The Unbecoming

Prologue

I stood there with one leg hanging out the window and the other in my room. Biting my lip, I lifted my other leg out of my room and onto the ledge before taking a deep breath.

I can do this.

I glanced down and my vision blurred.

Shit.

I took a couple of deep breaths to cool myself down a little.

In. One... Two... Three...

Out. One... Two... Three...

Finally my mind cleared letting me stare straight ahead to my destination from this point. There it was.

The branch.

Even though I've done this a million times it still scares the living day lights out of me to jump. With thoughts of determination running through my mind, I clench my fingers.

You got this. You know you do.

With that as the last thought running through my mind I jumped. The cold air whipped around my face and a shiver ran through me. At the last minute I grabbed onto the branch, my fingers tightly leeching onto the rough, prickly bark of the tree.

SCORE!

Skillfully scaling down the tree, I avoid all the weak, dangerous branches. Swinging myself down to the last branch, I tighten my grip on it before slowly letting my legs fall, leaving my body dangling from the last branch with only my hands holding me up. With a few last words of encouragement, I let my hands slip from the branch, letting myself fall down the last four feet.

Safely landing in a crouch form on the dark green grass that is darker than usual due to the dark haze of the night, I push myself up into a standing position. Brushing off all the dark flecks of bark that caught onto my clothes, I zip up my jacket and stuff my hands into my pockets before signaling the black SUV waiting for me, to come forward.

***

I laughed and shouted with Dawn. "WHOA!!!!!"

Dawn laughed and patted my back while she puffed on her cigarette. "I can't believe it!" she exclaimed. "Ronnie the goody-two shoes, hosting a wild party!"

"I know right! When she told me about the party, I was like 'SUREEEEEEEEE. As if'." I exclaimed.

Dawn cracked a smirk and shook her long blonde hair to the side before she reached out to my own brown hair. "Damn girl! You curled it." She winked at me, "I told you your hair would look hot in curls!'"

I roll my eyes. "Puh-lease! You didn't say squat. Hey, where's Dana?"

She threw her cigarette out her window and rolled it up. "Going to pick her up right now. Ari's with her."

Dawn picked up the air freshener she keeps in the car, from one of the pockets on the side of her seat and handed it to me. "Start spraying" she said as she continued to drive.

I groaned. "You know Ari can't stand the smell of the smoke yet you still continue to smoke that crap?"

"Spray." That was her only response as she kept her eyes glued to the road.

This girl is a piece of work I tell you.

With a roll of my eyes to her silence, I started spraying everywhere so that every inch of the smoke stench would be gone.

When we finally pulled into Dana's parking lot, I stopped with the air freshener and slipped it into one of the car seat side pockets.

Dana and Ari raced out of the house and hopped into the car in a fit of giggles.

Dawn, Ari, and Dana could all easily pass for sisters. They all have blonde hair, with big blue eyes. The all have high cheekbones with small pouty lips. They're tall and all slightly tanned. I'm the only one with brown hair, a mix of green and brown eyes, and a height that towers over their tall height by quite a few inches. I don't always feel jealous, but sometimes I do wish I looked even just a little bit like them.

I didn't notice I completely zoned out until Dana smacked me upside the head.

"Yo Kieran! Miss Sleepy! You alive?" Dana exclaimed, with her eyebrows raised.

"Ow! Seriously Dana?" I said clutching my head. "You couldn't have smacked me harder?" I added in a sarcastic manner, giving her a slightly playful glare.

Ari burst out laughing, though in between breaths, she managed to get out some words: "YOU'RE FACE. MY GOD...WHEN...SHE SMACKED...YOU...HAHAHAHA."

Dawn gave her a look. "Did someone take a little bit of a head start with the drinking?"

"NO...I DIDN'T...I'M JUST NERVOUS...YOU KNOW...WITH ME AND DRAKE SEEING EACH OTHER, AFTER WE BROKE UP, FOR THE FIRST TIME!" Ari exclaimed, while still laughing hysterically. That is not normal.

With a chuckle of my own, I patted her head. "Yup. You're wasted."

Dana rolled her eyes and sighed. "I told her not to, but you know how she is when she has her mind set on something."

Dawn grinned and turned a little towards Dana. "You guys are exactly the same. Remember Alex."

Dana swore at her. "Hush up." She knitted her eyebrows together and slouched back in her seat with a slight pout to her lips.

"OHH! Tell me. I don't know anything about an Alex." I pouted, "Tell me!"

Dawn grinned. "I'll tell you. It all started when-"

"DAWN LOOK OUT!" Ari yelled.

I only had a minute to turn my head to see a flash of white, blinding my sights before I blacked out.

***