Chapter One:
My Life Before The Move
I walked into the room with all of eyes on me. I stood there. Then, the teacher told me to take my seat anywhere I wanted. You’re probably wondering how I got here, so I’ll tell you.
My name is Makenzie, but all my friends call me Kenzie. I live in Northampton, MA with my friends Lilly, Carly, Haylen, and Madison. We are all 7th graders at our middle school, Mary Ann MS. Life was awesome. I was getting all A+ in all of my classes except math- I had a B. I had four friends, and my teachers loved me. I thought that things could never change, and if they did, they would be for the better.
But things took a turn on one Friday. My friends and I were walking to my house after art club as we did every Friday. As we walked up to my house, I saw some boxes on the ground but didn’t think much of it.
“Makenzie, sweetheart, I thought we said no friends today,” my mom said.
“They can wait in my room,” I said as they sat me down.
My dad shifted in his seat like he does every time he is about to say something serious, “I got a good job offer.”
“That’s great, but what’s the catch?” I said nervously.
“We have to move to California for my job.”
I felt tears welling up in my eyes as I ran to my room and slammed the door. Carly looked up and asked, “What’s wrong, Kenzie? You, like, never cry.”
“WE ARE MOVING TO CALIFORNIA FOR MY DAD’S JOB, AND I’LL PROBABLY NEVER SEE YOU GUYS AGAIN!” I cried.
My friends hugged me as I cried.
“Maybe it won’t be so bad,” Haylen said.
“Yeah, you’re just moving. We will stay in touch!” Carly said as she tried to stop me from passing out.
“Maybe you guys are right,” I said.
“Your parents are not thinking about you. Your grades are great, you have friends, and your teachers love you,” Lilly said. That was the first thing she said that whole time but she wasn’t wrong.
Maddie was silent. She was crying, because she knew that me leaving meant that she would lose her best friend. She wasn’t allowed a phone.
That night at dinner I didn’t say a word. I was so mad. The next few weeks were torture. Packing and studying and clubs. The rest of the group left Maddie and I alone, since they knew it was our last weeks together.
“Why do you have to leave me right before regionals?” Maddie asked quietly.
“I’m sorry I can’t be here for your gymnastics comp. You know I’m really going to miss you, right, Maddie?” I said, the tears welling up again.
“I know, but I wish you wouldn’t be so far away,” I saw the tears in her eyes drip down her face.
One afternoon when I was packing, my door opened, and I saw Lilly and Maddie.
“We are here to help you pack! Carly and Haylen wanted to go to Sephora instead,” Lilly said. That stung. My two friends from kindergarten would rather go to Sephora than help their friend pack.
We spent hours together. A few weeks later we loaded the moving van. I said goodbye to my friends, and we left. Luckily, I won’t miss school, since it was spring break. The second we left, I texted my friends and we chatted until they left for dinner. After that, things with my friends got interesting. They slowly started to drift away like me leaving didn’t affect them. That’s when things got worse.
