Sneak Peek of “Lexi’s Love & War” – Pt. 1 of Chapter 1

Alright, so…I know I said that I would wait until this Friday to share a sneak peek of Lexi’s Love & War– my newest Wattpad story that’s coming out on November 8th. But I simply couldn’t wait any longer! I really wanted to share one part of chapter one as my sneak peek to the sequel of Lexi’s In A New City. That’s why you’ll now be able to finally read part of the first chapter of Lexi’s Love & War below.

Hope you enjoy it!

***

Alexandra “Lexi” Cole smiled wide as she and her parents drove down a bustling residential street one sunny August afternoon. They passed multiple houses in an area located a few minutes away from New York University, each with students moving in with the help of parents or friends. School was set to start in a week and a half, so everyone was rushing to finish moving in beforehand.

“We’re here, Lexi!”

Lexi blinked hard and looked at her mother, who had spoken. She unbuckled her seatbelt and jumped out to glance at her apartment complex. It was a small building with cream-coloured brick and a black roof and seemed to look worse for wear. It appeared to be kind of dirty, and even a little creepy from its appearance. But seeing a few students coming and going soon put her at ease. Lexi grinned as she walked towards the trunk of her parents’ rental SUV. She grabbed the first box she saw and began her trek to her apartment.

As she approached, she noticed that the door was already cracked open just enough to peer in. Lexi’s grin widened as she heard a familiar voice coming from the other side. She used her foot to open the door wider before entering.

“Nikita?”

Upon hearing her name, Nikita Ivanov appeared from the kitchen with a grin of her own. “Hey, Lexi!”

Lexi dropped the box off to the side to hug her friend and roommate. “How have you been?”

“Great, thanks! I’m not thrilled about being back at school, but oh well. I can’t wait to be done moving in, too! I forgot how painful and stressful it is.”

“Yeah, I get that. Why don’t we chat some more after we finish moving in? Just so we can both get done faster. Is that okay?”

Nikita nodded. “That’s actually a good idea.”

“Sometimes I have good ideas,” Lexi teased.

“Sometimes,” Nikita joked.

The pair laughed before Lexi grabbed the box and hustled to her room. Her parents followed behind shortly after, and the trio spent a good amount of time bringing boxes and totes of her belongings inside the small two-bedroom apartment. Once that was done, Lexi’s mother began organizing the kitchen with Nikita’s mother, while Lexi and her father focused on her bedroom.

This is a bit bigger than my bedroom in my old dorm, Lexi thought. It wasn’t a huge difference, but it was noticeable. There was a twin-sized bed with a flimsy mattress atop the wooden bedframe, as well as a decent-sized closet and small dresser. There wasn’t a table or chair for her to do work, but that was fine because she’d brought those items with her.

The pair soon began getting squared away. They made the bed and put Lexi’s clothes away in both the closet and a small dresser. Her father set up her desk and table while Lexi organized her shelves with various odds and ends. Novels, textbooks for the coming semester, and other things that didn’t have a home elsewhere made it onto the bookshelf. She surveyed her work once it was over with a sense of satisfaction. It was going to take some time, but this apartment was going to feel like home soon enough. She promptly turned her attention to her father, who was now staring out the window.

“Dad?”

He whirled around to face his daughter. “Sorry, I was just thinking.”

“About what?”

“Nothing, really. I just let my mind wander. Sorry.”

“It’s not a big deal.”

Lexi’s father nodded before hugging her. “Let’s see if Mom needs any help.”

The pair walked downstairs, only to find Lexi’s mother chatting away with Nikita’s mother. They were discussing how hard it was for their only children to be moved out when Lexi and her father appeared.

“Oh, hi,” Nikita’s mother. “Everything’s done, so we were just talking.”

Nikita suddenly appeared from the living room. “At least you weren’t embarrassing me.”

“Not now,” Lexi pointed out. “That’ll happen later.”

“Oh, absolutely,” Nikita’s mother remarked.

Nikita scowled as everyone chuckled, but she joined in a minute later.

A couple hours later, both sets of parents were gone. Nikita’s parents began their almost seven-hour drive back to their home in Buffalo. Meanwhile, Lexi’s parents returned to their hotel in New York City, as their flight back to San Diego wasn’t until early the next morning. Lexi and Nikita decided on a whim to order pizza for their first meal in their new home. They chatted happily as they waited for lunch to arrive.

“So,” Nikita began, “how was your summer?”

“Alright,” Lexi answered. “I ended up getting a receptionist job at the law firm my mother works at. She told me they were looking for someone to fill in temporarily, so I decided to apply. It was only to cover for the summer, so it was perfect. Other than that, I didn’t do a whole lot else ‘cause my friends were also busy working. How about you?

Nikita shrugged. “It was okay. I worked a ton at Foot Locker, but I also hung out with our friends.”

“That’s good. How are they? I kinda talked to some of them during summer, but not as much as I’d wished.”

“Everyone’s good. Felipe slept with some girls from his job at Abercrombie, and DeShawn hung out with me at work mostly ‘cause he also works at Foot Locker. Isaac worked a ton, but I also heard he was dating a bit, too. Cassie and Mariana did the same— well, the work part, I mean. I don’t know about dating.”

Upon hearing Cassie’s name, Lexi’s smile faded.

“What’s wrong?”

“What do you think?”

Nikita thought for a moment before suddenly realizing it. “Oh…you’re not thrilled about seeing Cassie again? Why not? You two were so tight!”

Lexi rolled her eyes while her friend cackled. “Yeah, I so didn’t miss her. I’m not gonna lie, I’m not excited to see her again.”

“If it makes you feel better, Cassie never brought you up anytime she and I talked this summer.”

“Really?”

Nikita nodded. “It never happened.”

There was suddenly a knock at the door, prompting the girls’ conversation to come to a temporary halt. They grabbed their pizza and ate away, happy to be living together again.

***

I’ll be sharing the rest of chapter one next week for you to enjoy. Once chapters of Lexi’s Love & War start going up regularly, I’ll let you know across social media.

Needless to say, I can’t wait for you guys to read the story in its entirety!

xo,

Elizabeth