhood home made me more tense every mile. Hearing my dad be pushy about keeping my grades up while hearing my mom gossiped about all her friends and their children made me want to go the other direction. As I was getting closer to the house, I decided to call my sister and see if she was coming over.


    Couple rings and she picks up the phone.


    "Hey dumbass, how far away are you?" Since she has been out of our parent''s house, Brittney has been doing a lot more cussing. My mom absolutely hates it.


    "I''m about 10 minutes away. I wasn''t sure if you would be there."


    "Well, of course I''d be here to see my little brother coming home from college. Sucks don''t it?" She would know, she went to Stanford for business. Now, she and her husband both have their own real estate company.


    "It certainly isn''t like high school."


    "Well, no shit. We are all here bub so hurry up."


    "I am sis, see you soon." We both hang up and I''m glad my sister is gonna be there.


    My sister and I were very close growing up. We would fight over just about everything and it drove our mother insane. Brittney was definitely the favorite as she got everything for being the oldest. Dad was wrapped around her finger and she knew it. I, on the other hand, saw a lot more of dad''s strict side as he made it a point to show me how it was to be a man. Well, what being a man meant to him.


    As I''m pulling into the driveway, I can tell the outside lights are turned on so I can see the front porch. We had the nicest, biggest house in town with my father being a successful owner of a firm and my mother being a registered nurse. We always grew up with the nicest things and that is what mom expected. Our house looked like it came out of a magazine. I get out and see my mom by the front door. I grab my suitcase of clothes from the trunk and head towards her. I leave all the other stuff from my dormroom in the car. I''ll deal with it tomorrow.


    "Ugh, is that what you decided to wear seeing your mother for the first time in months? You could have dressed better." My mom gives me a disappointed look.


    "Hi mom, it''s good to see you too." I go up for a quick hug.


    "Well you better take a shower in the morning and wear those clothes that I got you for your birthday. You look very handsome in those button up shirts." My mom never liked when anyone of us wore sweatpants in public. She thinks that looks tacky and her children could never be tacky.


    "Ok, mom." I leave it with that and hope she drops it. I walk into the house and see Brittney. She and her husband, Jake, are sitting on the couch.


    "Hey, bub, what took you so long?" She gets up from the couch and gives me a light punch to my shoulder.


    "I had a late final today." I give her a punch right back.


    "Whatever you damn liar." She rolls her eyes.


    If you didn¡¯t know she was 5 years older than me, you¡¯d think we were twins. She stands 5¡¯10 and has straight light brown hair that goes lower than her shoulders. She was a volleyball player in high school and got a scholarship for it to go to college. We both grew up in sports so you can say that we are both competitive, especially against each other.


    "Language, young lady." Mom gives her the same look she does every time Brittney cusses in front of her. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    "Sorry."


    "Now there is my future lawyer." I see dad coming in from his study. He is wearing his glasses and wearing a dark suit. He must have had court earlier today.


    "Hey dad." I say as I give him a strong handshake. He always judges a man on how he gives a handshake.


    "Good handshake son, better keep that when you start seeing clients."


    Here we go.


    "I''m trying." I could use a shot right about now.


    "I know you had one of Mr. Hamilton''s classes. How is the old man?" Ron Hamilton is an old friend of dad''s when they went to college together. Mr. Hamilton teaches some law courses at the University.


    "He is doing good and wanted me to tell you he wants to fish this summer."


    "Of course he does, but he can''t fish to save his life."


    "You know, I saw his daughter at the mall the other day and her outfit looked way too short. I can''t believe her mother lets her out of the house like that. Brittney would never do that, wouldn''t you honey." Now I really need a fucking drink.


    "Sure mom." Brittney says while looking at something on Jake''s phone. Brittney and Jake met at Stanford as they both majored in business. Jake is from a wealthy family that are known for architecture and have built huge buildings in other countries. You can already tell how happy mom and dad were when they were told about their engagement. He was the perfect fit for the family.


    "Well, I''ve had a busy day today and I''m going to go to sleep early tonight. I see you all tomorrow." I''m too tired to deal with them tonight. I had finals today and drove here right after. I don¡¯t want to start the stupid questions.


    "Alright son, tomorrow we can talk about next semester and you helping out at the firm this summer. Time for you to see this stuff in action." My dad pats me on the back firmly. I roll my eyes internally.


    "Good night bub, see you tomorrow." Brittney smiles at me and gives me a hug. I will say that even though I¡¯m back home, I love spending time with my sister.


    I hug her back and watch them head out the front door. I turn to my mother and kiss her on the cheek. She gives me a small hug from the side and I grab my suitcase to head upstair to my room. I shut the door and lock it, not wanting to see anyone else for the rest of the night. I take my clothes off until I''m just in my boxers and I lay on the bed. I take my phone out and notice I have a new text.


    Hey cutie, my mom told me you were in town for the summer. We should definitely catch up! ;)


    I look at the text from Shannon and decide to ignore it for now. Shannon and I had a thing in high school, but I definitely did not want to see her much this summer.


    But she was a good fuck.


    She¡¯s also clingy as fuck and can be extremely annoying talking about the dumbest shit. She will want to get back together and that is NOT happening. I do not want to be in a relationship right now. College can be a lot and I''ll be starting internships soon. I do not want to worry about some chick and her feelings. I just want to fuck and not worry about the bullshit. Usually the girls can handle that and we have a good time.


    I don''t want complicated.


    ***


    Carly''s POV


    "Oh dammit! I really liked him!" Hannah yells at the TV as the new bachelorette sends one of the guys home. We were in my room with all of the snacks we bought after seeing my family. Hannah is sitting very close to the screen as she anticipates who will go home next. She weirdly likes watching these kinds of shows.


    "Why don''t you ever just shut the fuck up?" I roll my eyes and shove more pringles into my mouth and mess around on my phone. She forces me to watch this. Every. Single. Week. I am not a fan of the type of shows that seem to make people force love. It''s rather insulting.


    "Oh whatever, Carly. He was perfect for her." As the episode ends, she gets on my bed and eats some of the pretzels. Hannah always felt like she was a matchmaker.


    "Well, why don''t you go on that show since you''re such a know-it-all."


    "There is no way they could handle allll of this." She points toward herself and dances, acting like she¡¯s some goddess. She is definitely a character.


    "Sure. Whatever you say." I say while looking through Instagram.


    Hannah flips through the channels and I hear her phone vibrate. She takes a minute to read the text, makes the biggest gasp, and scares the shit out of me.


    "OMG. OMG. We need to go!" She is practically screaming.


    "What the hell are you talking about? And you are not taking me anywhere." I already have my comfy pajama pants on and my hair is in a bun. There is no way I am going anywhere.


    "The new club in town just opened tonight. Everyone is gonna be there. Can we goooo?" She hops on my bed like it''s Christmas morning. Hannah likes going out and trying different restaurants, clubs, and stores. I was perfectly fine with still going to the mall once every six months, eating at the typical fast food places, and not going to clubs at all. Her kind of night is going to all of these places and mine is staying in my pajamas watching Jon Snow kick some ass. Did I ever mention that Game of Thrones is amazing?


    "Oh c''mon, Carly! This is supposed to be the best place with the best music. We have to at least go there once." She gives me a disappointed look.


    "Not tonight, Hannah. I am already comfy and it''s past ten. I don''t wanna go tonight. Plus, we can''t drink yet, remember. We are still underage."


    "Girl don''t worry, we will get drinks. Come on. PLEASE. PLEASE. PLLLLLLEASE?" Now she is giving me a pouty face.


    "How about tomorrow night? It will be Saturday and we can have all day to get ready and make us look hot?"


    "YES! That sounds like a better idea. We are gonna look hot! Plus, we still need to celebrate the end of the semester."


    I nod my head getting really tired at this point. I am fine to go with her tomorrow.


    I guess...