Scarred Knees

six.

Six.

Serena

My feet pattered against the stone stairs to my family's apartment building. The paint was chipping off the walls and the iron railings were covered in rust. This place was an absolute dump. But its not like we can afford anything better than this. Hell, we can hardly afford this place.

My eyes fell to my next door neighbor who was sat on the concrete floor with a rolled up cigarette between his lips. He always smoked. He was about a year younger than me, but smarter. His name was Richie. He was always wasting his life away, not knowing what to do with it. The boy's parents hardly payed attention to him. I felt pity for him.

I walked past the boy and inside my apartment, shutting the door loudly behind me. The putrid smell of rotten food filtered through my nostrils.

"Serena would you mind giving this to Richie and his family?" My mother approached me. Her face was wrinkled and her once black hair was fully colored gray. She held out a bag filled with the food I assumed she had just cooked. I grabbed the plastic grocery bag and brought it to my face to inspect it. The smell was even stronger now. I scrunched my nose. I could only assume that she used the expired egg yolks and milk that had sat in the mini fridge for over a year.

I looked her in the eyes. "Yeah.." My voice trailed as I made my way back around to their front door and knocked lightly. The door creaked eerily to reveal Richie. The bags under his eyes were more prominent against his dark colored skin and sharp jawline. He pinched his nose before walking outside to join me.

We never really talked much. We would just stand and lean over the rusty railings and enjoy the sucky view of the neighborhood. No words were needed to do that activity. I felt as if we didn't need words to communicate our expressions and feelings, we were going through the exact problems now. He would occasionally ask with his raspy voice how I was doing or how I was feeling, the occasional 'good' or 'bad' to respond.

He looked at me with his hazel eyes before letting out a shaky breath. It smelled like cigarettes. "Michaela's at the hospital again." He said quietly. I raised my eyebrows and watched the overgrown palm tree leaves sway. "What is it this time?" I questioned carefully. Richie sniffed loudly. I could almost hear his depressing thought run into my ears. "Had a brain aneurysm around midnight. She's in critical condition but she's alive."

This is the most we ever talked.

I've never been in this position before. I don't know what to do about it. All I could think of what to do was just pat his shoulder sympathetically. The flyer to the pool party crinkled loudly in my jean pocket. Somehow slivered its way out and onto the floor. Richie bent down and picked it up before studying it- his eyebrows furrowed. "You going to this?" He questioned. I shrugged my shoulders. "Stop shrugging you shrugger." Richie joked, bumping his shoulder with mine in a playful manner. I smiled warmly.

"I don't have a bathing suit." I returned slowly. Any excuse could work for this. Richie was easy to fool. "So?" He stated in a 'duh' tone. "I cant go to a pool party without a bathing suit."

He rolled his eyes before handing the flyer back to me. "Serena, I have a feeling that you could show up there in your birthday suit and you would look good. Ain't nobody gonna tell you shit about your knees." I was taken aback. Richie knew about my knees and he didn't really seem to care at all. I liked that about him. He doesn't judge anyone physically. He judges them mentally through personality.

He walked back inside his house, leaving me to think everything through.

When I said I didn't have a bathing suit, I lied. It was probably growing mold somewhere in the bathroom. Thankfully though, It wasn't.

I used to wear it all the time in the apartment complex's pool, but after a while black mold started to grow on the rim of the pool. I stopped going after that. Of course, that was before my scarred knees came and ruined my social standing. I used to have many friends in middle school, but after a time I wore my uniform shorts and revealed them, people stopped talking to me. It was horrible and selfless of them. They aren't true friends if they make fun of me. Sadly, all my friends withered away and cut off all contact with me. What a tear jerker story.

The 'pool party to raise money' is tomorrow night. I really don't want to go.

"Serena, do you like someone?" My younger sister, Noelle, asked innocently as she sat on my twin bed alongside me. I watched her fiddle with her waist length knotty hair. God, I couldn't remember the last time she cut her hair. After mom cut her hair all crooked and choppy, she grew it out and wouldn't let her near it. "Why you asking?" I questioned, picking up the brush that rested on the stain carpeted floor.

"You seem more," She paused for a few seconds, "happy." I furrowed my brows and stroked her hair gently. "How?" I shot back at her.

"What's his name?" She questioned, ignoring me completely. I tried to come up with a name. The only one I could simply come up with was the boy that has been on my mind all day. "Daniel." I smiled warmly at nothing really. Just the thought of him made me purely happy. "Daniel Mathis." I repeated his name again.

Noelle turned around and started bombarding me with these honestly ridiculous questions. I felt like she was personally terrorizing me. "Does he have a girlfriend?" That question made me think. Does he really have a girlfriend? I've heard he gets around a little, but if I said that I would be lying. He gets around all the time. All the girls in my math class would praise Kyle for being so beautiful and tell him to pass on 'I had so much fun with you last night Daniel, but I wish you took your shirt off' to his best friend Daniel. It made me gag out loud every time and Kyle would always turn around and look at me with disgust before averting his attention back to the crowd of girls in front of him. I think he likes attention. God, he's such a Dick.

My mind then flickered towards Cassie. She was always hanging out with them both. I heard she fucks him on a daily basis. Maybe they are together. I couldn't help but feel sad. Not like I could do anything about it.

"I dont think so." I answered, unsure. Noelle just stared at me blankly before humming to herself and skipping away.

What if Daniel is going to be at the pool party? Maybe I shouldn't show up in a bathing suit. People would see my knees. How would I even get there?

I'm so not ready for tomorrow.

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@whatava