𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓 𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐏𝐄 , 𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳

chapter one | arcadia hell

ARCADIA BAY IS my own personal hell. I was born and raised here, but I hated it. There was never a lot going on for me here. I never had a lot of friends since most people feared me. I blame my parents and brother for that. Two people could see past the family name and see me for who I really was.

Chloe Price and Max Caulfield. My best friends. Max and Chloe are childhood best friends and met me a few weeks before Chloe and I got expelled. It turns out that missing so many days can get you expelled.

I never would have guessed that.

Since school wasn't in the books for me anymore, I spent most of my time with Chloe while Max was in class. Today was no different.

We were lying on Chloe's bed; she was staring at the ceiling, and I was reading. Firewalk played in the background, our favorite band. One of them at least. "I heard Firewalk is playing a show at the old mill tomorrow night; we should go," Chloe suggested, soon sitting up to make eye contact with me.

This was something we did often. Other than lying around and doing nothing, going to concerts was our favorite thing to do. "Where the hell did you hear that?" I asked her curiously. I then sat up enough to look at her.

"A magical place called the internet." She replied sarcastically with a grin. She's always been so sarcastic like this; that was something I loved about her. "You should try it sometime." She spoke, her tone growing more sarcastic as the seconds passed, and then she smiled at me.

"You didn't have to be a bitch about it." I rolled my eyes at her playfully before letting out a laugh.

That's when we heard the bedroom door open.

"You have to stop being so mean to her, Chloe." We heard a familiar voice say: We looked up to see our friend, Max, Chloe's best friend. "What's going on here?" She asked and joined us on the bed.

"Nothing much, just thinking about stuff."

"Like what?"

"Leaving Arcadia Bay." The minute I said that, all eyes were on me. They looked at me with concerned expressions, almost like I wasn't making sense. "I mean, nothing is keeping me here."

It was true. Since my brother, Nathan, is the golden child, our parents have paid more attention to him. Other than Max and Chloe, I never had many friends. That's my family's fault, though. Everyone in town fears the Prescotts; they fear me.

Well, except for my friends. They saw the real me.

I wish everyone would.

The walk back to my house was lonely and silent. For me, it was nothing new. Along the way, I would look up at the sky and watch the sunset. It was always so beautiful and peaceful.

I could watch it forever.

Although it was getting late, I had to stop for food at my favorite diner, the Two Whales Diner. Once I walked inside, I was greeted by Chloe's mother, Joyce, walking toward me and pulling me in for a hug. "It's good to see you, honey!" She spoke happily. She loved me like I was her daughter. That woman was more of a mother to me than my own. "You haven't been here in a while; is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything is fine. I'm just in the mood for amazing pancakes." I replied honestly. Just like that, she was guiding me to my regular booth. I would eat here so often that they knew what to give me based on my mood.

"With chocolate chips, right?"

"Of course."

"To go, I assume?"

I nodded with a grin, and then she walked toward the kitchen. She was always so nice to me. I'm going to miss her when I get out of here, if I ever get out of here.

Now begins the waiting game. I looked around the dining area; forks and spoons scraping against plates and chattering from the other customers were the only things to be heard. There were more people here than usual.

That was when I noticed the girl wearing the beanie. "Hey, Steph!" I called out to her. She looked around with a confused expression until she spotted me. We grinned at each other before she motioned for me to join her. After standing up from my spot, I approached her table to find out she was with someone. "Hey, Mikey. It's good to see you." I greeted him happily before taking a seat next to Steph.

Once a week, I would meet up with Steph and Mikey to play Dungeons and Dragons. Since I joined their party, Mikey has won every battle the dungeon master has thrown at him. "We've missed you at the last couple of sessions," Mikey said once I sat down.

"You've missed a lot of huge battles."

"That's my bad guys; I've been busy," I explained truthfully. They nodded at me in an understanding manner before offering me some of their fries. I was quick to turn them down. "When's the next session?" I asked them curiously, and Steph was quick to answer first.

"Friday next week. Are you able to join us?"

"Yeah, I should be." As I said that, Joyce walked over with my food. She handed me the bag and smiled before walking away to finish her shift. "Well, I have to get home before no one panics." I joked and stood up from my spot.

"See you next week?"

"See you next week, guys."

We smiled at each other and said goodbye. I then had to say bye to Joyce. I couldn't wait to get home to eat this food.

I sat in my room, watching my favorite show and eating the pancakes I picked up earlier. Best pancakes in town, other than the ones Joyce makes for her family. The more I eat these, the more I realize that Joyce probably made them just for me.

After eating the last bite of my food, my door swung open. I looked over to find my brother standing in the doorway. He knew it annoyed me, so he did it any time he could. "Can I help you?" I asked him with an annoyed tone.

"What are you doing?" Nathan asked me curiously, looking at the screen. It feels important to note that he's only nice to me. I haven't figured that whole thing out yet.

It's only a matter of time until he treats me like he treats everyone else.

"Just watching some TV," I replied suspiciously, unaware of what his intentions were. I never understood how he could be so mean to people at school but nice to me. "Why do you ask?"

"Mind if I sit and watch with you?"

"I guess not."

Just like that, he sat on my bed. His eyes were immediately glued to the screen. He seemed interested in it. Since he wasn't bothering anything, it was okay for me to watch the show without worrying about something being broken.

For the past hour, the only thing to be heard was the show on my TV screen, but Nathan spoke again. "We don't talk much anymore; what's going on with you?" He asked and looked at me.

"Nothing much; I'm going to a concert with Chloe tomorrow night," I replied, soon pausing the show. I looked over at him to see him nodding, the universal sign to keep talking. "Then, I'm playing Dungeons and Dragons with Steph and Mikey next week."

"That's cool. Anything else going on?"

"Do you ever think about leaving Arcadia Bay?" I ask him curiously. That question caught him off guard; he didn't know how to answer. Honestly, I wouldn't know how to answer that question if I were him either.

"Like for college? Sometimes." He answered to the best of his ability. Great answer, considering he didn't have any context. "Do you think about it often?"

"Yeah, I do. Don't be surprised if you wake up one day and I'm gone."

The look on his face was enough to show that he didn't think I was telling the truth. It's just a matter of time until he learns the truth. I can't wait to make the great escape.

I just have to make a plan and get some cash.

————————
brooke speaks!

i hope you all liked
chapter one! i can't
wait to bring in the
main star, rachel
amber! anyway,
hoping for no
mistakes!