A candle. One candle, was the only thing enabling me to see through this dark, starless night. This candle. this shiny, special candle had been lit in the celebration of my 14th birthday. 14 years of survival through cold nights, and tongue tied days at school.
Would I dare to speak of my way of living, I would be sent to a home, a warm bed, and a loving adult who couldn't possibly understand my set of mind, and yet say things such as 'you are too young to understand.', and 'you couldn't possibly handle yourself outside alone, you could be hurt.'
Which I find rather unsettling, and worse than being here, sat on a stack of thin blankets, which had survived through muddy feet, rainy days, and food stains, and yet are the most comfortable and inviting for me to sleep on than any other kind of bed.
"Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me.." I sang to myself, blowing out the candle and ending the ceremony. No need of a wish, those had been proven to be fake years ago.
And here I was, lying in my bed in absolute darkness, wrapped up in a coat to keep me warm, And closing my eyes, welcoming the dreams in. My consciousness had progressly came back to me as the sound of chirping birds had set me wake. Friday, that is, as well as my favorite day of the week. I sat up, taking a moment to stretch and rub my eyes, getting used to the light.
I got up, and stepped to the old suitcase resting against the wall, opening it while wondering which outfit should I wear to school today. I don't have much options, and yet am satisfied with the clothes I do have.
After a minute of mental debate, I take out a blue t-shirt and a pair of jeans and change from my pijama, folding and placing it in the suitcase. I put on my sneakers, and wear my coat.
A month from today winter break would start, and then I could spend my days jogging instead of taking notes and solving equations given by our teachers. School is unnecessary for people like me, who already stepped into the 'real world' and take care of themselves. I won't be going anywhere anyways, I struggle with money for food, let alone college. And am not smart or athletic enough to be offered a scholarship.
I walked around the rusty old gas station and went inside the shop, "Good morning, Audrey! Early as usual." Juan cheerfully greeted me, "Good morning." I chuckled, entering the bathrooms and brushing my teeth in the sink, braiding my hair into two french braids and stepping out of there. "Have a good day!" I called as I exited the shop and started my walk to school.
Luckily, school wasn't too far away from the gas station, but only two miles away. That is, the only chance I get of doing any sort of cardio on school days, besides Physical Education class, which I find as absolute nonsense and discouraging of sports.
After a quick 15 minute jog I arrive at Cupertino Middle, the school I have been attending for a devastating, long three years. Well, almost three. I've got a couple of months left, before I could finally be free of this dreaded place. Middle school really is like what people say; the worst years of your life. Especially the eighth grade.
I grunt at the thought of seeing my Science teacher first thing in the morning as I head towards the quad, spotting my friends and waving at them with a smile.
I really am grateful for my friends, I don't know how I would ever survive those years in here without them. We know each other for four years now, and are very close. We like to fool around, and are not the best behaved students at our school. Of course; I had never told them about my way of living.
"Yo, Audrey! Get your ass over here." Ruby called from a distance, I chuckled as I approached them, there are four of us;
Ruby, the loud, overly-excited, fiery redhead. She's the plug of all the alcohol, drugs, and great parties. She's known at our school, and is friends with everyone.
By her side you will always find Nick, or as we call him, Nike. Nike is the athlete of the group, he has lots of friends, and that cheeky smile and sparkly eyes that will melt you away instantly. He and Ruby had been on and off for two years now, but they're happy.
Sitting by you will find Jay, the more troubled one of our group. He is a jokester, and comes from a pretty upsetting home. I relate to him the most in our group, of course, he wouldn't know that. But even when he smiles, you can see the fire in his eyes is gone. He is the most selfless person I had ever met, but he got into trouble with his gangs, he is in two, which don't know about each other. If they find out, he would have to run away.
And lastly, Me. I am the girl who is carefree, and spontaneous. I'm confident, and brutally honest, as well as fun, and exciting. And this is my group.
"You guys, you're back on again?" I asked cheekily, Ruby gave me a guilty look in response, and sat on Nike's lap, kissing him on the cheek and looking up back to me. "Alright there's my answer." I rolled my eyes and sat down by Jay, he was deep in thoughts, and hadn't noticed my presence.
"Jay? Are you alright?" I tapped him shoulder gently, he shook his head in a sudden, as if woke up from a dream, and raised his gaze up on me. "Don't worry, love. Just some family drama." he smiled at me, brushing my hair out of my face. "Please Jay, don't push us away, I can tell something has been creeping on your mind." I sighed, begging for his honesty with my eyes.
He moved his gaze to his shoes, his old, ripped shoes he had for two years. "The gangs have found out about each other." he whispered, but it was loud enough for even Nike and Ruby to stop their snogging and turn their heads. "What are you saying? Will you have to leave?" Ruby's voice was on the verge of cracking, she was holding her tears back, always trying to seem strong, immune to feelings.
"No, they just want me to choose which gang to leave, and which to join." he said, louder this time.
"Well then, those are good news! Right?" Nike asked, Jay chuckled sorrowfully,
"no, it just means that the gang I will choose to leave will hold me up for my debts, and now, when all ties are cut, they will threaten me and my loved ones."
he look up at me, his eyes were drowning in sorrow and guilt, I wrapped my hands around him and hugged tightly, giving him a moment to feel safe, and not alone.
The bell announcing the first class is about to begin had disrupted this beautiful, yet painful moment. Honestly sure is a brutal thing. I let go of my hold, smiling at him weakly, "everything will be alright. Don't worry, you have us." I promised, and on that note, had left. Heading to my next class.
Another day goes, as I run the next day through my head, saturday.
A day of rest, and peace. Which I will be spending jogging and finally buying some Oreo cookies, which I have been saving for for weeks. I rest my head on my backpack, and cover myself in my coat. Closing my eyes and letting the dreams in when I hear a sudden sound of shattered glass, then footsteps circling the building, I sat back up, curled up in a corner, and shot my eyes to every direction possible. I could hear the footsteps getting closer, until a bright light had struck my eyes and blinded me, behind the light were standing two tall figures, possibly male's. "Is that her?", one asked, his voice was grindy, and you could tell he smoked often. "She matches the description perfectly, that is her." the other had answered.
My heart sped up as they stepped closer, a whimper escaped my lips as one of them had rested his hand on my head, petting my hair as if I was a stray dog. I hated feeling hopeless, and here I was, being cornered by two men in which I had never met before, and shaking as if I was vibrating.
"It's okay, darling. It's nothing personal. We just want our money back from your friend, Jay Martinez? Sounds familiar?" he said in a supposedly sweet voice, but he made my shiver.
"Who is th-at J-jay?" I stuttered, hoping my little lie would save me from the unknown intentions the men had. They both laughed in a response,
"playing clever, I see. We have been following you for months, dear. You won't fool us." he said, i could hear the cocky smile from his voice. "By the way, happy birthday." before I could respond, pain grew at the side of my head, and everything went dark.
I hope you enjoyed that!
YOU ARE READING
19th Street
Mystery / ThrillerI wasn't my own person anymore, I was property. The property of a man which had pulled me out of a dark place, to shove me to another. And now, I can't run anymore. --- This, is the story of my life- correction, this is the story of how my life was...
