Cin was a pretty average teenage girl, being the middle child of the family sucked and she was looked over accidentally of course. She new her Parent's loved her and both of her eldest siblings were off at college. She turn 16 just before her first days at high School where to begin.

Her family has lived in this town all her life, her two eldest siblings went to the same high School when they were her age and she believes the house they live in is actually grandmother's house on her dad's side. Now that she thinks about it she thinks one portion of her family has always been here.

Sin always hoped that she wouldn't be stuck in the small town of Beaumont. It was one of those everybody knew everybody towns because of how small it was. The elementary school was combined with the Middle School and the high school was separate. There wasn't really a college so any college one went to was town which was such a heavenly thought.

Just because we were in a small town high school was high School you had your cliques and the bullies. Her twin siblings were at the top of the food chain in high school. They were of the popular people, the twins had brown hair and of course everybody in her family has blue eyes, but being identical had its advantages until her sister got boobs. But in general they were really pretty people.

It was the first day of school and thank goodness it was homeroom. What the purpose of homeroom is, not 100% sure. I believe homeroom is a type of class to help you catch up on homework if you forgot to do it or maybe get in a little extra studying if you got tests and what not.

The bell rang which signified next class. With it being the first day it was all about introductions and getting a jiff of each class. After about three Classes then Lunch and after Lunch then three more classes. All the repetitiveness was getting rather annoying. After school a few mishaps happened but she was sure it was pure coincidental. 

Only homework Cin was given was some weird Penpal Program assignment. Her English teacher Mr. Shmitt  explained to the class that their school was a participant in The Penpal Program and all students are to participate. She read over the worksheet he handed out earlier that day. She sat at her desk, holding her pencil between her lip and nose.

Tilting back in her chair she, thinking about what seems like a stupid assignment. Tilting too far back she was too slow to catch herself and hit the floor with a loud and painful thud. “Frickel frack , stupid Chair…” Cin said rolling off the chair on to her hands and knees. She stood and picked her chair up before sitting down and starting this letter.

Dear Penpal,

     I hope this letter finds you well. My name is Hyacinth but you can just call me Cin. I am sure your school is also making you participates in this program too. I am 16 and I go got Beaumont High. It's not a very big school, but neither is the town. 

Don't get me wrong, my family had been in the town for generations, I don't dislike it but I am getting tired of this everyone knows everyone type of area. We are practically in the middle of know where. We do have the ocean about thirty minutes away to the west of us, the north there is a city about five hours by car, it's ever longer going south, and I am not even sure about the east.

What about you? Do you live in a city or a town? 

Only large thing in my life is my family. We have my mom who is an interior designer, my dad who is an ophthalmologist which is an eye doctor. Then there are the twins, my oldest siblings they are both currently in college, then there is little ol' me, after me there is my younger brother who is in middle school, and last is my little sister, She is in her final year of elementary.

Literally being the middle child sucks hard core, I am loved but I do tend to get overlooked from time to time. I know they don't mean to, but it happens. Do you have a big family or a small one? Oh, do you have any pets? I always wanted a pet but after what happen to the elementary class bunny… Let's just say we are banned from owning one but it's like come on it was over ten years ago.

Do you have a Favorite color? I love Black as a main with cool color accents like blue, teal, and purple. I do like some warm colors too, but I am pretty fair skinned so not all colors looks great on me but I can't even wear what I want unless it's holiday or the weekend. Our stupid school has a uniform code.

I do hope to hear from whoever this letter may get assigned to. 

Sincerely,

Cin :p

Tearing the letter out of her notebook, she folded it and put it in a blank envelope. She looked at the time and it was getting rather late. Shoving all her stuff in her backpack she then got up and laid in her bed. It didn't take long before sleep found her and she was off to dream land.

The next morning Cin was awoken with her alarm per usual. Her routine consisted or stretching, checking her phone, getting up to go to the bathroom, brushing her teeth, taking a shower, combing her hair, doing her make-up, going back to her room to get dressed, grabbing her backpack, and then going downstairs for breakfast. All in that order. 

After putting her shoes on she grabbed her bike and went to school. She often rode her bike to school, it was great exercise. She was planning to tryout for track and maybe an art program. When she got to school and locked up bike she turned and ran right into someone, Jason Barkley was staring down at her and glared before walking off. With a sigh she went on with her day. 

When English class rolled around, she and everyone else handed in their envelopes. Only thing written on them was the students names in the top corner. The teacher went through and stamped them with the school address, right under the student's names. From there someone came to collect them and they were sent out.

“Maverick! You little asshole! I'm going to murder you!” came the high trill of the teen's older sister. The teen rolled his eyes wondering what he had done now to piss his sister off. He then remembered he had left everything out the night before in their shared bathroom and he couldn't help but laugh. “I'm sorry Rose! I was in a hurry to get to bed last night before mom got mad at me” he called back. That's when his bedroom door flew open and Rosemarie stood there with his dirty clothes in hand. She threw them into the room and stormed off leaving the door wide open.

The teen sighed lightly as he stood and gathered up his dirty clothes. He knew that Rosemarie hated when he left his dirty laundry around but what was he supposed to do? He was a teenage boy after all. He sighed as he threw the clothes into the hamper beside his closet door. He opened up the closet and pulled out a pair of jeans, a light blue t-shirt and one of his favorite sweaters. The weather was slowly getting cooler and he wore that sweaters more than he should. He sighed as he went and closed his bedroom door to change.

His eyes fell onto the homework he hadn't finished either. He had ended up staying up later than normal just talking to Jacob and Melody. Melody had ended up leaving and left the two boys to talk. That's when he had told Jacob that he was crushing on Melody. It was strange, but he had feelings for the girl. He didn't know if it was just so called puppy love, or if they were real feelings or not. Jacob had warned him not to go falling for the girl, because if he did it would ruin their friendship.

That's something he didn't want and made a promise to himself to not fall for her anymore. But that was easier said than done. He hurried and got dressed when another knock was heard on his door. “Come in momma” he called out. That's when the door opened and his mother stood there with her arms crossed over her chest a small smile on her lips. “I heard that you left your dirty clothes in the bathroom again. I really ended you to clean up after yourself honey. I don't want the neighbors calling the cops for the yelling”

“That and I know you didn't have enough time to clean them up. You just didn't want too, am I correct?” she asked. Maverick knew he couldn't hide anything from his mother and he nodded lightly as he sat on the edge of the bed and pulled his shoes on. “I can't hide anything from you like ever. But you are correct momma. I didn't want to take care of them, because Rose has been treating me like a baby again and it's really getting to me” he said lightly as he sat up and put his hands on his thighs. His mother walked over and sat with him.

“I know honey. But you know it's that time of year again. The night of the accident is coming up, and she's just worried about you is all. Please let up a little bit okay? I don't want you both fighting anymore” she said as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Maverick hugged his mother tightly and nodded a bit against her. “I'll try not too. Oh and I'm getting my letter from my penpal too today. I'm kind of nervous about it” he admitted. Harriet pulled back and looked him in the eyes. “You've been looking forward to this. There's nothing to be nervous about.” she said kissing his forehead.

That's when the silence washed over the two of them. Soon Rosemarie was in the doorway her backpack in hand. “Let's go twerp. I'll drop you off at school” she said nodded towards the front of the house. Harriet let her son go and watched as he stood and followed his sister out of the room, a tear slipping down her cheek. The siblings walked through the house and out to Rosemarie's car. She unlocked it and Maverick slipped into the passenger seat. He then turned to her and smiled a little. “I'm sorry” he said and she couldn't help but smile. She ruffled his hair lightly. “I'm sorry too. I love you” she said as she started the car and pulled out of the driveway, heading to the High School in the middle of town.

One Hour Later.

Maverick walked out of his English class with a letter in hand. It had his name printed on it and a different schools address. So this was from his penpal he was supposed to be writing too. He had homeroom before Math class so he would have time to write a letter back. He walked into the classroom and found his desk and sat down. He tore the letter open and started reading. So his penpal was named Cin. She sounded like she was lonely and that saddened him a little bit. He knew what it was like to be alone, or to feel like he was alone.

He pulled out his notebook and spread the letter out in front of him and then started to write his own letter.

Dear Cin,

My name in Maverick McDaniel but you can call me Maverick, or Mave. Whatever you would like. I'm not too picky honestly. Your letter did happen to find me well. Or should I say pretty well? I don't know I could just be thinking too much into this whole thing. Yes my school is part of this Penpal program and I honestly don't know why. I'm not sure if it's something that we can get out of or not. I mean it's pretty cool to say the least. We do get to meet different people from different walks of life. I've never been to a beach. Well that might be a lie.. But I don't know. I'll have to ask my mom about that. The beach sounds like a wonderful time.

I do have one older sister named Rosemarie. I call her Rose. I'm a total pain in her ass and I do it just to get under her skin a lot of the time. Also I do apologize if you don't like cussing, it's something I do often and if it's something you don't like then let me know and I'll make sure not to do it again. It's just my sister, mom and I. My dad passed away when I was six years old and the anniversery of his death is coming up. So I apologize if this letter turns dark and depressing. I'll try and not talk about that too much though. I don't want to ruin your good mood. That's if you are in a good mood that is. There I go again assuming lol.

I live in a pretty small town. Everyone knows everyone pretty much. So if there was something that the seniors are planning then we will know about it and the mayor would put a stop to it right away. I do attended Lincon High School and I'm sixteen years old. A couple of my hobbies include reading coming books, playing the piano, and teasing my older sister. I do draw as well. If you'd like I can send you some of my drawings in my next letter back to you. If that's something you don't like then please tell me. My favorite color is blue as you can tell. I'm writing this letter with my favorite blue pen after all. I don't have any pets. I used to have a dog but he ran away when I was three or four years old. I guess we weren't taking good enough care of him.

I know you've asked a lot of questions and I haven't asked you a single one. So again I do apologize for pretty much rambling on. How old are you? What's your favorite subject in school? Do you ever think about skipping school? What's your favorite shape? I'm not sure whatelse I should even ask you right now. I hope this letter finds you well and happy. I can't want to hear for you again. I hope this is the start of a beautiful friendship.

Forever yours,
Maverick McDaniel

Maverick set his pen down and read the letter over a couple of times. He wished he hadn't rambled as much as he had just then. Oh well. Maybe if he was lucky enough she would just brush him off and not even reply back. The male ripped the page out of his notebook, folded it up and put it into the envelope and sealed it. He then carried it back to his English classroom and tapped on the door before stepping inside. “I'm done with my letter Mrs. Holland" he said as he walked up to her desk and handed it to her. She looked up at him and smiled a bit.

“Thank you Maverick. Go ahead and go back to homeroom.” she said with a warm smile. The teen nodded lightly as he turned and walked back out of the classroom. He still had time a lot of time to kill. He went back to homeroom, sat back down and pulled out his text books and started to make sure he was all caught up for the Math test he had that day. His mind wandered back to the letter and he couldn't help but wonder if he was going to make a new friend or not. He made a mental note to tell Jacob and Melody about it when he saw them at lunch. For now, he had to focus on studying.

It had been a few days since Cin's and everyone else's letters were sent off. With in those few days Cin went through the motions of school. Her and her best friends didn't have one class in common which sucked, but they did have lunch so they would catch up then.

“Toni, Tina…. Why was school have to suck so much. There is this girl in like four of my classes that is such a B-I-T-C-H.” Cin said as she spelled the cuss word out and then covered her mouth and looked around as she sat at the lunch table where her two best friends sat. Toni and Tina Benson were identical twins. The had brown eyes and almost Platinum blonde hair. They got it from their mother, she was the one with the Platinum blonde but, their eyes came from their father. Cin had known the Tina and Toni since Elementary school. 

They looked at her and burst out laughing at the innocence of their friend. “Gurl, you still won't cuss? What are you, five?” Tina said. “Yeah, five…” Toni chimed but was smacked on the arm by Tina and began laughing even more. Cin glared at them both as she picked at her food. The school was serving some sort of meat, kind of looked like meatloaf and mash potatoes. The food didn't look appetizing, so she stuck with her milk and fruit side salad.

“You know why I don't cuss. I swear everything I do ends up back to my mom and dad, while my dad may not actually punish me. You guys know the lectures my mom gives and if I go down, I will take the two of you with me.” Cin smirked as their faces fell. Janice Micheals could lecture for hours without getting tired or running out of breath. The twins put their hands up in unison as a surrender type gesture.

“So, what's the girl's name that you don't like?" Tina said hoping to get the conversation back to before the mention of Mrs. Micheals. “Brittany Hill.” She said her name through gritted teeth. Toni gasped. “It's only been a week since school started and she was chosen as head cheerleader. I think it's because her sister was head cheerleader for the four years she was here.” Cin looked in disgust, Brittany's sister was friends with her older siblings, and she always seemed nice, but Brittany was definitely a bitch. 

“Anywho, how were your guys first Penpal letters?” Toni and Tina Looked at each other and grimaced. “That bad?” Cin tilted her head just enough that her dirty blonde hair barely shifted. “Where do I even begin, I got some snooty girl that wrote a whole letter about herself.” Tina rolled her eyes. “At least yours talks about a human, mine droned on about dinosaurs.” He shook his head in disbelief.

Cin couldn't help but giggle. “That sounds pretty bad. I hope mine is nice. Maybe more on the normal side, but I am sure who ever I get will be an experience to remember I hope...” The twins glared at her. “Must be nice to have hope of a normal Penpal.”

Diiiiiing Dooooong ……. Diiiiiiiing Dooooooong!

The bell rang signifying lunch to be over and for the next class. Cin and her friends said their farewell before heading off to different classes. It just so happens that English was next for her. This school was trying something new out. It's called rotating classes. The only class that doesn't rotate is homeroom. But the other subjects do. So, if Cin had P.E. on Tuesday for fourth period, Wednesday it would be a different period. It was rather annoying but thankfully the school wasn't large.

She walked into class and was handed her penpal letter. Everyone that entered got their letter, she sat at her desk and placed the letter in her bag. As she was trying to focus on the class someone behind her kept kicking at the back of her chair. From the snickering at each kick, it wasn't hard to tell who it was. Brittany. With a sigh she just ignored the childishness and took what note she needed as the teacher spoke. 

When class was over and Cin had exited, of course she gets shoulder bumped in the hallway. Brittany was getting more and more bolder with her bullying. It baffled her that she was disliked like that, but it always seemed like Brittany had it out for her even back when they attended the same daycare, Elementary school, Middle school, and now High school.

When school was over, she couldn't be gladder, unlocking her bike and peddling home was the best feeling. The ride from school to home wasn't bad. There weren't any hills, and it was only about two miles. When she got to her house, she parked her bike on the side and came back around to the front, walking up the four porch steps. Pulling out her set of keys and unlocking the door she stepped in.

Once she securely closed and locked it behind her she went to the kitchen and washed her hands. It was rather eerie like quiet in the house. “They must still be out….” Cin thought as she grabbed a Capri Sun and a strawberry uncrustable from the fridge as a snack. Going to her room with her snack, she began on her homework.

After a couple of hours of doing homework, she was done with everything but her letter. At some point she had put her headphones on to listen to music while doing her homework. With a stretch, she took a deep breath and was overcome with a grumbling stomach. She knew her mother was home and cooking dinner because the air smelled simply delicious.

Cin got up and left her room, when she reached the bottom of the stairs her mother spoke while her back was to her. “Hey Honey, I called out when we got home but you didn't answer so I went to check on you and you seemed so focus I didn't want to bother you. How was school? Did you get a response for that Penpal thing.” “Yes Mom, and I am sorry I didn't hear you guys come in. I just got my response; I haven't opened it yet though. I was going to read and reply after dinner. Speaking of dinner, what are we having tonight?" Cin said as she made her way to the dining table where her two younger siblings were already scarfing their faces with food. There was a place set for her, and her plate had some spaghetti on it that was untouched thank goodness.

She sat and began eating. Her younger siblings droned on about school and their friends, she was glad that they took up most of the attention. She didn't want to talk about school. She was the last to finish eating and thus had to do the dishes. She didn't mind though, she liked playing the soapy water. I know childish. 

Once everything was washed, dried, and put up she went back to her room after saying goodnight to her parents and siblings. She sat back at her desk and opened the envelope from her Penpal. She read it through and smiled slightly as she read his letter. She found herself giggling at some parts and felt sorry when she read, he had lost his father. Pulling out a piece of paper she began her response:

Dear Maverick,

    I am glad my letter found you pretty well as you stated lol. I like your name, it's different I will say you are the first Maverick I have met, so that's cool. In your letter you said you don't think you have ever been to the beach. I will say depending on where you are the beach can look a little different but it's so wonderful. The sand is so soft under your feet. Gotta make sure you have some sort of mesh bag to get the sand off everything. Sand is like water it gets on and in everything lol.

Your cussing doesn't bother me. My friends do it. I am too scared too. I don't want to sit through one of my mom's disappointing lectures. Like she can talk for hours, and she doesn't even have to yell, and by the end of it you will feel so bad. It's awful. Any who, I am sorry to hear about you dad. I couldn't imagine losing someone like that.

Look at that we have stuff in common already. We both live in really small towns, where everyone knows everyone. We are both sixteen and we both like that color Blue. I think seeing your sketches would be awesome.

One to your questions, here are my answers lol;

1. I am sixteen as well.
2. Favorite subject, I would have to say Science.
3. Skipping? Oh no, I would be disowned probably…
4. The crescent moon would have to be my favorite shape, if that is a shape lol.

So far, my life is okay, I have a slight little issue but it's nothing I can't handle. I do hope to hear back from you, and I am sure that we will probably be the best of friends someday xD

Sincerely,

Cin <3

Once she packed up the letter in an envelope and put it in her bag. Her first penpal letter was very cool, she took it, and hole punched it before putting it in a binder and on to the bookshelf it went. Cin eventually settled down and put on some pajamas before going to bed.

A loud chirping sound woke her the next morning, It was pretty early but only like fifteen minutes before her alarm. She got up and was the first to the bathroom. She took a shower, brushed her teeth and hair, then put on her uniform. 

She arrived at school a bit early and dropped her letter in the penpal mailbox that the teachers set up. before she sat in the school library until it was time for homeroom. She really hoped she could get a break from Brittany today. 

It's been about a week since Maverick had sent out his first letter. He was kind of worried on if he had scared the girl away or not. Then he had to remind himself that the mailing system did take time. It wasn't like they weren't using instant messenger or anything. That was something he would make a mental note of. Maybe later on down the road when this project was over and done with, they could move to sending emails instead. Would that be breaking the rules? He was kind of curious anyway. He wanted to know what Cin thought of it. The male sighed lightly as he walked into the school.

The male spotted Jacob and Melody near Jacob's locker and he walked up to the two of them. “Did you guys get your penpal letters? Or at least the first one?” he asked. Jacob nodded lightly as he slammed his locker door closed. “I sure as hell did. I'm not too sure about it to be honest. I feel like it's something stupid and I honestly don't want to be apart of it" the male said. Melody rolled her eyes and tossed her red hair over her shoulder looking at the two men in front of her.

“I did get my letter yes. She seems to be a pretty interesting person. She told me straight up that she was a lesbian. I don't know how to feel about it, but she did promise not to hit on me so I think that's a good thing” she said with a small laugh. Both Maverick and Jacob looked at her with their jaws on the floor. “Are you serious? How can you know what gender you like already? There's still so many things to explore!” Maverick said as he threw his hands up into the air. Melody giggled and rolled her eyes again as she crossed her arms over her chest.

“Just becuase she already knows she's into females doesn't mean anything. She might have had something happen to her to where she doesn't like me. We don't know that, and I'm not going to pressure her about it either.”

“You can't drop a bomb like that on us Melody! You need to let us know what's happening. Hell I want to know if she does start to get feelings for you and if you'll return them.”

“I honestly don't know who's worse right now. You Jacob for being so caught up in this, or you Melody for being so chill about it. I mean my penpal seems interesting, but I don't know how far it'll go. I mean I'm kind of excited to get to know her more”

“In your dreams Jake-y Boo! You'll never know what happens. I mean if you ask nicely I might tell you. As for you Maverick, I'm sure your penpal is a total sweetheart. If she's not I'll have to hunt her down and smash her face in for hurting you” Melody said with a small smile.

Maverick laughed and shook his head lightly. “I'm pretty sure it's not going to come down to that, but if it does I'll make sure to let you know” he said. Before Jacob or Melody had a chance to reply the bell rang. They all bid each other goodbye and headed to their classes. Maverick took his time going to homeroom. He stopped by Mrs. Harper's classroom to pick up his letter. “Maverick. I just want to let you know that you can start addressing the letters with your personal address. The principal wants all of you doing that from here on out.”

“He doesn't want to keep having letters sent to the school. But I do want you to keep me up to date on the letters.” she said. Maverick nodded a bit “Yes ma'am. I'll let my mother know as well. And I'll let you know how the letter writing goes as well. See you later” he said as he made his way to homeroom. Once he was there he sat down and ripped the letter open. It was kind of strange that he would be giving Cin his address and not the school's address. He didn't have much choice in the matter though. He sighed as he started reading.

When he was done he couldn't help but wonder if she was okay. He checked the time and realized he had some time left before he would need to get to his next class. He pulled out his notebook and pen and flipped to a clean page and started to write.

Dear Cin,

I'm glad you got my letter okay. You sound kind of like my best friend Melody. She's always going to class on time and never skipping out on school. I guess that's a good thing. I don't know I've never really skipped school before but I won't lie I've thought about it. Science huh? That's pretty cool. I personally love Art. That's where I can get all of my sketches done. I'll be adding a couple into this letter for you. Be honest about them. Don't sugar coat anything either. I want to be an artist when I get out of school. I've thought about finding the best art college to go too. Who knows I might end up failing at that as well lol.

As for the beach I'll have to talk to my mom and see if we can take a trip to the beach. I'm not sure if there's one where I live. I mean we do have a dam, but it's not really considered a beach. But I promise I'll have to find one and go. Oh I don't know if your school changed where your letters are being sent, but I found out today that your letters will be sent to my house. Kind of odd huh? I'll add my address into this letter as well so that way you have it. Also I was wondering how you'd feel about writing emails? I don't know if it's breaking the rules or not. I mean if we stay in touch and the penpal thing is over and done with our schools, keeping in touch would be awesome.

I'm sorry this letter is short. I'm in homeroom right now and I need to make sure I have everything for my next class. I'm sorry for whatever issue you are dealing with. I hope it's not a bully. If it is here's some advice. Stand up for yourself. Use your voice and tell that bully to leave you alone. If not you'll get the staff involved. I'm not sure how your school works, but I know mine doesn't tolorate that type of shit happening to it's students. I hope you have a wonderful day. I can't wait to hear from you again.

Forever yours,
Maverick.

The male read the letter over a couple of times to make sure there wasn't any spelling errors and if there was, he wasn't' about to write it all out again. He found his sketch pad and pulled a couple sketches from the book and folded them up and slipped them into the envelope as well. He then added his address to another piece of paper. He sealed the letter up took it back to Mrs. Harper's classroom and dropped it off. It was going to be strange not picking them up and dropping them off. He sighed lightly as he made his was to Math. His mind wandered to what Cin was doing and hoped that she was okay.

He also couldn't help but wonder if she'd be for writing emails after all of this was over and done with. He ducked his head as he slipped into the classroom, took his seat, pulled out his books and started taking notes for the day.

Before she knew it, it was the weekend. She figured she wasn't going to see her penpal response till Monday. Brittany was seriously getting on her nerves. She couldn't understand. Her older siblings were best friends, she thought maybe she was jealous and wanted to get on top before Cin had a chance too but, in all honesty, Cin didn't want to be in cheerleading or be top dog. She did though try out for track and was accepted. 

Her parents were proud of her and when her siblings skyped in from college Friday night, her sister was the only one that was a little disappointed only because she was head cheerleader. She always thought Cin would follow in her footsteps. It's true, Cin loved her big sister and wanted to be just like her in every way when she was little. That's thing about growing up, people tend to spout off and start liking other things but that didn't mean she loved her sister any less. 

Her brother on the other hand was ecstatic. He ran track and her sister was still proud of her none the less. Cin also mentions that her Penpal was relatively normal, and how Toni and Tina got weird ones. Everyone was laughing. Cin was eventually ushered away as everyone else wanted to talk to them too. It wasn't only normal. We all missed Bryce and Bree. They were away in college studying, Bryce was looking into Law and Bree was studying business management.

Cin went to her room and laid on her bed. She looked at her cieling thinking about Brittany, she contemplated if she should tell Bree seeing they were friend's with Brittany's sister. Would that be tattle telling and would that make things worse for her? So many thoughts swam through her head that she was too distracted.

Bzzzt …. Bzzzt…

Her cell phone buzzed in alert to a text message coming through. The vibrations scared that crap out of her that she jumped a little and fell off the bed. With a huff she got up and snatched her phone of the bed with slight annoyance. The text was from the goup she was in with Tina and Toni. 

“Guuuuuurl!!! We say you with that hottie Jacob, what did he want to talk with you about?”

“Yeah what did he want to say…? Ouch, Tell Tina to stop hitting me ;(”

“How about you stop intervening in the group message with repeating me..”

“It's a GROUP message I can speak too, it doesn't mean you have to leave your room and barge into mine to hit me and then go back to your room.”

“You guys stop fighting it's fine, he just wanted to see if I wanted to go out with him. That's all.”

“WHAT?”

“OMG!!!”

“What did you say?”

“Please for the love of god you said yes. He is sooooo sexy. Those chocolate brown eye…”

“And he is the quarter back too.”

“Yes, I said yes.”

“GUUUUUUUURL!”

“YAAAAAAAS!”

“You gonna let him pop your cherry?”

“I am now done talking to you guys good night.”

Her phone kept going off with text from them, but she ignored it. She put her phone on the charger as she thought about Jacob. He was cute, had a bit of boyish charm to him. He was also the football quarterback. It was a surprised when he confessed and asked her out. She blurted out yes without really thinking about it. He had planned to pick her up tomorrow for a movie and some lunch.

When dinner rolled around, she let her parents know about her date. Her mother thought it was a nice concept, but her dad didn't approve. He spouted stuff like she was too young and that she couldn't date till she was thirty and stuff like that. Her mother just glared at him and said if he continued, he would be sleeping on the couch. It was typical of her dad to act like that though. He was like that with Bree and is even like that with Starling. Though he is much worst with her since she is the baby.

After her nightly routine and a good night's rest it was finally the next day. Sunday. The day of her big date. Waking up was nerve-wracking. Cin had never dated. Was never really interesting in that sort of thing. She was so nervous that she could eat breakfast. She could really sit still either. She paced her room and stared at her closet. As noon approached her mother came into her room and opened the laptop that sat on the desk. Opening skype, Bree was calling. Her mom and Bree helped her pick out an outfit. 

When Jacob arrived, he sat in the Livingroom with her father asking fifty bazillion question and making the poor boy uncomfortable. After her quick shower, she dressed in black leggings, denim shorts, a black tant top, and a denim vest. Her mother did her hair in loose waves down her back and a slight touch of make-up.

Their date went really well, and Jacob was a gentleman. She had a great time. The ate lunch first at a Pizza parlor called Gio's Pizza. Then they went to see some action movie. It was full of explosions and cars and kidnapping. It was all a good time. They even got to know a little more about each other. 

Before long it was finally Monday and back to school it was. Homeroom was good. Cin just realized as she was going through the classes, Jacob was in most of her classes, and he made it a purpose to get his seat next to hers. It was a cute notion. He even sat this her and her friends at lunch. He was being really sweet. 

This time English was her last class of the day. The Teacher let everyone know that Penpal Letters were now going to be delivered to home addresses after today. The teacher passed out the penpal letter and went about teaching. She didn't recall them doing this in the past but shrugged it off. She normally didn't look at her letter till she was home anyway. 

She was glad to have school over with. It was so nice to finally have some peace and quiet when she got home and was safe in her room. She did her homework like normal and then got to the letter. She read it over and was happy to get a few pieces of his artwork like he said he would send her. She hole punched the art and put them in the binder that she started for her Penpal stuff. She stuck his address in the front pouch and then began her reply. She first put her name and address in the upper left corner, before writing his name and address in the middle.

Dear Maverick,

    Your friend sounds really smart. I think when you skip it also goes on your permanent record or something… You are very good, your soft lines could probably use some work, but I really enjoyed your art. I doubt you will fail you have great potential and talent. I was taught to never put all your eggs in one basket. Art may be a passion but maybe look at a secondary until you primary can support you, you know… 

I hope that wasn't incredibly rude of me to say. I wouldn't mind keeping in touch after this whole penpal assignment was over, I think it would be wonderful to keep in touch. You like a genuinely cool person. I think my dad still keep in contact with his Penpal from when he went to school here. They skype from time to time. He lives in Asia somewhere… Well not lives he is in the army or something and is stationed in Asia somewhere.

As far as my issue, I was debating on telling Bree, that's my oldest sister, about Brittany. She has been a bit rude and I don't understand what her problem is. Her sister is best friends with both Bree and Bryce. They are even at the same college right now, so I don't understand why she seems to dislike me so much when she barely knows me. 

Oh but I did have a boy ask me out, he is the quarterback at my school, and we had our first date on Sunday. He was really sweet the entire time. We got lunch and saw an action movie. I did join the track team. I am the end or tail runner. I am so excited. I bike to school so my legs are in great shape. Wait no that sounds weird… eh I'm sorry. Okay I feel awkward now, I hope to hear from you. Till your next letter.

Sincerely,

Cin <3

With that she put the letter in the envelope and ran downstairs, out the door, just to put it in the mailbox and put the red flag up to indicate that there was mail in the box to be taken. She returned to inside and went back to her room. She was super excited to get her next letter from Maverick. It was never an issue to get sleep for Cin and like any other time she was off to dream land in a heartbeat.

The rest of the day seemed to drag on and it made the skin on Mavrick's skin crawl. He hated the fact that Friday's always dragged on when he had plans for the weekend. He was planning on asking Melody out finally. He was just scared too because of how close they were as friends. He wanted to keep their friendship intact and he sure as hell didn't want to ruin anything with her. He thought about talking to Jacob about it, because he was the only male he ever really trusted. But then again he had a feeling Jacob would end up holding it over him for awhile.

That's when he thought of his sister. Yes they have their differences but at the end of the day she was always there for him. He pulled out his phone and started to send her a quick text message. Hey, are you busy? I have a question to ask you and I don't know how to really ask it. If you aren't busy could you possibly come and pick me up? he read the message over a second time before sending it. He knew he sounded like a total child, but could you blame him? He was only sixteen after all.

That's when his phone went off with a message from his sister. Hey Ricky. I'm at work right now and I'm pulling a double so I'm not able to come and pick you up. Is everything okay? Do I need to call mom for you? A small smile passed over his lips as he could hear the worry in the text message. He started to type back. No everything's fine. I was just going to see if you'd be able to help me with something. You know how much Melody and I hang out, well I was thinking about asking her out this weekend and I needed you help with it is all. He then hit send and sat on the wall outside of the school.

Yes I know how much the two of you hang out. I didn't realize how much you liked her. Are you sure you really want to ask her out? What if something happens between the two of you, that makes it strange with your friendship? Don't get me wrong I'm happy for you, and I'm rooting for you! I just don't want something happening between the two of you.

I know, that's why I reached out to you first. I'm kind of worried but at the same time I've wanted to ask her out for a while now. I just don't know how to go about it honestly. Like I don't know if it'll be worth it, or if I should even shoot my shot with her. She's always having people chasing after her in a way. But there's something else too that makes me want to ask her out, is her penpal is into girls and I'm scared she's going to get to Melody before I can.

Here's the deal then little brother of mine. You message Melody and ask her point blank of if she'd go out with you. I wouldn't do it this weekend because it's too soon, but shoot for next weekend. You'll have all week to plan something out with her. You and I could plan somehting out for the date if you'd like. I do have to get back though; my first break is over. Let me know when I get home what you did. Talk toon little bro.

Maverick sat there reading through the messages  Thatfrom the both of them. Was she really going to help him out with this? Was he really going to ask Melody out? His heart was hammering inside of his chest as he opened up the text messages he had with Melody that didn't involve Jacob. He then started to type. Hey Mel-Mel. What are you doing next weekend? I was thinking maybe you'd like to go out with me on Saturday or Sunday? His fingers hovered over the send button. What if this simple question ruins their friendship already? He sighed as he hit send. He watched as the “Message Sent” bubble popped up.

It was too late now. He sighed lightly as he waited for a reply. That's when his phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out seeing she had already replied back. Hey Ricky! I'm flattered you're asking me out. But would that be kind of odd? I mean you and I are really close, I just don't want something happening between you and I… DON'T get me wrong I'm really glad you asked me out and I would LOVE to go out with you. Just let me know what day and time and I will be ready for you :) 

That made the male smile. He wasn't expecting that reply, but it still made his heart skip a beat. He sent her a message back and told her that he would let her know about it later on in the week. When he made it home he had a small spring in his step. He couldn't wait for Rosemarie to get home so he could tell her about what happened. He knew that Rosemarie would be excited. He was nervous and he had forgotten all about Cin for the weekend. When Monday afternoon rolled around and he had gotten home, his mother handing him a letter he had a small, confused look on his face.

“Little Bird, did you really forget? You have this penpal you've been talking about, and now the letters are being sent to the house. Go and reply to her” his mother said with a small laugh. The male broke out into a grin as he opened the letter. He had been so wrapped up with Rosemarie over the weekend that he had forgotten all about Cin and the penpal thing. As he walked up the stairs he read the letter a small smile tugging on his face.

When he was locked safely away in his room, he sat down and started to write her back.

Dear Cin,

I'm glad you had an amazing date over whatever weekend you had it! I'm asking my bestfriend out this weekend and my sister is helping me plan the whole date out. I've never done something like this before, so I had to bring in the big guns lol. I'm glad your sister was able to help you. How's that bully doing? Have you put a stop to it? Cause if not I would get a move on, because bullies like her will not stop until something dangerous happens. You might think it's small things now, but sooner or later it's going to turn into something more and by then you won't be able to stop it.

I know it's strange of me to but in like this but I don't want something to happen to you. I don't want you getting hurt, and I sure as hell don't want to get a letter from your family saying that you're in the hospital for whatever reason. So please promise me you'll speak up? You need too otherwise this bully will get the higher hand in all of this. I'm glad you liked the drawings, I know it's still a work in process and I'm working on it. I have some of the best art teachers in school and I couldn't ask for a better support group. Don't worry I'll make sure I have something else lined up until my art does take off, if it ever does anyway.

I'm also glad you're willing to keep in touch when all of this is over and done with. It's interesting to write to someone on a bi-weekly basis. I personally thought this was a stupid idea. I didnt' want to be apart of it at all. When I first told my mom about it, she was so excited. She was apart of it when she had been in school. To think about it, that's how my parents met. That's a story for another time though. It's Monday night and I need to get a move on with my homework. Talk to you soon.

Forever yours,
Maverick.

The male sealed up the letter and took it downstairs and put it on the small stack for his mother to take to the post office when she left for work the next morning. He went back up to his room, pulled out his math book and started working on the homework for Math. His worst subject. He sighed lightly as he buried himself into the work for the night.

It had been a few months since school and this whole penpal has started. Cin had been dating the quarter back for a few months now and the Jerk was being what a jerk does best. He was the perfect gentleman on their first date but that was the first and last time he was like that. He was cute and all but she didn't allow herself to have her heart broken by some football jerk. Lately she had been catching him with Brittany.

Ther first time it happened she was kissing him in the girl's locker room. She needed to go to her gym locker to get an extra shoelace because hers had snapped, and that was when she caught them making out. Of course, He was all apologetic and said it would never happen again but from that point she stopped caring. 

Cin told Maverick about it in one of her letters. He was sympathetic towards her. He would occasionally send updates on how his drawing skills were improving. He told her about his date with one of his best friends. She was happy for him. It was always nice taking a chance on something you care about, and it working out.

With half the school year done she was moving up in track and even joined another after school club. It was called Scribes, it was about writing, well creative writing. The best thing is it didn't interfere with Track. It was just another day in school, midweek actually. She was heading to her locker to put her books in her locker to get ready for lunch. She was standing in the lunch line for what seemed to be an eternity. 

When she was able to sit down with her lunch, her two best friends sat on each side of her. They were giving her a worried look and she was confused. “You guys okay?” 

They looked at each other and then towards the entrance to the cafeteria. She followed their gazes. There she spotted Brittany clinging to Jacob's arm as her fingers are linked with his. They were laughing and she had leaned in to kiss him and he just let her. Cin stood, not really storming over but briskly walked and stopped in front of them. 

“I am done with you Jacob. If you want her so bad, then you can have her.” Cin said placing her hands on her hips. “Unlike you I'm not a pru…" She cut Brittany off. “If you want to be a whore that sleeps, around go ahead.” Brittany's face turned red as she raised her hand and slapped Cin. 

She grabbed her cheek as her friends came to her side. “You didn't have to slap her because you are a boyfriend stealer and you, Jacob, you pathetic cheating bastard.” Tina grabbed Cin and escorted her out of the cafeteria. Tony was left behind and looked at the two losers. “I can't believe you could be such a cunt. I knew you were a bully, but I thought you at least had some standards.” He shook his head. “And Jacob… Tsk… tsk….tsk, You two losers belong with each other.”

With that he left to follow Cin and Tina. The whole cafeteria was silent until the three left and then they were in an uproar with whispers talking about how much of a skank Brittany is and how much a playboy Jacob is. Everyone knew Cin and like the rest of her Family she was the Perfect student. Got good grades, never said nothing bad about anyone and was in general a nice person. Being a Track star added onto her fame.

The rest of the day was spent hearing hushed whispers about her, mostly pity. As soon as school was over, she was so quick to go home. Her bike ride was spent in tears. Not so much heart broken, her cheek stung, and her mind was at war. She was really happy that when she got home, and no one was there. 

She grabbed an ice pack from the freezer and went up to her room. She held the ice pack on and off her cheek every ten to fifteen minutes. She started on her letter first.

Dear Maverick,

    Hey, so I finally did it. I dumped him. This time he made it public in the cafeteria no less. Of course, you can imagine how Tina and Tony reacted to Brittany slapping me. I am thinking about calling my sister to let her know what happened. I know she will have some helpful advice. To be honest I am not at all sad to lose Jacob. He was kind of a jerk any way.

How has your time been since last week? I feel like school is settling into a nice rhythm. Track is also going really smooth too. We have out third meet next week. I am really excited about it. Oh, I also joined another after school club called scribes. It's for creative writing. I like it and it doesn't interfere with Track at all. 

I am working on one story that's about werewolves. It's going but after an idea I end up with writer's block. I know I could probably never be an actual writer, but it is a nice little hobby that keeps my imagination alive.

My letter won't be too long, I am not really feeling good. Might be coming down with a cold or something. I hope all is well and can't wait for your letter. Write to you later xD

Sincerely,

Cin <3

She put the letter in the envelope and set it aside to complete her homework. She laid down right after as she was feeling a bit dizzy. It wasn't long for her to fall asleep per the norm. When everyone got home her mother came to check on her. She let her sleep. The next day she woke feeling really warm and just pushed it off. She was ready for school moments later and on her way, she dropped the letter at the mailbox. 

The weeks slowly passed. The date with Melody was a bust. He had tried to kiss her and that's when everything went down hill. She had told him that she didn't feel that way about him. They were just really good friends and that was it. Plus she had her eyes on someone else anyway. She only agreed to go out with him, because she felt sorry for the male. Since then he didn't really talk to her much. He kept to himself at the dinner table. At school he just didn't even both hanging around with Melody or Jacob. Jacob knew something was up though.

One day while at school Jacob cornered Maverick in the boys locker room, arms crossed over his chest. “Alright dude, what's going on? You and Melody have been giving each other the cold shoulder and I don't like it. So spill. What's going on with the two of you?” he asked. Maverick knew it was bound to happen and he didn't know what else to do anymore. He shrugged lightly as he sat on the bench behind him. “Well I did ask Melody out, we went out and I thought we were on the same page, so I tried kissing her.”

“You did what? Are you serious? What happened? I'm super proud of you! I know you've had a huge crush on her for awhile”

“That's the thing. It didn't go well. When I tried kissing her, she got all disgusted in a way and told me that she didn't like me that way. She only say me as a friend and nothing more”

“I mean you both are still good right? Or is that why you both don't talk to each other? Don't get me wrong I love the idea of you both being a couple, but at the same time it's weird”

“In a way I hoped it would have worked out. Because we would have had that total High School Sweetheart thing going on. But I guess shit happened the way it did for a reason. I do miss being around her though. I just feel like everything's awkward now between us”

“In a way it is and I'm right in the middle of it. If you want I can make sure you both have some time to sit down and talk it out if you'd like”

“I mean it would be nice, but I doubt she wants to talk to me.”

Jacob shook his head and smirked lightly. “Leave it to me Mave. I'll see you at the end of the day” he said and with that Maverick was alone. He sighed lightly as he all of a sudden wished he hadn't said anything to Jacob about it. He knew that Jacob was doing it to be a good friend, but he wasn't in the mood. He sighed as he pushed himself up and grabbed his backpack and headed to his next class. He sighed as he ducked his head and walked into the classroom.

The day seemed to drag on and all he wanted was to get out of school and just forget the day happened. That's when Jacob and Melody were there. “Okay, you both are going to make up and talk” he said. Melody shook her head and rolled her eyes lightly. “Really? You told him didn't you?” she asked as pain flashed across her face. Maverick shrugged lightly. “He cornered me, so I didn't have much of a choice. But you and I haven't even talked about it.. So I guess now's a good time as any”

“The reason why I haven't been talking to you, is because it's too awkward now. You tired kissing me and for what reason? You knew I didn't feel that way about you, so why even still try?”

“I guess I was reading into it wrong. I'm sorry. I just want to go back to the way things were I suppose. I know I shouldn't have tried kissing you, but you were giving me mixed signals”

“I wasn't giving you any sort of signals Maverick! You really did read into it way too much. You know what, to make this so much easier. I'm no longer friends with either of you. Both of you have a good life”

“Melody wait!” Jacob called out as the woman stormed off. Maverick's heart felt like it was just ripped out of his chest. Did he really just lose one of his best friends? He really did. He shook his head lightly as Jacob tried to talk to him. “Leave me alone. I'll see you later” he said as he headed home. Jacob was kind of surprised at how it all went down. Maverick walked home with his head bent down, his hands shoved into his pockets.

Boy did he have some news to tell Cin. He had heard from the woman a couple of days ago and knew she was dealing with her own breakup. He now was dealing with a best friend breakup and he didn't like it. Once he was home he went upstairs and to his bedroom and slammed the door shut. A moment later there was a knock on the door. “Ricky? Everything okay?” came the sound of his sister's voice. He sighed as he opened the door and shook his head. “No I just lost my best friend” he said softly.

Rosemaire walked into the room and shut the door behind her and wrapped her arms around the male. She hugged him tightly. “If you want to talk I'm here okay. Dinner's going to be ready soon” she said. The male nodded lightly as he hugged her back tightly. Now's when he wished his dad was here. He wanted nothing more than to tell him everything that happened. He watched as his sister left the room, shutting the door behind her. He sat down and started to write his letter to Cin. Not really knowing where to start.

Dear Cin,

Well the worst thing just happened. I just lost my best friend. You remember Melody? Well I asked her out and it didn't go too well. I tried kissing her, and that seemed to make things ten times worse. Everything changed between us. That same night she told me that she only saw me as a friend. I thought I was getting signals from her that she wanted me to kiss her. Boy was I wrong. So today Jacob cornered me in the boys locker room and I told him everything that happened. So after school Jacob tried to do the right thing for Melody and I, and it just seemed to get even worse from there.

I found out that Melody wasn't giving me signals at all. I guess I was stupid to think I would have that whole best friend, high school sweetheart dream. She pretty much ended our friendship as well over it. I wanted to talk about it, but I couldn't talk to her. She just stormed off and acted like nothing happened. I guess it meant to happen this way for a reason. Who knows. -insert eye roll here- I'm sorry to hear about your boyfriend. He sounds like a total asshole. Maybe it's a sign. Shit went down for a reason I know that. Maybe it's just God's way of saying you and I are meant to be together. lol.

I'm kidding. I've never seen a picture of you, and you've never seen a picture of me so I can't really say. But I'm glad you are enjoying your writing. It's always a nice little escape. Sorry if I rambled, but dinner's ready. I'll talk to you soon.

Forever yours,
Maverick.

He sealed the letter up in the envelope and headed downstairs. He went out to the mailbox and placed it inside. He then made his way back inside to sit down with his family and enjoy dinner. He was still heart broken, and he was wondering if Cin would see the joke he had made. He was kind of regretting putting that in the letter, but it was too late now.