The Lonely District

Chapter 1

Walking just seemed so slow. It felt like hours had passed since we left. Blistering heat and deserted road was all we could see and feel. We weren't going to turn back. Not with how far we had walked. Not with what was back there waiting for us. It was the reason why we left. To find something to do, or see, or just something. Yet nowhere was free from boredom, not even our imaginations.

This road was just like the others, or so we thought. When we saw it, Shanaynay was throwing stones aimlessly into the ditch beside us; Shaniqua was humming the latest Beyoncé song: Rocket. I looked at then, all in their own little worlds. The scar on Shaniqua's right arm, from her break up with Hank, was still healing. Thinking of Hank just made me feel sick. The way he controlled girls and did what he did with them, I just couldn't imagine the state they had to be in for them to go with him.

I shook the thought away as I looked over at Shanaynay. Beautifully, the sunlight glanced off her dark skin making her pink lips and palms glow, standing our from their dark surroundings. I could tell she was thinking. The way her mouth scrunched up on the left side, the nose twitch. What she was thinking about, I didn't know. She was definitely thinking about something though.

I looked ahead and a shape emerged from the heat wave. A house. It wasn't like any house I'd seen in town, old and withered but elegant and proud. It stood tall although it looked like it would collapse at any minute. My friends didn't notice it because they were so into their own little worlds but it stood right out from the barren landscape around it that I couldn't miss it. "Ay Niques!" I said tapping her on the shoulder. "Hmm?" She asked as she opened her eyes and finished the chorus. "Look!" I said getting excited, pointing to the house. "Shanaynay!" I tapped her on the shoulder too. "What?" She asked looking up to see what all the commotion was about. "Ugh! About time we found something! We probably would've ended up in the next town if this wasn't here. Trust me; you don't want to be there." She continued. "Yeah! It's unbelievable, but it's as bundy as Walmart!" Shaniqua said. "You said it gurl!" Shanaynay laughed "I mean, I can't believe Hank wasn't born there!"

Shaniqua's face went cold. I had seen this face before. It's not good. You don't want to see this face. Because when you do, she is seriously hurt. "I know you don't like him but when I was with him, I saw something. A little good in the darkness of the bad, a spark in the hole of nothingness. A smile. Not his trademark evil grin, it was a nice one. A genuine smile."
"Bullshit! Trust me, there is nothing in that thug for you. Not even a tiny bit!"
"You wouldn't know!" Shaniqua yelled "You weren't with him for six months!"

I hadn't seen this from Shaniqua before. This was fresh. This was new. Something unruly had been unearthed. I didn't know if she was capable of controlling it. I noticed the house wasn't too far away. I quickened the pace because Shaniqua was close to losing it. Shanaynay didn't mean to cause this much harm. She only meant to tease. I could see it in her face, not only had she hurt Shaniqua, she had hurt herself. This was all the drama I could take. We all just herded to stop at the house for a while and calm down.