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Everyday was more and more of a struggle. Lauren didn't know where she could turn for help. Currently her job paid decent and her past grades were consistent. They were the only two positives for her. Lauren grew up alongside constant berating from her parents to do better. They were difficult to say the least. They were never encouraging, they always spoke to Lauren as if she would never amount to anything.

What frustrated her the most, was she didn't even know why. She did well in school from freshman year. She was an A student. It was only two years ago when she started going out with friends and drinking quite a bit - nothing out of the ordinary for a teenager - that her parents started to get on her case a lot.

Long story short; Lauren needed to get out of her home. Her parents had been verbally abusing her for the last month about not putting the garbage out. They told her if she couldn't cope with simple chores in the house, she would have to leave. She was turning nineteen in eight months so there was a lot to sort out in terms of her future.

Would she be going to college? How the hell would she afford it when her senior year was over?

That was why Lauren worked four nights a week at Lillies, her best friend's, parents, locally owned bar. She'd been there for three months, since she turned eighteen. Her and Dinah would work together most nights and plan their future. Dinah was similar to Lauren in the sense that they both wanted to get the hell out of town.

Dinah knew about Lauren's family life and Lauren had mentioned that she was looking for a place to stay. Unfortunately Dinah had too many individuals living in her home already, with no room to spare. She felt horrible not being able to provide such a basic human right for her best friend; a bed to sleep in.

Lauren came in fuming the other night. Her parents had finally given her an ultimatum. They yelled at her over the smallest things. She had had enough. It wasn't like she'd ever been hit before and Lauren was the last person to ever complain about her family situation, because there were other teenagers worse off.

But it was getting psychologically and emotionally tiring for Lauren. She was growing anxious every night, having panic attacks while she sat in her room at night after her parents had blamed her for something she didn't even do. She didn't want to understand the reason behind her parents motives because if she did she would probably be more fucked up.

So when she returned home from school Friday night, she packed up her things in preparation for the weekend. She would be looking at apartments before school started up on Monday and hopefully she could move in somewhere straight away.

Unfortunately before she could close up her suitcase, her father stormed in. It was the first time he'd ever stared at Lauren like he was going to raise a hand at her. Lauren immediately raised her hands and felt a shiver run up her spine.

Fifteen minutes later, she was out on the street, after her father had warned if she left she wasn't allowed back in. Then, as if she never existed in that house on Dove Lane, Lauren disappeared into the wind and booked a room at a local shelter for the night.

*****

Saturday afternoon, Lauren found herself at a coffee shop in the city centre. She was scanning through ads on an app that had local apartments and houses offering shared rent. One of them was only a few blocks away, nearby to her school, so she downed the rest of her hot chocolate and rolled her suitcase down towards the apartment.

Lauren approached the building hesitantly. She let go of her suitcase and pulled a packet of cigarettes from her pocket, lighting one instantly. It didn't take long for Lauren to notice some people move around inside. She placed the cigarettes in her pocket again and inhaled the lit one, blowing out the smoke to one side.

She was about to knock on the door when it opened and a shortish man answered. He had scruffy hair and stubble and looked like he hadn't showered in days. Lauren narrowed her eyes and threw the cigarette down on the ground.

"Charlie," the man held his hand out.

Lauren glanced down at his hand, that looked unwashed. She didn't really care about making a good impression anymore because she didn't want to be around this guy.

"I'm a mechanic," he stated, sensing Lauren's reluctance to return the gesture. That didn't change Lauren's mind though. She was about to turn around until she heard a female voice.

"Charlie I can't find the shampoo —" The woman's voice abruptly cut off as she noticed Lauren's presence outside. "Hello."

At the sight of one of her potential new roommates, Lauren immediately found herself wanting to stay.