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BROKEN PIECES BY NICOLA JANE
A STAND-ALONE SHORT STORY
Broken Pieces
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are all products of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any similarities are entirely coincidental.
Broken Pieces is Copyright © 2022 by Nicola Jane. All rights are reserved. No part of this
book may be used or reproduced in any manner without written permission from the author, except in the case of brief quotations used in articles or reviews.
For information, contactNicola Jane
Editor: Rebecca Vazquez
SPELLING NOTE
Please note, this author resides in the United Kingdom and is using British English. Therefore, some words may be viewed as incorrect or spelled incorrectly, however, they are not.
TRIGGER WARNING
The material in this book may be triggering to anyone suffering or having suffered from mental health issues or having lost close relatives.
PLAYLIST
Hurt - Mark Hamilton ft. Jan Galach
Better Days - Dermot Kennedy
Ghost - Justin Bieber
It’ll Be Okay - Shawn Mendes
Dancing With Your Ghost - No Resolve ft. Ashley Garza
Angels - Tom Walker
Demons - Imagine Dragons
One More Light - Linkin Park
In the End - Linkin Park
CHAPTER ONE
Excitement bubbles in my chest when I hear a car pulling onto the driveway. I stand, looking out the window. “Christ, Andi, will you just relax,” says Beth, laughing. We’ve been friends since we were three years old, eighteen years in total, and pretty much inseparable.
The reason behind my excitement is the return of Beth’s older brother, Nathan. It’s been exactly four months since I last saw him. Four months since he gave me hope, and little did he know, a reason to keep going. Because that day four months ago was the day we buried my older brother, Beckett. He had died in service at just thirty years of age, and it tore my world apart.
Nate and Beth have lived next door to us for eighteen years. They moved in one hot summer, and Mum and Beckett helped them carry in boxes. Our parents became friends, and with all us kids being around the same age, it was inevitable we’d be friends too.
Beck and Nate were as close as me and Beth, so losing Mum four years later was hard on us all. But we got through it with the love and support of Beth and Nate and their parents, Bill and Sue. And it was a good thing because my dad, Phillip, had lost his way pretty much the day we lost Mum, and then losing Beck sent him over the edge. It’s been a tough few months.