18 Years of Bonnie & Clyde

[4] Something's Changed

After their date, FP couldn't help but having the thought of her running through his mind whenever he found himself distracted. Her lips were softer than anyone's and when she laughed, he could swear that the whole world stopped. However, the young naive boy still had no single clue that he was slowly falling in love with the girl next door.

It was a Thursday morning when he strolled towards her trailer, out of curiosity if she would be up to play some arcade games at the Wyrm. He hadn't seen her taking off to school, so it was most likely she was skipping classes just like he was. When he stood in front of her trailer he wanted to hop on the small stairs, but then he heard yelling from the inside and stopped in his tracks almost immediately.

"I work my ass off after school, and you think it's okay to steal from me? That was my money! I made it!" Alice exclaimed loudly from her living room, her eyes pitting fire as she looked at her mother. It wasn't the first time she found out that her savings had been stolen by her mom.

"But this my home, Alice! You're just a child, what do you need money for anyway?" Her mother was sitting on the couch with a cigarette between her lips, sending her scowl. In her eyes, her daughter was only seventeen years old, a young girl who didn't need anything for herself.

"Why do you take everything from me? Why do you always stab me in my back the moment I think I can start to trust you again?" Alice's voice cracked, no matter her attempt to pretend it wasn't hurting her.

She always made the same mistake over and over again. Life has shown her enough times that she couldn't trust her mother, especially not with money, but every single time she got manipulated again.

"I thought you were getting your act together, not that you would use my money to get some more coke to snort." Alice scoffed through her tears and looked her mother up and down in disgust.

From the two of them, she was the only one trying to hold them together, for them not to get evicted from the Southside. It wasn't fair that she needed to be the adult one in her family, when she should enjoy her teenage years like everybody else.

"But you know what, don't count on me anymore." She shook her head sadly and walked towards the door, slamming it shut behind her with a loud bang. Alice hadn't noticed that FP was standing in front of her trailer, until he softly spoke up.

"Hey... are you okay?" He approached her carefully, afraid to make a wrong move.

"Do I look okay?" She shot back at him, a furious look burned onto her face.

"You'll just judge me like everyone else would. A mother that's a crackhead, come on, laugh!" Alice exclaimed angrily, before crossing her arms with tears in her eyes, waiting for him to do exactly what she expected.

"Woah, Alice. Chill. Why would I laugh about that?" FP held his hands up in defense before taking a step closer into her direction, telling her that he wasn't here with a wrong intention. They were friends, he would never purposely insult her.

Alice's face softened quickly when she realized that he meant well. "Sorry. It's not your fault that my mother is a disaster."

She sat down on the gravel, her back leaning against her home. The ground was cold, but she couldn't care, not with all that she had on her mind. FP sat down next to her and tried to catch her eyes. It was no use, she couldn't look back at him. He sighed quietly.

"I couldn't help but overhear... I have a safe at my place. My Dad doesn't know it's there. I'll protect your money for you, if you'd like." He proposed kindly, offering her a warm smile.

"And if you trust me enough, of course." FP added with a chuckle, in an attempt to lighten the mood. Alice smiled up at him and wiped away a tear that managed to escape from the corner of her eye.