ride (jenzie )

chapter three

Mackenzie and Maddie walked side by side out of Forever 21. The burden of last night want the only thing weighing her down, but also the 5 bags of clothes and items that Maddie has insisted her to carry.

"You carry your own things," she had said right after the left the cashier's table, "And I'll carry my own."

It seems as Maddie had forgot what happened this morning; but Mackenzie knew she hadn't. Her sister only wanted to forget about it in the moment and have a fun day, skipping school, at the mall, as sisters.

Though they tried to ignore the elephant in the room, and did a pretty good job of it, Kenzie could still feel the tug of it dragging down and pushing weight onto her shoulders. She tried to fight it off, and took a deep breath. But still, it tore at her hands and feet and legs, wanting her knees to buckle and her eyes to cry rivers. Her mind flittered off into it's own world, taking Mackenzie with it.

I'm not going to school ever again. He's probably with Nadia now, kissing her at the lunch table. She's probably sitting in my spot right now, right next to him, laying her head on his shoulder. Or, she might be fucking him in the empty science classroom that's off-limits. He's probably in love with her. He was probably never in love with me.

He was never in love with me.

Mackenzie fought away the edge of tears in her eyes, and felt a hand grab her wrist, snapping her back into reality. She gasped with surprise as she was dragged and pushed into a cushioned seat in the middle of the mall.

Maddie sat across from her, a sympathetic look on her face. "Kenzie-boo..."

The younger sister wiped her eyes and shook her head. "I'm fine."

"No, Mackenzie, I can tell you're not. You're not in a good mental state. All your mind can think about is him, and it's evident that's how it is. Mackenzie, if you want to say anything, just tell me. Please," Maddie begged.

Mackenzie shook her head again. "I'm fine," she insisted once again, more vigorous. "I just... I... oh you're right Maddie, I can't do this."

Maddie got up from her seat, pulling Kenzie up too, and hugged her. "Please, just talk to me. I want to know everything, every detail, so I can help you."

"It's hard to talk, Maddie," Mackenzie cried, throwing herself back in her seat, covering her eyes with her hands, "It's so hard! It feels like nobody listens to me!"

"Mackenzie, the only reason you feel like this is because of what happened. Trust me, Mack, I know you better than you know yourself-"

"He knows me better than I know myself! He knows everything about my past, what I want in the future, everything!"

"Mackenzie!" Maddie interrupted, her voice laced with frustration. "Your mind is messed up! Your heart is in the right place, but it's so broken you can't process things right! You're still in shock, Kenzie. You're confused!"

Mackenzie stood from her seat with a stomp. "I need to go to the bathroom," she snorted, pulling up her sweatshirt a tad to wipe off tears. She stormed away from Maddie, down the walkway, and to the doors with the words "Bathroom" painted over them.

She pulled the heavy door open, the hallway thinning out with plain gray walls and tile floor. She walked through.

There are 5 tiles in each row. Flecked with red and blue; or is it green? Yellow? Look, Mackenzie, there's a picture! Walk faster. It's a picture of... Johnny? No, you're delusional. There's no picture! It's an empty frame, I think... but I swear I saw Johnny! Oh Johnny, I miss you. Her breathing quickened as she turned to corner into the Women's Restroom and into the stall. She locked it with a 'click'.

You're delusional! You're delusional! Maddie was right!

She sat down, leaning into the palms of her hand.

Stop! Her head screamed. Stop it! Stop it! You're crazy!

*

Mackenzie took all the time she needed in the stall to calm down and pull herself together. She took her makeup wipes out of her purse and wiped off her cheeks, black mascara stains on the cloth instead of her reddened, smooth skin. She screwed of the lid to her mascara and began to brush her eyelashes, the black substance lengthening her lashes and making them pop. She lightly dusted her cheeks with pink blush, and then her nose with a bright highlighter. When she was done, she shoved the products back into her purse and looked in the mirror.

She refused to look at her eyes, and forced herself to look at her fixed makeup.

It's okay, I guess. Her head fell silent. Mackenzie, stop thinking.

She scoffed and walked away from the smudged public mirror and out of the bathroom.

She walked down the hallway, and pulled out her phone, which she hadn't bothered to check since her and Maddie had left the house. It seemed as if Johnny had finally left her alone.

The door at the end of the hallway opened up and two girls walked in. Both of their heads were down, as they were looking at their phones. Something about them, though, looked strikingly familiar.

The brunette lifted her head with a laugh. "Look at this! This is so stupid!" She shoved her phone in the other girl's hands, and the blonde began laughing too.

She lifted her head up to say something, but caught Kenzie's eye first. 

"Holy shit. Mackenzie? Is that you?"

MOLLIE'S MESSAGE!
sorry for the long wait. also, sorry for the short chapter. next chapter will be short as well, i think
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