Skylit-Elemental Destinies

 

She moves from home to home with her disowned mother, Beth, in an attempt to escape the tragedies that follow. Within each house that Rose finally finds escape within, destruction follows the path beneath the monster running through her veins.

 

She doesn't know how to control the strength burning in the center of her soul, it was all part of a destiny told in The Book of Truth. Werewolves, vampires, and other unknown creatures roam the night in attempt to savage what's left of the world.

 

Rose didn't have a clue of the world among her, only some of the town's gang members knew of the power surging through her. Many have internally questioned the mystery that controls her, yet none tend to speak out into the open about their questioning thoughts.

 

She has the power every child's super hero could dream of, one the fates have given her in order to survive. Their is no name to the power controlling Rose, no description as to how to stabilize the monster.

 

"I don't know what I am anymore."

 

Rose never imagined something so exciting to happen in her ordinary and plain life, until the day she meets with Dan's family. Never, has she experienced a life so out into the open, one which involves drastic accidents and exciting chases with the law.

 

Follow Rose Smotherson on a journey of action packed adventure and wicked endings, this is a once in a life time opportunity. There's only one copy of her life, only one book Rose took the time to piece together.

 

Behind every door, there's a room that holds a mystery. Behind Rose's exciting journey, love and life is found beyond the gates of immortality. Death is found under her every doorsteps and loss is a best friend at a time in Rose's life, no one is safe in a world full of the unknown; everyone deserves to know what's beneath the dark and questioning shadows.

Chapter One

This is where it all starts: the friendship and bullying, the fights and most breakups. Now standing in front of the large building, only two stories high, I couldn't help but imagine all the people I'd meet and have to leave sometime in the future. The men I'd succumb to with their charming smiles then soon be left in the past imagining what could've been and should've been.

 

"Are you going in or you just going to stand there like a zombie?" Asked a feminine voice off to my left.

 

"I like just standing here." I muttered sarcastically before turning to the girl.

 

I was surprised to see she stood almost five inches shorter then me, her hair could blind anyone at the bright purple streaks running down the front of her face. She had a small smile on her face, not really blending in with the spiky black and purple hair color.

 

"People call me Vi, it doesn't matter what color I dye my hair it always has violet or blue in my hair. My mom named my violet because my eyes looked almost violet, more blue than anything but how can I judge." She shrugged with a laughing wave.

 

"Yeah, I can see that." I sigh, again readying myself to walk into the large building. I was the only one, other than the teachers, that would be here. It was too early for any other students to make an appearance.

 

"Why are you here so early? Mr. Prince tell you to come before anyone to get your new stuff?" She asked patiently staring at the building with me. She seemed to mock the principal, also another reason I'd guessed she'd called him Prince.

 

"Yeah, you?" I ask without turning to look at her strange blue eyes.

 

"I come here early most days so me and a group of friends can smoke a few cigarettes before school. Some of their parents won't allow them to smoke so they wait to smoke some between classes and after school. Since most of the kids already have their own vehicles, they want to get here early to smoke some pot or other things. They give me money and I'll buy their cigarettes if they're not old enough, and smoke some with the others before going to the gym." I'd noticed how opened she seemed, not knowing if I was some snitch that would tell others about their get together.

 

"Mind if I bum one?" I ask slyly.

 

"Here," She says with a large grin plastered on her lips. She pulls out a colored box I'd seen my mother smoke, and hands me a stick of death followed by her lighter.

 

"Thanks." I greet.

 

"Come, if the teachers see you smoking out front with all these cameras, your dead dude. They can't see you from back here but I'd like you to meet some of my friends anyways." I took the time to look at her chill body language, she seemed more than relaxed around me. I couldn't help but be cautious about other people, and to me being surrounded by people and not cautious of who they are seemed almost impossible.

 

"Sure." I sigh, exhaling the chemicals from my lungs as I followed her from behind.

 

"Lette," I say out loud to her turned back. She stops in her tracks and slowly turns to face me with a sad smile.

 

"I'd rather call you Lette, than Vi." I say louder this time. It was acceptance, I guess I could accept her as a friend in this strange hell.

 

"My best friend used to call me that," Her voice seemed to crack at those little words. I awkwardly shuffled on my feet with the cigarette in my hand.

 

"Want me to change it?" I asked, hopeful to stop the tears I knew would come.

 

"No, she's dead now." I stared at her now moving back with a startled expression, she showed only some emotion before completely turning them off. I knew that move almost too well, it seemed like a second nature to me.

 

The long walk was silent around the large building, she'd told me walking at a distance from the school would prevent the limited cameras from reaching us.

 

"Well, here we are." She sighed with a smile.

 

A large group of people, both younger and older than myself, sat on the grass laughing and conversing with those surrounding the yard. Almost half of the people had their substances out in the open, some looking excited to be smoking even more.

 

"Vi!" A male shouted from the group, I couldn't pinpoint who it was until a man stood and walked to the spikey haired girl next to me.

 

"Hey Gage, this is.... shit, I never got your name." she whispers the last of the sentence to herself making me almost smile.

 

"Rose," I mutter with a raised eyebrow.

 

"Well, hi. I'm guessing you're a friend of hers?" Gage asks questioningly pointing at Lette.

 

"Yes! Of course she is!" Lette shouts in his ear with a smug grin.

 

"Stop yelling in my ear damn it!" He growled down at her.

 

"I'm not yelling in your ear, damn it." Her tone was mocking, and even he seemed to lose the tone in his voice to laugh at her.

 

"Yes you are, stop yelling in my ear." He shoved at her but she just seemed to jump right back into place.

 

"Then stop being a dick," She laughed again. "you sure didn't mind me moaning in your ear but now it's all, blah blah blah." I couldn't help but laugh at there continuous banter, earning a look from Lette.

 

"Yes! It's about fucking time." She sighed, and seemed to be almost somewhat exhausted.

 

"What?" I ask sharply, figuring she'd hear my laughter. I didn't like to laugh, nor smile, Beth would always comment how hideous the sound was.

 

"You finally laughed, all you do is answer questions. You won't even start a conversation." Lette's shoulder's seemed to sightly drop at the sudden thought. "I mean, are you ever happy?"

 

"Yes." My voice turned sharp and uncaring, suddenly too close to the pair for my comfort. She sighed in return and grabbed another cigarette from her pocket, waving it in my face.

 

"Here, stop being so tense. You'll get to know these people like I do, they're like my little brothers and sisters." She shrugged and skipped to the large group further on down the path, leaving me standing five foot away from the other man Gage.

 

"So, you're new here right?" He asked nervously.

 

"Nope, don't go here." I mutter sarcastically. The school bag on my shoulder suddenly fell to the ground. "If I'm going to be here, then I'll be having fun."

 

I jog over to the group Lette seemed to disappear through, meeting a few people on the way.

 

Lette sat down in a small group of four people, inhaling both a cigarette and a joint of some drug.

 

"Hey!" She waved frantically over in my direction, suddenly catching the attention of the others in the small group of hers. A boy, no older than my younger brother, quickly hid the contents of the drug in the small container.

 

"You don't have to hide it from me, I'm not stupid. Give me a hit," I reach out to the joint in Lette's hand patiently.

 

"Well hello baby!" A man whistled behind me. Now that I was sitting, his voice seemed to trail down and over me in a rush, suddenly shocking me.

 

"Leave her alone Drake, she's new." Lette growls up at him, glaring at a figure I knew stood behind me.

 

I stood and turned to see the surprise on his face, then suddenly his face turned dark.

 

"You!" He shouted, catching everyone's attention.

 

"You two know each other?" Lette now stood between us, almost creating a small circle.

 

"This bitch beat the shit out of my brother!" Spit flew from his face and landed on my face. With slow motion it seemed, I wiped the spit from my face and glared up at him with all the power I had.

 

"Your brother, as you like to call him, was trying to rape my little brother. I'd beat your ass too if it came down to it." The words were calm and deadly as they left my lips, nothing to the curt and sweet voice I used around Lette. She stared at my cold brown eyes with shock before turning to Drake.

 

"Kyle tried to.... He tried to what?" She shouted with exasperation.

 

"He didn't really mean it, God." Drake growled, glowering down on me with such hatred I would've thought he resembled my mother. "He was just trying to scare the kid, then this bitch starts punching the shit out of him. The next thing I know, I'm visiting the hospital to see if he's even still alive."

 

"Holy shit, you beat the fuck out of Kyle?" Lette stared at me with awe, no longer shocked at the news. "He's in the hospital because you kicked his ass, holy shit. He's been in the hospital for months, everyone thought it was just a hit and run. Man," she trails off exasperated

 

"Why'd you do it? Did you enjoy watching the life almost bleed out of him?" Drake shoved me, and before he had time to comprehend what happened, he lay on the ground with his wrist twisted painfully up the center of his back. I placed my foot on the back of his neck and pressed down, watching the world around me fade as my anger took over. I jabbed him quickly in the face to stun him into silence.

 

"If you ever lay a hand on me again, you'll be living off life support for the rest of your pathetic life. Understand me now, Drake?" He shouted out in pain when I pressed my combat boot harder onto the back of his neck. With a nod of his head, I released him from the painful position and stood to my full height, leaving him gasping on the ground in pain.

 

"Damn, talk about a bad bitch." Lette looked down at Drake with a look of awe on her face, I couldn't completely comprehend the look.

 

"Sorry guys, is it okay if I have a hit now?" I looked expectantly at the joint still in Lette's hand, looking back at the three people that sat with her before. I didn't know if they approved of my show with Drake, they seemed to know him well enough.

 

"Hell yeah, you're our friend now!" The one who'd attempted to hide the contents before now spilled it all out on a textbook and began rolling another joint.

 

"Wasn't Drake your friend too?" I asked Lette curiously, wondering why he was here in the first place.

 

"He's pretty well known in the school so when he first started coming here, everyone welcomed him openly. He's an ass though, he thought he was always better than everyone else here and it tended to piss a few people off. He's not new to the school, but he just started coming with us around town and all that stuff because he liked to have fun. We could provide him with fun, but he was still an ass. Some people confronted him a few times about stealing their pills, hydro and xanex, the usual." Lette sat down and gently inhaled the drugs before passing it to her left, in the opposite direction of me. "But nobody really like him anyways, don't worry."

 

A joint, perfectly rolled, was waved wildly in front of my face from my right.

 

The boy had finally finished rolling the joint and sat down next to me, smiling as he waiting for me to take my first hit with them.

 

I took the rolled joint and placed it gently between my lips like any other cigarette, with two large hits from the gentle smoke I passed it to Lette. It seemed they always passed to the left, some kind of rule I'm guessing.

 

Once the joint reached the boy to Lette's left, I finally released the smoke slowly. My toes seemed to curl and my head throbbed with light headiness. My eyes became unfocused and dazed at the faces around me, I could almost literally feel my world spinning and tilting out of control.

 

The boy that rolled the joint suddenly laughed out loud.

 

"That was one hell of a hit, and the look on your face! Damn." He laughed, pointing his finger in my direction.

 

Some of the people in the group turned to look at my dazed expression and burst into fits of giggles. I didn't respond knowing my tongue wouln't want to cooperate.

 

"I can't even hit it that hard, how long have you smoked?" The boy asked, with all eyes on me again. His eyes were already glazed over with a light pink tinting slowly giving away his high.

 

"Since I was eleven, I'll be eighteen in about three months." I mutter dreamily, giggling at the end. Lette laughs at this and grabs my arm.

 

"Come on, let's get you to eat something so when you go back into the school you won't look so high." She giggled.

 

"Hold on!" I shouted seriously, startling everyone outside at the intensity of my voice. "I want another hit!"

 

Everyone burst into laughter and continue to watch me curiously, I didn't find how that was funny.

 

"Fine, but only a small one." As soon as the words left her lips I sprinted back to the boy and took the joint from his hand, earning a protest in return, before I inhaled the smoke as deeply as possible.

 

When I passed the joint back to him, he continued to stare at me wide eyed as did everyone else. After almost half a minute had passed, I slowly released the thinning smoke and turned to Lette. I loved showing off my amazing skills at inhaling the deep substance into my lungs.

 

I knew the hit was going to hit me harder than the last, seeing as I was almost too high to stand in front of Lette. My vision seemed darker than usual and in order to walk, I felt like I had to put all my concentration in my feet. I noticed sooner, that the more I focused on my legs the worse I walked and the more I looked high out of my mind.

 

"I seriously don't think going to school today would be such a good idea." Lette muttered, seeming to be worried about something.

 

"I signed myself up for myself anyways." I stuttered. "I mean, I signed myself up for school! Stupid words! I can go home now since Beth's passed out. The school don't care if I show or don't, Beth made it clear she didn't give a shit about the fat dude at the desk." I giggled.

 

I couldn't understand what I said and soon after the words left my lips I seemed to have forgotten what we were speaking about. I looked around and noticed we were walking to the front of the building where more students stood outside, chatting and laughing with one another. What felt like moments ago, I stood in the same yard only nobody was around.

 

"Holy shit man!" I say too loudly for my own benefit. "She looks like a fucking clown!" The laughter bubbles out of my mouth and into the now quiet atmosphere before I can stop it. I clutched onto Lette's tense arm and looked up at the face again, suddenly laughing harder.

 

Nobody seemed to be talking anymore, silently watching me and the girl glowering in my direction.

 

"Oops, I said that out loud didn't I?" I stop and look at Lette. "Talk to me Lette, I can't look at it again or I'll laugh. Did you see its' face?" I ask seriously with an audible whisper at the end.

 

"Who the hell is she?" The clown spoke.

 

"Holy shit! Lette, save me from the clown! Awe God, this is it. I'm going to die by a clown, I'm going to die. We got to run Lette, come we'll ride my motorcycle!"

 

The words were slurred and I noticed Lette staring at me curiously, struggling to hide her growing laughter.

 

"I'm not a goddamned clown! Stupid bitch I should whoop your ass!" She seemed to slowly walk in my direction with a growl.

 

"Are you walking in slow motion like they do in the movies? It's not looking so dramatic! Oh wait, you're wearin heels, that sounds more reasonable." I mutter to myself. Some of the people that stood outside laughed and giggled at the words that left my lips.

 

Again my world seemed to blur around me and I completely forgot where we were and what I was talking about. I continued rattling my brain for an excuse until I noticed Lette staring at something ahead of me, I remember talking about school.

 

I suddenly noticed a girl walking in my direction with a sneer on her face, followed by one guy and one other girl. She looked like an absolute clown!

 

"Who the hell are you?" I muttered and swayed on my feet, I pointed at the girl looking at me with a shocked expression on her face.

 

"Who am I?" She screeched. "Who the hell are you! You just called me a fucking clown!"

 

"When? Oh shit, am I in a new dimension? This is so fucking amazing!" I screamed up at the sky with a smile on my face, watching the blue sky twist above me in a complete circle. It was the only reasonable explanation, nobody can read minds unless we actually were in another dimension. Suddenly a hand grabbed my arm and yanked me gently into a stand-still position. The clouds slowly formed shape and I, once more, swayed lazily on my own two feet.

 

"I think we need to get you home Rose," Lette muttered worriedly in my face. Her eyes searched mine for a moment before sighing.

 

"Oh, no you don't. She's not going anywhere! She go to this school?" Asked the girl again, still glaring at me.

 

"Yes, but she's feeling sick from her meds so we're taking her home." Lette's shaky voice says behind me. "Come on Rose, we need to get you home."

 

"Look how pathetic that is, this lesbo is actually friends with this pill-taking pshyco! Maybe, what's her name again-Rose? Maybe she's a disgusting lesbo too!" Her voice echoed around me as laughter increased around me, I slowly noticed the sticky substance streaming down Lette's face with sadness.

 

"You know," I muttered with a sly grin. "I'm high as hell right now, and this lesbo is my friend." I snarled in her face, then laughed a sadistic giggle in her ear.

 

"I don't take too kindly to a two faced clown downing on those who aren't the same as you. I could beat the shit out of you right now, I don't give a fuck if I'm high." The others from the back of the building suddenly came running out front and stared wide eyed at the view in front of them. I stood face to face with the clown, a sneer on my face, and Lette stood behind me sniffling up her tears.

"I'd like to see you try." The girl laughs with some of the other students.

 

"You know that Drake kids' brother?" I asked knowingly staring at her curious blue eyes. "Yeah, Kyle right?"

 

"She's the one that put him in the hospital, and when Drake said something she nearly broke his wrist and he left because he had to check it out. I'm not kidding Clare, she's dead serious." The boy that rolled the joint stood next to me along with the rest of the group that stood out back.

 

"You were with the trouble makers?" Clare scoffs in my face. "Of course, I bet you learned from your parents or older brother am I right? All these trouble makers have family trouble, do you? Your a bitch because you don't have the perfect fairy tale life." Her laugh seemed to be the only thing in my mind, the daintiness of her eyes the only thing clear in my rage.

 

The happy high I felt moments ago suddenly disappeared and my vision seemed to intensify, just like it did every time I got the adrenaline of a fight.

 

I hadn't even realized I hit her until a slow dull throbbing sensation shot through my arm, blood that didn't belong to me dried slowly on my fists.

 

When I was sure the sudden attack stunned her enough, I wrapped my forearm around her neck and gripped my fists together in order to cut her airway off. She struggled and kicked with futile attempts, her head jerked back in an awkward attempt to headbutt me but I yanked her head down.

 

She grabbed and scratched at my arms, screaming at me in vein. I slowly grew tired of her deliberately trying to kick at my legs, and with a grunt I sent my knee sharply halfway up to meet her already bloodied face. She didn't even get a chance to scream before I'd pressed the pressure point in the base of her neck and she fell, immobilized to the ground.

 

"That was the fieriest clown I'd seen since my sixth birthday. Now that, my friend was a scary clown. He tried to eat my fucking cake, I still hate the bastard." I muttered, catching a few laughing yet shocked faces in the corner of my eyes.

 

"Okay, come on Rose. We need to get you home." Lette looked at me for a moment, searching for an answer through my eyes then sighed when she found something.

 

"Thank you," Lette's voice was smaller than I'd first witnessed, making me angry at the clown once more.

 

"I could break one of her arms or legs to send her to the hospital too, just to get her out of your hair if you want?" My words were still slightly slurred but I could feel myself coming down from the high. The recent events suddenly felt jumbled together and out of order, no matter how hard I tried I couldn't remember anything from detail.

 

"No, that's fine. I just had to thank you." Her violet eyes came to contact with mine and in her eyes, gratitude shined out passed the tears. "I thought you'd resent me because I was into a different sex. Most girls I try to befriend always think I'm coming onto them, and that didn't even cross your mind. It wasn't like I was actually coming onto anyone, but since I like a different sex it automatically puts me into a place I don't want to be in. I'm so sorry."

 

I didn't respond, simply just grabbing her shoulders and bringing her into a tight hug. I knew what it was like to be resented for something you couldn't handle, of course I couldn't judge Lette for something she had no control over.

 

"You shouldn't be sorry for something you can't control Lette, you're my first friend in this hell hole. Just because your not what people want you to be, doesn't automatically mean your a bad person. Why the hell should you apologize?" I noticed sooner than later, that everyone in the yard still stood and stared at us with either excitement or disgust.

 

"What the hell are you staring at?" My voice was deadly as it echoed across the school property. "Get on with your own goddamned life."

 

Slowly but surely people turned back to their own conversations, or to talk about what they'd just witnessed, and left our own group to talk.

 

"That was awesome Rose, I'm Daniel." The boy that rolled the joint now had a name.

 

"I'm guessing that was pope we smoked?" I asked with a sly grin. Daniel's face suddenly turned to one of surprise, the other three guys that sat in the group and some others laughed at his surprise and smacked me on the back.

 

"How can you tell?" He asked with a laugh.

 

"It's already starting to wear off, duh! Pot don't wear off so easy, I'm still feeling a little bit but now I can most likely walk." I laughed and let go of a smiling Lette.

 

The guys begin to laugh and converse with one another, sending all my attention to Lette.

 

"You remind me of a big sister." She mumbles ashamed. "Most people just run with the crowd, I'm surprised the guys even stood up to Clare with you. You haven't even been to school yet and everyone already loves you, it's almost impossible to believe."

 

"Well, I guess I like having a little sister if that's okay with you?" I ask picturing my sweet little brother in her gentle face. Her pale complexion lit up like a Christmas tree followed by a large smile.

 

"That's awesome!" She jumped into my arms again, clinging onto me like her life depended on it.

 

"I know it's a lot to ask, but would anybody care to skip the first couple of classes and grab something to eat? I haven't tried the Starbucks here yet, anybody mind?" I couldn't comprehend what happened until Lette jumped on the back of my motorcycle and the others rode down the road in their own vehicles.

　

　

Chapter Two

The room seemed almost too silent when I walked through the house, nobody was home at the moment. I dropped Lette off at school after the lunch bell rang like the others. I always skipped my first day of school, today I figured it may've been different but smoking the rest of the pope with Daniel really didn't help.

 

I sat down on my couch with a sigh, waiting for something to do while my music played on my phone. Collide by Skillet came on my radio, and with a loud yell I blared it through my tiny speakers.

 

I continue to stared aimlessly around the room in my reclined chair, simply enjoying the peace of mind.

 

I hadn't realized I fell asleep until a door slammed on the other side of the kitchen almost immediately catching my attention. I'd figured she'd be out for the rest of the night like usual, in my heart I could feel the dread weighing me down.

 

"Why ain't you at school?" Even though her voice was calm and collected, underneath I could also hear the anger slowly growing with each passing moment.

 

"I got sick." I said with a bored sigh.

 

"They would call me, do you really think I'm stupid? You do this all the damn time Roseline, I'll go to jail if you keep missing days like this! I wouldn't do well in jail, I'd probably get raped because of my body! Do you want your mother to get raped? How selfish are you?" She spat the words like venom in her mouth, easily complimenting herself along the way. I sighed with a roll of my eyes and stood, walking pass her without another word passed.

 

"You're not my mother." I spat the words, easily letting the hatred I felt for her reach into my words like a slap to the face.

 

I didn't turn to see her reaction or gauge what her next reply would've been, I didn't need to. I knew she'd forget the words like she usually did and drown herself at the bottom of her whiskey bottle.

 

As soon as I gently closed my bedroom door I let out a sigh of relief. I knew getting into another fight with her would use the rest of my energy, staying cooped up in my room is what I'm used to. It seemed to be the only way I could get away from her when she drank.

 

Not soon after my head touched the soft edges of my pillow had I heard more voices in the halls. Beth didn't usually invite others over unless Jake wanted other things, but more than one person was unheard of.

 

A loud crash vibrated the house, and I couldn't even think before I ran out of my door and stood in the kitchen with fumes flying from my ears.

 

My aunt Tris had her hands placed on her hips as a sign of aggravation, her frown was pointed directly at Beth as two men, not much older than me, flanked aunt Tris.

 

"What the hell is this?" I yell above the yelling Beth seemed to be doing.

 

"This isn't none of your business girl," The gruff man with blonde hair spoke beside Tris. My anger sparked like gasoline to a fire, I didn't realize what I was doing until I had him pinned to the wall by his neck.

 

"This is my god damned house damn it, don't tell me what is and isn't my business. That woman lives in my house, I suggest you show some fucking respect." He looked at me with surprise, along with the boy that stood next to him, before jerking out of my touch.

 

"Rose, it's fine. They're a few friends of mine. You're mother-" With a wave of my hand, Tris halted in mid-sentence.

 

"She is not my mother, are we clear?" Something on my face must've warned her, because within a moment she continued the sentence correctly.

 

"Beth stole four full bottles of liquor from my bar tonight, I need them back or I lose my job." Her voice shook at the end with sadness, I knew she needed the money worse than anyone else in my family, and without her job she'd lose her home.

 

"Beth," My voice was sharp with an edge to it, like usual when I spoke to her. She snarled at me like a dog and clung tighter onto her purse.

 

"You have five seconds to return the bottles to aunt Tris, or I'll make you. Do we understand each other?" I was mocking her and I knew it, she used to do the same thing to me when I didn't give her my earned money.

 

I could tell she knew what I was doing because with a laugh she hid the bag behind her back.

 

"Like that's gonna happen." The kid with the darker hair stepped forward with a frown.

 

"Ma'am, please she needs this job." He seemed much more polite than the blonde kid still looking at me with caution.

 

"Who the hell are you two? She doesn't deserve your respect kid, so don't give it. Beth, give me the bottles now!" Everyone's head snapped to me at my harsh tone, even if Tris looked at me with gratitude I didn't like the constant stares.

 

Beth shook trying to resist my command, tears gliding down her face.

 

"I don't have anymore left, I don't have any money. Please can you just pay for me?" She sounded completely pathetic and desperate.

 

I walked forward as Beth shook, looking at my startling form before turning to the blond again.

 

"She beats me, please don't let her beat me." She pleaded again. I froze a step away from her at the words that left her mouth, sending me into a train of jumbled memories.

 

Flashes crossed by me in less than seconds. Beth's hand wrapped around my throat when she drugged me, she was angry. She was only angry because I didn't give her money, so she drugged me and beat me. She excused me from school for weeks, only so she could wear me down enough to pay her the money.

 

"Rose!" Tris' terrified voice spoke off into the distance. It felt like their was a plastic wall that stood between us, I could see her but I couldn't hear her. The anger that consumed be created a block around me, like a protection barrier.

 

Everyone's eyes stared at me wide eyed.

 

"I beat you?" I asked slowly with clenched fist. It took everything in my power to keep my voice controlled, to keep from screaming and yelling in her face with pure rage. Heat travelled up my feet, slowly roaming upwards until I felt sweat breaking out beneath the thick layer of clothes.

 

The blonde that stood behind Beth now began to slowly back up, his blue eyes staring at me like I'd finally became some monster.

 

"You locked me up," I spoke with a deathly calm tone. "and totured me, for money. Again, you say I beat you?"

 

I laugh...

 

And laugh....

 

And laugh.

 

Suddenly I felt bones crushing beneath my palms, frightened brown eyes much like my own, staring at me in fear. I noticed in a far away land that two pairs of hands were wrapped painfully around Beth's forearms. Her mouth contorted into one of pain, pure and absolute pain.

 

I felt the need to smile at the pain she was suffering through. But it slipped in heartbeat.

 

The hands that were wrapped around her had purple veins poking out like an alarm system, the arms to the person looked to be almost on fire at the blistering color.

 

I could slowly feel the barrier around the outside world crashing down, voices were heard all around me but I still couldn't concentrate fully.

 

My aunt Tris' eyes looked up at me for a moment with a tender loving, before it vanished. Flashes continued to invade my mind like a movie on fast forward, I couldn't slow the pictures down.

 

Beth's hand above me as it continued to land down on me from above. Jake pulling his pants down with a wicked smile on his face, even my drugged self couldn't shove him off. Flashes upon flashes hit on the building surrounding my mind, slowly brick by brick the wall crashed and crumbled.

 

I looked for the switch to turn the emotions off, even in the darkness surrounding me I continued to look for the screw to twist all emotions off.

 

A scream finally pierced the deathly silence and blasted against my sensitive ears like an alarm system. I brought my hands up to block out the sound and possibly shut off the emotions barrelling down on me.

 

I opened my eyes but everything seemed to blur before me, the men that stood behind Tris, once so detailed, now only a single smudge of art. I could slightly see Tris' heart shaped face beyond the blur as she got closer to my twisted face.

 

Her lips moved frantically but the leaking faucet of emotions muffled her words, in her eyes I could see the worry clouding her eyes.

 

The scream suddenly blasted through my ears again, this time only louder. When I tried to speak the screaming stopped, startling me at the realization I'd been the piercing sound.

 

"Make it stop!" I screamed in pain when flashes hit at my barrier again. I noticed Tris' hand reaching for mine but I snapped back my hands and leaned against the wall behind me. My legs became numb at my sitting position, but I felt nothing as the pain consumed me.

 

"Don't touch me!" I screamed again, covering my ears. I tightened my hold on my head when the flashes in front of my eyes sped up, everything seemed almost too jumbled up.

 

Tris touched my wrist for only a single moment, before snapping back her hand with a scream of pain. Her now blistered and burned hand shook with firey suffering, and her painfully twisted face was the last thing I saw before everything went dark.

 

I'm so sorry....

　

Chapter Three

 

I woke to smoke filling my lungs at an incrediblly fast rate, with each breath I took my throat burned with the need to cough. Even with the release of a single cough, the need to repeat the process overtook my ability to think straight.

 

A weight lay upon my left ankle, weakening my strength. Nothing seemed clear, I couldn't remember what happened.

 

Without stopping the repeating coughing fit, I looked around at the new destroyed room with shock. The flames of fire licked up at the ceiling angrily and the remains of the crisped house lay at my feet.

 

I looked down at the weight that seemed to crush my ankles and screamed, my lungs continued to burn painfully but the scream still faded into the roar of the flames.

 

The boy that flanked the blond headed man stared into nothingness, even in his empty eyes I could see the shock behind his brown dull eyes before his life flashed before his eyes. Even though his eyes told me his current state, fresh blood continued to ooze out of the gaping wound in his chest.

 

My dining room table sat upside down and a leg, that seemed to be split in half during the accident, stood plunging out of the one in many wounds on his small frame. He couldn't have been no older than me, and the similarities between the blond and him seemed remarkable enough to call twins.

 

"Hello?" I coughed. It felt like I hadn't talked in ages and thick smoke entered my lungs once more.

 

I stumbled to my feet and assessed the damage done with a startled expression on my face, I felt absolutely traumatized. A cry of pain finally brought me out of my revere.

 

"Hello, please answer me!" I plead helplessly. The house crackled and sizzled around me like thunder in my ears, furniture that once sat perfectly in the center of the room seemed to be in every place at once.

 

Boards and broken furniture screamed in protest with each light step on the burnt grounds.

 

A muffled reply in the distance stunned me for a moment at the sign of life, before I jumped into action and ran for the sound. I pressured the intensity of my heightened senses and searched for the sound again in the thundering building.

 

"Ros-" The voice again cut off with a loud cough off to my right, I didn't have to think in order to remove the pile of wood and destroyed items. Slowly but surely the face of the blond came into view, gashes of blood trailed down his face.

 

"Where's every-" He was abruptly cut off when the smoke entered his lungs like a virus, the fit I'd suffered through passed through him for a moment until he placed the sleeve of his shirt over his mouth. Slowly but surely he evened out his breathing, but be both knew it'd only last for a few moments.

 

"Help me find the others and get the hell out of here," I demand quickly removing the rest of the pile from his battered body. I gasped with shock at the piece of metal sticking through the side of his arm, blood fled through the wound like a stamped. "Don't move."

 

"I need to get it out," He grunted, grabbing onto the weapon with a sneer of pain. "It'll only infect the wound worse if we leave it."

 

"No! You have to leave it, the hole's too big and if you take it out the bleeding might not stop. Give me your other arm." He nodded in agreement hesitantly before gently placed his hand in mine, gripping it in pain at the small movement.

 

With a small grunt of resistance I slung his arm around my shoulder and got him up to his feet slower as to not harm his injured arm.

 

"What the hell happened?" He whispered, afraid any loud noises would bring the entire place crumbling down completely.

 

"I don't know, we need to find everyone else." Suddenly the image of the innocent shaggy haired kid flashed before my eyes, stopping my heart completely.

 

"His eyes were so empty." I mutter absently, not even realizing where we were walking anymore.

 

"Who's eyes were empty?" He asked curiously and even with the twisted look of pain on his face, he still managed to keep his voice calm and collected.

 

"The other boy, he's-" I choked suddenly, my vision blurring when I recalled my first sight. I blinked back the strange liquid substance and walk a little straighter than before, I stared into the blond man' blue eyes. "What happened? What could've possibly done something so destructive, and not kill us too?"

 

The idea of possibly losing my life at such a young age had the liquid substance springing back to place, only to glide wistfully down my stale face.

 

"Wait," he slowed to a stop and stared a pile of rubble on the far corner of the house before snapping his eyes to my own. "the other boy? You mean he's-no, no no no."

 

His blue eyes suddenly filled with complete remorse and traumatizing pain, his own eyes created sly tears down his face like a waterfall. Even with the endless tears he managed to keep his face absolutely blank, I knew what he was doing. I'd been doing the same thing since I'd been old enough to make my own food, I had to in order to survive.

 

"Please, take me to him." Even with the stoic expression, his tone revealed the pain he felt underneath. With a nod I turned him around and slowed down my pace trying with everything in my power to ready myself for the image I knew I'd witness again.

 

As soon as the boy's lifeless eyes came into view a broken sob left the man's dried lips.

 

"No, God no." He slipped out of my hold easily and fell down the boy's figure with hunched shoulders. "Please James, I'll do whatever you want for the rest of your life if you wake up. I know you can hear me, I promise I'll never make fun of your weird laugh again. I can even pay for your kids' Christmas presents until I die, remember how we talked about that at Mom's funeral?" he laughed, gripping James' hand tightly. "you promised you'd wait until I had my own kids so they could cry at your funeral. We made a deal, fuck! Come back to me brother, Cade won't forgive you if you leave me like this."

 

Tears glided down my face at the familiar scene before me, it wasn't my first time witnessing something so heart breaking. I used to be on his end of the line, begging the love of my life to wake up and face reality. It took a good slap in the face to wake me up from my own fantasy, I knew he'd never come back.

 

"Please Jay! Please, God give me my brother back. He's got kids damn it! You can't take him like this!" His voice broke with every word that left his lips, like they were almost too painful to speak. Sobs shook his large frame as he kneels over James' unmoved body on the ground.

 

"I'll let you have your time," I spoke with steal in my voice, I knew almost too well what this felt like. "I'll find the others."

 

"No," He spoke harshly. "you were almost crying, you didn't even know him and you cried." It was a statement, not a question like most would take it.

 

"I didn't cry, and who cares?" I scoff with a roll of my eyes. "Can't I feel bad for people when someone dies with a piece of fucking wood through their chest?" I knew snapping at him only made me seem bipolar at a time like this, he didn't need my sarcastic comments. But, even with his growing pain, I couldn't help but feel angry at the many times I'd witnessed a taken life.

 

"So? Are you actually kidding me?" He screamed slowly standing to face me head on. "What the hell is wrong with you? You're not some inhuman robot you know! I saw you break down before my eyes when your mom screamed at you like a monster, it's not wrong to feel hurt. You were crying like a god damned baby because you have mommy issues, and now that someone's actually dead, you don't give a damn."

 

Anger surged through my veins like a rocket, landing me face to face with the man that screamed down on me with distaste.

 

"You don't think I don't care?" I asked calmly, even with anger still flowing through me like power radiating through my soul. "Do you even realize how many people I've watched die before me, good and bad people. Of course I care that he's gone, I don't even know the kid but I knew he didn't deserve it! My emotions have no fucking thing to do with you! Don't pretend like you know me, last time I checked I was the one that helped you from dying yourself."

 

I didn't give him a chance to respond before I went storming through the burning pile of furniture. When he was out of ear range I leaned against the wall and breathed in the fresh air, the smoke wasn't as thick as it was in the living room. I choked on a sob and fell to my knees, huddling in on myself like a soft blanket. I let the tears fall like I never had before, it was too much to handle, this was all my fault.

 

I raised my hand out in front of me and examined the weapon with caution, my veins weren't purple anymore and my skin color wasn't the scorching red it was before the accident.

 

A hand appeared in front of me and slowly, my eyes trailed up the muscular arm and to the face of a sorry expression of the blond man.

 

"Look, I didn't mean to make you upset. I have my issues and you have your own, I'm sorry for accusing you of not caring. I know you do. I shouldn't insult you like that, and I'm sorry okay?" He looked apologetic and his words held no lies beneath any meaning, he was simply apologizing.

 

I hesitantly took his hand and stood my feet with a shrug.

 

"I don't care, I was just resting my legs. I sprained my ankle so it's going to take some getting used to." For a moment he just stared at me uncomfortably, as if assessing what I would say next.

 

"Why do you do that?" He asked gently. "Why do you pretend like your some emotionless bitch, it's pretty obvious you have feelings, so why pretend?"

 

"I don't" I snap my hand out of his and walk into the other rooms checking for movements or sounds.

 

"Hey! We need to hurry, this building won't last much longer! Find Tris and I'll find your mom," He looked at me when I gave him a sharp look, clearing his throat before continuing. "I mean, I'll find Beth. So, yeah."

 

With one last warning glance I turned around the corner and dived into the heavy smoke, begging she be okay in such a damaged area.

 

The room before me looked worse than the rest of the house, it was our family room. Though we didn't use it, I liked to sit down on the sofa and read the books I've written on my laptop.

 

I assessed the damage quickly as to not waste time in the collapsing house, finally my eyes landed on Tris' pair of broken glasses. I prayed in my head that she be fine, I didn't know what I would do if she didn't make it.

 

I followed along the clear path with squinted eyes. The flames around me flicked at my skin impatiently begging me to leave the room, it was a complete disaster.

 

Warmth erupted from behind me, and with a startled scream, I was sent flying into the other side of the room. My head banged forcefully against an upside down table off to the side. I slowly pressed my shaky hands to the side of my head, only to pull back and stare at the crimson substance with shock.

 

I felt like my whole world flashed before my eyes when a large piece of the roof fell into the room beside me. I cried out in pain when a piece of wood splintered my calf, I knew it'd take a miracle to get out alive.

 

God, please save me from my own wrath.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter Four

I lay there completely useless in a pile of my own mess, I knew I shouldn't have lost my temper with her. Every time this happens we've managed to make it out alive, it's never been this bad.

 

The large wooden beam on my left leg never lessened the pain in my calf. I could feel the wood sticking out of the side and the blood flow seemed to slow with every breath I took.

 

"Rose!" Shouted the blonde's voice from the other side of the room. I opened my eyes and stared into the smoke in front of me, the fire blazing only feet from my eyes suddenly grew brighter. I blinked to clear the haze in my mind, blocking me from seeing beyond the large beam on my leg.

 

I coughed to catch the figure's attention, I could only pray it was the blond.

 

"Oh my god, Rose! Are you alright?" I couldn't respond to the voice in the darkness. I felt like every bone in my body was weighing me down, keeping me from moving from my spot when, in fact, it was only the large piece of wood.

 

"G-get it o-off." I sputtered with the amount of smoke entering my lungs. The shadow sprinted across the room only to stop, the blazing fire heated up and spread further across the room. I knew karma would stab me in the ass one day, I just didn't think it'd be today after such a wonderful and eventful evening.

 

"I'm coming, don't close you're eyes." I felt like half of my world was cut off from sight. With shaky fingers I brushed my face in an attempt to wipe the substance from my face.

 

Pulling back I noticed how pale my fingers were, and how dark the sticky liquid really was. It was my blood. I coughed in a fatal attempt to clear my lungs from the foggy cloud only to fail pathetically.

 

Something vaguely cold and slimy touched the sensitive spot on the side of my head, earning a frightening wince in return.

 

"It's okay, you're going to be fine. I need to you hold this against the wound so you'll stop the blood flow." The shadow's soothing voice sounding only a few inches in front of me now. I brought my shaky hands up to touch the unknown fabric against the wound and brushed fingers with the shadow's rough skin.

 

He sighed in return and touched the leg quickly losing blood flow.

 

"I'm going to need you to pull back as fast as you can when I raise the beam, then I'm going to drop it back down. Can you do that?" I vaguely felt my head nod in agreement. I couldn't determine how long I've been in the same position or how long it'd take to get out of the room, but I was losing blood fast. The fabric pressing against the side of my head easily sent warmth back up my spine.

 

"Ready?" The shadow grunted in return to my nod, and with a sigh I hang tightly onto the chair leg behind me.

 

"R-read-" I cough violently when a large blast of smoke entered my lungs, the abrupt sound seemed to shake my entire form at the eager smoke.

 

A loud howl of exasperation reached my pathetic ears.

 

"Move, now!" The shadow shouted amongst the burning furnish amongst the living room. The weight laying on top of me suddenly vanished resulting in a tingling sensation slithering up the side of my leg.

 

I screamed in pain when I jolted my leg up to my chest to fast, the splinter of wood stuck painfully out of both sides of my calf. Now that blood flow seemed to reach the screaming wound, the pain became almost unbearable. Sheering heat blasted through the room resulting in a shout from the shadow.

 

"Rose, we need to move. This house won't last any longer." I couldn't open my eyes, knowing full well tears were gathering up at the corner, and instead let out a scream.

 

"W-window! Go to t-the window!" I bit my lip as hard as my straight teeth would allow, and relished in the taste of my own blood. I needed something other than the pain in my leg to think about.

 

"Get it out!" I scream in desperation and anger, I couldn't handle the pain anymore.

 

"Hold you're breath." He whispers with a pitying sigh in his tone. He knew exactly how painful this must be.

 

"Stop procrastinating and rip the god forsaken thing out damn it!" I tore the fabric away from the wound on my head and wiped the wet towel on my face, easily giving me my vision back. Pulling the rag back, I could notice the blood stains clinging tightly onto the dirty rag. With a snarl I rip the thin rag in half with my teeth and clench down on the rag to muffle to scream I knew would come.

 

The pain was instant, there was no ease of relaxation or aftershock. It was immediate and continuous.

 

"Shit, it's bleeding too much." I blinked through my blurring vision and noticed the blonde sitting next to the beam with a distressed look on his face.

 

I bit down on the rag as my screams echoed throughout the house vigorously.

 

With a look at my face, he ripped his shirt off and took two bare pieces of wood from the destruction.

 

"I need to splint it up, it's not going to be perfect but it'll be enough to walk on. We need to get out of here as soon as possible, then when we're safe I'll pop it back into place and stitch it up with a new splinter on it. Bear with me Rose, it's not going to be pretty." All the while he talked, he easily laid out the two sharp pieces of wood on the rolled up shirt and wrapped it out my calf tightly.

 

Tears threatened to spring into view but I held them back with every fiber in my being, I couldn't afford to be weaker than I already was. With the half-made splint around my draining calf, I hopped onto my good leg with the help of the blond.

 

"I never got your name Blondie," I sputter with a laugh at the end, holding back the cough that threatened to tear through my already cracked lips.

 

He stared down at me with amusement and curiosity, finally sputtering out one word before dragging me along side him. I didn't catch what he said seeing as the fire blazing had closely skimmed at the sensitive skin on my back. I didn't want to distract myself more than I'd already managed to do.

 

I spotted the window only feet away, only now; it no longer looked like the clean window I sat by to read my books. Broken pieces of glass lay across the burnt floor carelessly making me frown at the sight, it's never been this bad.

 

Every time we've moved from an incident like this, I never knew it was my doing. The explosions always seemed like coincidence to me, but now seeing how pulsing and angry my hands looked before the explosion, it was no accident. I'd done this, I killed my aunt and an innocent boy that deserved nothing as horrible as a stake through his lung.

 

With a grunt of pain, I pushed myself through the window and fell to my good side. I held the wound to my head to prevent it from opening more than it'd managed already.

 

"We need to get out of here, if we call the cops I'll be taken in without a second guess. They've been looking for my brother Cade since I was eleven, so they automatically look for anyone who's in contact with him; me. I've been running from the bastards for as long as I can remember, Tris was just kind enough to get me a job to keep me on my feet." he whispers frantically in an attempt to keep his voice down so close to the road.

 

"Why are t-they looking for your brother?" I ask in attempt to keep my mind of the pain traveling up my spine.

 

"He's always had trouble with the law, that's no secret. He's killed people, and he's stupid enough to leave some clue as to who was there. It's not that he left any fingerprints or anything, it's just the fact that he leads the cops to believe it was murder, not suicide. They don't know for a fact if it's him, but he ran anyways. That definitely didn't look good." He no longer whispered anymore, seeing as no cars passed by us on the way further down the road.

 

"Down this path, it'll keep us off the road." The blonde grips my waist tighter to keep the weight off my injured leg, my head bobs in attempt to keep my eyes open.

 

"Murder huh? He some psycho path or something?" I ask, hopeful to keep the conversation going. I cringed when my leg brushed against a stump sticking out of the ground. The breaking of the trail near the woods was now only a few feet away. Once we broke through the tree line we'd be able to sit for a few seconds.

 

"Yeah, I'll tell you more later. Right now we need to get you somewhere safe so I can fix up your splint and wrap up your head. If you lose any more blood you might not make it through the day without passing out." His words didn't bring me any sort of comfort, I've been in pain before and I knew exactly how to handle it. The head gash wound didn't seem to weigh anywhere close to the gaping would in my calf. I'd endured pain before, only now it was almost too unbearable.

 

"I never did hear you when you told me your name, you know my name now it's only fair I know yours." I gasp out between heavy pants.

 

"Well, we weren't exactly in the best position to converse. Not to mention you sort of tried to kill me the first time you met me, not to sound like a whiny brat or anything but that wasn't the best time either." He smirked down at me with a cocky grin in my direction.

 

"I didn't try to kill you, I was just angry. I don't think before I act sometimes." I laugh in an attempt to apologize.

 

"I figured that out pretty quick, my brother's going to love you." He laughed loud and hard, gripping at his stomach to calm his booming laughter. Now that we'd finally made it into the woods we didn't have to worry about keeping quiet.

 

"Is there something funny Blondie?" I ask in clear sarcasm.

 

"Oh, it's nothing. You just sounded like my brother when you said that, he said the same thing to me when he tried to choke the life out of me too. It's not a bad thing, you just remind me of him."

 

"I remind you of a killer? That's something I wanted to hear." I scoff in annoyance.

 

"See? He'd say the same thing." Humor could be detected in his soft tone but I didn't respond, only in fear of being called a killer once more. I was a killer, I'd created the explosion some how, and I killed James.

 

"What's your name?" I asked, suddenly serious.

 

"Daniel, you can call me Dan now I guess. We're going to be getting pretty close on this road trip." He whispers.

 

"What do you mean? Where are we going?" I asked jerking out of his hold to face him. I nearly fell to the uneven ground beneath me, but merely managed to hang onto the truck of a tree next to me.

 

"We need to go to my brother, he'll let you rest until you recover. After you heal you'll go to a close relative or something and explain how you weren't there when the house blew up, don't mention mine or James' name. This is very important Rose, you weren't there and only Tris and Beth were there when the incident happened." He gripped my shoulders between his rough and callosed hands in order to dig the information into my skull, quite literally might I add.

 

"Why can't I tell them I was there?" I asked in alarm, now looking up at him with suspicion.

 

"Because it'll look suspicious Rose, one minute you're there then the next you're not. If you suddenly pop up out of no where then they'll question you. You'll say you were at a friends house as an alibi then go to a relative. Nobody knew me or James went with Tris to talk to you, I'm quite positive nobody knew Tris was even there in the first place. Tris was a quiet person so she didn't go screaming at everyone when Beth stole the liquor. Nobody knows why Tris was there so if you are questioned, you didn't know. We'll talk more about it when we get to Cade's place, but until then we need to start find a place to rest so I can fix your splint."

 

"We don't have an utensils to stitch my calve back together." I whisper, shocked at the sudden realization that I'd have to run away and lie to everyone about my whereabouts.

 

"Okay, come on. We can find an abandoned house on the other side of the woods, but we'll have to go around the park so nobody will see us. If anyone sees us in town, then our plan goes straight out of the window." I nod in return to his little scheme. Who would've known he'd be so smart when it came to avoiding the cops.

 

"Let's go," And with those parting words, he picks me up as to avoid the wound, and carries me through the woods at a much faster pace.

Chapter Five

He continued to run until we crossed paths with a small clearing up ahead, shining with light down on the small pond in the center. The sun looked about ready to set amongst the fading mountains in the distance. I've never seen such a beautiful sight in my life, my constant view constantly consisted of a small two bedroom house with a small living room and a tiny kitchen to cover distance in the far side of the house.

 

"I guess we're going to camp here for the night, I'll find some needle to stitch up the wound in the morning. For now we need to cover it up and at least make it bearable for one night, I guess I can find better wood to keep it straight." He didn't wait for my reply, seeing as I was too busy gazing further out into the clearing where the pond lay, and sat me down on the soft grass.

 

"I'll be back in a second." His vague voice reaches my ears.

 

"Okay," I hadn't even realized the words left my lips, not until his shadow faded behind the thick line of the tree in the woods.

 

I slowly made my way to the beautiful pond, entranced by the shiny silver reflecting off the gold.

 

As soon as my toes reached the liquid substance in the pond, the silver of the sun reflected suddenly became brighter. I'd never seen such beauty captured in a moment like this, it was actually beautiful to me.

 

I slowly untied my ash covered shoes, staying eerily quiet when I also removed the socks covering my small feet. With a sigh, I dipped my feet into the warm water and gripped onto the muddy sand with my subbed toes.

 

I couldn't help the laugh that left my lips when the sand slyly lifted between my toes and ticked the bottoms of my feet. I felt like the power, that had managed to drain from my system at the fire, had finally returned to my pale and drained body.

 

I didn't think about the consequences of being completely naked if and when Dan came back to the small clearing, I only thought of the feeling the warm water managed to cause.

 

"Beautiful," I murmured into the empty silence while slowly sliding the clothes from my body.

 

I'd never experienced such a feeling in my life before, it was absolute bliss.

 

I didn't stop the short journey to the bottom of the pond, even if I wanted to stop, it felt completely impossible.

 

By the time every muscle, other than my face, was beneath the surface of the water, I squealed in delight. I couldn't describe the uncaring feeling I felt as soon as my body relaxed under neath the clear substance. Nothing in the world mattered anymore, the death of my own mother didn't matter.

 

Though she never was truly my mother, she did feed me when she was home and occasionally she paid for the bills. She was Beth, a woman that'd raised me for a short length of time. At a dark moment, Beth was there to comfort me, that was until everything fell apart.

 

He died in crash, he'd gone to the store to grab Beth something to eat for her newborn pregnancy. Nobody ever thought we'd end up with police on our front steps.

 

"Excuse me ma'am, are you Rose Smotherson?" Those were the first words I heard when I opened the door.

 

"Yes?" I look at the man in a sheriff's uniform with confusion. I know I didn't do anything bad this time.

 

"Is you're mother here?" The man looked at me with pity shining in his eyes like a flashlight. For one, I know I never did anything that made a cop anything but angry.

 

"Yeah, hold on." I stutter, slightly opening the door. "Come in."

 

My mom came wobbling own the steps with bags under her eyes, I never meant to bother her.

 

"Mom, the cops are here. They were asking for you." With an exasperated sigh, she opens the door more to see the three man standing at the steps.

 

"Yes officer? Is there anything I can get you? Please, come in." They thank her with a single nod of their head, then the three officers walk passed us with their heads held high.

 

"What did you do Rosa?" Her frantic tone reaches my ears. I turn to look at my mom with purple bags under her eyes and irritated irises.

 

"Nothing, I've been at home all week. I haven't went anywhere or done anything, the cops would've been here sooner if they were. They don't look particularly mad if you ask me." I mumble quietly as to not alert the officers of our conversation.

 

"Then why the hell are they here? Where's your father?" I shrug in her direction and slowly make my way to the living room where they all sat.

 

"Excuse me, Rose?" One of the younger cops walk up to me with a soft smile, hands held out in front of him with a look of question.

 

"Yes?" I looked the man up and down for a sign of what I could've possibly done.

 

"If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?" His question catches me off guard, and for assistance I look up at my mother standing next to me.

 

"She's ten, she hasn't been fighting has she?" Her tone shakes slightly, and I turn back to the man to avoid eye contact with my emotionally unstable mother.

 

"Oh, well isn't that nice. When do you turn eleven?" Again, the soft and gentle tone he used with me caught me off guard.

 

"In a few days." I mumble in order to avoid the man's soft eyes.

 

"That's good." He smiles, turning around to sit next to the oldest man of them all.

 

"Mrs. Tunfrick, I'm afraid we don't gave good news." The old man speaks loud and clear, above the burning of the fire.

 

"I'm sorry officer, what might that news be?" She snaps, finally getting irritated of the pitying looks sent our way.

 

"You're husband, he was in a crash in town. The other woman didn't seem to notice his truck until she turned down the road. I'm so sorry."

 

With that, Beth's been smoking and drinking since. I don't think I've ever seen her without a bottle, and even since his death has been years ago, she's never gotten over it. When she began taking more than the doctor prescribed and drank more than the every day alcoholic, the baby was lost in a state of desperation. Beth didn't seem to care about the loss of the baby, more of the loss of her one and only husband. It's been a down track road since the incident.

 

The water soaked into my skin like a drug and washed all my worries away, nothing in world seemed to matter at the moment.

 

With each second that passed by, the glow of the water seemed to glow brighter and brighter. At one point I had to close my eyes and shield myself from the blinding light, I got one last glimpse of the bright light before I closed my eyes once more. Darkness invaded my mind, and before I had time to register my body hitting the cold hard ground, the dark cloud snuck me away and into the night.

 

****** 

 

I felt rough hands on the side of my face, a soft cloth wrapped around the side of my head. I knew without opening my eyes that Dan managed to get me out of the water and onto the softer ground.

 

With a startled gasp, I shot up straight and stared into the clearing. It was no longer as bright as it was with the light of the moon shining down on it, I hadn't realized I'd been out so long.

 

"How long have we been here?" I sputter out in my state of confusion.

 

"For about two hours. I came back after gathering some wood for the fire to see you passed out cold. Why were you in the water?" He asked, laying me back down on the grass to finish his wrapping.

 

"I wanted to cool off, it was getting hot." I mumble in annoyance, feeling like a child getting scolded for going too far out of sight.

 

"You went into shock, your body was heating up too fast and when you got in the cold water in confused your body. You ended up going into shock, now only your head is the hottest part of your body." He mumbled, too concentrated on the finishing process to worry about my body temperature.

 

"I was naked when I passed out," I growl, finally noticing the clothes sticking to my body once again.

 

"Don't worry, I didn't look. I just threw your clothes on, which is actually harder to do that it looks. When you have to change someone else it's harder to get other necessities on." I didn't feel the need to be angry at him for changing me back into my clothes, I could only be thankful I never took off my under clothes. They were still slightly damp, but not too much as to where they caused discomfort.

 

You're splint's already done, I just had to finish wrapping your head gash up. I'm almost done," With a sigh of content, he sat back on his hunches and stared at his work. "It's done."

 

"Thanks," I applaud him with gratitude. He didn't peg me as someone so talented with fixing up frantic wounds.

 

"No problem," He throws off the compliment easily and stirs the burnt branches in the fire. The small smark quickly sped up pace and began to lick at the atmosphere easily.

 

"There's a creek further down the trail, so I'm going to wash up a little. If you need anything, follow the trail about one hundred feet and call my name." He didn't wait for a response before he quickly scurreed down the trail in an attempt to beat the dimming sky.

 

I turned around and stirred the fire for a little bit, hoping to waste time in the clearing alone. I'd never been on the run for anything other than petty vandalizm stunts before moving to the new school.

 

My thoughts ran to Lette and the rest of her friends, I couldn't help but feel slightly ashamed for my disturbance in the court yard earlier. I knew it'd backfire on me, but I'd never think it'd have an outcome such as this one.

"Hey," Came Dan's voice from behind me. I turned, startled, only to see his wet hair flinging at me from five feet away.

 

"Hey man!" I shout. "What the hell?"

 

"My bad, didn't think you'd turn around." He shrugged carelessly. "You can go wash up now, I'm done."

 

The shirt he used earlier today to hold my calf together now dried his hair into a perfect messy look, minus the soaked part.

 

"That shirt's dirty y'know." I mumble sarcastically with a raised eyebrow.

 

"Yeah, I know." He sighs, sitting down next to the fire. "I didn't have anything else."

 

I nod in understanding before going back to the fire.

 

"Dan?" I ask softly. The tone of my voice catching his attention quickly, and he snaps his head in my direction with shock.

 

"Yeah?" He slowly replys, curious.

 

"How long have you known Tris?" The question catches him off guard, even though I wasn't looking at him I could tell he had a curious look on his face.

 

"About two years, I met her when she gave me my first job at the bar. I already told you about the cops looking for me, and she understood. She mentioned you once or twice when we were working, told me you were one of the best mixers in town." He laughs, rubbing at his face at the memory.

 

I smile, remembering all the times I helped her out at the bar when times where too heavy.

 

"Yeah," I whisper into the night. "we had some good times at that old bar."

 

His smile suddenly turns to me.

 

"How the hell did she let you behind that bar during work hours and let you work? You're still in high school." He scoffs sarcastically, not really fitting in place with the gentle smile on his face.

 

"Nobody really questioned it, I just worked because she needed help. When she taught me how to mix at home one day, I started doing experiments of my own. She was like my mom, nobody really understood me like her." Pain ripples through my heart like a pounding wave, hitting me at the reality of her death.

 

"I'm sorry Rose, I didn't know. She was like a mom to me in rough times too, only I actually had my mom. No offense but you're mom sounds crazy." We both knew joking about Beth and Tris' death was too soon, for the both of us, but neither cared. We just wanted to talk.

 

"I never beat her," I whispered, letting my voice carry on the sadness of my tone. I didn't care if I sounded weak or sad, I just wanted to let it off my chest.

 

"I figured that out pretty fast, what the hell happened back there anyways?" My heart rate picked up at his question and I looked into the blazing fire to distract my thoughts. I couldn't tell him it was me, he'd think I was absolutely crazy. Even if he did beleive me then how would I tell him I was the cause of his little brother's death. As he was mourning over his death, I knew almost instantly he was close with James. How could I tell him I killed his little brother, what would his kids think of their father's murderer?

 

"I don't know man, I don't know." I mumble off into the distance, not exactly worried about the unknown shadows that could be following our every word.

 

"Before the sun sets completely, you might want to get washed up." As soon as the words left his lips, I let out a loud sigh of relief and stood from my spot. I was only happy that he didn't question my answers, which in returns only made me guilty at his trust in me.

 

"I'll be back in a few minutes." Nobody replied as I made my way through the trail.

 

"Hold on, Rose!" Shouted Dan's panting voice behind me. I paused and turned to face him with a scowl on my face.

 

"Yeah?" I sigh, finally exhasperated with the constant talk.

 

"I'll show you where it's at, you need to take a left here." He finally caught up and towered over my short frame, pointing a few feet in front of us.

 

I nodded and followed him down the path as to not get lost.

 

The view that greeted us wasn't as beautiful as the pond in the clearing, but close. No trees hovered above the clean and slowly moving water allowing the moon to shine freely from above.

 

"It's clean, don't worry. Here, use this shirt to dry yourself off." With a grunt I took the the stained shirt from him and made my way down the stream, I couldn't barely help the laugh that left my lips when my bare feet came in contact with the stream. It felt absolutely amazing.

 

It only took a few minutes to wash the unwanted grime from my sticky body, that was until every particle on my body was shining from the glistening water.

 

I followed the path Dan led me down the first time and came to notice Dan sleeping loudly on the ground. The fire wasn't as hot and steamy as before, so I poked and prodded at the ambers surrounding the dimming fire.

 

Dan rolled on the ground and mumbled in his sleep words that seemed too jumbled up to make out.

 

With a roll of my eyes, I let the fire dim out on its' own before laying my head down on the stained shirt. The evaporating fire was the last thing I took deep notice in before once again, darkness invaded my empty mind and sucked me further into oblivion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Tag der Veröffentlichung: 18.08.2014

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