Endless || Jonah Marais ✓

♪ FORTY ♪

Aurora holds onto Carmen's uninjured arm, guiding her through the automatic Walmart doors as she attempts to control her crutches. The older girl despises crutches, and had successfully went through her entire life without having to use them, instead managing to convince Mark to push her everywhere in a wheelchair any time she gets injured.

"What exactly are we looking for?" Carmen questions, readjusting herself as Aurora briefly leaves her side to grab a shopping cart.

"Nothing in particular," she replies nonchalantly, slowly walking along so as not to leave the injured girl behind. "I just wanted to get out of the house. And I'm sure you wanted to too."

Turning into a random aisle, Aurora's face lights up as she realizes it's one filled with party supplies. Smiling at their luck, she rushes down the empty aisle, an idea forming.

"We need streamers," she declares. "Lots of streamers. We have a big house to decorate, Caramel."

As she begins to throw multiple packages of red, orange, and black streamers into the cart, Carmen wanders down the aisle. Upon glancing over the many hair accessories, she tosses a pair of Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse headbands into the cart, though Aurora doesn't notice as she begins to reach for the balloons.

"Aurora," Carmen calls out, rounding the corner with a mischievous glint in her eyes and something in her hand.

"Hmm?"

"We need confetti poppers, don't you think?" The girl asks, holding one up.

"Hell yeah!" She shouts. "Get a lot of them."

It doesn't take long before the girls are sufficiently satisfied with their stockpile of party supplies, having cleared out the majority of the aisle. Carmen tosses her crutches into the cart and moves some supplies around, creating enough room to allow her frail body to climb into the cart as well.

"So how are things with Corbyn and Alex?" She asks from her new position. "She hasn't visited in a while."

"I think Callie said she's moving away soon because she got accepted into some program, or something like that," Aurora explains, pushing the shopping cart through the nearly empty store. "So I'm assuming they've decided to remain friends, which would explain Blondie's mood these past few days."

Carmen opens her to reply, of which Aurora accidentally cuts her off in her excitement.

"Toys!" She yells, sprinting down another abandoned aisle. "Caramel. we need toys!"

"We do," Carmen agrees with a chuckle, allowing the older girl to help her from the cart. "I'll let you be in charge of that while I go look at the Halloween candy over there."

"Oh, grab me that penguin!" Aurora exclaims, pointing at a penguin on the middle shelf.

Carmen gives her a thumbs up before grabbing the stuffed, tossing it into the cart, and disappearing into another aisle without her crutches. Aurora notices, but doesn't say anything about it, from both understanding the struggle and the fact that she knows it would stress Zach out if he ever found out.

Practically skipping down the aisle with the cart in tow, she reaches for nearly every fun item in sight. Soon completely covering the party supplies are light sabers, the loudest toy machine guns, multiple cans of silly string, and a new air horn.

Pulling her almost empty air horn out of her purse, Aurora decides she night as well use the last of it before she gets another one. Crouching down at the end of the aisle, she doesn't hear another girl approaching as she peers around the corner to search for Carmen. There's a tap on her shoulder, causing her to jump as she whirls back around.