The Girl Who Cried Help

Chapter Four

(Author's note: SORRY THAT THIS IS SO LATE! I've been really, really busy as of lately..but I hope to be more active soon! <3)

"And what exactly is..this?" I asked, looking around the room. Adrian laughed, "Your going to stay with me and my mom." She said with a smile, her hands contently placed on her hips. My eyes widened, "Are you sure your mom would be okay with that?" I ask, "I don't want to overstay my welcome." Adrian scoffed, "Are you kidding, she loves you!"

I giggle, "Really?" Adrian nods with a small chuckle, "Yes, now come on!" She says, opening her bedroom door. I stand from the bed and follow her out of the room, then down the short hallway. "Go ahead and take a hot bath, it'll help with the soreness."

"Oh and I'll bring you some of my old clothes!" She adds, walking out of the bathroom. I smile at the thought of someone caring about me, I had never really experienced this before. After a few moments, Adrian appears with a few items of clothing. "Its kind of cold outside, so I brought you a sweater and some jeans. Hope that's okay." She says, setting the clothes onto the bathroom counter.

I nod, "Thank you." She smiles, "No problem, oh and there's some band-aids in the left drawer if you wanna change the one on your cheek." She says with a cheerful tone, pointing at my wound. I flush and thank her once more. "If you need me, I'll be in the kitchen!" She says before leaving the bathroom and closing the door. I smile, turning towards the bathtub. Thankfully, all I had to do was turn the handle

The water flowed delicately out of the faucet, taking a few minutes to heat up. Once some steam started to rise from the bath-water, I stood up and started to strip my clothes off. I look over to the bathroom counter, a small purple container catching my eye. Adrian must have set it on the counter. It was a bubble bath mixture, lavender scented to help calm the mind.

I laugh to myself, taking the container and spilling some of it into the water. The light purple tones swirl around as the water continues to fill the white, porcelain tub. Small bubbles dance through the rushing water, and somehow without even getting in, it makes me feel relaxed. I take in the deep scent of lavender and close my eyes.

Only a few more moments pass by before I open my eyes again, afraid that if I took too long the water would overflow. I turn the handle, causing the once rushing water to trickle. Before coming to a complete stop. I dip my foot into the hot water, my skin tingling a little.

After a few seconds of hesitation, I lower my self with a wince. Although it wasn't the water that I winced for, it was my un-washed wounds. I cup a small amount of water and pour it onto my arm, then the other arm and soon my chest. The warmth relaxes my tense muscles. Relax, something I haven't experienced in a while. With many tests coming up at school, piles of homework and my home life, I hadn't had the chance to fully relax.

Most of the time my head was racing with thoughts of, "Do I look okay? What does this person think of me? How did I do on that test? Why does my step-mother hit me? Did I do something wrong?". Of course, there are many other thoughts. And sometimes they scare me. They come from that small voice in the back of my head. I know what it's alluding to, but I ignore it the best I can. Drown it out with white noise and homework.

I continue to bathe myself, the water soon becoming less and less warm. I finally pull the plug and stand up. Grabbing the towel off the rack, I rap it around my damp, shivering body and continue to stand by the tub. I watch the lightly colored water slowly drain away, forming a small tornado. My eyes follow it as it turns and spins, before finally disapperaing with the rest of the water. I picture the water as my stress-filled life. Maybe it to, would drain away.

Maybe.

I dry myself off and quickly put the clothes on, feeling grateful to finally be out of my old ones. They carried a weight with me, a weight that was hard to describe. Tossing the towel into the hamper, I look in the mirror at my face. The cut had began to heal, but was anything but discreet. I quickly open the left sliding drawer of the cabinet, where Adrian said the band-aids would be. I grab one and peel off the covering, revealing the small adhesive tabs.

The material felt quite familiar on my skin, I had used millions of boxes of the bandages before. Looking in the mirror once more, I run my fingers through my hair. It had become slightly damp from the water and steam, causing the strands to curl at the ends. I sigh before opening the bathroom to be hit with a wave of cooler air, I must have taken a hotter bath than I predicted. Walking down the stairs of Adrian's house, I turn to the kitchen and see her standing by the oven.

"Oh your done!" She said, her eyes lighting up when she saw me. I blush a little, feeling out of place. I loved Adrian, but I wasn't used to being taken care of. I nod, "Yeah thanks for the..lavender." I say with a small smile, my voice coming out with a hushed tone. We both giggle, "Your welcome."

"I'm making cookies," She says as she gestures to the oven, "I thought you could use them while we talk about..you know.." "Right." I quickly shoot back, my heart beating wildly in my chest. I wasn't used to talking about my step-mother. Especially not my wounds. "I mean..right." I say, desperately trying to come of as calm and collected.

This was going to be a long talk.