"Leila, I'm in the kitchen!" I hear Aunt Clara call out as I step through the front door. I toss my keys into the little glass bowl on the table in the hallway and follow the smell of roasting vegetables to the kitchen.

I find Aunt Clara hard at work at the counter, chopping up a plethora of vegetables and tossing them into a huge pot that's on the stove. Spice jars and shakers litter almost every surface of the kitchen. Aunt Clara looks up from her cutting board and give me a smile.

"How was your first day?" she asks, using the back of her hand to swipe away a bead of sweat rolling down the side of her face.

"It was good, just a lot of going over class schedules for the year," I reply, sauntering over to the window above the sink. "It's like a million degrees in here, what are you making?" I ask, opening the window as wide as it can. I lean over to take a look into the pot to see the vegetables cooking in some sort of brown liquid.

"I'm attempting to make Luke's mother's chili recipe," she says, returning to her chopping. "Your dad loved it so much and would always pester her to bring it to every family gathering. If I remember correctly, you also inhaled this whenever it was available." She turns back to me, a look of concern clear across her face. I know she is trying to gauge my reaction to my dad being mentioned.

"You remember right," I say smiling, which seems to put her more at ease. "I'm pretty sure this chili is the reason I gave up meat."

"'Why would I ever need to eat anything else when I can just eat this'" Aunt Clara says, quoting me from when I was thirteen. I laugh and grab a tasting spoon from the drawer and dip it into the giant pot. I blow on the chili before putting it into my mouth. So good.

"This is amazing," I say. "But don't you think it's a little warm to be eating boiling hot chili?"

"It gets cold here at night, as I'm sure you already know. I thought today we could eat outside and watch the sunset. I can bring out blankets and big pillows and the three of us can sit out on the patio." She looks at me expectantly, hoping I'll eat dinner with her and Uncle Luke.

I haven't shared a real meal with the two of them since moving in. I got into the habit of taking my food to my room and eating alone. I know it hurts their feelings, especially since it has been months of living with them, but I needed the alone time. Or I thought I did. Having coffee this morning together, even though it was only for a few short minutes, was really nice. And I know it gave Aunt Clara some hope for us being a real family.

"That sounds great actually," I respond to her. I also give her a hug, squeezing her tight to let her understand that I truly do appreciate everything she has done for me. She wraps her arms around me just as firmly, kissing the side of my head. "I made a friend today."

Aunt Clara releases me promptly, holding me away at arms length. "You did?" she asks, a little surprised. Catching her mistake, she smiles and says, "I mean of course you did! What's their name, maybe I know their parents."

"Nicole," I reply. "I actually don't know her last name, but she did put her number in my phone." Pulling out my phone from my pocket, I see that she has already texted me her schedule, I take note that other than AP Calc and English Lit, we have Econ and Ceramics together. "Nicole Fletcher."

"Oh, she's Pam and Kevin's daughter!" Aunt Clara exclaims. "Very nice people, I run into them at the farmer's market all the time. They have a son, too. Nate, I think."

"Well I was wondering, since she has some classes with me, if she could come over sometimes so I can get some help studying," I say, knowing I probably won't need too much assistance in keeping up with my classes, but I genuinely want to spend some time with an actual friend. And I know having guests over will put Aunt Clara at ease about my adjusting.

"Oh, honey, of course you can! Whenever you want, just invite her or whoever else over." She hesitates. "Unless it's a boy. Or girl? If you like someone please tell me if they are coming over. I don't want to be that overprotective person, but..." she trails off, a frown line manifesting on her forehead as she gets lost in her thoughts.

Poor Aunt Clara. She's really young and doesn't have children of her own yet. Watching her try to handle the whole parenting thing would be funny under other circumstances.

"I like boys, just so you know," I laugh a little. "But I doubt I will have time to even think about them this year. I'm still getting my bearings, plus senior year is going to keep me busy." I find my mind wandering to the guy next door briefly, subtly shaking my head to try to rid myself of that thought.

"Okay, Leila, but if you do like someone, I would like to know," she says. "Not just to give you advice, but also to be a friend, you know? I am only like eleven years older than you so it hasn't been forever since I was a teenager." I smile, sometimes I forget just how young she is. Her and Uncle Luke have taken up so much responsibility in the past few months that it's difficult to remember that they're not even thirty yet.

"Of course," I assure her. "I think I'm going to shower and maybe try and get ahead in some of my classes. Call me down when we're having dinner." Aunt Clara just nods with a big smile on her face and returns to her chili.

Once I'm in my room, I immediately cross the floor to the window. I push the curtains aside and peer out to the house next door. Just as I thought: I can see into his room.

His curtains flutter and are pulled back, revealing him on the other side of the window. Looking at me.

I duck down and slide onto the floor just beneath the window sill, letting the curtains fall back into place. I put my hand over my heart, the pounding only increasing as I think about if he's still there and if he actually saw me.