text: Shelby Alexis Collins 
   
   
   Alexis Collins  
   
  A brisk, fall wind swirled through the trees and wrapped around Alexis as she walked down her street in the small town of Rogersville.  Her old husky, Baylor, lead the way up to her old home. She had lived in the white, Victorian home for eight years now. She loved the white, wrap-around porch and blue shutters. She loved when she would come home from a walk and find smoke rising from the chimney and her little brother playing in the front yard. She loved that the big oak tree in the front yard had her initials scribbled on the trunk. She loved that she could smell the ocean from her bedroom window and that she could see it in the distance from her balcony. Alexis Collins loved her home, but the town was a whole other story.  
  Alexis made her way up the stairs and looked at the old swing, swaying in the wind; inviting her to come and explore its secrets. She gladly accepted the invitation, as Baylor ran around the house to play with her younger brother, Sam. The wind continued its dance as more leaves took their fall place on the ground. She watched the display go on for a few minutes until she heard her mother calling from inside the house. Mrs. Collins glided out the door with the aroma of apples following her.  
  “There you are.” Mrs. Collins sighed in relief. “Are you ready to go?” 
  “Go where?” she asked, confused at such a question. Her family had plenty of friends around town, but they were the quiet sort; not getting out much for social events besides church. 
  “The new neighbors down the street are having a get together so they can officially meet everyone in town and I’m afraid your father wants to go.” Mrs. Collins stated, putting her gloves on in distress. Mrs. Collins was never very fond of people or any social event; she would rather keep to herself. Alexis loved her mother dearly, but she definitely took after her father in that area; besides the fact she didn’t like anyone in the small town. Mr. Collins loved to go to social events and meet new people. He loved the taste of Christmas punch at the church Christmas party, or the sound of children playing at the summer town picnic. Through their differences, Mr. and Mrs. Collins were crazy about each other; even after 20 years of marriage and two kids. Alexis had always admired her parent’s love for each other. She could only pray that her and her future husband would one day have that special love.  
  “That sounds nice. I’m sure it will be a lot of fun.” Alexis said, standing and walking in the warm house.  
  “Ah Al, there you are! Did your mother tell you about the family that has just moved in down the street?” Mr. Collins asked in excitement.  
  “Only that they are having a party tonight for the whole town. Which house did they move into, anyways?”  
  “The Richards place!” Mr. Collins boasted, his excitement seeming to never cease. The Richards place is the finest house in all of Rogersville. The three story house lies deep within the pine woods and has a glorious look to it; like something you would find from an old novel. There is no explaining how amazing it truly is! The family that has just moved in must be really wealthy. Alexis thought to herself as she grabbed her coat and followed Mr. Collins out the door. The drive to the party didn’t take long, especially with Mr. Collins boasting about the family.  
  “They have three kids ya know; a boy and two girls. The boy is about your age, Alexis, so I would like you to introduce yourself and maybe even smile. Sam, please try to be on your best behavior, you only get one chance at a first impression.” Mr. Collin went on. 
  	“Oh Stan, take it easy on them. It’s not like they are meeting royalty.” Mrs. Collins stated, her exasperation appearing once again.  
  	They pulled up to the house, still in awe of it all. The new family seemed to have made a barbeque themed party, including tiki torches all alongside the patio. People had already gathered around the grill and tables that were set up. Kids were already playing in the field next to the house, and the house was all lit up with candles in each window. Alexis got out of the car, looking around at all the people she didn’t like. For as long as she could remember, she couldn’t stand Rogersville. Everyone was always in each other’s business and they all seemed so stuck up to her. She hadn’t met a single person she liked in the eight years that she had lived here.  
  	“Welcome to our home.” A shorter lady greeted us. Her smile was as white as pearls and her voice was very warm and sincere, she looked athletic in her white jacket with her nutmeg hair pulled back into a ponytail. “I’m Barbara Andrews, my family and I just moved here a few days ago. I am so excited to meet every single one of you.” Her enthusiasm seemed to be contagious Alexis realized as she caught herself smiling back at the woman.  
  	“Good evening, I’m Stan Collins and this is my wife, Sarah, and my two kids, Alexis and Sam. It’s so great to finally have a new neighbor.”  
  	“Why Sarah, that is a lovely scarf!” Mrs. Andrews complimented.  
  	“Thank you and I love your pearl earrings.” Mrs. Collins stated shyly, motioning to the woman’s ears. 
  	“Well, please, come meet the rest of my family. I feel as if we will all be great friends.” Alexis followed Mrs. Andrews as she led them up onto the patio and to a man that looked to be working the grill. He was tall but also had that athletic look. His tan skin seemed to glow with his white shirt, and his smile only made his look more tan. He laughed along with the rest of the men as he flipped the hamburgers. “Darling, this is the Collins family. This is my husband, George.” She smiled, grabbing hold of her husband’s arm.  
  	“Nice to meet you, folks,” He greeted, loudly. “Welcome to our home.” Mr. Collins immediately started his talk of sports with Mr. Andrews as Mrs. Andrews led the rest of the group to the tables.  
  	“Sam, my two girls, Katie and Amber are about your age I think; they’re out in the field playing soccer actually. Why don’t you go join them,” Mrs. Andrews ushered him along, “Bryan, come here” she called to a tall boy, sitting next to two girls Alexis recognized from her school. He quickly ran over there, his dark brown hair flying in the wind. Alexis’ heart raced as she took in the sight of Bryan. He was much taller than her and very tan like the rest of his family, his brown hair seemed rather wavy and his smile seemed to glow. When he got close enough, she saw that his eyes were the prettiest blue she had ever seen. They were deep and captivating, like a book she couldn’t stop reading.  
  	“Yes, mom” He asked, looking at the group until his eyes landed on her, not seeming to want to move anywhere else. 
  	“This is Alexis Collins; I believe she attends the school you will be going to after fall break.” Mrs. Andrews smiled, ushering Mrs. Collins to go look at the rest of the house with her. The next thing she knew, Alexis was alone with this Bryan guy. She had never been good at talking to cute guys; it was one of her only weaknesses.  
  	“Hi, Alexis, I’m Bryan.” His smile seemed to melt her heart as he nodded towards the empty table next to them. “Would you like to sit down?”  
  	“Uh sure,” She tried to smile as they sat down, trying to think of something to talk about. “So how do you like this weather?” she heard herself ask. She quickly wished she had never asked the most boring conversation starter, thinking he would immediately be turned off, but he just… smiled. 
  	“I like it, but the clouds are a bit different from the almost constant sunshine in California. Do you enjoy the rain?” He asked easily, leaning back in his lawn chair.  
  	“Not really, but I’ve lived here for eight years so I’m kind of used to it by now.” Alexis gathered her composure as she propped her arms on the table.  
  	“That’s a long time. I’ve moved around a lot growing up, but I guess that comes with having nature photographers as parents.”  
  	“Wow that sounds so exciting.” Alexis commented, glancing across the table at him. His arms were folded over his chest and to her surprise; his blue eyes were watching her. 
  	“It can be at times.” He agreed, sitting for a moment in silence. “So what do you do for fun, Alexis Collins?” he finally asked. 
  	“I paint.” She stated, surprised at her own directness. Not many people knew she could paint, and she liked it that way… so why would she tell a stranger?  
  	“What do you like to paint?” He asked enthusiastically.  
  	“The ocean, but I can never get over there enough.” She sighed, “I think it’s the most beautiful thing.” Bryan remained silent for a few moments, lost in thought.  
  	“Would you like to see something cool?” He asked, already standing.  
  	“U-uh ok,” Alexis followed him as he led her around the big house to the edge of the woods. She hesitated but followed as they walked along a path. It was dark now, and hard to navigate through the brush. She followed his outline as he continued to talk.  
  	“I found this place yesterday and I think you’ll like it.” It seemed like a short time until they came out on the other side of the woods. To her amazement, she was standing on top of a cliff, looking out over the ocean. The last slit of a peachy color was going down over the horizon as boats made their way back to the harbor. The sight took her breath away. Bryan said nothing, but just sat down on the soft grass and looked out onto the horizon. Alexis followed and sat beside him, watching the boats come in closer.  
  	“This is incredible.” She whispered, not taking her eyes off the scene. Alexis went into a deep state of thought as she sat there. I never trust people, so why did I trust him? Why did I trust him enough to go through dark woods when I had no idea where we were going? I have spent all of five minutes with this boy! Have I lost my mind? Why is it so easy to talk to him?  
  	“Can I ask you something, Alexis?” he asked her, taking her off guard.  
  	“Sure.” She answered confidently. 
  	“I was wondering if you would show me around tomorrow. We’ve been so busy with unpacking, I haven’t had a chance to go by the school or see the town.” He seemed shy for the first time all night, not daring to look at her. His tan cheeks seemed to turn a different shade.  
  	“Yeah, I can do that.” She smiled, finally looking at him. His gaze met hers as his hand moved a piece of her red hair away from her face. 
   	“Good, I’m glad to have made a friend.” He smiled at her. His gaze remained there for a long while as if he was trying to take a mental picture, never to be thrown away.   
  	“We should probably go back, before my family has realized I’ve been gone.” She stated, rising to her feet.  
  	“You’re right. Here, take my hand so you don’t stumble around on the way back.” He grabbed her hand and took off for the woods. Alexis loved the feeling of having a boy’s hand in hers; a feeling she had never had before. They moved along the path quietly but quickly until they finally came to the exit. Walking through the tall trees, they saw the party was as alive as ever. People were dancing on the patio now, apparently already have eaten, and the kids were now playing hide and go seek. Alexis noticed her mother seemed very happy talking to Mrs. Andrews next to the fire pit, something she had rarely seen.  
  	“I guess we didn’t miss much.” Bryan smiled, releasing her hand to face the cold alone. “I’ll go get us some food if you would like to go ahead and sit down.” He stated, jogging over to the food. What a gentleman. She thought to herself as she went through the tables.  
  	“Alexis,” the two girls from school called her over. “What were you and Bryan doing in the woods?” They asked when she walked up to them.  
  	“Nothing, just showing me something,” Alexis tried hard to think of their names, but couldn’t think of them.  
  	“Oh, you probably don’t recognize us out of school. I’m Natalie.” the blonde stated as if reading her mind, looking at her friend, “and this is Lila. Have a seat.” Alexis sat down, confused at how nice they were being. They had hardly even known her name since the fourth grade.  
  	“Ok, so I didn’t know what you liked so I got you one of everything.” Bryan said, walking up and looking rather happy with himself. Taking the last empty seat between Alexis and Natalie, he immediately dug right in.  
  	“So, Bryan, I was just telling Alexis how great it is to have such a good guy in town now.” Natalie beamed, placing her delicate hand on his arm.  
  	“You were?” Alexis questioned, not remembering that conversation. Natalie could only give her a look as she continued to seek Bryan’s attention.  
  	“Anyways,” Natalie continued, “I was thinking I could show you around on Sunday.” 
  	“Actually, Alexis is going to show me around tomorrow.” He stated, before going back to his burger. Alexis didn’t think anything was wrong with that, but by the look on Natalie’s face apparently there was something very wrong with it.  
  	“Well, I didn’t realize you guys were so close.” Natalie said through clenched teeth, still trying to keep her smile.  
  	“Oh, not really, we just met.” Alexis said quickly, trying to keep the conversation going. 
  	“I think Alexis and I will be great friends, Natalie.” Bryan stated, smiling at Alexis. Natalie couldn’t take it anymore; mumbling an ‘excuse me’ Natalie and Lila left.  
   	“Why do you look so confused?” Bryan asked after a while, but Alexis didn’t answer; instead, she had her own questions.  
  	“Why do you think we will be such great friends?” Alexis questioned, looking down at her burger. 
  	“Because I want us to be, and I think we could get along really easily. We are both very artsy and I can tell that you’re not big on parties, and neither am I. You would rather sit and think rather than talk, just like me. I need a friend and it honestly looks like you need one too.” His words were soft but direct.  
  	“You act like you’ve known me for years.” Alexis stated quietly. 
  	“I feel as if I have…and-” but he was interrupted by someone calling for him from across the yard. 
  	“Bryan, come quick, your mom wants you!” Mr. Andrews called for him. Bryan stood and motioned for Alexis to come too. They walked side by side to the patio where Mrs. Andrews was dancing to the music. 
  	“You two looked like you were having too serious of a conversation to have at a party; dance!” She commanded, flowing across the patio/dance floor to her husband who was running the music. Alexis and Bryan stood there awkwardly as Mrs. Andrews had the song changed to a much slower pace. 
  	“May I have this dance?” Bryan asked, holding out his hand to her. Alexis had never danced before but she couldn’t help but take his hand in hers. She leaned her head against his shoulder as he swept her around the dance floor, holding her close. Alexis had never felt so safe before. She looked up into his eyes and knew he was serious when he said they would be great friends. What better way to come back from fall break on Monday but with a friend? She felt excitement for the first time in a long time. She couldn’t wait till tomorrow.    
   
   
   
   Chapter 1  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   Chapter 1  
   
   
   
   
   
   Publication Date: December 22nd 2012 https://www.bookrix.com/-shelbs1418