Young Wild and Free

Young

After discovering that dancing was something that really caught Elaina's eye, she began to wonder what other talents she may have that she doesn't know about. At the age of 8, Elaina learned how to sew small fabric pieces together to make clothes for her barbie dolls. Elaina was a big dreamer so she would do anything in her power to feel closer to something she was passionate about. The aspirations of becoming a world famous fashion designer, was a dream Elaina had a hard time letting go of due to trauma experienced in elementary school. Growing up different from everyone else can be difficult, and as a child its hard to openly communicate those emotions to anyone.

As explained in the first chapter, Elaina grew up in a strict household, with traditional Grandparents. The Grandparents did more of providing living support, rather than emotional and mental support in anything. It would be hard for Elaina to talk to her grandparents about anything because they always wanted everything to go a certain way, and were expecting Elaina to be this Godly child who doesn't do anything wrong. It became difficult for Elaina to enjoy her social life. Asking to spend time with friends were a dreadful thing to do. Elaina would practice how she would ask for anything that she wanted to do in the mirror before actually asking. Her family believed that she was so popular in her classes since she was very talented and very smart, what they didn't know was that their granddaughter was battling depression at a very young age. Going to school everyday, getting teased because of her skin complexion because she was darker than the rest of her classmates. The derogatory words that were in her ear all day at school was driving her crazy. Elaina was very timid, she never bothered anybody or started anything with anybody. During this age, which is around 10-12, Elaina was struggling to find her voice but she found the perfect outlet to release all the negative thoughts and feelings when she met Theo.

Theo was a childhood friend that stayed down the street from Elaina's house. Elaina would come outside and play with his little sister Kaylee. Elaina and Kaylee were the best of friends. From imaginary adventures in Kaylee's backyard, to sleepovers every night, Elaina was just happy to have a friend that accepted her for her and didn't judge her based off her past. Theo and Elaina were around the same age so of course they were going to have a little bit in common. Most of the time Theo would always be playing basketball at the local basketball court with his friends. Elaina and Kaylee would always go sit and watch them play. On one hot summer day, Elaina and Kaylee were outside playing and Theo comes out the house and says " Hey Elaina I need to talk to you about something." With Elaina being shy, she wasn't quick to react so she began to take a deep breath and prepare herself for what Theo had to say. He starts off by saying ' I've known you for a long time and I've always had a crush on you but I never knew how to tell you. Will you go out with me ? Elaina was too stunned to speak, she states blankly at Theo until she comes back to reality and finally realizes what really happened. This was something new for Elaina, a feeling that shes never experienced before. There was no way, Elaina wanted to pass up a big opportunity like this, so of course she said yes. Theo and Elaina never told anybody that they were together, and with this being Elaina's first real relationship she didn't know how anything was supposed to work. There were feelings that she never wanted to get rid of. It was like a euphoric moment in time where everything was going exactly the way she wanted it to until something went wrong.

On a beautiful Saturday afternoon, Elaina walks down the street to Kaylee's house to see if she wants to come outside and play. When Elaina goes to knock on the door, Theo opens it and pulls Elaina to the side of the house where a shed was. He pulled her in for a kiss and without hesitation Elaina kissed him back. There were a million thoughts rushing through Elaina's mind. Although this feelings like forever in a moment, Elaina didn't notice her granddad's old school pontiac ride past Kaylee's house. Elaina acts quick and tells Theo she had to go before her granddad makes it back to the house.