"Avery, no! You can't do this. I'm not allowing this," I say sternly while I cross my arms and stomp my foot down in an attempt to appear threatening.
"You're not my mother. You can't tell me what to do. Besides, you always wanted me to be part of the taggers."
"But you're not in the taggers! You're in the clashers! That's so much more dangerous," I say as tears brim my eyes behind the fake persona of courageous I'm putting out. I would never yell at Avery like this, but I know what's best for her - even if I'm not her mother.
Avery looks at me through squinted eyes and a scowl on her lipstick coated lips. I take a step closer, but she turns back to the building, her auburn hair swooping as she pivots on her heel, and smashes another window, sending loud shatters of glass to fall around us and echo through the small and claustrophobic alleyway.
Levi pulls me back before I have a chance to move. He grabs my by my waist and swiftly shifts me out of the raining glass that's falling in various directions from the sky. The clink and shatter as they reach the hard ground below.
As I turn back around after hiding my head with my hands and closing my eyes, Avery stands still. Her chest is rising and falling deeply as her eyes look sunken in while she scans around the alley. When her gaze glances down, she notices the streams of blood gushing down her arms, which caused a sharp gasp to escape her lips when the tiny pieces of glass lit up small incisions in her skin.
"Avery, you need to stop!" I shout, but Levi holds my arms and turns me away from her to face his tall and slender body.
He clutches tight onto my shoulders and looks me dead in the eye, as if I'm a child who's being disciplined for breaking a rule. I'm not the one who should be getting punished - but then again, maybe it's my fault that Avery's in the clashers. I shake away the thought before it has a chance to sink deeper into my mind and cause me to feel guilty.
"Parker, stand here and don't say a word," Levi instructs in a hushed whisper while holding me close in his grip.
"But I just-"
"No Parker. Stay quiet. I mean it," he says in the most serious tone I've ever heard come out of his mouth. Just knowing how important this is to him, I nod and plant my feet into the hard concert below, which is now covered in an array of sharp, sparkling shards of glass.
Levi takes small steps closer to Avery while she keeps the rag and hammer tight in her grip, blood tracing her skin. Her eyes brim with tears and her chest puffs with anger with every step Levi takes in the crippling glass. My best friend who I've known for years is now only a memory of my past. The fun-loving and laid back person she once was is now replaced by a crazy and wreak-less girl who needs nothing more than guidance and a little bit of help.
Levi puts his hands up slowly in defense as he approaches her, as if she's a wild animal. Honestly, the only reason he's doing this is so that she doesn't try to hurt him the same way she previously destroyed the window.
"Avery please," he pleads as a shakiness forms in his voice. His skinny jeans cling tightly to his skin while he pulls at the neck of his hoodie for air. I don't blame him - I'd be sweating like a fountain too if I was in his position. "Please just drop everything and back away."
Avery stares down at the ground and takes a breath as her skin shakes. She looks as if she's about to fall forward and dive head-first into the concrete.
"Please," Levi begs once more as he stands only inches from my seemingly possessed friend. "Do it for me."
"I don't even know you!" Avery screeches as tears escape her eyes and blood begins to dry and stain her pale skin. "You mean nothing to me!"
He seems a bit taken back, and steps farther away as her head begins to rise and her gaze locks on Levi's eyes. A smirk forms on her lips, but as she's about to open her mouth to shoot more daggers of insults at him, a group of people dressed in silver clothes with various tools hanging from their hips approach. The Clashers.
"Avery!" One of the calls out as he runs closer towards her. Levi steps back quickly and holds on tight to me so I'm protected from them. I look back to see if anyone's coming to save us, but as always in this oblivious town, nobody seemed to notice the sound of broken glass and screams. Typical.
"What do you think you're doing?" A clasher asks as he grabs her raw and bleeding arm, causing her to wince in pain at his strong grip. "Do you know who these people are? Besides that, you shouldn't be giving away your identity or risk being seen. Do you know what this means?" He asks as a smug look plasters onto his face while he shakes his head around her neck in a mesmerizing way that makes my stomach churn.
"Don't hurt her! Not like you hurt Will!" Levi calls out while holding onto my shoulders tighter in fear.
The guy turns from Avery's shaking body to look at Levi. He smiles and claps his cold, pale hands together while he stays right next to my best friend.
"Well, well. Look who it is. Levi. It's been a while, hasn't it? Still thinking about your old friend Will?" He asks in a condescending way. At this point, the only two questions I have are who is Will, and how does this guy know Levi?
"Don't hurt her!" Levi repeats once again, sounding more stern than before.
With a quick grimace and signal to the group, the leader grabs Avery by her arm and pulls her away from us and around the back of the abandoned building as screeches and cries escape her mouth. I watch in horror while Levi holds me tight to stop me from running after her - which I'm not afraid to do at this point. She is still is my best friend, after all. She would do the same for me.
"Where is she going?" I scream, only to be stopped by Levi's hand cupping my mouth as his other arm wraps around my body. He doesn't say anything. Instead, a look of pain and sorrow crosses his face as he stares into the dark of the alleyways ending. He knows. He knows where they're taking her.
When Levi and I are the only ones left in the alley, accompanied only by Avery's screams echoing to us, the most terrifying and gut-wrenching sound bursts through the air - as if hearing Avery's cries weren't bad enough.
It was quick and simple: a single gun shot. And with that, the crying stopped. I stand in horror as my breath lets out a long cry and then becomes lost. My legs shake in horror until they finally give out at the sudden realization of where Avery went. I begin to cry and reach for Levi, who picks me up and holds me, telling me that it's going to be okay while he runs his fingers through my hair. I feel sick - probably because this whole situation is beyond morbid and twisted.
The gun shot was enough to signal to me that what has been done has been done. And with that, Levi holds me close as I cling to his hoodie and press my face against his chest, my vision and hearing becoming impaired, while I cry at the realization of something I never wanted to even think about, that is, until now.
My best friend is dead.
YOU ARE READING
The Quiet Ones
Adventure"Don't go outside after dark." This was a well-established rule in the whole community. After dark, groups of rebels emerged onto the streets of town and vandalized everything in their sight. Parker Reynolds knew this, she knew this rule almost too...
