Chapter 1

Hope:

I watched the trees whip by as we drove along the highway toward our new home. I was full of anxious excitement. What would my life be like in this new place? Mom and Dad sat in the front, discussing everything from decorating the house to their new jobs. Even though I was leaving behind everything I knew, as well as a best friend, I was still optimistic that this was a positive step forward. One needed change in order to grow. New experiences made a fuller life. I kept telling myself that.

The concern my mind kept wandering back to was school. Would I make any good friends? Would people like me? Would I have the kind of deep and meaningful relationships I'd left back home? I truly hoped so. Mom always said that the world was full of friends you just hadn't met yet. I believed her wholeheartedly. She had moved away from her home at around my age. But she had been starting college. I was midway through my senior year of high school. It was going to be really awkward starting new in the middle of the year. Everyone had probably already established their group of friends. I'd be an outsider. But I would try my best to make the most of it. Because this was a good move for my parents. My dad was starting his dream job: mathematics professor at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

That was a long way from San Francisco, California.

It had been a long week. We'd stayed overnight in a couple of cities along the way, just to break up the monotony of driving. We were in the SUV while we towed Mom's car behind us. I'd sold my car before we left. It wasn't worth trying to drive it here. It was better if the three of us could take turns driving. It'd actually been pretty fun. We'd always loved family road trips. Although I usually brought my best friend, Sage. Thank goodness for FaceTime and social media. I was going to miss her like crazy.

Dad kept telling me we were almost there. I would believe it when we pulled up to our house. We started passing through a more residential neighborhood. The houses were beautiful. They looked old but nice. My mom called them historic. I could see the appeal. They had a sense of grandeur that our old neighborhood didn't possess. Mom said our house would need a little work, but not much. I was looking forward to it. Bringing back the original beauty of something could be therapeutic.

We finally pulled up to a white, two-story home. It had pillars holding up a beautiful front porch. It was amazing! I had never expected this. It looked like it had a fresh paint job too. Dad had really done good. He'd found this place on his own when he came out here to interview with the dean. He wouldn't show me a picture, saying that he wanted it to be a surprise.

"What do you think?" he asked proudly, a big grin on his face.

"Very impressive," Mom told him while hugging him around the waist.

"I love it, Dad. I'm proud of you! You actually have taste."

The three of us laughed as we entered the double doors. It was gorgeous inside. Hardwood floors, a spiral staircase, and a big chandelier hanging above us. It had a big open floorplan. I ran to the kitchen to have a look. I loved to cook, so the kitchen was usually my favorite part of any house. It did not disappoint. It was a huge gourmet kitchen with marble countertops. I could tell this place had been newly renovated. But they'd kept the charm that had been here many years ago when it was first built. I turned in a circle, looking at everything: double oven, warming drawer, wine fridge, six-burner range. I ran to my dad and gave him a big hug. "I love it!"

"This part is for you, baby. I knew this was the key to making you want to stay."

Mom laughed as she took it all in. "Honey, you outdid yourself. This place must have cost a fortune!"

"Not as much as our house in San Francisco. Property values are a little less here," he informed us. That was a relief. I would hate for Dad to break his neck trying to pay the mortgage. But I assumed he was getting a pretty good salary at the university. They told me not to worry about those things. But I was a worrier. It was what I did. I didn't want my parents to ever have to struggle to make sure I had nice things. That's why I didn't ask for much. I had bought a used car by myself with money I had earned. I was proud of that.

We looked around the rest of the downstairs and the backyard. It was open to the trees in the back. The lot was large, so we didn't really need to worry about privacy. The trees would take care of that too. It was so peaceful. Then we headed upstairs to see the bedrooms. Mom and Dad's was gorgeous, with a walk-in closet and en-suite bathroom. But I was really interested in mine.

"Go ahead, Hope. I know you're dying to see your room," Mom told me as I ran down the hall to check it out.

Wow! That was all I could think when I walked in. It was big. Twice the size of my old room. It faced the backyard and had a balcony overlooking the woods. Dad's voice startled me because I was in my own little world at that point.

"Gorgeous, isn't it? I knew as soon as I saw it that this would be the perfect room for you. It even has a little window seat for reading!" he announced. I looked next to the French doors and saw a bay window with the same view as the balcony. "It's perfect." I imagined doing my homework in the window, looking out as the sun set. Dad gave me a big bear hug as Mom started talking about how we should decorate.

After inspecting every inch of the new house, we decided to head out to eat. Our things would be arriving in a big moving van tomorrow. There wouldn't be any cooking until all the kitchen supplies arrived and we took a trip to the grocery store. We each had a suitcase of necessities for tonight. It felt like we were on vacation.

Dinner conversation was full of speculations about our new life in Cambridge. Dad was replacing a much older professor who'd had a heart attack a couple months ago. He would be starting mid-year, just like me. Mom would be joining the team at a hospital only ten minutes away. She was a psychologist, the same profession I hoped to get into. But I wanted to be a child psychologist. I loved children. And I hoped that I would be able to help any who needed it.

The long tiring day ended with us blowing up air mattresses and putting them in the living room like we were having a sleepover. That had been Mom's idea. Before I fell fast asleep, I thought again about starting school in a few days. The anxiety was still there, but excitement was right behind it now that we were actually here.

New Year's Eve was in two days. And then on Monday, I would be thrown into an unknown world. I had pretty much gone to school with the same kids my whole life. Sage had been my best friend since fourth grade. This was a huge change. A big, frightening, thrilling change.