Don't let me drown

Nine

"Piggy! Piggy!"
Sienna bowed her head and she walked faster. She didn't want the wrong attention.
She pushed her bike - it was heavy because of the tires which were destroyed again - and hoped that Car and Catja would be gone soon.
"Piggy! Why in such a hurry?"
"You still haven't done anything with your hair, hah?"
"Piggy! Owh, Piggy! Fat, miserable, ugly little Piggy!"  The girls started laughing together like two rats.
Sienna stopped and turned around.
"What?" She cried. The words might have sounded innocent, but they hurt a lot.
"Owh, little Piggy is crying?"
"Stop, alright? Stop, please!" Sienna begged.
Car pushed her chest what caused her to fall back, on her bike. The girls laughed again.
"Hi little pig, how are you?"
"Awh, she's crying, you see Car?" Catja laughed.
She had a scissor in her hands.
"Don't.. Don't cut me, alright?" Sienna begged. She tried to sound tough, but she already started panicking. She still sat on her bike which laid on the ground and she had to look up to see the faces of Car and Catja.
With one hand, she felt of her hair still was okay - she had covered her hair which was cut off by the girls by using clips and her other curls. She didn't want to lose her other curls.
Catja took a step closer to Sienna what meant that the scissor also came closer. Car stayed at the same place. But suddenly she grabbed Sienna's wrists - she was really strong, something what Sienna was surprised about - and Catja came closer with the scissor. She started cutting the jacket and continued by making huge holes in her shirt and jeans.
"What are you doing? Let me go!" She yelled, but because she was in the forest, no one could hear her except the girls.
"Never," they said at the same time what caused them to laugh.
"Not before you lose weight, leave school, stop blurring our sight and view, not before you dress with clothes instead of dirtbags and before you just leave fucking earth."
The tears were streaming down Sienna's face when she saw that her favourite shirt and jacket were cut apart whilst she was still wearing them.

Sienna closed her eyes and focused on what she heard. There were no birds or city sounds heard, only the breathing of the two girls and the cutting of the scissors. But there was another sound! Tires on the track! Sienna opened up her eyes and looked up as far as she could because Car still held her, and she saw the person she wanted to see the most now - Ashton!
Instead of cycling past the three girls, he stopped and dropped his bike in the grass.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He asked the girls and he looked angry.
"Owh, hi!" The girls said whilst turning around and smiling. They tried to hide the scissor but Ashton was quicker and he grabbed the it.
"Do I have to cut you too?" He asked and frowned. "Have you gone mad? What are you doing?" He looked down at Sienna and saw all her holes in her clothes. "Now get the hell out of here," he said and the girls actually did what he said. They turned around and walked to the end of the forest.
"Are you alright?" Ashton asked and he looked worried at Sienna.
She nodded her head and tried to stand up, but she collapsed again. She was dizzy because she hadn't been eating the last 24 hours. Everything she ate was puked out.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
She nodded again and after being silent for a few seconds, she dared to ask him for help.
"Can you help me to.. I can't.. Stand up I guess.."
"Sure!" He answered and he helped her. He was very strong so he pulled her up in one try.
"Thank you.." She walked around her bike and sat down in the grass. Surprisingly, he sat down next to her and held his own wrists around his knees.
"Uhm.. Maybe you don't want to talk about it.. But why do these girls and two boys follow you? And make fun of you and stuff like that?" He turned his head around so he faced her.
She refused to look back.
"It's just.. It al began in 2nd grade on the primary school, when Catja joined our class. Soon Ian followed, and there was a guy named Louis who joined these two and they started making fun of me.. And as you know, I'm quite shy and stuff. I don't even know why I tell you this but it's damn hard sometimes." She sighed and looked at her own folded hands.
"So it all started in 2nd grade and it never quitted?"
"Yeah, that's pretty much it."
She decided to change subject, but he was quicker.
"So, can I ask you what you did yesterday? I mean, it was pretty clear, but why did you.. Try it?"
Sienna coughed once and bowed her head. "Because I was fed up. It has been like this for years. Throwing food at me, destroying clothes, manipulate friends who I had, tear my books apart and destroy my bike. And many other things.. Too many to mention."
Suddenly, Ashton wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to his shoulder. She froze for a few seconds. She hadn't had a hug for years. Yes, from family and friends of her parents, but not from friends. "It's okay to not be perfect, you know that? It's alright." He whispered. She smiled and closed her eyes for a moment.
"Thank you," she said and she dropped her head on his shoulder. The tears rolled down her face - he was so kind and sweet whilst he didn't even know her!
"And you know, it isn't that bad to have holes in your clothes. I have them too," he said and showed his t-shirt. "When I'm drumming, I usually get sweaty and the holes are pretty comfy." He giggled.
She smiled and rubbed her tears away with the palm of her hand.
"I'll remember that."
"So, what did you do here?" He asked.
"I live at the other side of the forest. I bike through the forest every day. And you?"
"I live in Hornsby."
"Hornsby? That's pretty far away, right?"
"Yeah, I take the bus. But I bike from the bus stop to school. I have to stay healthy, hah."
She smiled.
"Yeah."
"So let's make a deal!" He suddenly said. She lifted her head and looked at him. He let his arm go and placed it next to him.
"What do you mean?" She asked, confused.
"Let's bike together to school. We start at the same time and we probably end around the same time too."
Sienna couldn't believe what she heard. Cycling with a boy? She hadn't had a "cycle friend" since 2nd grade..
"Uhm, yes.. I mean, do you really want that"
He smiled. "Sure, why not?"
She nodded her head.
"Deal."