1Haven packed her things into the very last box, sighing as she taped it shut. She looked around her now bare room, a little sad to be going, but excited none the less to have gotten into the school she was attending. Haven had worked hard to earn the scholarship to get into the prestigious Crestwell Boarding School. Haven Maxwell was a simple 17 year old junior, nothing spectacular about her family or herself that would get her noticed by the Crestwell's school board. Her father was a lieutenant police chief at the 7th precinct in downtown New York. Her mother was a nurse at the local hospital where she had met Haven's father after a drug bust went bad.
Her family wasn't poor, but they weren't rich either. They had just enough money for their 6 member family to get by. She had three brothers, her elder brother Jersey was 19, and her little brothers were Matthew and Jeeves. They were twins, both at the annoying age of 9, always wanting to question everything in the world. Matthew was a book worm, just like Haven, with large black rimmed glasses, tall for his age with black shaggy hair and large blue eyes that would make Hitler envious of the shade. Jeeves was a polar opposite of his brother when it came to personality. He loved to see how things worked, always taking apart the clocks in the house or his bike. While Matthew was comfortable reading about how things worked, Jeeves had to find out for himself. Jersey couldn't be more different than all three of his siblings. Jersey was the star sports player, football, soccer, baseball, any sport, and he was the captain of it. He was tall, muscular, dark blue eyes, dimples that made girls swoon and the sweetest guy you'll ever meet. He had made it into California University on a full ride scholarship for football.
Haven though, was the oddball of her family. She had eyes the color of melted chocolate and flame red hair that fell down her back in straight waves while her family had curls. Haven was tall and slender, with pale skin and a blush that would brighten her whole face. Her voice was soft but at times she would become loud when she got mad or when she was singing. Her voice would sound like angels as she sang; everyone was a tad envious of her voice. What got her a scholarship to the prestigious Crestwell boarding school though, was her talent in literature and music.
If there was anything Haven was good at, that was writing stories and playing the piano. She loved to read ever since she was a child and her imagination was full of stories. She's won a few contests for short stories and one of them, got her a full ride to Crestwell Boarding School. She smiled happily as she picked up the box and carried it downstairs to put it in her dad's truck. From behind a corner Jersey jumped out and yelled "Boo!" Haven let out a startled yelp as she dropped the box she was carrying. Jersey smiled and picked up the box, nudging his sister with his shoulder.
"So Haven, going to a big boarding school in a few days. How does it feel to be the second over achiever of the family?" Jersey set the box down by the front door.
"Hey now! Just because you're the first one to get into a big school on your talents doesn't mean you can tease me about being second." She punched her brother's shoulder hard as she walked into the kitchen.
Jersey rubbed his shoulder and pouted, turning towards their mother.
"Ma! Haven's beating up on me!"
Haven's mother Juliet just smiled and flipped another pancake in the skillet. She was used to Jersey acting like a big baby even though he was the oldest and toughest of her children. Juliet put a plate of pancakes on the kitchen table and went back to the one's in the skillet.
"Jersey, go wash your hands. Haven, go get your brothers."
Jersey mumbled something under his breath about washing up and Haven smirked as she climbed the stairs of the small two story house they lived in walking towards her little brother's room. She knocked on the door and opened it slowly. Inside there was a mess of books, clothes, and mechanical parts as the two identical boys sat doing opposite things. Matthew was sitting in the window bench reading a book while Jeeves was taking apart a small toy of his.
"Matt, Jeeves, breakfast is done."
The boys mumbled something as she walked away, going towards the kitchen again. Her dad walked in the back door as she passed and she smiled up at her dad.
"Hey kiddo, almost ready? We'll leave after breakfast so we can beat traffic." Jonathan smiled down at his daughter as he hung up his jacket.
"Sure thing dad. Breakfast is done, ma made pancakes."
Haven went into the kitchen and helped her mom set up the table as her brothers made their way into the kitchen and sat down. Her dad ambled in and kissed his wife on the cheek as they all sat down at the dinner table and a normal breakfast began in the Jefferies home.
"Brandon Charles Maxwell get down here right now!"
Brandon sighed as he got off his bed and turned off his playstation three. He trudged down stairs and flipped his hair to the side like always with a flick of his head. His dark black hair covered the right side of his face, hiding one of his blue eyes like always. He stopped at the bottom of the large staircase and put his hands in his pockets, looking at his father.
Spencer Maxwell was a good looking man for someone in his forties, with dark black hair cut in a no nonsense fashion, his blue eyes shining brightly whenever money was mentioned. He was tall and well built, only the best body money could buy. He glared at his son as he held up a slip of paper with the Crestwell emblem at the top. His report cards from the latest semester, shit.
"Brandon, your grades are slipping again damnit! If you don't get those grades up then you won't be eligible to play rugby nor will you be eligible to play soccer. If you don't get these grades up, you won't get into Princeton!"
Brandon stared at his father, uncaring if he couldn't play rugby or soccer anymore. He used to love playing but he started to lose interest as soon as his father started pounding Princeton into his head. His father had his heart set on his only son going to Princeton to play rugby and soccer and getting a degree in business, just like him. Brandon wanted to play rugby and write books and travel the world. He didn't want to go into the family business which was losing money fast. His father just to maintain his status in society was secretly taking money from client's funds, but no one was supposed to know. Guess Brandon was too smart for his dad to fool.
"Are you listening to me?"
"Yeah dad, whatever you say." Brandon rolled his eyes, turning away to go back to his room, his safe place.
Spencer growled and grabbed his son's arm, squeezing it hard as he spun him around. Spencer's free hand lashed out and smacked his son's cheek hard, leaving a angry welt in his wake. Brandon barely even flinched.
"You will do better in school young man and you will obey me." Spencer glared at his son, the whiskey on his breath evident as he breathed heavily.
"Yes father." Brandon's eyes glowed darkly as he stared at his father. Spencer let go of his arm and shoved him away, going into his office. Brandon took a deep steadying breath and walked into the kitchen. Blair Maxwell was standing in front of the sink, staring out of the large bay window, staring at the gorgeous rolling land they lived on. In her hand were a large margarita glass half full and an almost empty blender next to her. Brandon sighed; his mother was a lovely woman with a bad alcohol problem.
Who wouldn't have an alcohol problem if you lived with this family? We're so screwed up, alcohol wouldn't even help. He thought to himself as he opened the fridge and grabbed a can of mountain dew. His mother looked over at him, her eyes slightly distant as she frowned.
"Hello mother." Brandon said softly as he set the cold can against his burning cheek. His mother walked over to him frowning and placed her hand on his other cheek.
"My poor Brandon. I'm so sorry dear, your father's just having a hard time at work right now. He means well, really. We just want you to do well in school so you can have a good life."
Brandon resisted the urge to laugh. He loved his mother dearly, he never understood why she was with his father. Probably for the money, but he shook the thought from his head and sighed.
"I know mother, it just seems like I can't please father no matter what I do."
Blair's eyes seemed to take on a sad demeanor as she kissed Brandon's forehead.
"You will always please us Brandon, no matter what you do. You make us so proud every day." She smiled sadly and walked away with her margarita glass in hand. Brandon sighed and walked back into his room, opening the mountain dew and took a long drink. He went into his dark room, the blinds were pulled down to block out the sunlight as he sat on his bed. He would leave for Crestwell in a few hours, he couldn't wait to get the hell out of his house. His father was becoming more abusive as the stock market and the economy took its toll on his father's company.
He grabbed his laptop and put it in his black messenger bag and set it on the bed. He needed to get ready; he would be leaving as soon as his sister got home. He pulled off his shorts and walked to his closet, pulling out a pair of black skinny jeans. Crestwell Boarding Schools only required a dress code of house jackets. Jeans were allowed as were skirts, but on special occasions the full uniform was requested. He zipped up his skinny jeans and pulled on a belt mumbling a few words from a song under his breath. He pulled on his white button up shirt and buttoned it, putting his black tie in place and fixing it. He pulled on the black blazer with the small blue Crestwell seal over the left breast. He glanced in the mirror at himself. He looked every part of the boarding school golden boy, but you know what they say. Looks can be deceiving.
His cell phone chirped from on his bed and he walked over and picked it up. The screen was blinking the name Vivian. Dear old sis was finally calling, maybe she was calling saying she was home and they could leave already.
"Hello Viv. Ready to leave?"
His sister's tinkling bell laugh rang through the cell phone. He smiled, his sister rarely laughed these days, not like that at least.
"Brandon, I'm almost home. I was at Barney's and I found the most gorgeous Prada bag there. I just had to have it for the new semester."
Brandon pinched the bridge of his nose, something he did when he got irritated. Vivian was a fashion obsessed trust fund child with a few issues.
"Vivian Marie, you didn't pay for that bag with father's Amex card did you." His tone was hard, more of an accusation than a question. He heard Vivian sigh as she shifted gears and the sound of the engine speeding up was heard faintly.
"Now Brandon, you know that daddy took away my credit cards. Over spending he said, isn't he just a party pooper?" Her voice was flirtatious and bouncy. She was trying to cover up what had happened.
"Vivian, you are turning into a kleptomaniac! This is the fifth bag you've stolen from Barney's in the last month!" He sat down on his bed, holding his head in his hands.
"You're mean Brandon. You know that mother and I shop at Barney's so much, we should be receiving discounts! Think of it as discounts all added up, and it's like a free gift! They won't miss it! Besides, no one knows and I'm almost home."
Brandon sighed, his family sure was messed up but no one seemed to see it. Everyone saw the social elite family. He supposed it was good they didn't see the troubled family that was really the Maxwell's.
"Just hurry up Viv. I want to get out of here now!" He hung up his phone and lay down on his bed.
He shut his eyes and played a song over in his head. He'd be at Crestwell in a few hours, and Crestwell was better than home at the moment.
Haven stepped out of the car and looked up at the large almost castle like building. Sprawled out in front of her, stood a large brick building. With gothic architecture, the building was tall and graceful giving off an air of importance. The grass surrounding the many large buildings was trimmed and manicured, bright green and plush. Milling around were students, some in groups with friends, others with parents, others just hanging out. She could see the courtyard, the large archways leading to the different buildings. In the middle of the courtyard was an ornate fountain with brick benches all around. The school looked like everything the brochures advertised.
Haven looked up at her dad as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders. His dad was beaming as he looked around. He was so proud of Haven for getting a scholarship to such a prestigious school. He knew that he wasn't the richest but he tried his best to give his kids the best he could.
"Ready to take your stuff to the dorm Haven? I'll help you haul your stuff into your room then I'll leave so you can get settled in."
Haven nodded and they walked to the Jefferies' black dodge truck and they opened the tail gate. Haven and her father grabbed a few boxes each and made their way across the school yard towards the girl's dormitory. Haven's room was on the 7th floor, her room near the end of the hallway. Stepping into her room, she saw that she had a roommate who had already decorated half of the room with purple and white things. The bed spread was deep purple with white pillows, a plush purple rug on the floor, and a white desk with a purple macbook sat perched on it.
Above the bed were purple letters that spelled out Madeline. That must be Haven's roommate. She shrugged and moved to the bed on the far side of the room and set her things down. She and her dad got all of her stuff into her room within an hour and they stood at the truck. Haven had a few tears in her eyes, sad to say goodbye for the school year. She hugged her dad tightly.
"Don't worry kiddo. You'll have so much fun here you won't even miss us."
Haven laughed softly and looked up at her dad. Jonathan also had tears in his eyes but he was a tough guy at times and brushed them away quickly.
"Of course dad. You guys will email me though right?"
"Sure thing kid. Your mom will want you to call a few times just to make sure you're okay. I have to get back soon, have to go in early. Andrews called in sick so I'm taking his shift."
Haven nodded and hugged her dad tightly.
"Be safe daddy."
"Always am darling."
They hugged quickly before Haven pulled away and hitched her messenger bag over her shoulder and her dad got in the truck and drove away. Haven turned and looked at the school again, it looked so big and amazing. She couldn't wait to start classes and she wondered who she'd meet her. Haven started walking across the grounds towards her dorm when a boy stood in front of her.
"You're Haven, am I right?"
He was tall, tan, blonde hair and green eyes, a total hottie who Haven was sure would use girls and throw them away quicker than you could say dumpling. She nodded hesitantly and he held out his hand for her to shake, smiling with sparkly white teeth.
"My name's Graham. I'm on student council and it's my job to show the new kids around."
Haven shook his hand and smiled at him. Maybe he's not so bad after all she thought to herself.
"You have all your things in your room?"
Haven nodded and Graham smiled and held out his arm for her. She put her arm through his and he began to take her around campus.
"Okay, here you have Ophelia hall that's where most of the math and science courses are. Over here is Kirkland hall, all the social studies and literature courses. Over there, across the courtyard, is Van Gough hall. You can guess I'm sure, that's where arts courses are, including music."
Haven nodded and tried to remember where everything was so she wouldn't look like a total idiot when classes started next week.
"Oh! Look over there, looks like Keith is breaking up with Amelia again. He's such a hottie, I wonder if I could snatch him up before the other girls do."
Haven looked questioningly at Graham.
"So you're gay I take it?"
"Yes, much to my parent's dismay, I'm gayer than a two dollar bill! I know what you're thinking, I look like the typical all American hunk, but sweetie, it takes a big strong man to float my boat."
Haven smiled, Graham was funny and seemed like a good guy. He showed her around a bit more, introducing her to a few of his friends. They were all here mostly for theater so they were the thespians of the school. Haven got along really well with them and she was glad to have made a few new friends on her first day. She said goodbye to Graham and told him she'd sit with him at dinner once she unpacked her things.
Glancing at her watch as she made her way up to her room she noticed it was only four. She had two hours before dinner so that should be plenty of time to unpack her things. She walked into her room and found a petite blonde sitting on the other bed talking on her phone.
"You're Madeline? I'm Haven, we're roommates I guess."
The blonde just made a face as she spoke on the phone.
"I have to go Alice, looked like my roommate just got in." She said roommate as if it were something that carried a horrible disease. She hung up her phone and stood up, barely reaching Haven's chin in her wedge heels. She crossed her arms over her chest and walked over to Haven.
"Yes, I'm Madeline. Yes we are roommates sadly, but that doesn't mean we're going to be friends. You are the new girl and from what I hear, pretty poor too. Keep your stuff on the side of the room and don't talk to me, ever and we'll be just dandy."
She turned away and walked out the door. Haven made a face at her before sighing and turning to the boxes stacked around her bed. She turned on her iPod and put in her headphones as she opened up her boxes. Around five forty five, she had all of her things unpacked and put away. She sat down on her bed and sighed, wishing she were home. Someone knocked on the door and she got up and opened her door. There stood Graham smiling and holding out his arm.
"Shall we go to dinner?"
Haven smiled and tossed her iPod onto her bed before putting her arm through Grahams.
"We shall. Do you know who my roommate is Graham? Her name is Madeline, she's peti-"
Graham cut her off before she could continue.
"Of course I know her! Madeline Bennington is the golden girl of Crestwell Boarding School. Blonde, rich, smart enough, head cheerleader, everyone wants to be her. She gets the best of everything, the best shoes, clothes, cars, and especially boys. This year, her boy she plans on snagging is going to be Brandon Maxwell."
"Who's Brandon Maxwell?"
They walked into the cafeteria and made their way to the food carts.
"Rugby captain, soccer captain, one of the smartest boys in school, mysterious, talented in many things, no one really knows much about him. He usually keeps to himself. His twin sister is Vivian though and she's Madeline's second in command. You my little muffin are going to be in for one hell of a year with Madeline Bennington as your roommate."
Haven groaned as Graham led her towards a Chinese food cart in the large cafeteria.
"You don't mind Chinese do you muffin?"
Haven shook her head and ordered bourbon chicken and white rice as she bit her lip and mulled over her new roommate. This year was going to be hell if her roommate was as bad as Graham made her seem. Graham handed the woman at the cart his Crestwell I.D and Haven quickly did the same. As they walked away with their food Graham explained that you paid with the money put on your card. Graham led Haven towards a table in the back corner next to the large windows. Graham set his tray down and plopped down into a seat and Haven followed suit.
"Haven, this is Leo, Anna-Sophia, Juju, and Kale."
Leo was tall with shaggy black hair and piercing green eyes. He was sketching something but looked up and gave Haven a small smile and a wave when Graham said his name before going back to his drawing. Anna-Sophia was a short girl with chestnut hair and blue eyes and a bright smile. She was flipping through a magazine and talking to Kale. Juju was as tall as Haven with bright blue hair, snake bites and an outfit that rivaled every Goth she'd ever known.
"Juju is our resident melodramatic. She has a new style every week and a different color hair ever week as well. Don't be scared of her muffin, she just likes to express herself."
Juju threw a piece of her cornbread at Graham when she heard that but smiled warmly at Haven. Kale was short with black hair and warm brown eyes. He was sitting in the corner of the table reading a book and barely acknowledged them as Graham introduced them. Graham leaned close to Haven and whispered softly in her ear.
"Kale is kind of a loner but he's really sweet once he opens up. He's also the apple of my eye." Graham blushed when Haven looked at him with a smirk.
"Just don't tell anyone alright muffin?"
Haven nodded and started eating her dinner as everyone at the table began talking about the latest gossip.