Would You Believe Me?
by
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Chapter One
My name is Rose. I am 16 years old, and I'm not crazy. My name is Rose. I am 16 years old, and I'm not crazy. My name is Rose. I am 16 years old, and I'm NOT crazy.
I used to say this to myself every night. My counselor told me it was all in my head and that it all never happened.
Sometimes I think maybe he was right; maybe it was all just a nightmare, but it all seemed too real. I don't know exactly what happened, or when it even happened, which was probably the reason my counselor thought I was lying. However, this was all based off of a dream.
It comes every night exactly the same as the night before. It started off so serene. I was with my little brother Gabe on the playground; he was giggling and running around calling my name. He asked if we could play hide and seek; of course I said yes and told him to run off and hide. Nevertheless, that was when everything got eerie. At first, I checked in the easy places: in the tube slide, behind the rock wall, in the tires, under the bushes, and even inside the restrooms. It was no use. I started to scream for him. I hysterically broke down over losing Gabe. He was only nine; what was he to do? Instantly, I called my parents. They told me to call the police since they are out of town. Therefore, that was what I did. I did it that day and I did it every night in the dream. I wished I were to do something different, but my body physically did not allow.
Furthermore, the police arrived. They told me they put an amber alert out on my missing baby brother. The dream only escalated from there.
I woke up screaming covered in sweat. I had to remember that I will find him no matter what. One day I will. Even though they said they found his body, it didn't mean anything. Someone could have easily switched the dental records and changed the DNA sample. I did not believe it was him. I will never believe it was him. Gabe is alive, and I promised I will find him no matter what the cost was. I just needed a little help; I needed only one person to believe me.
My new family the Johnsons fostered me a few months ago since my other foster homes did not want me. They had a son named James, who was extremely creepy. I swore he watched me when I changed. He always followed me around; everywhere I went he was watching me as if I were his pet. I tried telling Anna and Conner (James' mom and dad) that I thought he followed me, but they did not believe me. However, he got a restraining order for stalking this poor girl Samantha.
I woke up to my alarm going off. It was 8:00. Oh crap! I was going to be late for school. I hurried up and took a shower and washed my hair. Since this was my first day, I was going to try to look nice. I put mousse in my hair to make my curls stay curly. I put on a black high waisted skirt with a long sleeved purple crop top with my long laced black sweater. I walked downstairs and grabbed a muffin and a glass of orange juice.
"Your brother already left for school. You're going to have to walk. It's right down the street,’’ Connor yelled.
“That's great. My first day of school and I have to walk by myself even though I wouldn't want James to walk with me. At least I won't be lost,” I mumbled to myself.
I chugged the glass of orange juice. Then I walked to the sink and washed it. "Alright, but where do I go when I get there?" I asked.
"Just find the office.”
I grabbed a notebook and a pencil off the table to bring to school. I walked out of the house and noticed that it was already 8:35. That meant I only had ten minutes to get to the office. I wouldn't want to be late my first day. I rushed down the street and looked for the school. I thought it was called Riverview High School. I looked around but did not see any big buildings that said Riverview High School. I saw this hot lightskin kid walking out of his house. He was wearing khaki joggers, a black tank that said American Eagle, and orange and green KD's. He looked good. He caught me staring at him and asked, "Are you lost?"
"Umm.” I looked around one more time and asked, "Yeah. Do you know where Riverview High School is?"
"Actually I do. I'm going there right now if you want a ride?"
He walked to his car. "You're not like a creepy stalker dude or a serial killer right?" I asked nervously while laughing a little. I really hoped not.
He laughed, "No, I'm just a student there. I promise I won't hurt you."
"On that note, I will take you up on your offer for a ride," I said smiling.
I got into his blue Lamborghini and sat in the passenger seat. He then backed out of his driveway and went the opposite way I was walking. I guess I was walking the wrong way. I was not surprised that Conner gave me the wrong directions. It wasn't as if he cared if I was lost. I didn't even know why they fostered me.
"Hi. My name is Rose."
"Hi, Rose. I'm Cameron. You know you were walking to Dillon High School and not Riverview."
Of course, I was told to go the wrong way. I was surprised he actually gave me directions even though he knew they were wrong and probably wanted me to be late the first day.
"Wow. The family I am living with told me to go down the street so I did and I found no building."
“Maybe they don’t really know where the school is.”
“Knowing them, they probably don’t.”
I looked out the window and tried to remember the way back home. Everything looked alike to me so it might have been hard finding my way back.
"You shouldn't be walking out here alone. There are some bad people in this neighborhood," he said, sounding like he's implying something.
"There are bad people everywhere...I can manage."
"That is true, but you never know what the future holds.’’
I laughed and said, ’’You sound like one of those fortune tellers at an amusement park.’’
“Okay, maybe that did sound pretty creepy, but I'm serious you never know what could happen.’’
"Okay fortune teller," I said laughing, "What does my future hold?"
He laughed, "You have a distraught future. You will be unsure of who you can trust."
Well, my life is confusing, so he got that part right about not knowing who I can trust.
"You’re a pretty good fortune teller. You should go get a job for it. You will make some good money."
"You’re funny, but was I right about your fortune?"
"Sadly you were."
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About the Book
Sixteen-year-old Rose Mendez has the same dream every night. She’s at a playground with her little brother Gabe. Gabe wants to play hide-and-seek, so she tells him to go hide. The problem is, she never finds him. Her parents tell her to call the cops. A body is eventually discovered, but Rose doesn’t believe it’s little Gabe. She wakes up screaming.
It’s too bad the dream really happened. Now, her parents are dead, too, and Rose is being fostered by the Johnson family and their creepy son. Despite her bad luck, her first day at Riverview High School starts out all right. She finds a friend in Cameron, and a friend is what she needs since she thinks Gabe is still alive and she’s made it her mission to find him.
There are people who think she’s crazy. After all, they found Gabe’s body, and the DNA was a match. Rose has a theory, though, about what really happened that day at the playground. As she copes with the loss of her parents and brother, she becomes more and more obsessed with the investigation. Question is: who will believe her story?
About the Author
Mariah Shepherd lives in New Castle, Pennsylvania, with her mother and brother. She is currently a junior at New Castle Senior High School, as well as a member of the National Honors Society. Mariah enjoys playing basketball and volleyball. She has loved writing since she was a child. Mariah is currently working on a sequel to, Would You Believe Me.