Three and one half months later

It had been a long summer for Spencer Carlin, and one full of more changes and surprises than she cared to summarize. She had only seen Ashley once, and that was by accident when they both happened to be at the beach with friends. Needless to say, it had been awkward. But, one might be surprised to hear that the absence of the curly haired brunette had been one of the least extreme of the alterations in Spencer’s life.

As you may have guessed by now, Spencer was in a new relationship. But the biggest transformation of all did not lie in that nifty little fact. It was the object of Spencer’s affection that shocked just about everyone who knew her. Why? It was a boy. Of course Paula had been thrilled, Arthur had been wary, Glen confused, and Clay downright suspicious. The one thing they all had in common was that they were sure Spencer was making some drastic changes in the way she lived her life.

Spencer sighed as she stared in the mirror, her blue eyes watching herself intently. Today was the big day. The first day of school. The day where she’d have to deal with all of the things from her past that she had been able to so delicately bury over the summer. She wasn’t exactly looking forward to the encounter, and her heart was racing at just the idea of it. She could have stayed like that for hours, with her forehead pressed to the cool glass, but Glen was shouting for her downstairs. It was time to leave, and there was no way out now.

“Coming!” She yelled, annoyed by his urgency as she pulled her bag over one shoulder and scooted out the door. Taking the steps quickly she met her blonde haired brother at the bottom of the stairwell. The pair turned, bidding good bye to their parents before darting outside and piling into Glen’s new jeep.

“So, you going to be okay today Spence?” Ever since the shooting, Glen’s protective streak had become even stronger.

“I’ll be fine.” Spencer replied half heartedly. She wasn’t too sure of it herself.