Chapter 1
I should be dead. My mom’s dead. My dad’s dead. I don’t have sisters or brothers so I’m just left. I should be up in heaven with my parents. People wouldn’t miss me. Why don’t I jump? C’mon Hannah, just do it. No one would care. Maybe Nora but that’s it, and she’ll eventually get over it.
“You don’t wanna jump,” a voice calls from the other side of the roof. I turn and face the boy. He has dirty blonde hair and the most mysterious blue eyes. “You don’t wanna jump. Just come down.”
“Really? I think I wanna jump,” I snap back. He eases closer to me and I’m tempted to do it right then but, I don’t know, I can’t.
“If you really want to, do it,” he challenges. “I’ve been standing here since you ran up here with your mascara running down your face. That was 2 hours ago. If you wanted to end it, why haven’t you?”
“Who are you? And why do you care?” I ask. He smiles and reaches out his hand. Oh God, that smile. Those perfectly white teeth and his small dimples. Obediently, I take it.
“The real question is, who are you?”
“I asked first.”
“Easton. Easton Hughes,” he answers. “Your turn.”
“Hannah. Hannah Miller,” I respond the same way he does. He smiles. I almost smile back. Hell, I almost kiss him, to be honest. But I don’t. Instead, I run. “Look Easton, I appreciate you for stopping me from jumping but I have to go,” and off I go. Before he even has a chance to say anything back.
I hurry down the stairs with a fear that he’s following me. I turn around and see no one so I sneak back inside my abusive home.
“Where were you?!” Mrs. Jenkins screams at me.
“I went up to the roof for fresh air,” I muttered under my breath and walked into the room I share with Nora and Violet, the 2 girls I call my family.
“Han! Look at this!” my best friend, Nora calls. I saunter over to her bed and plop down beside her. I’ve known Nora since I was 4. She’s the one person that actually cares about me. But she’s getting adopted soon by this really rich family on the other side of town, so who knows when I’ll see her again.
“You know that kid, Jacob, at our school? Well, I guess he-”
“HANNAH LOUISE MILLER!” Mrs. Jenkins screams bloody murder.
“Here we go again,” I sigh as I slowly walk into the disgusting kitchen. There are dishes everywhere. Flies fly around landing on everything. I don’t think the dishes have been done since last month. “Yes, Mrs. Jenkins?” I try saying it in the nicest way possible.
“You went up to the roof with a boy?!” she accuses.
“He was up there before me. I didn’t even notice him until later,”
“So you talked to him then?”
“He talked to me first. I had to be polite,” I explain.
“Hannah, you know our policy about boys! Boys distract you! Boys manipulate you. They lie to you-”
“Like you don’t lie to us,” I mutter, rolling my eyes.
“Okay, that’s it! I’ve had enough of your little attitude! If you want to backtalk to me, there’s the door! But I hope,” she stops before she slaps me across the face. It stings, but I don’t let her see it. “You know, it’s a whole lot harder out there than in here,” she whispers in my ear before walking away.
I run into my room and bury myself under my blankets. I wish I would’ve jumped. I should’ve. Why did I listen to this random boy who I don’t even know? Why did he even care if I would’ve jumped? It’s not like he knew me.
