"you are so dead, cooper!"
deborah cooper was your average high schooler. straight a student who could do no wrong by day, publisher of scathing articles alongside cousin betty by night. despite her cousin's numerous attempts and warnings to stop he...
"someday, you'll understand." prologue — where it all began
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The day began like it normally did — as normal as it could be for their family, anyway. Winter came earlier than expected, but they made the most of it, like they usually did. Debbie played with a paper airplane made from the newspaper delivered to their motel room that morning, while her mom complained about the cold winds sneaking their way through the flimsy windows. She got up from her spot and draped another blanket on her mom, a gesture that she was grateful for. "I wish this would all just end," Her mom sighed, but smiled when Debbie showed her her paper airplane. "That's nice, Debs. Why don't you go play some more while I wait for Dad?"
Debbie merely nodded. Every once in a while, she would see her mom look out of the window and snap whenever a sudden sound disrupted the silence in the room. They had left hastily in the middle of the night a few days before, and while she didn't quite understand what was happening, she knew it was a bad sign when the tell-tale sound of sirens echoed throughout the trailer park, many families like hers scattering to leave just as they did. The police was there for them.
The door suddenly opened, and for a moment, she saw her mom's face turn pale and her hand reach behind her coat, but her scared features were wiped away when she saw it was only her dad. Her mom reached forward to hug him. "Oh, thank god. Did you get them, Bill?"
"It took a bit of a struggle," Her dad showed her an envelope, and her mom visibly sighed in relief. "Is she in?"
Nodding, her mom spared a glance at Debbie. "She agreed, no questions asked. She's all set to go." A gloomy look crossed both of their features as silence enveloped the room. Wordlessly, they hugged each other once again. Frowning, she stood up and ran towards her dad, embracing his hip, his warmth making her forget the coolness in the room. Her dad smiled and hoisted her up to his waist, and Debbie chuckled when he buried his face in her hair.
"Hi Dad," Debbie greeted, taking out the paper airplane out of her pocket. It was a bit smushed, but she supposed it would have had to do. "I made this by myself. It's for you."
Her dad took the airplane from her, examining it from all directions, almost comically. He made different expressions when he saw it from all angles, ranging from confused to impressed. She couldn't help but laugh. Debbie's father used to be an engineer before he had her, before they became caught up in the mess they were in now. "It's perfect, Ebbie."
"It's Debbie, Dad." She corrected, but it always seemed to go over his head.
"Not to me, it isn't," Dad pressed a chaste kiss to her forehead and set her down on the bed, tucking her in quickly before she could protest. "Get some rest for now, you must be tired. We have a long day ahead of us."
An urge to hug him once again overtook her and she tightly placed her arms around his neck, wishing to feel the warmth more. When she pulled back, she saw his cheeks were wet with tears. Nevertheless, she lied down and closed her eyes. Darkness enveloped her vision from the lack of sleep she had gotten the night before, and it wasn't long before she was fast asleep. It only seemed like seconds passed when she was jolted awake by a loud sound.
