Lead Me Out of the Dark

An Old Friend

We ended up climbing for a long while. When we got tired, we headed home. There, Linda told us she was taking us out to eat. It was just Linda, Taylor, Brianna, Deck and I, as the boys were on another camping trip. They went weekly with their Boy Scout troop. Deck, Taylor, and Linda sat on one side of the table. Brianna and I sat on the other. There was an empty chair to the right of me, but no one sat in it.

“He must be running late…” Linda murmured. Brianna bristled, running her hands through her hair quickly.

“Who’s running late?” Deck asked. Linda just pressed her lips together in a tight line. She’d been acting odd, but this was taking it to a whole different level. What was going on? Who were we waiting for? Deck and I shared a glance.

“Can I tell them? Now?” Taylor asked, tugging on Linda’s sleeve. This only amped up my curiosity further. Tell us what? What was happening?

“I suppose,” Linda said.

“I’m getting adopted!” Taylor squealed.

“Well, we’re getting adopted.” Brianna corrected. My stomach plummeted. Any appetite I’d had before that moment vanished. Brianna and Taylor were leaving? They couldn’t leave. Natalie had just left only months ago… I felt tears well up in my eyes. Brianna and Taylor were like sisters to me! How could they have decided this without asking me? They’d just decided they would leave me, just like my mom. Just like my dad. I jumped up from the table.

“Skye-” Linda began, but I had had enough of her.

“No! Fuck you!” I hissed. She’d betrayed me. They’d all betrayed me. All I could see was red. I turned to storm away from the table, but I bumped into something hard. I backed away, muttering an apology, but then I saw who it was.

“Holden?” I gasped, my eyes going wide. He looked down at me, his jaw dropping.

“Skye?” He asked. I smiled hugely and then he lunged forward, spinning me around in a huge circle. I laughed giddily. I hadn’t seen him in forever. My heart warmed immensely.

“What are you doing here?” I asked.

“I’m meeting my new foster family tonight,” he said timidly.

“Oh,” I said. I hadn’t realized he’d been placed into foster care. Wait… that meant that something had happened to his mom. When we’d been hospitalized together, his mother had been the only person to fight for him. I hadn’t had anyone.

“No,” I whispered, my heart lurching in my chest. His mother had been so kind… I still remembered how I’d met Holden. I’d done some bad things with his father and on my way out of his house the morning afterwards I’d met Holden. He and I became instant friends. He was the closest thing I’d ever had to a friend. Then, I’d seen him when we got hospitalized together, and he told me everything about his life. His father was a part of a gang. He killed people for a living. His father used to cut his mother. The only reason she didn’t divorce him because she was afraid that her father would claim custody of Holden and win. Holden meant everything to her. His father had many ties with the court systems, so he would probably win the court battle. I felt tears spring to my eyes. Tears spilled down my face and Deck stood up, alarmed. He moved to my side, but I placed a hand on his chest, pacifying him.

“Tell me she’s alright,” I begged. My voice shook. I couldn’t bear the thought of Holden losing the last person in life that he had left. He was 6 feet tall, and he had golden blond hair. He had big brown eyes a chiseled face. He was tall and lanky, but he was easily one of the most gorgeous people I’d ever met. Yet his insides surpassed his outsides in their beauty. He was one of the most kindhearted people I’d ever met, despite his situation.