It All Started With A Locker

Check out "Being His Fake Girlfriend" on my other profile, Geneedwards. It's also available as an audiobook on Wehear. ______________ "Trish, get up!" the triplet rascals—Mason, Mia, and Matthew—shout in unison, jumping on my bed. "I'll count to five, and you better be gone," I threaten. "One, two, three—" They scramble off, and I open my eyes just in time to see Mia's head disappearing out the door. I get up, lock the door, and lie back down. "Trish, get up! Winter break is over; you need to start waking up early," knocks Lexi, my stepmother. "It's 7 AM," I groan. "Tomorrow, you need to be up by 6:20 AM," she reminds me. Where’s Dad when I need him? Oh right, out of town, leaving me with three eleven-year-old rascals and a stepmother. "I'll be down in five minutes," I reply, getting off the bed again. I head to the bathroom, my hair is a mess, and I have bags under my eyes. "Did you stick your finger in a socket?" Mia laughs as I turn around. "Go find your brothers or something," I wave her off. "They're pranking Mom again, and I don't want to get grounded," she says. "Mason and Matthew West, get back here!" Lexi yells from downstairs. "See?" Mia smiles and skips away. ___ Breakfast is quiet. Mason and Matthew eat in silence, Mia plays with her egg, Lexi is still trying to get eggs out of her hair, and I'm lost in thought about the upcoming semester. "Dude, school starts tomorrow; I don’t want to go," Mason whines. "Same," Mia and Matthew echo. "You have to; remember what Dad said?" I remind them. My mom died in a fire when I was two, and Dad met Lexi when I was three and a half. They married when I was five. "That we must go to school if we want to live in that mansion we saw in magazines," Mason replies, and I nod. "Exactly." I have my mom's honey blonde hair, while Mason and Matthew have Dad's jet black hair, and Mia has Lexi's red hair but their gray-blue eyes. "Great news! I finally got the egg out, but you boys are grounded for a week—no video games or TV," Lexi announces, drying her red hair with a towel. "What are we supposed to do? Read? News flash, we aren't Trish," Mason snaps. Ouch. "Go to your rooms," Lexi sighs, and he storms off. "I'll talk to him," Matthew says. "Me too," Mia adds, following them. "I'll check on them and make sure they stay out of trouble. Maybe we can go to the park later," I suggest, or perhaps I'll join in their trouble too. Lexi nods. ____ "I love the park! Hey, there's our friends!" Mason exclaims, dragging his brother and sister toward three popular kids by the swings. I sit on a bench, pull out my book, and start reading while keeping an eye on my siblings on the monkey bars. Tomorrow is back to school, and last semester they mentioned some students might have to share lockers due to an influx of freshmen. I wonder what this year will bring. I haven't seen my friend Jasmine all winter break because she went to Chicago for Christmas. "I don't like girls; that's why it's better to have guy friends," Mia scoffs as she sits next to me. "What happened?" "Claire, the new girl, is taking all of Asher's attention and playfully pushing him," she crosses her arms. "Is she the redhead?" I ask, noticing her flirting with Mason or Matthew. "Yes." "Do you like Asher?" I smile, and she blushes. "N-no," she stutters. "Don't worry, your secret is safe with me," I wink. "And don't stress about Claire; it seems Asher doesn’t like her either," I say as the blonde boy approaches. "Hey, Mia, want to chase some ducks and run from the cops?" he smirks, and she nods, grinning. "Just so you know, you're way cuter than her," he whispers as they run off. They're so meant to be.