Where We Began: Prologue

"I fucking hate you all!" the young girl had an irritated look, ran down the hall to her bedroom. The door slammed behind her. Her hands grasped tightly to her brown braids of hair. In her mind, she wanted to hit her head for the countless times she had made mistakes. And that's what she did. She pressed herself to the back of the bedroom door.

Hayden North slowly slid down with tears streaming down her face. Down the hall, her parents sighed in defeat. Hayden's mother wiped her mouth with a napkin. There are wrinkles under her eyes. She kept her hair short with how jet black it was. Her appetite was gone from the recent argument. Hayden's mother wanted her to go to college as soon as possible.

They didn't give her an option to live there either. High school is over in two months. Hayden wanted to take a year before starting. It's hard for them to understand how she feels. Hayden always fights to get her way. All Hayden wants is to live life without her parents controlling what she does.

We shouldn't start on the quarrel that happened days ago about Hayden getting a job. That left hurt in her father's eyes for the constant protest against their orders. She ended her mother's distaste by getting a part-time job in washing cars. Hayden's mother had seen other families with kids her child's age that would make the family look good. On the other hand, Hayden's father supports any choice she makes. Life is too short, is what he quotes.

"Hayden is at this stage where she thinks that life will wait for her," Hayden's Mother exclaimed. She wondered if it was any use yelling back at her daughter.

"Bridget, it takes time. All we can do as parents are respect her decisions," her husband helped pick up the remaining plates and cups. The rough and freshly cut beard moved as he talked. His dark brown hair with strands of grey moved on his head.

The plates clattered on top of each other. He brought it to the kitchen sink. Bridget had worried lines on her forehead for the path that her daughter is taking. It wasn't good enough for Bridget to be satisfied. She needed discipline. Her husband thought otherwise.

Bridget raised her to be an adult and not become any other kid in her school. Competition amongst Competition. Bridget pushed in her chair a little too forcefully.

"I don't think you understand how different we are raised. In your eyes, she is an angel, but to me, she could be doing better if she wants to keep the reputation of the family," Bridget spoke quietly.

The one-story house is silent. Not a peep of sound from Hayden's room. A few years ago, they moved into this house. Nice lawn with a great view of Denver, Colorado. Her husband shook his head and chuckled dryly.

"It's not always about being the best, honey. I think there is a point in time where the most you can do is be a teenager. If it makes you feel any better, I'll check on her." No matter how frustrated Bridget is, she couldn't be mad. There are far worse things in life. Maybe he was right. She excused herself to their room.

While that was happening, Hayden was trying something risky. There is a likely chance she'll get caught watching porn.

After shedding a few tears to her parent's forceful demands, she found her laptop on her yellow bed. Never let things hurt you is easy to say than do. Her walls are all painted white with black flowers. She did it herself. This room meant nothing to her if nobody understood her on the inside. Not a single person liked her at school.

The friends she used to have, left. It took one mistake of them skipping class for their parents to stop their kids from hanging out with her. A low-life is what they call her at school. There's a weird relationship Hayden has with schoolwork. It's either she studies or she wings it.

The high school Hayden goes to is the best of the best. Although she can put up the middle finger and tell people to "suck it," it does get repetitive. She hates the fact that she can cry. Nothing more makes her feel like a weakling.

The laptop opened. She put in her passcode. Then clicked a private browser and started her research. In a high school like her own, nobody talked impure except Hayden. Nobody knew much about sex.

Sex education never went into the nitty-gritty. Her parents shielded her from knowing too. Hayden didn't understand why they had to pretend like it wasn't something normal to do when you love someone.

The site came up. She quickly plugged in her headphones. Hayden has never visited this site before. Her eyes were agape to the screen. The two people which is a man and a woman were thrusting into each other making loud moans.

Hayden's face turned bright red as the two people went at it. They were in a position with someone on top and bottom. Hayden's feet curled into her blanket as she continuously shifted on the bed.

Oddly enough, she felt a new feeling about watching this sort of thing. It was weird watching two naked people that had no shame in what they were doing. The sounds of knocking never reached Hayden's ears. When Hayden heard her door open, it was her father. She quickly shut the laptop and stopped the loud noises from her headphones.

To her dismay, her father still saw and heard what she was doing. He stood frozen in place. No words left his mouth until seconds later. "What is the meaning of this?" he asked.

Hayden pushed the laptop away from her as if she was disgusted with what she did. "I was trying to know more. Dad, it's not what it looks like," she tried to persuade him from being upset. The way his frown turned unsettled made her stomach flop.

Hayden was nicer to her father than her mother. He looked at all of her sides instead of one. It's how he communicates with her. "I'm pretty sure it was what it looked to be. I was going to talk with you. Now, this has happened. I don't know what to say. Hayden, you're getting out of hand. Mainly with what you were doing and how you spoke to your mother," he ranted. Her dish of attitude was thrown back in her face. Hayden didn't like it.

"I thought you were on my side. I guess not. Mom never bothers to look at my point of view. I am going to college soon. I'm trying to make the most of my high school days," she explained. Hayden tucked her legs up as her father leaned on the walls of her room.

"Kiddo, I know that I take your side on mostly everything because I'm trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Not anymore. It's better that you don't know about those things. Sex is only good for making babies. You don't need that. Tomorrow morning you owe your mother an apology." Her father stood straight to leave her room. Hayden was mad that he was disappointed in her. She only ever tried to please them.

"This is not fair. Mother never understands because she wants me to be perfect. I'm sorry but, I am not your perfect daughter!" Hayden exclaimed, glaring at her father. Her heart beat fast in her chest. The palms of her hands are fisted. Hayden's father scowled with his hand out. His eyebrows furrowed. The loud tapping of his foot started.

"Give me your phone and laptop, now." No more words or yelling will talk him down from taking her belongings. The once gray eyes are a look of disappointment. Hayden shoved both her laptop and phone into his hand. He walked out of her room and closed it.

That's when Hayden tore down the stuffed animals she had as a kid from her shelves and everything that reminded her of herself. The eighteen-year-old girl was throwing the biggest tantrum.

Everything made a crash and a bang as her father shut his ears to the sound. She had so much built-up rage and hormones that she had to let it out. The park. Her hands tossed the curtains aside to push up her window once she put on her hoodie. A high jump for her, but she didn't care. There's no going back now.

Meanwhile, in Liam's family, he sat on the couch with black-rimmed glasses to focus on calculus. Liam Griffin takes advanced placement classes under the rules of his father. You are not successful unless you have the money and smarts to prove so. It's a classic motto his older brother West would say every time he visited. West is born a boastful guy. Who wouldn't if you were called successful at the age of twenty-one with a soon-to-be wife and money-making job. Liam is below him. His father would tell pretty much everyone.

West chooses to pretend they never had a mother while Liam couldn't bear watching his father throw out her jewelry and empty her room. Telling the story of where she now burns every fiber of skin Liam has.

Don't get it wrong, Liam's father is hurting after his wife's death. Things were harder than you would think for him. When his father asked if anyone wanted to keep her necklaces or sell them, Liam kept them. It didn't matter if people at school made fun of him for wearing her chain with the smallest heart.

The multiple sheets of notes and annotations don't stop his wandering eyes to the awards hung on the wall for West. Liam wasn't up there. It pushed him harder to show that he can be a good son and make his mother see him. Even if she won't remember his dyed black hair that's naturally golden brown. Or his dorky jokes and contagious laugh that makes summersaults to people's stomachs.

"Shit, my head is killing me," Liam groaned with a hand rubbing his temples. He let go of the hard grip on the pencil. Somehow, the pain increased with every second when he tried harder to finish.

"I can't concentrate with my head pounding like this. I guess this is all for tonight," Liam muttered. Liam is trying his best to get a job while balancing school. The living room is empty. A fireplace to the front and red oak floors. He cleaned up his work and headed to his room. That's colored black with a beanbag and collections of pokemon cards and figurines.

An eighteen-year-old like him loves to be playful and childish despite his father. Liam runs a hand through his black hair. It's parted evenly on both sides. He wanted to go to bed. He wasn't tired anymore. When he needed a break, he would go out his window to avoid the security cameras in front of his house. Liam's father was serious about his studies.

The window came up with a gust of fresh air. There's barely any snow remaining in March's weather. His feet reached the ground as he jumped over the fencing of his house to the park. Liam went there every night looking for someone. Someone who would understand him. Someone like Hayden.