Prosperity Shores - Chapter 1

Welcome to Prosperity Shores. A quiet little seaside community. Our story follows the lives of the Cartwright and Mitchell families.

"Tasha, you have chores to finish! Stop spying on the neighbors!"

"Sigh..."

Hi there! As you heard my mom, I'm Tasha Cartwright. Mom is pretty easy going, but I never get away with trying to skip my chores.

I don't have too many chores...take out the trash, fix lunch, clean my room. The usual stuff I guess.

That's my Mom, Dolly Cartwright and my baby brother Drake. We moved to Prosperity Shores just before Drake was born. Dad left when Mom told him she was pregnant. He didn't want any more kids and accused Mom of cheating on him. We don't have any idea where he is now.

Once my chores are done I can have fun. I really love painting, I have my very own easel in my room.

Isn't it a pretty room? Yeah I know it's a bit childish to still have a doll house, but I've had it since I was little.

This will be Drake's bedroom once he is older.

He is just a brat right now though. Just turned 3.

Mom is a Legal Secretary, though she spends most of her spare time writing newspaper articles and novels.

As for who I was spying on? That's our neighbor Steven Mitchell. He is the cutest boy in my class! He hasn't really noticed me yet, and he isn't the type to hang out. I like him though.

I was talking to my BFF Sharon when I got a hint that might help me catch Steven's eye!

She told me he likes red heads! I went and got a box of hair color right away!

Wish me luck!

He winked at me in class today! I think I will just casually walk past his house after school...

"Steven?"

"Oh hi..er..Tasha right?"

"Yeah... I hope I'm not bothering you at a bad time..."

"No, not at all, I can use a break. I was thinking of getting a snack, want to join me?"

He put his hand on my shoulder and walked me towards the house. My skin under his hand was tingling like I had been shocked!

Inside the house a little girl about the same age as Drake was playing with a toy block set. I noticed the mattress in the hall, but hesitated to say anything.

Steven quickly introduced me to his baby sister Christa. She wasn't too interested in me.

He got really quiet for a moment, then started talking.

"We are orphans, all 5 of us. I have 2 more sisters and a brother, they are still at school right now. You will meet them later."

Our parents died last year, Mom was sick for a long time and just sort of wasted away. Dad couldn't handle the stress after her death and committed suicide 2 months later. We were lucky though, we had a good estate lawyer and I got custody of my siblings. There isn't a lot of money left, but I have an OK job and we are making it work."

All of our food comes from the greenhouse and fishing. We moved to this house because it was a fixer upper and it had the fishpond. A big chunk of the life insurance went into the greenhouse, but it's payed for itself by letting us garden year around. I sleep here in the hall to be close to Christa, she sleeps downstairs in the living room."

Steven stopped talking and continued looking out the window. I wasn't sure what to say.

Obviously he has had a really hard time of it. No wonder he doesn't waste time hanging out at the mall or on the beach with the rest of our age group. I was glad that he had opened up to me, does this mean he likes me? I hope so.

"I am sooo impressed Steven! It's cool that you have been able to keep your family together!"

The subject was getting too heavy though so I did the first thing that came to mind. I grabbed one of the pillows off the mattress and started a pillow fight! He seemed glad to drop the subject. Then a bus pulled up outside.

The rest of the kids were home from school! The twins Martha and Alice, are so cute. I love their hair and they told me it's just food coloring, but the effect was nice!

The other man of the house...Edward. He is just as quiet as his brother.

We all went into the backyard, they always spend a little bit of time fishing in the afternoons. Keeps the fridge full and the extras can be sold for money to buy other food.

I didn't do so good and nearly fell into the pond!

It didn't take long for the 6 of us to catch plenty of fish. Martha and Alice made a beeline for the swing set. Steven asked if I wouldn't mind checking on Christa while he finished the yard work.

As I headed for the house I was startled to see Edward greeting my mom. Uh oh..I hope she isn't mad.

"Oh...Hi mom! I was just helping Steven..." I broke off as she folded her arms and gave me that look.

"You should have asked before you just took off Tasha. You have your chores and homework to do and it's a school night."

"Sorry Mom, I just need to go get my books. They are inside."

Steven met us inside and politely asked mom to make herself comfortable while I headed for the dining room for my stuff. As I turned the corner Steven pulled me into his arms and kissed me! All I could do was hold on and gladly kiss him back.

As Mom and I left it was all I could do to keep from blushing. Mom probably knew exactly what had happened but she didn't say anything.

When we got home she headed straight for her computer. I did my chores quietly and as fast as I could. The phone rang and I jumped for it. It was Steven wanting to know if I could sneak out and meet him at the park. I told him yes and to give me an hour or so.

I waited for Mom to shut down her computer and then crept quietly out the back door. To my surprise, Steven was waiting by our mailbox. I gave him a quick hug and we walked to the park.

As we got to the park, he pulled me into another embrace and kissed me for the second time!

We sat on a bench, and talked for a while. Steven asked about my Mom and if I had gotten in trouble. I told him that she hadn't yelled or anything, but that she might still be a bit mad at me. I then explained how Dad had left us and that Mom really expected a lot from me.

Steven pulled me onto his lap and we cuddled for a while. Then he kissed my neck ever so lightly.

I was nervous, but he was so loving and gentle. It went a little farther than I had planned so soon, but... I love him. It will be OK as long as Mom doesn't find out.

Steven and I spend all our spare time together. He comes to my house when he can afford to have the nanny stay a little longer. We do homework together, I showed him my paintings.

When my Mom is home we hang out at the park. She knows I'm going steady with Steven. She doesn't know everything, but I don't think she needs to know!

We spend most of our time at Steven's house though, it's cheaper that way. The nanny can get expensive. I try to help wherever I can. Steven is working hard trying to save up for some renovations to the house. The younger kids are doing extra fishing to sell more fish and save the money.

Most evenings the nanny will cook dinner and then I dismiss her and finish watching the youngsters. I told mom that I had joined an art club at school so she wouldn't wonder where I was.

Steven got his top promotion! With the bonus money it was time to make the renovations. We spent ages working on the house.
The kitchen was widened and the table moved into it. The area where the dining room used to be was walled off and turned into a bedroom for Steven. He doesn't have to camp out in the entry hall anymore.
The living room is bigger now that the wall between the entry hall and the living room was removed!

One Saturday, Mom had to run into the office on her day off to get some paperwork done for an upcoming court date. I had to babysit, but I didn't mind. Steven was great with Drake and once it was nap time...

I listened to mom's car driving away and sat on my swingset in the backyard. I would give her a little while before I called Steven over. As I sat daydreaming, I didn't really pay attention to the sirens in the distance...Then the doorbell rang.

Thinking Steven had come over to surprise me I headed for the front door. I was startled to see a police officer standing there.

She introduced herself and asked if my mother was Dolly Cartwright. I had a really bad feeling in my stomach as I answered yes.

"There was an accident..."

I didn't hear the rest of what the officer said. I knew at that moment I would never see my Mom again!

As I dissolved in tears, she led me inside.

She told me that social services would be contacting me, they would help me plan the funeral and discuss care for my brother and I. She called a nanny service for me and told me to try and rest. I couldn't think at all, I didn't know what I was supposed to do. I sat on the couch and vaguely remember the nanny arriving to help with Drake.

As I dozed off all I could think of was...Steven...

This is the end of chapter 1. I will leave you with a few questions for the next chapter:

Is Steven as serious about Tasha as she is about him? or is he just playing?

Will Tasha be able to manage on her own?

Will little Drake be ok?

Thanks for reading, comments are always welcome!