Scarred

Chapter 1

June.

I love June. It's the month where school gets out. It's the month where the whole city gets warm and you can go outside and not freeze your ass off. It's the month where you can finally get away from all of the idiots that surround you on a day to day basis. It's also the month where those idiots are running the grocery store you constantly steal from. I love June.

I lit a cigarette and began the two mile walk from my house to the grocery store. During the walk, I was stopped by three people telling me that smoking is bad for me. Idiots.

When I got to the grocery store, I filled my backpack with all of the food items I'd need for a week. Then I ran out the doors and sprinted as fast as I could, hearing the alarms behind start to fade as I got farther away. I smiled and sprinted the rest of the way back to my house.

When I got home, I quietly closed the screen door behind me. I left the lights off in the front hall. I walked in the dark to the kitchen, where I flicked the light switch on. The light illuminated my bulging backpack. I pulled it off of my shoulders and placed it on the dusty kitchen table. I placed all of the non-perishables I'd swiped in the cabinets. All the perishables went into the cooler, since the refrigerator didn't work anymore. I pulled out a Milky Way bar and tore open the wrapper. I took a bite of the candy. I savored the taste of chocolate and caramel all swirled together into one bar. I loved Milky Ways. I finished off the candy bar and shut the kitchen lights off. I tried to dodge the cobwebs as I ran upstairs to my bedroom, but I still ended up with one in my hair. I sighed and pulled it off of me, then ran the rest of the way up the stairs in the dark.

***

I dodged the lawn security cameras as I ran down Ward Parkway. Why do people put security cameras in their lawns? I thought. It's a pain in the ass.

I finally found the house that I was looking for. The driveway was falling apart, with pieces of rock coming out. A blue truck was parked in the driveway. The house was a tan color, with a blue door and brown faux window covers. The roof was brown as well. I jumped as the driveway light turned on. Thankfully, the owners of the house were asleep.

I took my backpack off and opened the front pocket. I pulled out a can of black spray paint. I shook the can a few times, then pulled the cap off. I walked up to the garage door. With the spray paint, I wrote "Hey, bitch. Did you miss me? Love, Quinn" in black spray paint. I smiled at my work.

I was packing up my spray paint when I heard someone shout, "Hey girl!" I quickly turned and saw a police officer. I panicked. I grabbed my bag and ran back from where I came. The police officer ran after me. I sprinted up the streets. My breath came in ragged gasps of air. I knew I couldn't run much longer.

I had almost gotten to the highway when I suddenly felt a huge weight on me, pulling me to the ground. I struggled to pull the weight off of me, but it stayed. It grabbed my hands and pulled them behind me back. I felt a cold metal ring on my left wrist, and then my right. Then I was being pulled up from the ground. I saw that the weight was a police officer. Another police officer was holding my arm, making sure I wouldn't take off running again.

"Excuse me, miss," the police officer said. "My name is Officer Martinez. What's your name?"

"Quinn Torres," I replied.

"Okay, Quinn," Officer Martinez said. "Would you like to tell me why you were vandalizing private property?"

"The bitch deserved it," I said.

"Please do not use that language with me," Officer Martinez said.

"You're not my father," I replied with attitude.

"How old are you, Miss Torres?" Officer Martinez asked.

"I'm seventeen," I replied.

"And do you go to school?" he asked.

"Yes."

"Where?"

"Blue Springs High School."

"Where you do you live?"

"In a house."

"Where is that house?"

"On a street."

"Miss Torres," the officer said, getting annoyed. "Where is your house?"

"It's on Mic-O-Say Street," I replied.

"What house?" the officer asked.

"I don't know," I replied honestly.

"Fine," Officer Martinez said, "be difficult. We'll continue this at the station." He pushed me into a police car that the second officer had driven up to where we were, and then he drove off to the police station.