Chapter One: New Roads, Old Fences
The town smelled like rain and pine needles. It wasn't raining, but it had that just-after feeling—where the earth still felt soft and the sky threatened to do it all over again.
I pressed my forehead against the car window, watching the blurred trees roll past, my earbuds playing nothing because I wasn't really listening. I just didn't want to talk.
"Almost there," my mom chirped from the front seat. She'd said that twenty minutes ago.
My stepdad, Mark, was driving. He was quiet. He usually was, unless he was lecturing his kids about homework or reminding me to call him something other than "Mark." I still hadn't.
In the backseat, my little half-siblings were glued to their tablets, their laughter a contrast to the dull ache growing in my chest.
New house. New town. New school.
New everything.
I didn't belong here. Not yet.
But I'd learned to keep that feeling to myself.
We pulled into the driveway just before dusk.
The house was bigger than our last one. White shutters, a swing on the porch, and a tree that looked like it had stories to tell. I didn't love it—but I didn't hate it either. It felt like waiting.
"Grab your box," Mom said. "Your room's upstairs."
I grabbed the one labeled Dalynn – books/journal/lamp and followed her up. My room had a slanted ceiling, a window that overlooked the street, and pale blue walls. It looked... untouched. Like it was waiting for someone to live in it.
I dropped the box on the floor and sat on the edge of the bed, exhaling like I'd been holding my breath since we left the old place.
That night, while everyone unpacked or argued or disappeared into their own corners of the house, I went for a walk.
That's when I saw them.
Two boys, leaning against the hood of a dark car parked under a flickering streetlight across from the corner store. One had a cigarette tucked behind his ear and a smirk that felt like it could ruin your life. The other looked calmer—serious eyes, a quiet energy.
They both turned when they saw me.
And suddenly, I wasn't thinking about boxes or bedrooms or stepdads.
I was thinking about them.
"New girl," the calm one said. He nodded. "Welcome to Braxton."
I tried to speak. Failed. Then: "Thanks."
The smirking one tilted his head, eyes sharp and unreadable. "You got a name?"
"Dalynn."
"Dalynn," he repeated, like he was tasting it. "I'm Jason."
"Alex," said the other.
I nodded, even though my heartbeat was thudding too loud to say anything else. Jason leaned against the car and smiled like he already knew something I didn't. Alex looked at me like he wanted to.
That was the first time I saw them.
Not the last.
Not even close.
---
Chapter One (continued): New Roads, Old Fences
I didn't expect them to still be standing there.
Usually when you walk past strangers, especially guys like them, you get a glance, maybe a "hey," and then they're gone. But Jason and Alex didn't move.
They just kept watching me.
And I—I didn't stop either. I should've. Or maybe I shouldn't have. But I did. Right at the edge of the sidewalk, pretending to check my phone like I wasn't completely aware of how their eyes felt on me.
Jason gave a short laugh. "You always walk around alone at night?"
I blinked, looked up, and found him staring straight at me.
His voice was low, confident, just the tiniest bit mocking. But not cruel. Not yet.
"I just moved here," I said, my voice quieter than I meant it to be.
Alex straightened, stepping slightly forward. His presence was more subtle—less storm, more steady rain. "You live in the white house with the swing?"
I nodded.
He smiled. "That used to be Mrs. Callahan's place. She made amazing banana bread."
"Noted," I said, and then flushed because why did I say that?
Jason's eyes flicked over me, slow and curious. "What's a girl like you doing in Braxton?"
I wasn't sure what a girl like me meant, but the way he said it made something flutter in my chest—something unsure, something new.
"I live here now," I answered. "With my mom. And stepdad. And siblings."
"Big change?" Alex asked.
I looked between the two of them—Jason with his devil-may-care grin and slightly messy black hair, and Alex, whose sandy blond curls fell over his forehead just enough to make him look like he stepped out of a dream I didn't know I'd had.
"Everything's changed," I said truthfully.
Jason's smile slipped, just for a second, like he heard something in my voice that meant more. Then he leaned forward and offered his hand.
"Then let's make it a little better. I'll be your tour guide. Or bodyguard. Whatever you need."
I looked at his hand but didn't take it. Not yet.
"You don't even know me."
"I know enough."
Alex stepped in, gently nudging Jason's shoulder with his. "Ignore him. He's like that with every girl."
I didn't know why that made my stomach twist. I didn't want to be every girl. But I wasn't sure I wanted to be his girl either.
I wasn't sure what I wanted at all.
---
Later that night…
Back in my room, I sat at the window, the cool breeze curling in through the cracked glass.
The car was still parked outside. They were gone now.
But my thoughts weren't.
Jason's voice still echoed in my head—sharp, teasing, daring.
Alex's eyes still lingered in my memory—calm, steady, kind.
They were so different.
And yet… something about the way they stood beside each other, like two halves of a story, made my chest feel tight.
I'd only just met them. I barely knew them.
But somehow, it already felt like I'd been seen.
Like they were going to matter.
Maybe I was being silly. Maybe it was just the newness of it all, the strangeness of starting over in a place where no one knew who I was.
But as I curled up in bed and stared at the shadows dancing across my ceiling, one thought wouldn't let me sleep.
I think I'm already in trouble
---
Chapter One (continued): Scars You Don't See
That night, I heard the soft creak of my door opening.
Mom.
She walked in holding a cup of tea, her blonde hair tied up in a messy bun, dark circles under her eyes. She looked tired—but in that way moms look when they're pretending not to be.
"You okay?" she asked, sitting down beside me on the edge of my bed.
"I guess," I said. "Just... thinking."
"About the boys outside?" she said with a knowing smile.
I gave her a look. "You saw them?"
"Small town, Dalynn. You'll learn fast—nothing goes unseen around here."
I smiled weakly, then looked down at my blanket, picking at the edge.
She brushed her hand over my hair. "You've been so quiet lately. Even before the move."
I didn't answer.
"I know this is hard. Uprooting your life, starting over. It wasn't easy for me either." Her voice softened. "But I did it for you."
I nodded, but something heavy was pushing against my chest. The tea in her hands was steaming. Safe. Warm. Normal. But I didn't feel any of those things.
"Do you ever regret leaving him?" I asked suddenly. My voice cracked a little.
She froze.
Silence stretched between us like a rubber band ready to snap.
"Your father…" she started, then sighed. "Dalynn, you know why I left."
"I know," I whispered. "But I wish I didn't."
---
FLASHBACK — 1 year ago
Rain slammed against the windows like fists. I was sitting on the stairs, one leg tucked under me, my math homework open but forgotten.
I wasn't supposed to hear them. But I did.
"I trusted you!" Mom's voice cracked like glass. "I trusted you with our daughter, with me, with everything!"
"I made a mistake, Rachel!"
Her voice dropped, sharp and ice-cold. "You let her in our house. Into our bed."
My chest tightened. I couldn't breathe. I didn't understand—not yet—but I knew it was bad.
I stood, slowly, creeping down one more step, just enough to see through the banister.
My father stood there shirtless, jeans half-zipped, his face full of shame and fire. My mother stood across from him, her hands shaking, mascara smudged beneath her eyes.
"You ruined everything," she whispered. "She's nineteen, James. Nineteen. She could've been Dalynn's babysitter."
He flinched.
I bit the inside of my cheek so hard I tasted blood.
That was the night the walls of our home cracked.
By morning, the pictures were gone from the living room wall, my mother was packing suitcases, and I—
I stopped believing in forever.
---
Back to Present
My mom stared at her tea like it held answers.
"I don't regret leaving him," she said finally. "I regret staying as long as I did."
I didn't realize I was crying until she pulled me into her arms.
"I don't want to make the same mistake," I whispered. "I don't want to be with someone who—"
"—lies to you. Breaks you." She finished for me. "You won't, baby. You're stronger than you think. Kinder too."
I didn't feel strong. I felt like a walking scar trying to heal in a place I didn't recognize.
She kissed the top of my head. "Get some sleep. Tomorrow's a new start."
She left, closing the door gently behind her.
But I couldn't sleep.
Because Jason's eyes burned like fire.
And Alex's voice was still echoing in my chest.
I had promised myself I'd never let a boy break me the way my father broke her.
But life has a funny way of testing promises.