"I Once Said..."

Chapter 1

April 12th, 1965.

I've always wanted to know what life was like out of this town. Stepping out of the dim light of the convenience store, the sunshine blinding my eyes a bit, bag in hand with the items my friends wanted, I couldn't help but wonder what life was like beyond this crap of town, Oak Cliff, a place that had become ingrained in my mind, despite its dullness, I walk down the sidewalk, thinking to myself. The gang has been quieter than usual, no one knows why, but what worried me was that Elijah was the quietest, usually, you couldn't get that guy to shut up.

My brother, Terrance, has been in our gang sometimes, our parents died when he was only fourteen, and I was seven. Our lives changed after that, Terrance had to find a job to keep us stable, and I got a job at a nearby diner when I was fourteen. Terrance had a job to feed us, and when I turned fourteen, I had to help out too. I've been working at a nearby diner for the past year, and life has proven to be a heck of a lot harder than it used to be.

As I got to the spot we usually hang out at, it was a spot in the forest. Sometimes we would go over to Elijah's house when his sister wasn't home, or my house, but that's only if my brother was okay with it. I saw the group sitting under a large weeping willow tree. Its lush leaves formed a barrier around them, like a dome. It was our safe space and a place for us to relax.

When they realized I was there, they all looked at me like I was a newbie. Someone who's never been here before. Did I do something wrong? Elijah looked at me with boredom, his cold blue eyes piercing into my soul as if he hated me with a passion, his hair had sideburns and was curly at the top, and his brown freckles were the boldest thing about him. He would be very handsome if he didn't always have that hateful look on his face, but I think his girlfriend Ash would disagree. Ash was the most talkative, whenever the gang was quiet, she was always the first to speak. She mostly comes in and out at most times, this time she's not with us today. Ash looked like a completely innocent girl, with auburn hair, slight curls at the bottom, and green eyes that looked like emeralds when they hit the sun in the right spot. She was beautiful, really beautiful, but her flaw? Can knock down a bottle of Jack in seven minutes. At seventeen she had a spot for drinking and would usually come to us drunk without a thought in her head. That wouldn't be a big problem if she didn't threaten us when she was blackout-ratted. She would mostly threaten Elijah, but I think she loves him too much to do such a thing. I wish I was like them, with a perfect relationship. "Hey guys." I managed to speak to them, our newbie, Ralph who had joined us for a few months now. He was shorter than us and a little shy, but still the toughest out of our whole group. Maybe he wasn't fully used to us yet, but he's my darn best friend.

Ralph's dark hair reminded me of starry nights, his jet-black hair and tan skin fit him perfectly, and he had dark eyes that looked like the Milky Way. He often wore a shirt and baggy jeans with a light jacket. Despite being sixteen, he's probably the most innocent of all of us and would never try to get into fights unless necessary. "Hey, Juli." Ralph smiled at me, his smile was so sweet and it always brightened my day. I loved how perfect his teeth were, how sweet and pure he was. I would never get rid of him, even if I had to, he always was my first choice. "I got the stuff you guys wanted me to get." I tossed the grocery bag into the middle of the badly shaped circle my friends were making. "Did you get my lighter?" Roxanne asked squeakily. Her voice always sounded like a five-year-old. She didn't look a day over eleven, but she was the second oldest out of us. She had platinum blond hair that looked like snow. She was a stereotyped blondie. Light skin, light blue eyes, and super blonde hair. She was the kindest, but also the toughest, always protecting us from people who tried to pick on us. She was tall, taller than me, or maybe I was just super short. I'm sure being five-six isn't too short, Or maybe Roxanne is too tall. She looked six foot, but she claims she's five-eight. "Yes, I got your lighter." the corners of my lips tugged into a slight smile, Roxanne always loved lighting stuff on fire, and I was with her. I loved setting things on fire. It was a specialty of mine. I almost got arrested for arson, but I put out the fire as soon as the cops pulled up. It was an old car that was all broken and rusty, the soft seats still flammable. Me and Roxanne were lighting matches and tossing them into the car, hoping for a flame, but they would all get burned out until I put a splash of some lighter fluid and tossed a match in there. It bursted into flames and me and Roxanne were giggling and laughing as it was mesmerizing to watch.