Olivia Hayes never truly had anywhere to call home. Her dad left when she was eleven and her mom was rarely around. Her only salvation was being at her best friend Cora's house.
Alexander Stevens didn't think his life was going anywhere. His parent...
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Bright lights blind me.
I turn my face to the right and make eye contact with my best friend Cora. We share a quick smile before turning back to the front.
Cora and I met on our first day of kindergarten. She held on to her mom, crying to go home. I approached her and told her she could come with me until her mom came to pick her up.
After that we sort of became inseparable.
It was a good thing especially after my parents shit show of a divorce.
The whole thing was gradual and then all at once. Like a bomb slowly ticking away before it explodes.
See my parents were always fighting. My dad was out cheating on my mom, my mom coped by drinking her pain away.
He would come home to find her drunk and would go out and sleep with another woman. It was an endless cycle.
Until one day I came home from school to find my mom crying on the kitchen floor.
Turns out my dad had gotten some woman pregnant and decided to pack up and leave.
We were nothing to him now. I haven't seen him since he left six years ago. I was only eleven then.
When my mom realized he was never returning her drinking got worse. You couldn't pry the bottle out of her hands, trust me I tried.
I have a scar on my arm to prove it.
She started to disappear sometimes and I liked it when she was gone. Because if she came back she was either drunk and miserable or drunk with some man she found wherever she goes.
The men never touched me, it didn't stop their creepy looks though.
That's sort of the reason I spend most of my time with Cora's family, besides her brother Alex it's probably the best place to be.
My mom never notices and if she does she's too drunk to care.
Hearing the crowd cheer brings me back to reality.
Currently I am hoisted up, standing on one foot like a flamingo. The crowd goes wild as I am throw into the air.
I am a cheerleader and so is my friend Cora.
The two of us have been cheering for our high school since we were freshman.
Cora dragged me along to try out and I ended up loving it.
Cheering made me feel free, especially when I was up in the air.
The free fall of not knowing whether they would catch me or not.
Most people would be terrified, I loved the thrill.
What would happen if they didn't catch me?
Would anyone care if I was hurt? Would my mom or dad?
