To say that Victoria’s summer was spent doing nothing was an understatement. For a girl who didn’t get out much, she could use the summer before the start of her junior year as evidence to prove the point.

Now before you start the numerous name callings of “loser” and “freak,” she wasn’t a home-body who had no friends. She actually socialized pretty well at her high school, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t hate the people in it. She had her small group of friends, and her small group of people she loathed that made her dread high school itself. She even had friends who lived close to her, but laziness was her main problem.

And laziness, as it was addictive, was her reason for spending her summer at home. It wasn’t like she didn’t enjoy it. She actually did like spending time alone in her room as she played the soft sounds of Blink 182 or Green Day while either reading a good book or sketching out something totally random. (No sarcasm intended.) Her parents, being the strict and education-loving people they were, had no problem with this summer. Being almost a junior, they had already been planning by the age of six what they would do if she even came home drunk. But that was never a problem this summer.

Besides, “this town is dull and boring” as quoted by her when explaining to her parents why she hadn’t walked down the street to see a friend or two. “Maybe if a family somehow replaced Mr. and Mrs. Ray and moved in across the street, I would move from my usual spot on the corner of my bed.” She had concluded.

But then, it was almost as if she were a witch, whose words could literally twist into a spell. This being said, two days later, Mr. Ray across the street died in his sleep. Victoria stared out her window as the ambulances and police cars surrounded the small home and helped the elderly Mrs. Ray from her home. And just a week later, Mrs. Ray had put the house up for sale, leaving Victoria only guessing she couldn’t stand to live in the house where her husband had passed.

In some ways, Mrs. Ray’s decision confused Victoria. Sure, the teenager felt bad for the woman, but moving out a house just because your husband died there? It seemed a bit absurd. It wasn’t that Victoria was heartless in Mrs. Ray’s mourning, it was―in all honesty―Victoria’s dislike of couples and cheesiness. Another fact to consider: where did Mrs. Ray even have the money to pay for a brand new house and life? Was Victoria living next to an old, rich couple her whole life?

The last two weeks of summer, Victoria woke up from her usual spot where she was the night before, rubbing her eyes from the sunlight streaming from the window. She walked over to the window and looked across the street, spotting a sign that said Mrs. Ray’s old and rickety house had been sold. Even through her sleepiness, Victoria’s eyes widened, wondering who could ever want that dirty house. I mean, the Rays weren’t the best housekeepers as Victoria could remember from the time the family had greeted them when they first moved in.

She spent that day like every other, except made one little change. The Rays old house was her interest for the last couple of days. She spent her time perched on the ledge outside her window, sketching out the antique shack. Despite its filth, the place did make a great sketch-worthy subject to add to her portfolio.

“12 days,” she whispered to herself one morning, looking at her old comic calendar her mom got her for Christmas. She shuffled her way to her window, picking up her sketch book and trying to pin point where she left off with what she wanted to do with the drawing of the Ray’s house. Hearing the sound of a car door slamming, she moved her head to the window.

She didn’t think the new neighbors would ever show up. For some reason, it felt completely understandable that they would have just bought the house to take it off Mrs. Ray’s hands and then just never move in. But Victoria was very wrong.

She saw a middle-aged man and woman walk out of the moving truck, hugging each other’s shoulders and smiling at the old shack. Great, Victoria thought, another couple moving in to grow old together. She almost went back to her bed before she noticed a small light brown head pop out of the truck and carrying a cardboard box. The boy was hit on the shoulder by his dad―Victoria guessed―with a smile on his face, as if to say, “Good ol’ champ, thanks for the help.” But the boy just gave his dad a look of annoyance and piled the box into the house.

A teenager actually living in walking distance from Victoria? No, it was too good to be true. But the boy was standing right across the street, carrying boxes into his new house. It was the third time he walked out that Victoria got a good look at him, and damn did she almost fall to the ground by her legs becoming numb at the sight of him.

He had messy light brown hair, streaked with odd layers of blonde hair. “What boy streaks their hair?” She mused as she stared. It wasn’t that she found it unattractive; it was just odd for her to see something as interesting as a boy with blonde streaked hair in this boring town. A light gray beanie hung tight on his head and he wore a sort of tight Bob Marley shirt, showing off his not so big biceps. But it was his eyes that really caught her attention. They were dark brown, reminding her of the chocolate that you were so excited to get on Easter morning.

It was then that she noticed those same chocolate eyes were staring at her through the window, and she instantly hid below the window sill. “Fuck,” she muttered as she hid, slowly peaking her head up to see if he was still staring. He wasn’t, but that didn’t stop the embarrassing blush from creeping at her cheeks as she walked away from the window.

Notes

I hope you guys enjoy this story! I wrote it for my friend and decided to put it up on here :)
NOTE: I know Alex moved from private school to public school and that the band was created in their freshman year of high school. But the story would have been a little off if it was in that year, so I made it in their senior year. So this story isn't all that accurate, but hey, it's fan fiction. Sorry for the confusion if I caused you it!
Rock on \m/ :D