The Skeletøn Bøy

FØURTY-FIVE

++ C H A P T E R | F Ø U R T Y - F I V E ++

Elliott couldn't believe it. Everything was over. Finally. But, even then, she wasn't sure she could believe it. How could she, when she'd spent her whole life fearing Mother? There was little Elliott felt confident about, and being over Mother wasn't one of them.

She pulled on her running sneakers and stretched. With all the money she'd gotten from Keith and Wes, she decided to go out and spend on herself. She still didn't know where to go, or how she would get to the stores, but she wanted to be someone new.

She wanted to be a girl.

Her entire life was spent being a boy. And Elliott, while she knew there was something wrong, she never thought differently. She'd been a boy for as long as she could remember, but it never felt natural, or right. And while she knew she was a girl, being a boy was easier. She knew how to be a boy.

Being a girl would be the hard part.

She pushed herself out the door and set herself at a nice, slow pace. She wasn't sprinting in this run. She wasn't running from anything - not her past, not mother, not her fears. She was finally just running to put everything behind her, so she could finally start anew.

She needed a fresh start. Adrian and Mat were cautious around her, like saying the word mother would set her on edge. And while Elliott admitted it used to, she didn't mind the word now. She didn't mind talking about what happened to her.

Talking was the only way to get over it.

Elliott pushed herself into the wooded area at the edge of town. She hoped to find Kenzie at the same bench they'd first met at, though chances were slim. After all, she had been kidnapped, and Elliott knew what that could do to a person.

She knew all too well.

But, there on the bench was the familiar girl with purple hair, wearing a signature look of a pastel blue dress with a purple bow.

Elliott was jealous of Kenzie in so many ways. She was strong in ways that Elliott would never be. She was confident, pretty, easy going. She was easy to get along with.

"Elliott!" Kenzie jumped off of the bench, walking towards the girl with so many secrets. Kenzie took in the look of her tattoos, and smiled.

They fit Elliott, she decided.

"Hey, Kenzie," Elliott pulled in a deep breath, still winded from the run. "I need to ask you something."

Kenzie leaned against a tree, her arms cross and eyebrow cocked. "Ask away."

Elliott looked down at her hands and fidgeted. "Do you think we could go shopping today? I want to buy clothes. Girl clothes."

Kenzie's eyes widened in surprise, and a smile fell on her face. "Shopping? Of course! I know the cutest boutique that you would love. Do you want to come to my house real quick, so we can grab my mom's car? Plus, you look like you may need a shower."

Elliott laughed in response, agreeing with the shower bit. Running was so stress relieving, but it did make her smelly. An unattractive feature that Elliott would rather not go shopping with.

When the two arrived at Kenzie's house, her mother was in the kitchen. She looked much happier than she did the first time Elliott met her. She looked relieved and almost softer, like Kenzie's kidnapping had changed her views.

"Mom, can we take the car? Elliott's craving some good old shopping."

Her mother looked at Elliott and smiled. "Of course. Be careful driving, Mackenzie."