The Monster and the Stones

Five

Alex's first week of summer school went by pretty smoothly. She didn't exactly make any new friends; everyone seems to understand to give her some space and that she isn't a very open person.

Besides that, Skylar has been very nice to Alex, something that she isn't very used to. The first day they met, Skylar defended Alex from a crazy girl and took her to get ice cream, she even hooked her up with a free serving because her aunt works there, and she wanted to be welcoming too. After that, the two girls went to the local library and picked out books for each other. Since then, Alex has been reading her books every night. It is a good way to escape from her family.

While she has been enjoying herself, her family has been very stressed. Her father and Cassidy have been tense since the move and want both of their kids out of the house and getting involved in town. Michael has been refusing to leave the house and prefers to Facetime his friends he left behind at their old town. Alex, however, is glad to sneak out. At night she walks down the dark streets to meet up with Skylar in town. The two browse shops or visit some very kind shop owners who, like Skylar's aunt, want to be welcoming, and thought it would be best to share some stories and tips with Alex. This keeps Alex relaxed, she favors listening over talking, another thing Sky understands about her

"You know, many people say that the town seems a lot bigger to outsiders," Sky explains as the two walk down an old road at the edge of town, enjoying the nice view of a sunset over an empty field. "I wouldn't know though, would I? I grew up here, so this place seems very small to me, I guess you could say I know it like the back of my hand." She winks at Alex, who returns a wide smile.

"I can understand where they come from, I guess," Sky continues, now balancing along the curb. "The reason this town seems big is because of the Five Blocks."

"Five Blocks?" Alex asks confused, trying to keep the same pace as Sky who is distracted on her balancing.

"Yea," she replies, stepping off at last, "no one really talks about them of course, so I wouldn't expect you to understand." She checks the surroundings as if to make sure no one is following them or listening in. "It was a tragedy, from what I have heard," she says in a quieter tone.

Alex looks at her, puzzled, "what do you mean, a tragedy?"

"About twenty years ago a huge fire broke out in the warehouse on the eastern side of town, it sits right in the middle of them, and the fire got too bad to put out, setting everything else on fire around it. Quite a few people died, actually. To this day most people would rather avoid it, spreading rumors that it's haunted, or whatever..." she trailed off, kicking a rock about ten feet in front of them. "It's really not haunted, of course," she adds quickly after noticing Alex isn't saying anything. "The place just has a really eerie vibe to it. There are a couple of pretty weird shops that are still up and running, but they are owned by unknown people, outcasts to everyone else in town. They are known to chase and threaten kids who hang out there, even though some of us aren't trying to cause harm."

"Us?" Alex asks. Does Skylar sneak into that part of town too? Why would she want to do that if most of the people in town are scared to go near there?

Skylar smirked, "of course, me and some buddies go in there all the time, it's quite fun, really. You should come some time!" This struck Alex by surprise. She was interested now that she thought about it. She can just imagine how fun it would really be...

Before she could reply, Skylar stops dead in her tracks, staring intently at a nearby house. Alex stops, too, looking in the direction Skylar is staring. An old woman is sitting on a rocking chair on her porch, staring at the sunset. However that isn't what Alex finds unusual, the woman is surrounded by strange pets. Not dogs or cats, but snakes, some curled up at her feet, others hanging from the railings of her porch, another one around her neck and shoulders, the last one is in her lap, and she is stroking it as if it were a fluffy little bunny. Skylar nudges Alex, "we should turn around and head the other way..." The woman looks towards the two, and Alex can swear she sees the woman squint in her direction with a toothless smile. Alex doesn't need to respond to Skylar, she turns and follows her back the other way, trying to make it look as though they aren't trying to avoid the strange woman.