Chapter 2

Reed

       I didn't even know why Jonah's parents forced me to go on this stupid road trip with him and his friends. They thought it was just going to cause us to magically get along.

       Spoiler: It wasn't going to work.

       His parents, Whitney and Clint, kept telling me how Jonah was usually one of the sweetest person ever, and how he just had to get used to having another teenager in the house.

       I wasn't buying it.

       Either it wasn't true and everyone was blind to it, or I was the first person he wasn't being kind to.

       All I knew was that this was going to be the longest summer ever.

       We weren't even on the road for half an hour before we had to stop at the gas station to pick up a few snacks since Ezra was hungry yet again, and because some of them needed a washroom break. 

       As soon as Jonah pulled into the parking lot, all four of them got out of the minivan. However, Jonah, Ezra, and Madison headed into the gas station as Linnea back into the minivan, but to the back where I was sitting.

       I paused my music and took off my headphones. "Hey," Linnea said. 

       "Hi," I said.

       "I know you and I never had a proper conversation before, mainly because Jonah wouldn't let me talk to you whenever I came over," Linnea said, "but I just wanted to let you know that if you ever feel left out, just tell me. Jonah said he's going to try getting along with you, but honestly, I'm not holding him up to that promise."

       "Yeah, neither am I," I said. "I don't blame him since I was forced to crash this road trip. I can't wait to be the fifth wheel."

       "That's not going to happen," Linnea said. "I'm serious. If you ever feel left out, tell me and I'll make sure you feel included, even if it means only the two of us hanging out. To be honest, Ezra and Madison aren't too happy with you joining along."

       "Nobody is," I said.

       "I am," Linnea said. "The more, the merrier, right?"

       "That's bull."

       Linnea sighed. "Yeah, I know. I wasn't lying, though. I'm not mad that you joined the road trip. There really isn't even a reason why any of us should be mad about it. It's not like you being on the road trip is going to ruin it."

       I shrugged. It sure felt like it. I wasn't happy to be on it either, but Jonah and his friends were acting like it was going to kill them with me being on it.

       At least Jonah's girlfriend was nice enough to talk to me, and try to make me feel included.

       "Want anything from the gas station?" Linnea asked. "We're going to be driving for a bit longer before we reach the first stop, and you didn't eat anything from Wendy's."

       "I'm good," I said. "I'm not hungry."

       "You might get hungry a bit later," Linnea said.

       "Seriously, I'm fine," I said.

       "Alright,  if you're sure," Linnea said before she got out of the minivan, closing the door behind her and heading into the gas station.

       I put my headphones back on and played my music, really wanting this road trip to be done and over with. I didn't want to be stuck with three people that seemed to hate my guys, and I definitely couldn't be stuck in a car for more than two hours.

       I needed some fresh air, so I got out of the car and just stood by the door. I was just happy we were in a minivan and not in a car, otherwise I would have felt way too cramped while we were traveling on the road.

       A few minutes later, the four of them walked out of the gas station, so I got back into the minivan. 

       Once everyone else was in, Jonah started up the minivan and pulled out of the parking lot to continue the stupid road trip. I just couldn't wait for us to reach the first stop, where we would stay in a motel and I would hopefully get my own room away from everyone.

       Who was I kidding? Of course I was going to get my own room. Nobody would want to share with me, and I hoped it stayed like that.

       My music was on shuffle and one song ended up coming on the brought back a memory I was trying hard to repress. It was the song I was listening to when I was trying to drown out my parents voices from a loud argument they were in.

       The music was never loud enough.

       "What are you doing coming home at one in the morning?!" I heard Mom ask. "I've been worried sick!"

       "Sorry," Dad said, his words slurring at bit. "I lost track of time."

       "You better have been at the pub, and not gambling again!" Mom said. "We're broke, you know that! We don't have much money left, and we have to save every penny we get for rent and food!"

       "I wasn't gambling," Dad said. "At least, not gambling much. I only did two or three rounds."

       "That's still two or three more than you should have done!" Mom said. "When are you going to get out of this habit?! We need to put Reed first, and we can't even afford medication for him because you're too busy throwing all of our money away! You even tapped into his savings account last week!"

       "I'll pay it back," Dad said.

       "When?" Mom asked. "When will you do that? When you win the lottery? We're running dry and it won't be long before we're out on the streets because of you."

       I snapped back to reality and quickly changed the song. Mom was right in that argument. She always was. It wasn't long before we were living on the streets, all because of Dad.

       Everything was because of him.

________________

Aww, my baby Reed. <3

So, this book alternates POVs between Jonah and Reed, and you'll be seeing into Reed's life before he came to live with Jonah's family.

And I can't believe I updated another chapter. OOPS MY BAD. Like I said, I have a lot of ideas, and I really want to get back into writing. Starting a fresh book should help me out and give me ideas for my other books.