5.5: First

   "Do we have to go to your sister's?"
    "We've been dating for a year and my parents are dead. It's the next best thing. So yes."
   "I've been to your house like twice. You've been to mine like way more. Why can we just go to your house? I mean, it's just as strange minus the strange people who think I'm, you know, you."
   "Please? Pretty please?"
   "I guess...you owe me, though." I sighed. Her sister Jazlyn's home. Married with two kids. This wasn't giving Alani any ideas, was it? Was I suppose to pop down on one knee and pull out a ring box?
   "Alright."
   "Alright?"
   "I owe you. And I know how I'm paying you back."
   "Really? Is it a surprise?"
   "You know it."
   "What is it?"
   "I was going to wait, but..."

  "You-you kissed me?! We work together. You were all nothing physical."
  "I quit."
  "You what? Why?"
  "Well, I've decided I want to be a fisherman. Woman. Whatever."
  "And so now...?"
  "You're currently dating an unemployed girl. And we have nothing holding us back from going crazy."
  "Except for the fact that we have to go to your sister's house, so we can't go crazy tonight."
  "Take it or leave it."
  "I'll take it." I paused. Alani quit so we could be together. She was amazing. As we started making out, something dawned on me. I'm in love with Alani Shepherd. It wasn't because the door was suddenly open, I had said 'I love you' many times before. Now I just really meant it. She was so dedicated to hr beliefs, she quit her job so she could kiss me. It wasn't Hallmark movie material, but it was incredibly romantic to me.

   At her sister's home, it was awkward. Mostly because Alani was the hot sister. And that made me want to rush home have us do things together. While I tried to keep from thinking of all the things we could try, I was introduced to the family. Someone, person, dad, Jazlyn. I didn't remember the names. I probably should, but I was a twenty-seven year old man with a gorgeous girlfriend and a king sized bed at home. I was distracted.

  "This is my nephew."  She bent down to hug him.
  "Hey." I shook his hand.
  "Do you play sports?" The little boy looked up at me, curious.
  "No..."
  "Oh." He was done with me.
  "I do work out a lot." He went off to the kitchen; he didn't care. Kids these days, right?
  "Oh, Trevor!This is Jazlyn, my sister."
  "Trevor, I've heard so much about you!"

  "I've heard so much about you. You're home is great."
  "Oh, thank you. This is small, really."
  "It is?"
  "Compared to the farmhouse we grew up in, oh yes."
   We head to the kitchen and ate dinner. It was a lot of family classics. Meatloaf and homemade mashed potatoes, milk from the dairy farm someone's friend's dad owned. Small talk, chit chat. Boring things, really. I nodded and answered questions about my career and life. I was being grilled. The husband kept winking at me. When he passed by me, he whispered in my ear that if certain things ran in the family she was amazing in the sack, am I right bro? I chuckled and nodded. How was I suppose to know? I was here instead of home.
    We moved to the living room to drink coffee and eat homemade cookies. Everything was homemade. Everything.
    "Look, mom! It's snowing."
    "Wow, it's coming down heavy."
    "We should be heading home." Alani said. "You know March weather."
    "Oh, no! I insist you stay. We have a guestroom."
    "Lovely." She dryly said.
    An hour later, we where getting ready to go to sleep in the guestroom. It was awkward to say the least. We'd never shared a bed before.
    "You wear that to bed?"
    "Well...I was expecting we'd be at your place. I dressed up a little."
    "Thank you."
    "Thank you?" She giggled.
    "We've been so formal and proper. Felt like I should say it."
    "I love you."
    "I love you, too."
    "Is it weird I'm thinking of ripping your clothes off in my sister's house?"
    "Little bit. I've been thinking about doing it the whole time, though." 

    "Why not, now?" She kissed me. We slipped underneath the covers to utter bliss. That was my first kiss with her and the first time we... it was amazing. She was amazing. I didn't regret waiting. Neither of us did.

5.4: Spring Fling Festival

   "Ready to head home?" I smiled.
   "I'm fine. My sister is coming to get me, soon. I'll stay with her for a bit." Alani had ended up in the hospital for two weeks after her collapsing; she was finally being released. She couldn't handle that much stress; it ended up causing her body to go into overload mode.
   "I'm sorry."
   "It's alright, sir."
   "No, it isn't. She was insane. I shouldn't have...you know."
   "Sir, this violates my friends at work only thing."
   "I wanted to make sure you where okay. And give you a gift." I had bought her some balloons and a bear. Hospital gift shop items where the least I could provide, considering what happened. I still felt guilty.
    "And the gifts are adorable. I had one of those bears as a kid. The bear in a bunny costume one."
    "Is it okay, if I ask you something?"
    "What is it?"
    "Just...do you feel alright?"

    "Yes." She stood up, proving her statement.
    "You should rest."
    "I'm fine."
    "Do you want to celebrate, you being better?"
    "How?"
    "By going to the Spring Fling Festival with me. You where to stressed out and some fun might do you some good." She was quiet. "I mean it's next week, so you have time to think."
   "Okay."
   "Huh?"
   "Sure. As a friend."
   "Of course. Friend." Totally. Because I like you more than that, but friend works. Totally. Why do I feel like I'm back in high school? "Oh yeah, that reminds me."

   "Of what?"
   "Well..." I pulled flowers out from behind my back. "That any gentleman brings flowers."
   "Aw! That's so sweet. And completely friendship-ish."
   "Exactly."
   "Awww..."
   "Aw what?!" Maybe she had a change of heart...
   "Nothing." She laughed, blushing. "Nothing." Nothing? It wasn't really nothing, was it?


Alani's POV...


   I stood on his front porch, knocking on the door. I was nervous. I glanced at my dress. It wasn't too much, was it? Why wasn't he answering? Did I mess up. No. I mean. Friends. Totally. I grew u[ in a sheltered home. Maybe that caused me to be socially awkward and shy.
   "Hey." He smiled, answering the door. "You look beautiful."
   "Thanks. Beautiful? Wow... it isn't too much for an outdoorsy park, is it?"
   "No, why?"
   "I just, love your outfit. You're very, very," How many verys did I plan on adding? He was hot. I knew it. I worked with him, though. I couldn't like him and then we date and other people whisper how I was sleeping with the boss and that that was why I was being promoted. That was shunned here in Appaloosa Plains. I had to be the perfect small town girl my parents wanted, like my sis Jazlyn Parrott was. Married with two boys. And Haliey... she was roommates with a few men. I didn't know the status. Still had her maiden name like me, though. "Handsome."
   "Thanks." He looked at me kind of odd. It was odd, right? I mean...very?
   "I just- er. Park. Yeah let's do that."
   "Great. I can drive, if you'd like."
   "Sure." I nodded.
   We arrived at the park after a few minutes of silent driving. I played with the radio, he focuses on the road. It was a weird moment. Very awkward. Luckily, I'm good at awkward. I've been practicing.

   "So.... come here often?" I joked with him.
   "All the time."
   "Really?"
   "Never in my life."
   "When I was a kid, four times a year for the holidays. As an adult? Pfht. Never. I do love the memories, though."
   "Cool. So you grew up here?"
   "Yeah." I glanced down. "You're not from around here, are you? I mean I've heard stuff."
   "Stuff? Like what?"
   "Well... when you first came, you moved in the crazy cat house. Rumors say the owner was ate by one of her kitties and found days later. And nobody knew who you where when you moved in, so it seemed like ya where a ghost or something. So like, you where the ghost haunting the cat lady home that the cat lady haunted."
   "Sounds like the start to a bad supernatural romantic horror comedy."
   "Yeah...you move din like years after she died, though. When I was a kid you didn't do near that home cause of the stories. On Halloween though, everybody dared everybody else to like climb through the window and see if they could spot the ghost."
   "I'm a bit...disturbed."
   "So, where you from?" I tried smoothing over the conversation.
   "Bridgeport, New York."
   "Ah. See, city slickers think they know everything, so the real estate people full a lot on 'em."
   "Like selling them haunted houses?"
   "It wasn't actually haunted."
   "That's good, I suppose."
   "Hey, you wanna do something stupid?" He looked up to me, eyes wide. What did I... oh. Last time I said that sentence, I was in high school with the neighbor guy from my senior math class. We sneaked out to his dad's barn where he kept the horses (it was summer though, so all of them where in the fields)  and...one of us rode the other like they where a horse. Needless to say, it was the first and only time in my existence I had... had intercourse- did that sound like I was a prude- with anyone.
  "Sure." He said, carefully.
  "I didn't mean like that." I saw his smile lessen a bit. "But...uh. It's stupid."
  "No it isn't."
  "Well, in high school after the Valentine's Day dance, we always went to the Spring Fling and competed fro Spring King and Queen. Then, we'd use the love machine to see who we where suppose to be with. It was like before the Internet and sites that did it for ya."
   "That doesn't sound dumb."
   "Well...since this is just bringing memories back, I thought maybe we could try it."
   "We aren't- sure."
   "Like, friends did it too." Grrr. if guys think about that stuff 24/7, did that sound suggestive?
   "Okay." We walked over the machine. I pressed a few buttons, fed it some quarters, and waitied for the results.
    "You found your soul mate." I read. Great. This was just awesome. Just horrible. "Ridiculous." I laughed. I believed it, tough. In high school the ancient machine claimed our relationships would fail and they did. It was an odd sense of trust I had put into the thing.
    "...Totally." He disagreed. I could tell. Dang.

    We ate a bit and played horseshoes, he won, until it was nightfall. I felt like I'd grown closer to him. We had chatted and I learned about his childhood and he learned about mine. Favorites and dislikes were said. Everything felt like it was on the table; we had been honest and trusting. Only I didn't tell him why we couldn't date.
    "Will you go steady with me?" Out of the blue, he asked me.
    "What?!"
    "Well, we can date, right? Nothing physical. I buy you flowers and we'll go dancing or something. Nothing other than cuddling."
    "Sure."
    "Really?"
    "No kisses, no....anything. Got it? We work together."
    "Alright." He nodded his head. I was dating him. But was it really dating? I mean...I didn't expect sex at any time. He didn't (if he ever had, he defiantly didn't now).   I suppose it was. I liked him a lot. He liked me. Sure. Why couldn't we be dating? If we didn't do anything... it's fine. Really. 

5.3: A Little Crush

You know how I said the last part was to be continued? Yeah, I didn't want to make it a part one/two, so here it is.... P.S. Some language (b, d, h) is used.

   Where was Jane? I sat downstairs, wondering. Jane wasn't here. She had been gone for a long time. Was she okay? I was sick of her doing this to me. Goes off, gets drunk, comes home. It was six in the freaking morning on a Saturday! She should be home. Now. I was tired of being sympathetic. I wasn't going to let her get to me. She was bad news and I was tired of her spending so much. I lost more money then I knew I had. I was tired of it.
   "Hey babyyy." She staggered in the door.
   "Where the hell have you been? I'm twenty-six and you're twenty-five. I'm not your father, dammit. I shouldn't have to worry about this. You running off and getting drunk. And you aren't getting drunk off cheap bear that costs a dollar from the questionable gas station, it's costing me a couple grand a week! Sober up. Now. I've put up with this long enough. I've dragged your butt to AA and nothing's helped. We tried therapy and everything, but nothing works! I cannot lock you in the house, but-"
   "Yooou wanttt sexxxxx?"
   "Stop! No. I'm dropping you off at therapy or something and we're breaking up. Whatever this is, it is over. Sorry, but-" She fell onto me, kissing my lips. It angered me more. She thought physical affection would change me mind? She was probably higher than the moon, but could she use her brain. She was sober during the day. Why the hell couldn't she be at night? it wasn't even night. It was morning.
   "Twev-Twev. Me needsss you. Me and you go fudge eachothew's bwains out. Pwease?"
   "Stop! No."
   "I havve newsss."
   "So do I. I am tired of this. Tired. I'm going to the fire house. I need to cool off."
   "B-bu-ut." Her lip quivered.

   "No. You're a gold digger and I don't want to do anything I'll regret. Like you." I spat. I was angry. I wasn't violent; I never was. I would never hurt a girl. But I said a lot of things and I couldn't say anything else.
   I hopped on my bike and stormed off to the firehouse. I was upset. Way upset. She did this again and again. I knew she had a problem. I tried to help. I dragged her to everyplace I could find. Told her I would support her. I couldn't take it, though. Not again. I was not a father. Her father. I didn't want a child. Especially one who thought she didn't need to fix anything if she had her body.
   The rain poured down; the sky matched my mood. Grumpy. I was a happy person. She just happened to ruin that. I needed it back. That required her gone. I was suppose to be living a great life. I liked her, as a friend. But she didn't care for me. She used me, over and over again. It had to stop. There was no easy way. It had to stop. Forget sooner, I did it later and it bit my in the butt.
   I through my bike to the side and ran into the firehouse. I walked in, to see Alani Shepherd sitting there looking at a map. She was the new intern who I-  though I hated admitting it with me and Jane being a whatever- thought was kinda cute. She was intelligent and had the small town charm. Innocent and honest. Kind. The polar opposite of Jane. Jane who I had just dumped.
  "Hello, sir."
  "Hey, you don't have to call me sir. Trevor is fine."
  "Sir, you're my boss. You're the Fire Sergeant. After the other sir moved to Texas permanently and this became your fire house, you became my boss. I'm below you."
  "Alani, how long ago did we hire you?"
  "One year, sir. I turned twenty-four exactly that day."
  "Happy late birthday."
  "Thank you, sir."
  "Is it alright if I call you Alani, madame?" I remembered that not everyone was comfortable with a first name basis.
  "Yes, sir."
  "You're a Hose Handler. You aren't below me. You aren't below me at all."
  "Thank you, sir."
  "I'm going to go upstairs and see if anyone else is here."
  "You and me are the only ones, sir. it's six-thirty on a Saturday. I'm the only one suppose to be here. Is everything alright, sir?"
  "Yeah, just... yeah. You know."
  "No sir, I do not."
  "How come you get this shift?"
  "I like the quiet." She was known to be notoriously shy.
  "Ah." I began walking over to my office. "You look nice today." I commented.
  "Er-uh-er-um, thank you." She was blushing. She looked cute when she was embarrassed. "Sir." She quickly added.
  "If you get bored and want to chat or something, you can. With me, I mean. I just-"
  "Are you trying to be my friend, sir?"
  "I-"
  "Because, I think we can be friends on a professional level. Not outside of work, though. Sir, I like to keep thinks professional. Coworkers as friends aren't out of work friends."
  "I-I..." It was my turn to blush this time. She was direct. And sheltering herself. Was something wrong? Was she hiding something? I didn't know, but I wanted her to know that we could be friends without it getting weird or out of hand. I walked to my office, sitting down. Alani... defiantly wasn't synonymous with open book.

At Home...Jane's POV...

  I woke up in the bed. I glanced at the clock five pm. Trevor was still gone. That little son of a bitch. I stood up, my headache not as bad. I glanced in the mirror. I was a mess! I quickly applied a full face of makeup and picked out a decent dress and pair of heels to match. I was going to the fire station. He couldn't dump me, leave me at his house, and run off! I was finding him, going to dump him (even though he already did that), and move on with my damn life.

Trevor's POV...

   I was making the beds, when I heard the click clack of heels. Click. Click-clack. Clack. Click-Clack. I turned to face the door.
I could see Alani fixing the alarm outside the door and- crap! Jane.
   "TREVOR!" She screamed, throwing open the door. "What in the world are you doing?"

   "Working." I smoothly said, not wanting to fight with Alani so close. I couldn't let her see my livid ex and run away to hide. She was so secretive and shy. I couldn't make things worse. I liked her a bit. A more than friends like. "Can we do this at home?"
   "Don't be sarcastic with me! I know you're working. And we will do this here. If you didn't want your little coworkers to see, you shouldn't freaking dump me like that!"
   "You have a problem!"
   "You're right! It's YOU!"
   "I broke up with you. I took your key and dumped you. Sorry, but-"

   "OH, no! I was to drunk to make a comeback then, but now?! I will freaking be with you. I have news."
   "No. I'm tired of you doing this. Blaming it on me. I lived with it for long enough."
   "YOU?! You're the victim? Ha. Ha. Nope!"
   "Jane, calm down. Please."
   "Stop telling me that!"
   "Look, I know it was rough."
   "How would you know?!"
   "I just-"
   "No! Stop saying I. I, I, I. It's all about you. You think I'll take this? I'm moving out. You will never see me again! Ever. Got it? E-V-E-R. EVER. You think you're so good, you can spell, right?"
   "Stop, please."

   "To late for please! I'm leaving." She stomped out the door, past Alani. "And you. You bitch! Did you sleep with my boyfriend? Did he dump me for you?"
   "No, ma'am."
   "Ma'am?" She laughed, shrilly. "Look, you home-wrecking slut. Never call me ma'am again. I'm not hick from your small town."
   "This isn't needed, is it. Please."
   "Everybody so damn polite! Please, please, please. You stole my boyfriend!" Her voice was venom. I pushed the door, following her. I could take this. But Alani? She wasn't use to confrontation or the anger. Nobody did this to her.
    "Jane, stop! This is between me and you. Alani didn't do anything."
    "Alani? Slut name if I ever heard one."
    "Ma'am-"

    "I said don't call me FUDGING ma'am!" Jane had snapped. She slapped the poor girl so hard, she nearly pushed her over the banister. A red mark was implanted on her cheek.

    "JANE! You bitch." I screamed. She was insane. This was between me and her. bringing Alani- innocent bystander Alani- into this was too much. Way to much. "Go! Just go!" I turned towards Alani- she was gone. "Look, I'm going to go chase after her. I hope you're out of my life by the time I'm back."
    "Or what?"
    "You're trespassing. I don't know I just- Alani!" I ran down the stairs, trying to find her. I heard her crying from downstairs. I glanced down. She had fallen off the pole.

   "Don't come close to me." She whimpered, standing up.
   "I'll help you. I'm sorry. Jane is crazy." She shook her head, running out the door. I slid down the pole, following her. I had to fix things. Had to. Out the door I ran, trying to find her. She was ahead of, dashing across the street.   I caught up to her, waiting for her to say something.
   "I'm sorry." She cried. "I didn't mean to ruin your marriage."
   "No, no you didn't. We weren't even married. Or dating. You did nothing wrong."
   "Why did she slap me? Nobody has ever done that before. Why?"
   "She's unstable. Crazy. She's gone now, okay. Do you want the rest of the week off? Paid vacation? Anything?"
   "Leave me alone, sir. I don't need your sympathy."
   "I know you don't want it. it doesn't mean you don't need it, though."

   "Sir, I mean this in the nicest way, but please don't say anything else."
   "I-" I shut my mouth.
   "Thank you." She turned away. I watched her walk away, into the road. It happened faster than I could imagine. She collapsed on the road she was walking and she just collapsed! I ran to her, panicking. I dialed nine-one-one screaming for help. She had to be okay. Had to stay with me. I liked her. This couldn't be happening.

5.2: Substance Abuser

   I can't believe the news. This was horrible. I needed to forget it. I had to tell Trevor soon. You can't keep something this big from him for long. He'd support me. We could be happy...no. I wouldn't. I don't want it. I can't afford to not, though. Damn.
   I walked into this stupid town's only bar, thoughts running through my brain. One mission today. Forget, forget, forget. Ugh. I can't believe I actually moved here, but some rich guy wanted a trophy wife and was about to die any way. Who cares if I'm younger than his great-grandchild? Not me. The family hates me, but I got all his money. Everything.
  "Drink!" I shout, bored to death. It''s been a few seconds. Some damn waiter should be kissing my feet and serving me vodka already.
  "Whatdyawant?" He says it quickly, in one sentence. "We have a new drink that contains gold flecks served in a solid diamond bottle. Pure alcohol. Bought it just for you." The bartender waited, patiently.
  "How much?"
  "Nine hundred a glass."
  "Sure! Bring it on." Trevor would pay it. I got that man wrapped around my finger. He served me up the shots, as I quickly did one after another. "Heeeey boy." I smiled at the red head man with gray streaked hair in the corner. "Wanna some acttttion?"
  "I'm married." He backed away.
  "Aww, thaaaat's okay. She can join."
  "No, creep!" He scurried away, as fast as he could with his cane.
  "Aww. Nnotherrr shot." I turned back to the bartender. I can't believe Trevor's kept me around for four years. I've cheated on him, well we weren't exclusive, so it didn't count, and become...well let me say that I wasn't exactly legalizing everything I did. Still, I laid down on the bar and let the guys go at me. Trevor didn't know, but considering that half of Appaloosa Plains, you know, I'm surprised nobody told him.
   "Closing time." The bouncer dragged me outside.
   "Alllright." It's only midnight. Stupid town. I staggered to the side of the building, barely able to walk in my heels.
   "Do you have the money?" A low, husky voice asked me.
   "Yesss." I said; it was obvious I did.
   "Give it to me."
   "How muuuch?"
   "Double last time."
   "Thhhhat's....okayyy." I shoved the wad of cash into his (or her, I never remembered) hands.  "Will it knock me out?"
   "Yes."
   "Goood. I dunno if I wanna remember."
   "Here." The white powder I needed, almost to live, was given to me in a small plastic baggy. The person ran off, as I heard the car engine start. I practically inhaled the bag, as I felt myself growing woozy. This would be the last time for awhile. No more until....after. I couldn't bare to think about it. My body hit the ground, as I went off into a coma-like state. That was my goal. One last time before I couldn't do it for a long time. Afterwards I could, but not now. No, no.... I needed the feeling one last time so I could get through it all. Nobody else understood me. I needed it. Badly.

Four hours later...

   "Uhh." I woke up groggy, unsure of where I was. The building beside me looked familiar. Oh yeah. The bar. What was I doing here? I didn't now. I couldn't remember anything after eleven pm. But...the news still plagued me. I hated it. The news was bad... at least for someone like me. I tried standing up, but couldn't. I crawled to the steps, sitting up. Dawn was hours away; it was still night time in the town.
  I stood up, staggering to the sidewalk. Left, right, left, right. One foot, other foot. Just keep going. Walk. Walk. Home. Trevor. Home. The only thing I could remember was my address, Trevor,, and the news. Life sucked.  My head ached, but I had to keep going. Trevor.
  My feet ached as I passed by the police station. I belonged their. That was what my life would go to. I should be their. Locked up. Keep going... keep going. I moved forwards, to home. I had to keep going. The news. The news. It....damn I hated it. But... keep going. Move. Head hurts. Life sucks. To bad. I messed up. Fudge, fudge, fudge. Keep moving. Keep moving. Home.If I even had one. Did I have a home? I couldn't remembered. I mooched off Trevor.... but nothing was mine. His home, his money, his caring self. I abused that... along with other things that I bought with his money. Did I buy it again? I needed it but.... I sighed. To house. Let's go house, Jane. Jane Smith. Dumb, right? Jane Janes. That is stupid- or would be. Still.... go to Trevor. GO!

To be continued.....

5.1: Pink Hurricane

WARNING: There's some suggestions/references in here, so you may not want to read if you're under a certain age (nothing 18+ is here, though). Use your best judgement, thank ya.

   I sat up, looking up. What the hell? Everything was pink. The walls, the sheets, the lights. Everything. I didn't even like the color pink. It... great. I did this every morning. Wake up, wonder what the hell was going on then remember. It started a year ago, after I was promoted...

One Year Ago...

   "BRRRRRRRRING!" The fire alarm began going off. I was excited, I had to admit. My first fire. I did sound like a crazy person, but I was glad that I could help and save people.
   "Quick, Trevor!" A volunteer shouted.

   "Yes sir." I pulled on my outfit and rushed to the truck, climbing on. We drove to the fire in a little less then a minute; a firehouse record. I quickly put out the fire, after the hose was readied.
   Flames devoured the home, as we fought to end it. It ravaged on, burning everything in sight. We sopped it, luckily. Not before the home was burned completely down from the ground, though. I felt horrible. By the time anyone called, the fire was out of control; we couldn't have done anything. Still. I was getting ready to leave, when I saw a girl quivering on the front lawn. I wasn't in charge of the people area. That was the boss' thing. But she looked so scared. I took a deep breath, stepping over to her.
   "Ms, are you alright?"
   "My...my home!" She burst into tears."Thank you...but..."
   "It's alright." I comforted her. I spoke to her, reassuring her.
   "I have no place to go." She wiped the tears from her eyes.
   "Are you sure? No relatives or anyone?"

   "I'm not from here. So, no. My late husband, Arther, died eleven months ago... he was ninety-nine." Her voice didn't crack. Odd.
   "How old are you?"
   "Twenty-one." Twenty-one?! She was nearly a fifth her late husband's age (that also probably explained the three story mansion she lived- or use to- in.) . Still...her white-blonde died hair, streaked with dark turquoise and pink made her look so innocent and scared... she needed a place to stay.

    "You can stay with me."
    "Really?! Thank you." She kissed my cheek. "You're so generous."

Back to the Present...

   This is how I found myself with her. I bought her a  new wardrobe, let her decorate the home to her taste, everything. I was told she was a gold digger. She was; it wasn't a lie. Why did I let her stay...?
   "Trevor!" She sang-song. "I bought a new diamond necklace! It was a real steal, only being about ten grand, too." Ten grand?! Why was I staying with her? I sat up, looking at her. Oh...her body was gorgeous. And she was a hurricane in bed; wild, unpredictable. A hurricane obsessed with pink. HSe spent at least twenty thousand a month ( though fifty thousand was her norm).
    "We need to talk about your spending."
    "B-but." Her yes shined and her lip began quivering. I hated seeing her upset like this. "Twev-Tqev. Pwease." She spoke like a child, something annoying to me. I didn't have the heart to inform her that her suppose to be sexy voice made me feel uncomfortable, though. And was offensive to everyone with speech impediments they couldn't help. (Blake has one- the reason he hardly voided a word.)
    "It's out of control."

    "Aww. Come here, pwease." She took my hand and pulled me out of bed. Our lips touched as electricity shot through my veins. As much as I hated admitting it, my sex life was the reason I out up with her. "Let's try out some new moves." She winked.
     "I-I. Talk."
     "Trevor." She said, sympathetically. "Look at your friend." She downwards. "He clearly wants us to."
     "Oh." I stuttered, embarrassed. Her body pressed into mine,  making it even more apparent."I want you." I whispered. It was true- I wanted the sensation.

     "Yay!" She pushed me onto the bed, slowly slipping her clothes off. I loved this part of my life. We started this romance thing out when I realized I only had one bed... a glass or seven of wine and soon both of us thought it was a great idea. We weren't dating. Weren't friends with benefits. Weren't even really friends. She pretended that we dated, though. I happened to go along with it.It was a toxic mess. But, what was I to do?

5.0: Soot Stipper to Hose Handler

   I felt the ache in my muscles as I pushed myself. One more set. One-hundred and ten pounds. I had been working our for two hours after work at the department; so far my max weight was 110. That would change soon, though. I was working on becoming stronger and stronger everyday.
    The gym closed early tonight, due to some Autumn harvest fest parade thing that happened annually. I haven't felt the inclination to emerge myself in local country yet, so I was still clueless. I stopped lifting the weights and grabbed my gym bag. My bike rest outside, unchained. Appaloosa Plains was a small town that had everyone trusting one another. I still locked my door; I had grown up in the middle to lower class section of Bridgeport that occasionally would become a tad shady, after all. I hopped on my bike riding off to my home that was a mile or three outside of town.
   I had moved to Appaloosa Plains a little under month ago. Mom and Dad were a little hesitant to let me move across the country, from New York to eastern Washington state, though I eventually convinced them- I was a legal adult at twenty-two, after all. I joined the Verona County Fire Department as soon as I arrived in Appaloosa Plains. I was determined to start saving lives as soon as I could. Sadly, it didn't work that way. I have yet to do anything but be the maintenance man taking care of the truck's engine or cleaning everyone's supplies. We're a small group of people working- there's the chief and two firefighters and myself. We have a few volunteers in and out, but only four of us are receiving our steady paychecks from the county every week.

    Appaloosa Plains was similar to the South; it was the redneck area in Washington. The small town was filled to the brim with people who had had relatives living here for years and often never moved away themselves. With the mountains close by, it was a popular place for horse lovers to live. People loved riding through the mountains (I, myself, didn't find the appeal).
   The home I bought was a real steal. It was a two story place with a wide open floor plan on the second floor. Rumors where flying around about the previous owner. I didn't care for rumors, though. I ignored them, and most of the town. Wake up, fire department, gym, grocery store if needed, home. My life was becoming one of routine, and I didn't mind it.
   I unlocked my door, stepping inside. I was completely redecorating the place. New outside, new inside. The home was furnished when I bought it, but was incredibly tacky covered in cat decor. Even being a bachelor, I knew that I needed something different if I intended to impress anyone, specifically the female population, in this town.
   Relationships didn't worry me. I didn't want any children; my job required me to go into burning buildings, I couldn't risk leaving a child fatherless. I did, however, have nothing against marriage. Backseat car flings in high; a causally date here, one there. Nothing serious. I wasn't looking for commitment right now, I was looking for a date and if I happened to love her enough, I'd propose.
   I showered quickly and went off to bed. Early to bed Late to bed, early to rise makes one healthy, wealthy, and wise. That was my new philosophy. It wasn't long before the birds- yes,  that was my alarm clock sound, awakened me. I sighed, rolling out of bed. Oatmeal and tea, iced and unsweetened of course, and I was ready to roll. The weather was cool, as the smell of the forest seeped into my nostrils. It wasn't that long to bike. I could always hitch a ride home from a volunteer; they almost worshiped us, if I grew tired.
   "Hello." I greeted everyone once I arrived.
   "Trevor."
   "Yes?"
   "See me in my office." The boss was a cowboy hat wearing, cow herding, classic western fellow. He traveled to Texas every September through October and apparently loved it.

   "What's going on?" I followed him to his office.
   "You've been working here for a bit. Show up on time, loyal, you know. Everything y'all know."
   "Yes, sir."  I quickly added a sir to my statement, hoping it made me seem for official.
   "I'd like to promote you."
   "Really? Thank you!"
   "Same hours, higher pay."
   "Sounds great, sir."
   "Thank you, Mr. Janes."  Mr. Janes? When did this formality happen? I smiled at I walked out of the office. Life was great. New town, better job, better life.

And the Generation Heir Is....

Trevor Janes! He was one vote ahead of Hunter with 8 votes (Blake had one vote). Trevor will be moving to Appaloosa Plains. A new chapter will be out shortly and thank you to everyone who voted!