just friends ; deadly class

five

v : A Moment Of Sunshine

The frigid air bit at Avery's arms as she tried pulling her shirt closer to her. It had been a few hours since she left the orphanage and she had only just now taken note of the chilly San Francisco air. Despite how cold it was, a part of her believed she deserved to be in the freezing cold without some sort of jacket. 

She had allowed her best friend to die and simply ran away instead of doing something. 

Avery could have pulled her back up or ran to get help. But instead she sat there and cried before getting up and leaving. 

Avery believed she deserved everything that happened to her. She let this happen and it was all her fault. She was a terrible, no good person who just deserved to-

Avery pinched herself, cutting off the thoughts as her mind now swarmed to fixate on the burning pain. Whenever she felt her thoughts drift off she began to pinch herself. It was a good enough escape from her thoughts, so she left it be. 

She didn't even realize how many times she had pinched herself until she walked into a gas station and noticed an older woman staring down at her exposed arms in horror. Avery glanced down and turned a light shade of pink out of embarrassment. Her arm was practically covered in crescent moon shaped indents and was starting to redden from the repeated agitation. 

With an awkward smile towards the woman Avery continued onto the back of the store and grabbed a soda and a chocolate bar.

It's what her brother always had her do whenever she was upset. He would hop into his car and drive the younger girl to the gas station before having her pick out a drink and candy. It always distracted her enough so Avery was hoping it would work now. 

Don't think of the heartbreaking crack when Elara hit the ground. 

Don't think of how Avery's throat is still aching from her sobs and screams.

Don't think of the feeling of Elara's fingers slipping from Avery's.

Avery cleared her throat and stopped at the register, sliding her hand into her skirts pocket and rummaging around for the spare change Teagan gave her earlier. The 19 year old worker watched with an unimpressed look when Avery sat two dollars on the counter. 

"Your total is 4.37." "Oh.." Avery looked up at the man before what she grabbed. "Do I have enough for just the candy?" "You need three cents more."

The girl searched through her skirt again, only coming up with the red lighter and pack of cigarettes that Raven lent her earlier that week. She grinned when she found a single penny hidden on the floor. She happily gave it to the worker who sighed before setting his own two cents onto the counter. The girl was only ten, he wasn't going to hold up the line so she could cry over a Hershey's bar. 

A bright smile found its way onto Avery's face as she thanked the worker before walking off with her item.

It's when the chocolate was gone that she wished she had chosen the drink instead. Her throat was dry and screaming at her to drink something. 

Avery tossed the wrapper into the trash before thinking over what to do. She didn't have any more cash on her and she had only found a quarter on her walk so far. Meaning that, for the first time in her life, Avery was broke. 

She kicked a rock as she considered her options. 

Her parents always said that stealing was bad. But had they ever considered that she would end up on the streets? Or that she would have killed- Avery pinched herself before blowing out a huff of air.