Invisible

   Lacey’s flip-flops marched a cheerful rhythm that defied her dreadful mood. It was her first day back at school, and she wasn’t excited in the least for her last year. She felt so small under the scrutinizing gazes and whispers of her fellow peers. You would think that after enduring them for a little over two years she’d be used to the unwanted attention, but she wasn’t even close. She had always been in the background, invisible to every eye that skimmed over her petite figure. But that all changed a year ago, the day she would never forget for the rest of her life.

    It was a warm and sunny day, although that was quite normal in the town of Huntington Beach, California. The air was humid and the atmosphere full of tension. However, this all went amiss to the teenagers splashing around in the ocean’s tide, enjoying their spring break and praying it would never end. Lacey Franklin was one of those teenagers. Standing at 5’2, she was the shortest in her year. Her hair had been a cherry red just two weeks before and still managed to keep the bright color. Her eyes were said to be a clone of her own mother’s, a deep crystal blue.

   Lacey’s only proof of this was a picture of her mother in her early twenties, months before Lacey was expected to arrive into the world. It was a headshot of her mother gazing longingly past the camera, a breath-taking sunrise lurking behind her willowy frame. Only a blind man could say she wasn’t a looker, with shimmering blonde hair and eyes that could pierce your soul. Her mother was truly a natural beauty, a complete opposite of her father whose face wasn’t symmetrical and whose body was awkwardly skinny. But her mother still managed to love all 102 pounds of him. Lacey could not blame her mother; her father was the most selfless person she knew. He was her rock, the one she went to for comfort. He was her friend, her only true friend after her mother’s passing.

    Lacey could still remember what she had been doing that afternoon. She was on the beach shore, collecting seashells to add to her collection. Her father wasn’t far behind, slathering sun screen on his arms and torso. He was the only one interacting with her. She could remember Mark, the local newsboy, running towards her, shouting and waving his hands around like a madman.

“Lacey! Lacey!”

    Lacey paused, seashell still in hand, and turned to face the boy sprinting towards her. Mark barely avoided crashing into Lacey’s father who stumbled in surprise, dropping the bottle of sunscreen.

   Mark came to a sudden stop in front of Lacey, bent over in half with his hands resting on his shaking knees, panting like a dog.

“Lacey, you-you,” Mark struggled with his words as sweat seemed to drain down his pale face, “you need to come with me, to the hospital. It’s your mom. She’s-“

   Mark didn’t have time to finish his sentence before Lacey was charging past him, going as fast as her short legs would let her. Her father’s shouts of protest were the least of her worries. Mark was quickly trailing behind her and could have easily outrun her by yards, but was worn out from coming to deliver Lacey the news.

“Lacey! Stop!” Lacey’s father’s voice boomed, startling nearby pigeons and causing them to flutter away.

     Lacey didn’t stop though, she went even faster. Mark was now just under a yard behind her, desperately reaching to catch her but to no avail. His arms weren’t long enough.

“Lacey, listen to your dad! You have to stop before you get yourself killed!” Mark shouted.

   Again, Lacey did not listen. She continued forward, everything a blur around her. She was aware of the fast approaching intersection up ahead, but she kept going. My mom needs me, she thought.