Medicine [h.s]

01

You will know when you need to. (;
^ (*) ^

"Ash!" someone grabbing my shoulders.

"Ash!" I hear my best friend Bethany's voice.

"What the fuck" I'm yawning.

"Oh thank god!" She takes a deep breath.

It's seven in the morning. I can't even imagine what she is doing here. She went home at eight o'clock last night and we arranged to meet at school in the morning.

"What are you doing here?" I sit up.

"I just wanted to check if you are alright."

"Why wouldn't I be?" I'm confused. It's so early in the morning.

"Didn't you hear?"

"Okay. Would you get to the point?" I sigh.

"Okay. The gang that has been here several times this week struck again. Last night when I went home I heard some weird noises. So I went down the main street. And saw about fifteen guys standing there with guns and bags. I don't know what they did or who they were because I was very scared and I went home instead. But in the morning I heard that many houses had been broken into,and the windows of several shops were smashed. And it was later revealed that they had also broken into the school. A girl was injured yesterday."

"And what was stolen from the houses? Garbage?" I laugh, but she doesn't find it funny. "Oh come on. This is a shitty town and you know it. The rich do not live here, only those who have a puncture. Because a sane person does not want to live here. And the fact that that girl was even wounded further proves that this is a fucking shitty town." I'm starting to get dressed.

"How many times do you want to sit in the principal's office because your belly button piercing is visible?" She asks, referring to my outfit.

"I didn't do it to hide it afterwards." I shake my head.

"I know. But at least hide it when a teacher comes." She has always been the good girl. Don't get me wrong. I love her so much. She has been my best friend since third grade but we are totally different. I've always been the troublemaker,and she was the one who held me back when I wanted to do something stupid. I often get her in trouble. But she's still here, I think it's called true friendship.

"I would rather be at the principal's office than in the class anyway. I hate that we still have to go to high school. For fuck sakes we are 19 years old."

"No offence but whose fault is that?" She raises her eyebrows. Uhm yeah. When I said I often get her in trouble I thought of these.

"I never said it wasn't mine. I'm just saying it sucks." I laugh as I comb my hair. I let my long curly brown hair fall over my shoulder.

It was a sunny day on the fifth of September. At the time, we had no idea that the end of the day would be nowhere near as pleasant. We just walked to school like every day since we were six.

Every kid says they remember the first day of school. And what a defining moment it was. And parents say the same thing. They remember when their child entered the school gate. And that they cried all day after that because their kids were no longer babies. But my parents don't. I don't know my father, and my mother is a drug addict. My mom didn't care that I wasn't a baby anymore. She didn't even accompany me to school.

And if we're talking about parents already, let's talk about my father, too. I don't know where he is, nor why he's not here. My mother said he left us when I wasn't even alive. I'm not sure I believe her. She always avoids this topic. But I don't know if it's because she's lying or because she's telling the truth and it's painful to talk about it.