𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 - 𝙀𝙅 𝘾𝙖𝙨𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡

↳ 01

Autumn rushed down the stairs of the Campbell's household, her backpack in her hand as she ran towards the kitchen. Her mother, Claire, received her with a smile and pointed to the plate destined for Autumn, where pancakes already waited for her. The teenager smiled and thanked her mother before starting to eat rapidly, eyes focused on the clock that hung on the marble-made kitchen wall to make sure she wouldn't be late for school.

It was her first day at her new school and she couldn't be more excited. After all, she would be able to see her friends again. Autumn had moved to Salt Lake City about two months ago with her parents and she had already made friends with Big Red, her neighbor, and his best friend Ricky.

When she first arrived, they were the ones who showed her all about the town she would be residing in for, hopefully, a long time. They had loads of fun hanging out and spending almost every summer day together. Whether they were going to the beach, to the skater park, or simply to the ice cream shop near Ricky's house, they were always having fun. That was before the trouble began.

For one, Ricky's girlfriend, Nini, had told him she loved him right before her summer camp and he had told her, stupidly, that he needed a pause from their relationship. Then, Ricky's mother moved temporarily to Chicago for work, leaving the poor boy alone with his dad. Lastly, Autumn's dad asked Claire for a divorce. In the last month of that summer, everything went wrong.

Autumn shook her head, trying to keep every bad thought away from her mind, as she heard a car honking outside her house. Quickly standing up, the brunette hugged her mother. "Bye, mom. I'll be back by five, okay?" Autumn said reassuringly, smiling at the other woman.

"Good luck in school today, baby," Claire said, hugging her daughter tightly one more time. When a second honk was heard, the two separated, laughing. "Go, or Big Red might as well break into the house just to drag you to school." The blonde woman stated, chuckling, before kissing Autumn's head.

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The ride to school was filled with jokes and laughter. Soon enough, Big Red was pulling up in front of the familiar building. It was true that Autumn had never been there, but as a big fan of the High School Musical trilogy, how could she not recognize that iconic place? A banner saying 'East High - 100 Years of Tradition' could be seen, hung above the very entrance of the school.

Ricky, Big Red, and Autumn practically ran to the car's trunk, giggling at something dumb the red-head said about him looking like Phineas from 'Phineas and Ferb' and got their skateboards out. As the three of them skated towards the entrance, they almost bumped into a woman - seemingly in her mid-thirties - who was leaving her car.

"Sorry!" Ricky shouted as they passed by, Big Red following his footsteps. Autumn beamed an apologetic smile at the woman before following her two friends.

"All good, no bad." Autumn heard the woman said and laugh it off before they reached the school's courtyard and stopped skating.

"Today's the day, guys," Ricky said, a hopeful smile on his face. "It's happening."

"Hell yeah." Big Red answered, beaming. "Junior year, babies. Might grow a mustache. Might do a lot of things."

Autumn giggled at her friend's obliviousness. "Dude, I think Ricky was talking about Nini. Were you asleep the forty times he already said today's the day they start over?"

"Oh..." Big Red replied, embarassed. "I guess that's happening too."

"Yeah." Ricky laughed, before turning to Autumn as they entered. "So, did you hear from that friend of yours yet?"

"Hum... Not really. She isn't answering my texts nor my calls and I don't even know why." Autumn says, shrugging, as a sad smile makes its way to her lips. She quickly changed the subject, though. "What about Nini? Did you two talk?"

"We texted. She sounded neutral." The curly-haired boy told his friends as they walked down a staircase that took them to the main corridor where their lockers were located. "Nothing about bad news or need to have a big talk. Just... 'Hey'. That's good, right?" He asked, insecurity taking over.

Big Red sighed before proceeding. "Summer's are no man's land, Ricky. We don't know what 'hey' means and neither do you." Autumn nodded, agreeing.

"I think it's good. Yeah." Ricky said and Autumn rubbed his shoulder gently, trying to comfort him. Soon the three friends spotted Nini and her friend, Kourtney, near Nini's locker. Ricky smiled as he walked towards them and Autumn internally sighed. Oh boy.

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ᴀᴜᴛᴜᴍɴ ᴄᴀᴍᴘʙᴇʟʟ, ᴊᴜɴɪᴏʀ

It's not like I'm not happy for Ricky. I'm just... worried. He spent all month sulking around, speaking about how great Nini is and what an idiot he had been by blowing their relationship up. Seriously, I feel like I already know the girl just from the amounts of photos he showed me and the stories he told. Believe me, the poor boy was a mess. I just don't want him to be disappointed if things don't go the way he wants today.

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"Good luck, Ricky. I'm going to the principal's office, see if I can grab my locker number and my class schedule." Autumn smiled sympathetically at the boy as she walks past him and into the end of the hallway, where the mentioned office was. She took a deep breath before entering.

Autumn spotted a brunette girl sitting in one of the chairs in the waiting room and she sat next to her, smiling. "I'm Autumn. What's your name?"

"Gina. Gina Porter." The girl, who Autumn now knew was named Gina, responded casually. The two teens exchanged a smile before Gina was called into the office, leaving Autumn to wonder about how Ricky's conversation with Nini had gone.