We - Ourselves - Us

Arrival

As much as everyone wanted it to, the snow didn't last long. This was Britain. It barely snowed, and when it did, it was slushy and was not really worth anything for longer than a day. That was Britain at times. Slushy and not worth anything. The holidays weren't lasting long either. It was only a few days before school again.

Mariah was standing in her room, looking in the full length mirror in front of her, picking out an outfit for the school day ahead of her. First day back and she was going to do something worth it. Being the confident leader of the group, people around school often knew her as well, so her physical appearance did matter to her quite a bit. It was very early in the morning. The redhead often made sure that she got out the house early in the morning, and normally spent the evening at Mirja's or someone else from the group. She just hated being at home. She just couldn't stand it sometimes, so avoided her family at all costs. Mariah was dressed in a long tunic-style t shirt and blue leggings. Her fringe lay messily across her forehead and the back of her hair was brushed neatly. "Today is just another day in heaven." And with those words, she left her room, ran downstairs and grabbed her school bag before leaving the house and walking towards her school. It wasn't too long of a distance.

When Mariah arrived, she was surprised to see that Soulless was already there. True, he often did get to school early, but no one was normally there before Mariah. He smiled at her, "Hey, how are you?"

"I could be better. Is there a reason you are so early today?"

"I don't know. I guess I just felt a little like beating you today. What about you?"

"You guys know how things are at home.  I guess things are alright at the moment, but I am not taking any chance. I want to be me, you know? Without ever having to worry about what is going on. It would just be much easier that way, you know? It would be much easier if I didn't have to always be wary of who I am, you know?"

"Mariah. You are the only person in this entire group with enough confidence to confide in everyone. And there is only one person who is confident enough to look after you. I wish I could do the same, and so I will  try to. I may not be able to offer the support that Asteroid can, but just know that me and everyone will be here for you, OK? We are all going to do what we can do get you back to being you."

"I appreciate everything you are trying to do, Soulless, but I don't know if there is anything you can do to help this out. It has been going on for years now, and at this point, I am almost getting used to it. That last bit was a lie."

"Listen to me, I may not be able to fix all your problems. I may not be the person that can fix all your problems. I may not be the one that can get your life back on it's feet, but I can be the person that stands beside you through it. I can be the person that does everything they can to help you out. And in the end, I know that everything will work itself out. You have got this, Mariah. I know you can do anything you put your mind to. You are the kind of person with that sort of ability." 

"Thanks. That actually means a lot to me at the moment."

"No problem. I am only doing what anyone should do. We all want to help you out, Mariah. We all want you to be OK."

Shortly after, the two ran out of things to say. The just sat in silence, occasionally making a thoughtful comment on the world around them. It didn't take long for people to start arriving. Souless' words stayed with Mariah though. She couldn't stop thinking about what he had said. He had been right was the worse part. He was right, and Mariah knew that would get him in trouble.