Chapter 1: Day - 12

In the small town of Riverside, aptly named what with the Joy River bordering the town in the west, there weren't many who began their day as early as Emma Brown. If the non-existent late summer sun wasn't enough indication, the grandfather clock in the living room certainly was.

For most people, waking up at 5 am was too early but Emma Brown was not most people. Not only was she an early riser, the brunette was also on cooking duty. Today, Emma had a morning shift at the café where she worked part-time. She wouldn't be home by the time its occupants woke up.

Thus, preparing it all in advance when the only people awake in Riverside were the elderly couple down the street and those working the early morning shift at the clinic.

This was a regular occurrence in the Brown-Murray household since both Emma's mother and her stepfather mostly picked up the night shift at the clinic. Her younger half-sister, Abigail, would sometimes help out but she was a disaster in the kitchen when given a pan. It was safe as long as fruit salad was on the menu though.

Emma also had an older brother, Aidan Brown, but he had moved out years ago- not that he would have been any help. He had never stepped foot in the kitchen to cook and Emma doubted he even knew how. Aidan certainly hadn't when he still lived with the family.

At the time, it had bothered Emma and while it still does, the 23-year-old had to admit it had taught her to be independent and responsible.

Finished with her pancakes, Emma served herself a plate, putting away the rest in a glass bell. The cooking appliance, if one could call it that, used to be her grandmother's. Emma distantly remembered her grandmother using it to store her pies many years ago. *

Having breakfast alone was something Emma was used to. No one in this family ran on the same schedule except for their parents. In the summer, Emma worked part-time and Abigail had cheer practice. Abigail would sometimes go to the café with her friends just to see Emma.

It was simply that rare for them to run across each other. They used to see each other more often when both sisters had school although the older one had been a college student while the youngest was still in high school.

Once she finished breakfast, Emma checked her to-do list. She had a morning shift at the café from seven to eleven, a grocery run right after and then she'd be meeting her best friends Ines and Murphy for lunch.

Her friends had offered to help her pack as Emma would be moving out of her parent's house next week. She had gladly accepted.

The 23-year-old had nothing else planned afterwards as her stepfather Mark had taken up kitchen duty for the evening. The brunette decided she'd probably go for an evening jog as she had forgone going on one yesterday.

Mind made up, Emma checked the fridge and the cupboards, writing down missing elements on her grocery list. Then, she went upstairs to her shared bathroom with Abigail to get ready.

Checking herself in the mirror, Emma tucked back a rebellious strand of hair back in her bun before heading to the garage. She picked up her backpack from the living room on the way, locking the door carefully so as not to make noise.

Once at the garage, Emma put her backpack in her bicycle's basket before getting on. The ride to the café was one Emma was used to, having done it summer after summer ever since high school. Nonetheless, it was a ride Emma enjoyed.

The route near the river was rather scenic. The brunette never saw herself ever getting tired of it. It was what she would miss the most about moving away from Riverside- the scenery and the people she'd leave behind.

It was inevitable though. Emma had gotten a job in a city two hours away from Riverside. It was at the company where she'd done her internship in her last year of college.

Emma had been extremely lucky they'd decided to keep her. She knew most of her year mates weren't as fortunate, some currently still sending out CVs. Realistically, Emma had always known she'd end up leaving the town she grew up in. There were no job opportunities for her here as a programmer.

Nevertheless, Emma was a creature of habit. Uprooting her current life and settling somewhere else was very much out of her comfort zone. Still, Emma would do as she had always done. "Fake it till you make it" was her motto.

Arriving at the café, Emma put her bike away at the bike rack, locking it before heading inside with her backpack slung over one shoulder. The owners, Maurice and Erica, respectively the cook/baker and the bartender, were already getting the café ready.

Hearing the bell jingle as Emma entered, Erica looked up from what she was doing.

"Here you are, Emma! Good morning!" Emma heard a faint "good morning" from Maurice coming from the kitchen.

"Good morning Mr and Mrs Lawson!" Emma answered, smiling. These people were people she had grown close to over the years, people whom she considered family.

There was no more conversation made afterwards as the three worked in a familiar silence and in perfect synchronicity.

'This', Emma thought, 'is something I will dearly miss.'

By 7.30, the café was ready to receive its first clients of the day. Emma was the one who flipped the sign to "open". As she waited for someone to cross the threshold, the 23-year-old allowed herself to reminisce.

The brunette had many fond memories of this place. She had first started working at the café in her second year of high school after seeing a flyer in town. Back then, it had been a big deal for her. Teen Emma hadn't necessarily needed the money but she had needed the independence, badly.

Mostly, Emma had wanted to avoid her family. At the time, her brother Aidan had still been living home and he and their parents would constantly fight about his future. Her brother had wanted to be a musician and perform in a band. Their parents had not been supportive of his dream at all. They even tried to secretly enrol him at a local college. Needless to say, it did not go well.

Emma understood where her brother was coming from, she truly did. Her mother, Jane Murray, hadn't liked it either when her eight years old self had dreamed of becoming a computer scientist. Jane had said it wasn't a woman's job, that no boy would like her.

'As if a man had any say about my so-called worth', Emma thought. Thankfully, it had been years since Jane Murray had tried to change her daughter's mind, not for lack of trying. Emma's stubbornness had simply won out in the end.

However, to this day, her mother still hadn't let go of her prejudice.

'It hurts to know your mother doesn't care enough to understand you but, truth always hurts.' It wasn't surprising. After all, Emma was the literal black sheep of the family.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Emma focused back on the present as the first customer entered the café. It was Mr Watson, a regular at the café and the former headmaster of the primary school she had gone to.

The elderly man was also good friends with her late grandfather and both men had often gone fishing together. Emma had joined them a couple of times and while she couldn't say she had loved it, watching them banter had been entertaining.

"Welcome, Mr Watson! Will you be taking the usual?"

"Why change a winning team?" Emma secretly agreed with him.

She was much like him whenever she went out, always sticking with the same drinks and foods. It drove Maeve, her paternal half-sister, mad whenever they hung out.

Out of her three siblings, it was Maeve that Emma was closest to. Since Maeve lived with their father, the younger girl was the one Emma saw the least growing up. Nevertheless, Emma got along swimmingly with the nineteen-year-old.

Maeve was bold and unapologetically herself, something Emma envied. The same could be said for her brother Aidan but he was rather cold. Despite having lived with him the longest, Emma wasn't particularly close to her brother.

She had tried getting along with him when she was younger but Aidan hadn't wanted to play with his "icky'' little sister. When he became a teenager, their relationship hit rock bottom. Between his rebel phase, sour mood and unintentional bouts of sexism, Aidan was too much for her to handle.

Emma was close to Abigail as well but they simply had too much of an age gap.

All in all, Emma's shift was uneventful.

The most exciting thing which happened was Mr Watson's prattling about his grandson Jeremiah as Emma rang him up. The brunette was thankful for the frivolous gossip though for it gave her news on how Aidan was doing.

Jeremiah was her brother's high school best friend and the first person to join his band. He would sometimes call at Emma's house to update her family on Aidan and the group's situation. It was quite nice of him.

She wondered if Jeremiah and her brother were an item. It was true that Emma didn't know whether Mr Watson's grandson swung that way but what reason would he have to call if it were not the case?

Shaking her head, Emma let go of those thoughts. It was her brother's private life, therefore it was not her business. If Aidan wanted to share something- which she doubted, he would have already said so.

On her way to the grocery store, Emma saw couples and families walking by the Joy river. They had the right idea as it was a warm, sunny and breezy day. The perfect day for a picnic, really. Or, for a family outing. Emma couldn't recall the last time she did either of those activities.

Honestly, the brunette envied those people. Her dysfunctional family would never be able to pull it off. Jane and Aidan strongly disliked Emma's birth father, Ryan, the latter had some kind of rivalry going on with Frank and as for Maeve, she couldn't stand Aidan. Abigail and Emma were the only neutral party but in truth, Emma was the only who mattered. Sweet Abigail was too nice to play peacemaker. The 23-year-old could handle the role but it wasn't worth it. She had tried once before and she had gotten stressed to the point of having painful headaches the following days.

Relationship-wise, Emma's experience was non-existent. Her high school prom date came out of the closet the day after their date. Apparently, going out with her had cemented his sexual orientation. Emma was happy he had figured himself out but she was miffed about being the guinea pig. A warning would have been nice, especially since it was her first date- ever.

The next date, which was the last date she went on, was in college. A classmate of hers had offered to set her up on a blind date with an acquaintance in law school. Emma regretted it, immensely.

That guy turned out to be a creep, asking extremely invasive questions and controlling both the conversation and the orders while they were at the restaurant.

After criticizing the waitress for not being a dignified lady because of her dyed hair, Emma left. The entire date had been uncomfortable but the last comment had reminded her of what her mother used to say. It was the straw that broke the camel's back.

The 23-year-old had self-esteem issues and she knew it. That man's last comment had been the equivalent of rubbing salt in an opened wound. Emma had never wanted to be what her mother called a proper lady but she had often wondered if she would be treated differently if she were.

Would more people want to be her friend? Would she be attractive enough to warrant a date with decent people? The answer was, yes. Abigail was living proof of that. Emma had accepted long ago that she couldn't change who she was but, there were days she let her mind wander.

Would her mother love her more if she didn't look like Ryan Brown? Would she fit in more with the family of blondes if her hair wasn't black but a lighter brown, like Aidan's? Would she be prettier if she had bright green eyes like Maeve instead of her dull brown? Would she stand out more if she wasn't Emma Brown? Sometimes, it felt like she was a plain Jane called Jane Plain. Could someone get more average than that?

Before her thoughts could spiral further, Emma realized she had arrived at the grocery store. Putting away her bike, the brunette took out her grocery list from her back pocket and headed inside.

Emma completely bypassed the rows of vegetables and fruits, going further in. There was no shortage of fresh produce at home since either she or her mother went to the farmer's market twice a week. What Emma needed was flaky pastry, butter, vanilla extract and chocolate. All of the items had been requested by Abigail who wanted to make a pear pie for her cheer friends.

The chocolate was pure comfort food and Emma had noticed there weren't many left when she looked in the cupboard earlier this morning. After grabbing the chocolate and vanilla extract, the brunette headed towards the aisle where she knew the remaining items were.

As she was putting butter in her basket, Emma heard someone clearing their throat. Looking over her shoulder, Emma examined the stranger. The man had deep olive skin, light hazel eyes and mussed brown hair. His most noticeable feature however was his crooked smile and the tan lines left behind by what must have been sunglasses. To tie off his odd appearance, he wore a freshly pressed white shirt with khaki shorts and flip flops. He looked ridiculous but somehow, he made it work.

"Sorry to bother you while you're shopping. It looks like you know what you're doing. Could you tell me what's the difference between all these brands of butter? My friend asked me to get her butter to make a cake. I didn't know there would be this much variety though."

Not at all bothered- this kind of situation had happened before, and even less so since he had been polite, Emma explained while taking two types of butter in her hands.

"The brands aren't all that different. It's a matter of quality over practicality and personal preference. What you need to look out for is whether it's salted or unsalted butter. The former is usually the one you'd spread on bread or toast while the latter is mostly used in cooking and baking."

Studying the stranger's face more closely, Emma deduced he wasn't a local. She knew most people her age from Riverside and that kind of face was not one you'd easily forget.

"I don't want to overstep but you seem like you're out of town. Are you here for the Valley?"

It wasn't something you would realize unless you were about one hour from Riverside but the town was actually in the hollow of Sunset Valley. The Valley was famous for its picturesque landscapes, luxurious forest and diversified fauna. Emma knew there were at least ten species of birds unique to the Valley. Photographers and bird enthusiasts often came in the summer to take shots of them. It was how Frank Murray initially met Jane Roberts.

The stranger shook his head.

"Surprisingly, no. I'm here visiting a friend from college. Maybe you know of her, Johanna Yang?"

Emma nodded. "I do, actually. We went to high school together. How is she doing?"

After exchanging a couple more pleasantries, Emma parted ways with the stranger she internally dubbed 'Butter Guy'.

Unlike mere minutes prior, Emma hurried to get home. The brunette hadn't taken a cooler with her because of the short distance between the grocery store and her house. Nothing should have time to melt.

Nevertheless, Emma did not want to try her luck, partly because she wasn't one for a gamble. Truth was, she had horrendous luck. For example, there would always be one person in a family who attracts mosquitoes like bees to honey.

In the Brown-Murray household, that person was her, and Maeve to a lesser degree. She was also the person who would always choose the fillet which still had fishbone in it. To conclude, Emma was unlucky to the point it was comical.

Unlocking the front door, Emma put away her keys in what her family dubbed the "Trinket Bowl". It was originally an art's project gone wrong but it obviously still had its uses. She distantly noted Abigail's purple feather keyring. Her sister must have come home early.

After putting away the groceries, Emma went to change out of her work clothes, favouring a thin white shirt with a short blue flower dungaree. Lightly checking if her bun would stay in place, Emma was satisfied with the result. Grabbing her saddlebag on her way out, the only other bag she owned except for her backpack, the brunette quickly swung by her sister's room.

The younger girl was on her bed with her earphones on, reading a book.

Emma snapped her fingers in front of Abigail's fail to catch her attention. The strawberry blond girl paused her reading and took out her earphones.

"Just letting you know I'm catching a bite with 'Phynes. They'll come and help me pack once we're done. Will you want to join us?"

Abigail answered enthusiastically. "Sure! That'll be fun!"

Emma smiled knowingly. She knew her younger sister loved hanging out with Murphy and Ines- affectionately called Phynes, a ship name Maeve had invented when they'd started going out. Both her friends had found it endearing so the nickname stuck.

Glancing at her phone, Emma realized she had to leave right away if she didn't want to be late. The brunette has had an impeccable record so far. She wouldn't break it at 23-year-old while going to the restaurant. Admittedly, Emma thought it would be rather hilarious if that were the case but she would still make sure it wouldn't go that far.

Hurrying down the stairs, Emma could only spare a quick "hello, see you later" to Frank who'd been making himself tea in the kitchen. Deciding against a light jog- she wasn't in that much of a hurry, Emma walked at a fast pace that would have made her brother proud. 'Curse him and his long legs!'

Spotting a sign that read "Arthur's Dinner", Emma slowed to her usual pace. Once inside the waitress recognized her and showed her towards the table she had reserved.

Neither Murphy nor Ines were there yet which wasn't altogether surprising. Murphy could take hours getting ready. Emma didn't know if it was worth it- sure, he looked nice but it took way too long.

The brunette remembered how it had infuriated her whenever they'd planned to hang out. He'd been this way even when they were kids. Arthur's Dinner had been one of their hang out spots when they were in high school, being one of the two dinners in Riverside.

It had stuck through adulthood and was a fixture by the time Emma met Ines in college. In fact, it was such an important part of their lives Murphy had taken Ines out there on their first date.

About five minutes after Emma arrived, Phynes joined her table.

"Sorry 'bout the wait Em. 'Phy needed his time primping himself up in the bathroom. You know how he is," the curly-haired girl laughed off.

Ines' laughter was infectious and while the situation was not particularly funny, Emma found herself laughing along. This sunny aspect of the younger girl's personality was what had drawn Emma to her in the first place. Ines was bright and cheerful, not at all like herself.

Emma was a pessimist to the core so being around Ines was like a breath of fresh air. Genuinely nice and open people were rare, much like the birds of Sunset Valley. Maybe comparing Ines to the local fauna was a bit much but it certainly got the point across.

On the other hand, Murphy was an eternal cynic, quite bitter and grouchy on most days. His blunt no-nonsense personality made it difficult for people to like him. Emma would know as she was like that herself, albeit to a lesser degree.

Growing up, Murphy and her were excluded by the neighbourhood kids a lot. It was only natural they started gravitating towards each other. Luckily, their personalities meshed well. If it were not the case, Emma and Murphy would have had quite lonely childhoods.

Murphy scoffed, rolling his eyes overdramatically.

"Well, you know me. I just had to disprove the "girls take hours to get ready" stereotype."

It was said in jest but Emma knew Phy was serious. He had always been quite the feminist.

Growing up with a single mom, Murphy got a first seat at witnessing the double standards for women. A man raising a kid on his own was considered brave. But for a woman? The mother would be blamed if even one of her child's shoes was unlaced.

This was a bit of an exaggeration but it reflected rather well on the way the townspeople had treated Murphy's mother. There had never been a town event when someone didn't ask if his mother would finally settle down. "Murphy needs a father figure", they would say.

Over the years, the comments dwindled down- but only because Murphy was now a grown man. Emma knew this double standard for women had played a big role in moulding Murphy into the person he was today. Small town prejudice was one of the few things the brunette was gladly leaving behind once she moved out.

Lunch was uneventful. Emma ordered the usual- fried chicken with a salad on the side, and Phynes teased her about her lack of adventure. Ines called her a "chicken". The joke was incredibly cheesy and overused but it still made Emma smile.

Afterwards, the chicken jokes would not stop and the brunette wondered just how many Ines could pull off before it became annoying. The answer was three. Murphy snapped after the "mother hen" pun thus, putting a stop to his girlfriend's antics.

Emma found their relationship's dynamic to be incredibly intriguing. It was like watching a tug of war. Ines would pull Murphy out of his darker moods and Murphy would ground her whenever her shenanigans would go too far. It was sweet, truly.

On their way back to Emma's house, the three friends took Ines' car. The latter had driven Murphy to the dinner since she had needed to drive to Riverside herself.

Ines wasn't a Riverside resident. She lived in another town half an hour away. Emma had met her in her second year of college. The then-freshman had joined the soccer club Emma was in. The girls quickly bonded.

Murphy and Ines met during the following summer break when Ines stayed over at Emma's house. By the time the new school year rolled around, Phynes were official. Emma had been happy for her friends.

Although, she would sometimes feel like a third wheel when the three of them were together- like right now, in the car. Sitting in the back seat, Emma felt a bit out of place while her best friends bantered/flirted. She was used to it though since they'd been dating for nearly three years.

They arrived at Emma's house around 3 pm. By the time they got to the brunette's room, Abigail was already waiting for them. Ines immediately caught Abigail up to what was new in her life while Murphy merely exchanged a brief greeting.

Staying true to their character, Phy was the one truly helping Emma pack, with Abigail switching between folding clothes and letting herself distracted by Ines. Honestly, Emma had expected this scenario when she'd agreed on having her friends over to help her pack.

The truth was she didn't need their help, to begin with- but Emma had thought it would be more fun this way. Admittedly, it also took much more time and effort. Emma was a perfectionist and she wholeheartedly believed in the phrase: "You are never better served than by yourself". However, this summer was all she had left before she moving out and starting her job.

While tidying her shelves, Emma found a photograph tucked between two books. It was a picture of her whole family gathered together for Christmas at her grandfather's house, taken mere months before he passed away.

It used to stand proudly on her desk but Emma had removed it, unable to look at it when her grandfather died. Teen Emma had tried getting rid of it overcome by her grief but she could not.

It was the only photograph she owned where her family was whole and happy. Incapable of throwing it away, she had shoved it between her least favourite books. Now, it was five years later and Emma was glad to see the photograph again.

She handed the picture to her sister. "Look at what I found, Abby. You were so little back then."

Said strawberry blond girl looked away from what she was doing and examined the picture. As Abigail smiled, the pink braces she usually felt self-conscious about showed. "I think I was ten, wasn't I? Was it that Christmas I asked for a Pegasus?"

"It was. Dad got you riding lessons at the ranch two towns over instead," Emma affirmed.

"That's right. You were the one who drove me there."

Overcome by nostalgia, Emma looked away and cleared her throat.

"Anyway- you can make a copy if you want. I know you don't have a picture with all of us together. Do it soon, though. I'll be taking that picture with me when I move."

Abigail nodded and hugged her sister enthusiastically.

"I'll put it on my desk so I don't forget. I'll return it as soon as I can. That's a promise."

With Abigail now gone, Emma noticed the curious yet cautious look on Ines' face. Emma scoffed lightly. "You can ask. I won't bite."

"It looked like it was very important to you. Why were you hiding it in those books?"

"Laying down on her bed, Emma covered her face with her right arm. "It hurt too much, that's why."

Sighing, the brunette continued. "Growing up, I was very close to my grandfather. He was my hero and I loved him very much. He's the reason I even became a computer scientist in the first place. That had been his job before he retired."

Pausing, Emma forced the incoming tears down.

"It hit me hard when he passed away. I even ran away, for like- a night. Anyway, I couldn't look at that photograph, so I just- hid it. I tried to throw it away, but I couldn't bring myself to do it."

Feeling the dark mood, Ines changed the subject. Around ten minutes in, the atmosphere lightened considerably. Emma was infinitely grateful for it. While she had come to terms with her grandfather's passing, the brunette disliked lingering on her darker thoughts. It was not a good head-space for anyone to be in, least of all a pessimist.

Emma had no doubt the year she lost her grandfather had been the lowest point she'd ever been in. Thus, even thinking about it was something she avoided. Emma's thoughts spiralled too quickly and easily.

Clearing her mind, the brunette got back on task, finalizing what was left to pack. It wasn't much. When everything was done, the four of them decided to watch a movie in the living room. With quasi unanimity- Murphy alone voted for a thriller, they opted for a rom-com. It was as cheesy as it could get but at least, it had been uplifting.

Phynes left after the movie, with the promise to hang out later this week. Abigail, on the other hand, chose to watch another movie. Emma had decided against joining her since she had planned to go on a jog.

Changing her clothes for the third time today, Emma did just that. Running was part of her daily routine and the 23-year-old would sometimes feel angsty if she hadn't gone on a jog recently. She hoped she wouldn't have trouble continuing this ritual once she moved.

As the scenery went by, Emma mentally summarized her day. It had been one of her ways to effectively deal with her grief, way back when. It eventually turned into a habit and to be honest, it was most likely the healthiest habit she had.

Thinking back on her day, Emma found it was a rather banal one. Funnily enough, today's most exciting feature had been her encounter with 'Butter Guy'.

When Emma returned home, her mother had joined Abigail on the couch while Frank was busying himself in the kitchen. Emma chatted with them for a bit before taking a most deserved shower.

Once freshly showered and clad in comfortable sleepwear, the brunette with her hair still wet, came down the stairs with a towel around her shoulders. Frank had just finished cooking so Emma helped him set the table. Then, it was time to eat.

Abigail was rather disheartened by the interruption. Apparently, the movie was "getting good" when she and their mother were called to the table.

Unsurprisingly, Abigail quickly bounced back from her sour mood. After all, the rebellious emo teenager in this household had been Aidan Brown, not either of his sisters.

Dinner was nearly over when Emma's mother suddenly spoke up.

"Girls, there is something important I want to talk about. Please do try not to get upset, especially you Emma." Jane said, eyeing warily her oldest daughter.

Emma had known their parents had wanted to tell them something. They had been uncharacteristically quiet this evening. With the way Emma's mother had phrased it, the brunette had a bad feeling, a truly terrible one.

"You know we've been keeping your grandfather's house for about five years now, since he passed away, really. Um- so- the thing is- we put it up for sale two months ago. and there's a buyer. He'll come to sign the papers next month." The table was eerily silent after Jane's announcement. You could hear a pin drop.

At least, that was until Emma unfroze, rising up so quickly her chair clattered to the floor.

"What did you just say?!?!?"