Page 1 of Rejected Broken Mate

Chapter 1 - Laura

"Mom, look!" Michael squealed as I pulled the car up in front of the little green house. It looked even better in person than in the photos. All the windows had white shutters, and the front door was a light maroon. The yard was big, and I knew there was a small patio out back with a large tree and a tire swing.

The house was tiny, only a little under a thousand square feet. But it had two bedrooms and a bathroom, and the price was in my comfort zone.

I heard Michael unbuckle, and the car door opened. I turned back, but he was already out of the car, hurrying towards the house. I watched his brown hair dance in the wind as he ran, his sneakers kicking up grass as he moved.

I softly smiled at him. Even in the car, I could still hear his words.

"Mom! Look at this house! It's huge!"

I thought back to our apartment in Nevada. It was tiny, with small bedrooms and a little patio space. Of course, this place looked huge when we were practically living on top of each other in our old place.

I knew this move was a good idea, but I was still nervous. Leaving behind my home and everyone was hard, but I knew he needed this. We couldn't keep living the way we were.

"Mom, are you coming?"

His words snapped me back to reality, and I nodded, pulling myself out of the car. I took a deep breath of the fall air and felt a chill run up my spine. I was going to need to get some winter clothes for us.

"Come on, mom." Michael stood at the door now, peering in through one of the windows. "This place looks amazing. And it's ours?"

I smiled at him, giving him a nod. "It's all ours."

It was all so strange how everything fell together. I was talking with Michael about moving several months ago. We discussed everything together, as a step like this was huge. To my surprise, he loved the idea.

I had been unhappy at work and wasn't finding myself happy in general with our life. I could tell Michael needed a change as well. He had difficulty fitting in school and didn't have many friends.

I asked Michael what he wanted. And he said he wanted to be somewhere with mountains and snow. I couldn't blame him, having never really been able to enjoy snow as we didn't get snowstorms often.

We had landed in the state of Minnesota because they had everything he wanted. I’d found him staring at pictures and talking about it nonstop once I brought it up.

One evening, I was scrolling on my computer, with Michael sitting next to me watching cartoons. I had paused over a job opening at a fire station. They were looking for a coordinator and building manager. The job included taking care of billing, planning events, and helping the crew with whatever else they needed. It was a large jump in my income, and it was five days a week, which meant I would have my weekends with Michael again.

"Oh," Michael said, leaning over and looking at the screen. "What's that?"

"It's a job opportunity," I said, giving him a soft smile. "I would need a new job if we moved."

"At a fire station?"

"It's one of the jobs," I explained, scrolling through other options. "It's one of many."

I had landed in a small town called Honeyville. It seemed to have everything I was looking for. There was a good school system that had a lot of extracurricular activities. Michael was in baseball and football and part of a science club that I knew he loved.

When I looked at the town's housing, it seemed reasonable. There weren't many houses, but the little green one immediately caught my attention. I had enough to make a substantial down payment.

I had been on the fence, but Michael was more than eager for both of us. He wanted to move to Honeyville, so we did.

I slipped the key into the lock and unlocked the door. I pushed the door open, and we both stood in the doorway, taking it in.

The house opened into a living room with a fireplace on the opposite wall. A large arch led into the kitchen, which had seating on the island. Down a small hallway was the bathroom and the first bedroom. A door from the kitchen led up to the second floor, which held the attic and second bathroom.

Michael moved, hurrying into the kitchen. "Mom! This place is amazing."

I felt proud, knowing that, as hard as this was, I had made the right decision. This move was what we both needed.

We both walked around, taking in the space together, and as we headed up the stairs towards the attic, Michael's eyeswidened. I gave him the bigger bedroom, knowing he always wanted one.

The attic was finished, making the entire space a bedroom with windows that flooded the room. Michael looked at me. "This is my room?"

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