Young Writers Society

1. WELCOME

I didn’t know this girl that was staring back at me. She had all my features. She had the long, inky black hair; the grayish-blue eyes and fair skin. She even had the beauty mark under her left eye. I sighed because even though this girl looked exactly like me she wasn’t the girl I knew. She had been in and out of rehab for about a year now. This girl had lost her virginity while she was too drunk to remember anything. This girl had an alcohol abusing problem and this girl was being sent to Beverly Hills, California with her twin brother. I picked up my bag and headed out to the car with a huff, not wanting to look at her anymore.

I slid in behind my brother, Carver. I couldn’t stand to look at either of them. I had ruined Carver’s reputation at school. He was now known as the guy with the slutty-messed-up-going-nowhere-fast twin sister. I knew he didn’t mind coming with me. He would go anywhere I did, but I knew he’d miss the mountain air. I started to cry again. This was all my fault. I had to get into the wrong crowd and now look what happened. We were off to live with our mother who had left us all when Carver and I were 10-years-old.

“Rose? Rosalie?” he was getting agitated.

“Oh,” I tore my attention away from the window, “Yeah Dad?” I asked him, my voice shaking a little.

“I know this is hard on you both,” he stopped. Why did he have to do that? I buried my head in my hands and began to crying into my jacket sleeves.

“Dad, don’t. We know you’ve tried.” Carver spoke softly. He was the good kid. I loved him for it and I wished I could be like him all the time. I looked back out the window, holding in my sobs of regret. Jared was supposed to keep me safe. He wasn’t supposed to take me to a party and tell me everything was going to be okay. ‘Just have a beer with me. You’ll feel better.’ He’d told me. I took one after the other. The next thing I know I’m in bed with him. I woke up in his arms with no clothes. I didn’t even remember what had happened. I’d slipped out of the house quietly. Everyone was still asleep. I ran back to my house and my dad had met me at the door. I broke down when I saw him. He didn’t even know why. He just assumed that I’d had a hard night. He told me that he would be home after work and we’d talk about it then. I couldn’t tell him what happened. I couldn’t tell anyone.

Soon I just couldn’t stand it anymore. I went to Carver. I’d told him everything that happened. He listened intently. ‘What am I going to tell Dad?’ I’d asked him. ‘The truth.’ He’d replied. He held my tightly as I cried after that. When my dad came home Carver and I were waiting for him on the couch. I told him the whole story. He had been furious. I’d told him about my previous episodes with alcohol and he got me help. I went to rehab for a while but it didn’t work out. Soon he sent me to a therapist. He said I was experiencing some depression and that I was using alcohol to find a way to leave the reality behind because it was too hard for me. I would’ve laughed at that but I was too upset to care. Maybe the therapist was right; maybe I was depressed. The doctor said a change in scenery might help. Maybe if I got away from the causes I’d get better. That night after we got home from my appointment my dad told me that I’d be going to live with my mother. I pleaded with him to let me stay and I knew it hurt him to see me begging and crying like I was. My dad left after I was done. I could see tears roll down his cheeks as he left my room. Carver came in later and told me that he’d be going with me; that he’d never let me go alone.

I was surprised that we’d already made it to the airport. I looked around the big parking lot as I got out of the car. We went through baggage and then we came to boarding. I looked at my dad.

“Be safe kid, and be good Carver. I’ll come up for visits and you both can come down here too. Call me when you guys land.” Notice how he didn’t say be good to me because he doesn’t think I can do that anymore, but I want to get better and I will. I hugged him tightly after Carver. He rubbed my back.

“I’m sorry Rosalie.” He said into my hair. We said good bye to him and started to walk away. The last thing I saw was my dad crying into his hand. Carver pulled me away and we boarded the plane. When I sat down in my seat I knew I’d have to get it together before we saw Mom. I took a deep breath and concentrated on seeming happy.

“Rosalie! Carver! Darlings! Come here!” Good old Mom for you, she always made a scene.

“Hi Mom, how are you?” I ask this because even though I already know that she is practically wonderful! Swimming in a sea full of chocolate, rainbows, and everything right with the world! Its good conversation and I have nothing else to say to the woman at the moment.

“I’m just wonderful honey, how are you both?” hmm…. How am I? Well besides the fact that I’m tired and I don’t really want to be here; I’m great.

“I couldn’t feel any better, Mom.” She smiled. I knew right then that she didn’t know me at all.

“I’m just dandy, Mom. It’s really sunny here.” Carver said sarcastically, trying to get me to smile.

“Yes the weather is quite nice. So, are you ready to see your new house?”

“Oh, yeah totally excited!” I can’t remember the last time I said totally, but hey, if it works whatever.

“Always excited,” Carver said. He sounded like a Dick and Jane poster child.

“Great let’s go!”

Going back to the house with just my mother, Carver, and me in the car with just a radio, that mom controlled, was a nightmarish experience. For one, we listened to teeny-bopper pop all the way, it was horrible. Carver wasn’t really even listening to the music just talking back and forth with mom. She was talking about this new guy she’d been dating for a few weeks. She was acting like we, we were, like we were friends! It was utterly repulsive. As well as quite annoying, I might add. This woman I hadn’t seen in 6 years was trying to patch things up by trying to be best friends all of a sudden. I didn’t even care. I was here to start over and I guess that’s what I was doing. When we were at a red light my mom looked over at me, starting to say something then stopped. She was staring at my lip. I laughed, “It’s a lip ring mom.”

“I know.” She said a bit rudely. She turned back to the road to wait for the light. I laughed once more.

When we got to her house I almost laughed at how predictable it was! Grand Barbie Dream House is what I called it behind her back. It was a light lavender color, who paints there house lavender? But besides that it was big, of course, with huge widows.

“It’s a great house mom.” He was such a liar; he hated it the moment he saw it. I know all his facial expressions very well. They are exactly my own.

“Thank you Carver. What do you think Rosalie?”

“It’s awesome,” I said with no emotion. Caver held in a laugh.

When she showed me my room I almost screamed. It was the same lavender of the house but with ungodly pink and silver thrown in! I’d paint it while she was away at work someday or a business trip. Carver just stood there. He knew I didn’t like it. We had basically the same tastes in music, colors, and etcetera.

“How do you like it Rose?” Oh how I hate it when they call me Rose! It always makes me think of an old lady. Rose, ugh!

“It’s not really the colors I would have chosen but it’s,” I needed something to say, “a nice shape,” oh yes a lovely shape! Who says that about a room? Oh well, I tried at least.

“Well would you like to get it repainted? We can also get a new bedroom suite if you like; this is a little old so it will be fine to get a new one.” Old, it looked like what I had when I was 7. But I agreed and she showed us Carver’s room. His was much more livable. It had a black bed with grayish walls. The stereo system was amazing. It took up part of his wall.

At least my room had something his didn’t. In my room there was a glass wall facing our back yard with the pool. The window was thick and had a flat screen TV built in it and I would soon remodel my room like mom said. She showed us around the millions of rooms in the house. After the grand tour, I told her I was a bit tired and needed to put my things away. After Carver put his things away he went to talk with her. She told me she’d tell me when dinner was ready.

“Oh good you’re awake. I was just about to get you up.”

“Yeah I couldn’t really sleep. I have a weird thing about sleeping during the afternoon.” Also considering that cursed sun was going down and in my face.

“What thing about sleeping in the afternoon? You always,” I kicked him under the table silencing him.

“So you’re going to meet Lewis tonight!” Uh, who? I thought to myself.

“Lewis?”

“Oh, honey I told you. That guy I’ve been dating.” Oh yeah, the one that you rambled on for the whole terrible ride here.

“Oh, cool when is he going to be here?” I think Carver was a bit anxious to hang around with a guy.

“He should be here very soon,” she has the weirdest smile. It’s almost like someone is pulling her lips off on both sides. We were all quiet for a while till we saw a pair of headlights coming up the drive way.

“Oh I think that’s him. Are you ready?” Am I ready? That’s like a question you ask when you’re about go somewhere. Yes mom. I’m all ready and excited to meet your boyfriend!

“Yeah, let’s go. I can’t wait to meet him.” I stayed silent and followed them outside.

“Okay, that’s him.” Oh no I thought it was the invisible man behind the one smiling strait at you.

Well I was definitely shocked by my mother’s great new boyfriend. He was a bit short, but had nice caramel colored hair that was wavy. He was tan, just like everyone else in this horrid place. And he had just a little scruff of a go-t. What surprised me the most was that he wasn’t very big in the muscles department, but still a little toned. Not very though, it was like he just started to work out, most likely for my mother. Anyway dinner was okay, just your normal small talk. Like what kind of music I listened to. When I told them it was rock the look on my mom’s face was priceless. Carver dared not say it was his also. How they met, how long they’d been dating, they asked if I had anyone special back home which was a little uncomfortable. Carver was straining not to say anything about Jared my ex from back home. He knew I never wanted to speak about him ever again, or speak to him for that matter. I told them there was no one of importance back home. So it wasn’t a lie.

“Well maybe here.” Ah, mother always so optimistic. No, I doubt I will find anyone here in the sunny town. I tend to shy towards to the boys who aren’t golden brown with big muscles and lushes blond curls.

“What about you Carver?” Lewis had a brisk voice that sounded like a happy walk in the park.

“We broke up right before Rosalie and I came here. Her name was Emily.” Ah Emily, she was the spawn of Satan herself. She always controlled Carver like he was her slave. I finally got him to break up with her before we left. They pressed him no further about Emily.

When Lewis left I told my mom that I was going to bed considering I had school the very next doomed sunny day and that I wanted to be ‘bright eyed and bushy tailed’ I have no Idea what that means but people use it as saying they want to be nice and happy so I used it, knowing I wouldn’t. Carver watched a bit of TV before going to bed. Carver’s room is right next to mine and I could tell he was watching a horror movie all that screaming, I was tempted to bang on the wall and tell him to be quiet. I read for a while before I actually went to sleep, because I like the night and looking out at the stars and moon. I find a beauty about it. I feel nothing in the world can bother me. But I found one worse thing about Beverly Hills than the sun. There are too many lights. So many that they hide some of the twinkling stars.