Sparkling Hope (The Eastburgh Devils Series Book 1)

Asshole.

That was the first thing that came to mind after I turned half the bathroom upside down and opened all the drawers, hoping that somewhere there would be my make up bag with my products.

My skull was throbbing, and I felt like a little man was trying to create holes in my head with a drill.

I didn’t have an absolute blackout from yesterday, which I shouldn’t have allowed myself to do because when do you come home utterly drunk after a movie night with your best friend?

Exactly. Never. 

We planned to go to the movies, but then Aria and I got an offer to go to an abandoned diner with a party.

How can you say no to a party?

Since I wasn’t getting any alarming messages, let alone panicked phone calls from my Mom, it probably worked as a successful lie.

I hated to lie to my Mom, but she wouldn’t have let me go to that party if I told her where it was.

My Mom was a little too cautious sometimes, which was really annoying.

After everything last year, she wanted to protect my brother and me, but sometimes it was too much.

No one had a brain as washed out as Weston, hiding my make up bag in the last drawer under a towel, between a disgusting vanilla-smelling candle and condoms.

Which have expired.

I would love to pull these condoms over his head and wait until he suffocates in agony.

Whereby he already choked on his oversized egoism.

Selfish asshole.

Suddenly the door from the bathroom into my room burst open and slammed against the tall, thin closet.

Standing in front of me topless in a pair of sleep pants and completely overtired, Weston glared at me angrily as he stormed into the bathroom.

‘Are you kidding me or something?’ he croaked.

I tried to stifle my laughter. ‘What do you want? A good morning or what?’

I had purposely locked his door from the inside after realizing he had hidden all my drugstore products.

   I was sure Weston would storm through my room, but I hoped he would sleep longer.

I didn’t care that he would see what the room looked like.

Before dinner, I frantically rummaged around in my suitcase, and since then, I haven’t found the time or desire to clean the guest room.

‘You know you’re really fucking exhausting?’

‘And you’re fucking selfish and arrogant, huh?’ I growled at him as he went to grab his toothbrush from the mirrored cabinet.

But to his surprise, there was no toothbrush to be found in his toothbrush cup.

Spoiler Alert: His toothpaste and toothbrush were in the expired condom package.

‘Are you kidding me?’

‘A beautiful good morning to you, too, asshole.’ With those words, I left the bathroom.

I saw him frantically looking in the drawers for his toothpaste and toothbrush out of the corner of my eye.

How I wish I was back at the motel right now.

The motel had carried with it only good reasons.

I’d have my own room and bathroom, where I wouldn’t constantly worry about someone hiding my stuff and stashing it among random things.

No stressful Weston to bug me after the first night.

Everything would have been better if my mother and I had stayed at the motel.

My Mom put her hair up with a clip. ‘Good morning Luni.’

I greeted everyone and sat at the dining table, which was already set.

In the living area, the wall facing the garden was covered with floor-to-ceiling windows, and for the first time, I saw the entire property in daylight.

The property bordered a lake, the shore of which could not be seen on the other side because fog hovered over the water’s surface.

The lawn of the garden was covered with frost, and there was also frost on the protection of the hot tub, which looked like glitter.

‘How was yesterday?’ she began to pester me with questions about yesterday, and just as I was about to answer, Weston came around the round dining table and sat across from me.

‘That’s right, Luna, why don’t you tell us how it was yesterday? What movie did you watch?’

Asshole.

I would love to stab this guy with my butter knife, which I held in my left hand, and let him bleed to death miserably.

I didn’t avoid his spiteful grin and thought about what I could answer because I absolutely couldn’t lie.

‘Some horror movie, I don’t know what it was called.’ I reached for the raspberry jam to smear on my toast.

I was in a hurry, not only because I wanted to escape this incredibly awkward situation but also because I was meeting Aria at the coffee shop on campus.

Mom was sipping her coffee cup. ‘Glad you had such a nice evening with Aria.’

That was such an awkward snapshot here with the Sinclairs, who, on a side note, were complete strangers to me, sitting at a table and having breakfast together.

Everything was bothering me right now, and any place where I could live right now would be better than sitting at this table.

I was sitting across from Weston, who was pouring cocoa powder into his cup.

He even drank cocoa.

My favorite drink.

It can’t get any worse than this.

I kept silent to myself the rest of the morning, talking only when I really needed to, and that happened about twice.

I regretted not asking Weston a counter-question about how the studying had been because I didn’t like to let it sit on me when people tried to get me into shit on purpose.

But he gave the impression that he already had the best excuse on the tip of his tongue, and to exchange a word with him alone would only aggravate my headache, so I just let it go.

Weston finished the rest of his cocoa, got up from the dining table without comment, rinsed his dishes, and put the plate and cup in the dishwasher before disappearing upstairs.

After we all finished eating, I disappeared into my room and packed some things into my bag to head to campus.

I knocked on Mom’s door to say goodbye since she was traveling with Camilla for a while, and Mom could work from any location anyway.

‘Don’t forget the keys, Luni,’ my Mom called to me as she put a sweater in a suitcase.

I held the front door keys in the air and jingled it briefly before stowing them back in my jacket pocket and leaving the house.

Putting my headphones in my ears, I pressed the play button, and the first notes rang through my headphones.

In keeping with the song’s beat, I tapped my fingers on the front door keys I held in my jacket pocket.

The fog clouds rested on the lake this morning and were now clearly visible in the forest’s treetops.

The property was a little away from the center, and you walked along a road through the forest.

It had a slight creepy flair in the evening, but I imagined it must look really pretty when the sun shone through the dense firs and threw light shows on the road.

Not a soul around, just the wind blowing through the treetops and the birds.

I walked across the empty campus, and as I rounded the corner, I could already see the small, flat building.

Floor-to-ceiling windows with little white cups stuck to them in the form of stickers decorated the facade.

As well as a sign where in dull color CAMPUS CAFÉ was engraved.

I approached the store, and through the large windows, I saw Aria, with a red apron around the waist and a broom in hand, sweeping the floor.

My fist carefully banged several times against the glass door, and when the ash blonde noticed me, she ran to the door and unlocked it for me.

‘I have so much to tell you,’ with these words, Aria greeted me, and while she pulled out two cups from behind the counter, I locked up again.

We sat down on the bar stools after I put my jacket and bag on one of the chairs.

‘Are you ready? Because I wasn’t, and I’m still not,’ she replied, and I nodded excitedly because I was curious about what she had to tell me.

The cocoa scent rose to my nose as I took a careful sip.

‘I had sex with Sinclair,’ she said in a quick breath.