Bind Me To You

Chapter One

"Avery! How long do you plan to stay in the shower!" her Mum yells from the other side of the locked bathroom door. Avery sighs, pressing her forehead to the cold hard tiles, letting the water run over her body. She didn't want to go but she couldn't tell her that. Her Mum had enough on her plate already.

Avery watched the rivulets run down her pale legs as she debated claiming to be sick before thinking better of it, she had already had enough "sick days" that her Mum was threatening to take her to a doctor.

With a heavy heart Avery turned off the water and stepped out of the shower, wrapping a towel around herself before opening the door with a crooked smile.

"Sorry Mum, got lost in thought..." Her Mum gave a shake of her head and looked over Avery's flushed skin with a critical eye. "Feeling better today?" she inquired, pressing the back of her hand against her daughter's forehead, frowning at the warmth.

Avery carefully batted her hand away and nodded, "Better than ever," she lied.

A small satisfied smile crossed her Mum's face and she pressed a soft kiss against her forehead. "I'm glad, I was starting to worry about how far behind in your studies you were getting". Her eyes connect with Avery's with a gentle smile. Avery knew she meant the best, but right now studies were the least of her worries.

Closing the door Avery turned to the small circular mirror above the sink. I look sickly, she thought, staring at the paleness of her skin and reaching for the hair brush. It had been a couple of weeks now since she had given up on looking presentable for school. Tugging her dirty blonde hair into a pony-tail she took the mascara from her makeup bag and contemplated applying a little before thinking better of it. Nobody will notice anyway.

Avery stared at the girl reflected in her mirror, wondering when the last time she had seen herself smile. The girl in the mirror had deep blue eyes full of sadness and misery. The colour had washed away from her cheeks and she couldn't help but wonder when she started looking so empty. Her fingertips carefully touch the cheek of her reflection. Who is this?

_____

Breakfast was a small bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice. She ate as slow as she could, knowing that when she was finished, the bus to school would arrive, and she will have to leave the safety of her home.

"What's up, loser?" Gwen, her sister grumbled as she plopped herself down in the chair opposite Avery. The two were very different. Avery being dainty and blonde, while her sister was plump and dark-haired. Avery studied her, her eyes moving from Gwen's choice of a black band tee to the heavy eyeliner and dark lipstick. After some thought she opted not to reply.

"Avery, Hurry up! The bus will be here any moment, do you want to miss it?" Her Mum complained, hurrying into the kitchen wearing her suit jacket and pencil skirt. "Gwendolyn Hughes, what have I told you about the eyeliner! I keep getting calls from your school" She sighed, switching her attention to her punk daughter.

"I'm not changing who I am, Susan" Gwen retorts, giving her mother a scowl before pulling the half eaten bowl of cereal that Avery had been picking at for the last twenty minutes to herself. "Don't call me that, I am your mother" Susan admonished, hastily snatching her keys from the hook above the kitchen bench before scrambling to the door. Avery sighed, wondering how many more times she would hear the same conversation before one of them would concede.

With the sound of a loud horn, Gwen stood up and slung her black messenger bag over her shoulder, patches and pins covering every inch of fabric. Every morning Gwen's friends would pick her up, leaving Avery to take the bus alone.

"You better not skip today!" she warns, pointing an accusatory finger towards her younger sister, "I'm sick of being forced to go to school while you get to stay home, Ave!". Before Avery could respond Gwen turned on her heel and headed for the door, slamming it behind her.