Worn Out Lives

Chapter I

Everyone in life deserves a miracle, right? Well, my miracle was something extraordinary. I wound up living right next door to Ingrid Burrow. She was a Godly human. Skin that was soft. Hair that was fluff, and brunette that dangled in front of her grey sharp eyes every so often. She had long eyelashes, and an inarguably gorgeous smile.

"Preston, quit daydreaming about Ingrid Burrow," said Jack, one half out of my two friends.

"She's so heavenly, dude."

"Psh, you bet."
"Oh, I don't bet. I'm correct."
"Nah, I'd say Kelly Angelo is hotter than Ingrid Burrow."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, it is so."

I laughed and shut my locker right beside Jack and Dud's. Dud was the other half of my friends. His real name was Mark but we called him Dud because it suited him.

"Have you seen Ingrid anywhere?" I asked Dud just after he approached us.
He replied, "Who knows, honestly. Ingrid Burrow is like a ninja. One moment she's right in front of you, the next she's off on a mystery road trip. I've gotta say, she's also pretty badass." I tapped my foot on the ground lightly, "You have a point there, young grasshopper."

"Don't call me that, it's weird."
"Too bad."

I laughed as the first bell rung which signaled first class. I limped off to class, trying to catch a glimpse of Ingrid Burrow. Ingrid wasn't your original popular girl. She had a boyfriend, one of the jocks, but she didn't seem to really stand out. She kept a lot to herself although she was like an open book. She even said herself, I quote, "I'm like an open book, people seem to know my secrets before I know them myself." It was true. Sad to say it, but she was correct.

Around 7th period, Ingrid walked up to me and grabbed my shirt. Her hand balled into a fist as she dragged me out into the empty school hallway. "What the fuck are you doing, Ingrid? We have to get to class." I said in a hushed tone. She was wearing black skinny jeans, and a red and black button-down shirt. Her hair was put up in a ponytail, and Ingrid's eyes were looking more fierce than usual. "I need to borrow your car," She said. "What for?" I asked. She continued, "Listen, I have some things to do tonight, so around 12 AM don't be alarmed if you see a shadow creeping through
your window. Thanks."

She ran off, and her ponytail swifted behind her. I stood there in the hallway thinking about it. I didn't own a car but my parents owned one. It was a Lexus. A black truck that could hold about 4 people seemed appropriate for our adventure.

It was 11:54 PM and I was in my pajamas laying on my bed. I left the window open for Ingrid so she wouldn't make such a racket while trying to break through my literal unbreakable window at midnight.

I heard a light knock to my left and glanced over to see Ingrid standing on the ledge, but she wasn't too high up because my bedroom was lower than you'd think it was. I ran over to the window and slid it open a bit wider for her to climb in. I turned the light on and quickly slipped a t-shirt on and jeans. "Morning," she said and smirked while looking down at me getting my shoes on.

"Ready for a night you'll never forget?" She asked and grinned. I always loved her smile. Like I said, it was inarguably gorgeous.
I quietly climbed out of the window. I noticed she had dark red lipstick on and rouge eyeshadow. She was also wearing a black dress and combat boots.

"Quite the getup, Ingrid," I whispered to her jokingly as we hopped down off the edge, and jogged to my parents car. I had stolen the keys before they went to bed. "You like this dress, and I know you do, Cullen," She whispered back. "I can't debate on that, Burrow," I said in a normal but raspier tone.

My hand trembled a bit before I plugged the key in and twisted it to start the low rumbling engine. "Where are we headed to first?" I asked and looked over at her. Her pale but beautiful face shone under the glowing moonlight.

"That one skyscraper place. I think it's in Pine Park. It's also called, um... Aha, it's called Bocco Tower and located in Pine Park," She glanced up at me from the map she had brought.

Pine Park wasn't too far and neither was Bocco Tower. I'd been there plenty
of times before. About seven minutes later, we arrived at Bocco Tower. Surprisingly, there was no guard in the tower, so we had it all to ourselves. Ingrid grinned her inevitably gorgeous grin and skipped up the steps taking them two at a time.

I followed after her, taking a pattern of either one or two steps at a time. She waited patiently for me at the top of the steps since the elevator wasn't going to open. "C'mon, slow poke, I've got something to show you," She smirked and walked off into a conference room full of chairs and tables. There was a huge panel of glass overseeing Boston, Massachusetts. Where we lived.

"It's a worn out city. With worn out boys, and worn out girls. Worn out houses, worn out jobs. Worn out minds. Worn out lives. Everything's more valuable from afar. And everything is more oblivious up close," She spoke in such a quiet voice that I almost couldn't hear.

"Everything but you," I responded. I was such an idiot. "You know, I like it better when you're outgoing. It shows how none of the ropes inside of you have been cut," She said metaphorically speaking. "What'd you mean?" I asked like the dimwit I was.

"I mean, Preston, it shows how strong you are. Those ropes are tough to get rid of and tough to gain. It takes real skill," She responded. At that moment, I felt as if one of the ropes inside me had been cut.