| W H E N C A N D A C E M E T J U D E |
•   •   •
| Candace |

     The sun didn't shine much on the smallest of small towns where the young brunette resided in. The trees began to lose their color, signaling the arrival of Candace's favorite season yet; fall. Fall was her favorite season for many different reasons. The major one being that her birthday would be happening soon.

     She would be seventeen.

     She'd been waiting for this very birthday since her older sisters first turned seventeen, when she was still a little girl. First, went her eldest sister, Maya, who had received a sparkling white Lexus and access to a small percentage of her trust fund.

     Serena, the middle child of them all was livid to say the very least. But it didn't last long. Because sooner or later, her seventeenth rolled around. And she was awarded the same gifts and car. Although—it was in a different shade. Their mother and father knew better than to make that mistake.

     There wasn't much that could be said about her sisters—Candace wasn't very close to them, due to having different values and overall morals. Candace couldn't stress enough how difficult it was to be raised side-by-side with people who didn't understand you. And simply never made an effort to.

     It was a childhood from hell, so she would say.

     Sixteen wasn't the best year. She'd spent the last summer entertaining her then on and off again boyfriend, Finn. But after finding about his late-night meetings with a girl from a neighboring town, it was safe to say that they were off again—and they would stay off.

Much to Finn's dismay.

The young college boy had bugged her about rekindling their failed relationship for months on end. To the point where completely blocking him on every app and changing her number seemed to be the only way to keep him from reaching her.

Candace had awoken this morning to her family starting breakfast without her—again. Her mother always claimed to not want to wake her whenever this happened. But Candace knew. She knew that they simply didn't see the reasoning for telling her breakfast was ready if they had no interest in eating with her.

The reasoning for this was something that Candace couldn't even get into on a Monday morning. Delving into the details and thoughts of last summer and her issues with her reappearing eating disorder would set the rest of her day up for downfall.

     And she couldn't have that. Not on the first day of junior year. The most important year of high school.

     Especially for Candace, who had been working toward a tennis scholarship since freshman year. Not that she necessarily loved the sport, but it would without a doubt, help her with her inevitable escape plan out of her hometown. Which nobody knew about.

     Candace turned down the long and narrow hallway from her bedroom and began heading down the curved staircase, holding onto the railing. She was met with stares from her mother and oldest sister, Maya.

     Maya took a cautious sip from her tall glass of orange juice, sending a sly look toward their mother, whose head turned to face Candace with surprise. "Look who's finally up!" She cheers, causing everyone else at the table to look up, an unexpected look sitting on their faces.

     Maya watches Candace with a careful stare, as though waiting for her collapse at any moment from starvation pure shame. Maybe it was just a big sister thing—or maybe it was because she was the one who'd found Candace passed out on their mothers designer rug from exhaustion and a lack of nutrition only a few months ago.

     Serena, the middle child, doesn't bother looking up from her plate of eggs and bacon, obviously not very happy with Candace's arrival.

     Candace took the seat right between Maya and her father. The man looked over to his youngest daughter and sent her a light smile, sliding plate of piping hot eggs her way. She thanked him by returning his genuine smile.

     Maya's hand found hers beneath the table as she leaned down, placing the temple of her head on top Candace's. "How are you?" She whispered into the shell of her younger sisters ear.

     Candace shrugged, the two trying not to let the rest of the table in on their quiet small talk. "I don't know, yet."

     "Are you sure you're ready to go back to school? I mean, if you're not sure I could always talk to dad and—"

     Candace cut her sister off, not wanting her to go through all of that unnecessary trouble. "No, it's fine. I'll be fine." Her answer was short, soft, and whispered. Maya didn't seem too satisfied with her answer. But Candace couldn't really blame her—she'd put her family through so much in the past year.

And it was clear Serena still didn't forgive her. The dark-haired senior didn't even turn to acknowledge her younger sister's presence. Let alone to say good morning like the rest of their family.

Candace dug into her breakfast, feeling nothing but curious eyes watch her. With her fork in hand, only inches from her lips, she turns and catches her mother in an tense stare.

Tasha, her mother, places a comfortable smile on her aging lips. "U-Um, sweetheart, are you excited for your first day back?" Tasha asks, eyes tracing over Candace's worry lines that lined her full lips. "I know you've been a little scared for summer to end—"

"No, I uh—I'm really excited for everything to go back to normal." She spoke, earning raised eyebrows from Tasha, who wasn't yet done with the conversation.

"But I just . . . I know how tough this summer was on you. And your father and I were just a little worried—" Tasha's words were interrupted once again. But this time not by Candace.

Serena let out a harsh breath, setting down her glass of orange juice with a heavy hand. "Jesus, mom. She just said she was fine to go back. What else do you want her to say?"

"Serena," Their father spoke sternly, never once breaking eye contact with the slim brunette who was very obviously over having another conversation about Candace over breakfast. "Apologize to your mother. Now."

Serena's lips parted in surprise, most-likely wanting to protest. She seems to decide against it, standing from the kitchen table and rushing over to the dish washer, sliding her plate in. But before she passes the table and is on her way toward her bedroom, she pauses.

"I'm sorry, mom." Tasha sends her a nod in response, Serena disappearing up the staircase.

Maya chuckles, standing from her chair and gathering her plate and tall glass of juice. "Well, it's obvious Serena's having a bad day. Which means all of us will, too." This was completely true. The middle child was known for poisoning the air in the Porter home whenever she was in a bad mood.

It was something they were all used to.

"Maya, please not today." Tasha spoke, rubbing both temples with her fingers. Her oldest daughter scoffing in disbelief and following Serena's previous actions. But instead of heading upstairs to her bedroom, grabs her car keys from a hook beside the front door and slams it behind her.

Candace is the last one standing it seems, after both of her sisters have left. Serena, most likely getting ready for her first day of her senior year. And Maya, who probably had an early class at the community college.

Terrell, her father, turns to her and gestures toward the staircase. "Please go get ready. Serena's giving you a ride today."

Candace nods, tossing the rest of her eggs into the waste basket before trudging up the curved stairs. She could feel her parents' stares from behind, and she knew they waiting for her to close herself into her bedroom so they could talk about her.

So Candace encloses herself into her bedroom, and not even a minute later—the voices from down the stairs venture up through the vents. But not loud enough so that she could ever understand them. Just incessant mumbling and whispering.

Candace stands tall before her mirror. Her sleepwear had consisted of sweatpants and one of Finn's old t-shirts. A t-shirt she pulled over her head and tossed into the nearest trash can. It was something she should've done months ago.

She'd spent the next hour showering, brushing her teeth, and slipping into one of her schools signature sweaters with a white collar beneath it. The bottoms she'd been forced into was a fitting white tennis skirt that her sweater and shirt had been tucked into.

The outfit made her feel so vanilla. And the high ponytail she had always woven into her curls didn't help. She added a few elements to the outfit, leaving a few pieces of curls out of the sides of her high ponytail and stuck her tiny gold hoops into her ears.

Sitting her bottom down on a chair closest to her open closet, she picked a pair of black shoes with a strap on the ankle. They came with a three-inch heel which she didn't mind. But still, they weren't her favorite pair seeing as they were school mandated.

She stood before her mirror once more, taking a deep intake of air. She grabbed her book bag that was hanging beside her closet doors, and slung it over her right shoulder. Her eyes lingered on her knee-high socks that complimented her legs that seemed to be longer than any other body part of hers.

Candace smiles, whispering to herself. "You've got this. Just smile, nod, and play it cool. You're fine, everything's fine. You spent the summer in Florida with grandma and grandpa and didn't return anyone's calls or texts because they're old-fashioned and don't believe in cellphones."

And just like that, she's out of her bedroom, shutting and locking her door behind her. Tasha hated when she did that. But Candace did for a reason. She knew if she didn't, her mother woukd ransack her room searching for any sign that her eating disorder had returned.

As if it ever goes away.

When she finds herself at the bottom of the staircase, Serena is already dressed and primed, sitting idly on the family sofa. Her outfit is almost identical to her younger sisters, except for the headband placed at the top of her head, and her signature set of pearls she always had hung at the base of her neck.

She taps away at her cellphone, eyes trained and concentrated. When realizing that her older sister was never going to notice her on her own, Candace clears her throat.

Serena turns, noticing that she was finally ready to go. "Took you long enough, princess. I've been sitting here for like hours."

Candace pushed down the urge to grab Serena by her pearls and shove her head into the nearest wall. The irony of Serena calling anyone a princess was more than Candace could handle on a Monday morning. The girl drove a Lexus, for crying out loud and practically threw a fit whenever she was forced into driving Candace to school in it.

It's bad enough I have to go school with it, she'd say in reference to her younger sister. Now I have to drive it to school? Candace remembers this distinctly because Serena would consistently refer to her as an it.

"Can we just go?" Candace asks, her fingers tightening on the strap of her book bag.

Serena stood from the decorated sofa, "fine by me. Bye, daddy!" She shouted, purposely ignoring the presence of their mother.

Candace takes another deep inhale, preparing for the long drive ahead of her. "Bye, dad! Bye, mom!"