Free: Into The Woods

Chapter One

I raced down the hall and hurried into the large room where all of the orphan girls slept, even though it was big, it wasn't big enough. There were probably thirty girls in all, some of us slept on the floor, or the bunk beds. There were only ten bunk beds and they were jammed in the room so we made the policy 'first come, first serve' which means if you get to a bunk bed first then you get it for that night. And that means moving bed spaces a lot but it didn't matter, it's not like any of us own very much anyways. We are only allowed to have what we need, like clothes for example.

    Anyways, I wasn't running down the hall to get a bunk bed, I honestly don't care where I sleep, I've been here long enough to know that the beds won't do anything to settle the nightmares. I was running down the hall because, like always, I was up past curfew. We had to be in our rooms by 7:00 pm and had to have the lights out by 8:00 pm. The boys had the same rules for their room.

    "Nyla!!" My best friend, Indigo, hissed from the floor across the room, patting on the light blue mat next to her. She has golden-brown skin, a slender tall body, sapphire blue eyes, and bouncy dark curls. I have dark tan skin, vibrant gray eyes, and wavy golden hair. We were honestly perfect together, we would always be best friends, no matter what happened. And together, we were trouble.

    "Seriously Nyla! What were you doing this time, you know that its past curfew and I told you not to do anything fun without me!" Indigo whined.

    I rolled my eyes, "I was literally only five minutes past the curfew and I was just getting some garlic bread from the kitchen." I whispered, pulling out a small piece from inside my hoodie pocket and slipping it into Indigo's hands.

    She took a bite, "You are forgiven." she said smiling and giving me a look that said 'This is the best thing I've ever tasted, I will never be mad at you again.'

    Here at the orphanage we get three very small meals a day, our administrators say that its because there are too many kids to feed but I've watched them eat a ton of food and whenever I raid the kitchen I always find an abundance of delicious things. Not only do we get barely any food, but that food is usually something super bland and boring. Like oatmeal, or bread and milk, or something else along those lines.

    I've been living at the orphanage for about six years now. My dad died from sickness when I was 7 and my mom died a year later from a crash when I was 8. So now I'm 14, mischievous and what the administrators call, 'annoying.' I'm the girl who's been at the orphanage the longest, although Indigo comes in a close second. Her parents both died in an unexpected war when she was 9, honestly, she is lucky to be alive. And she has been at the orphanage for five years now. No one wants to adopt a 14-year-old, so we're both pretty much screwed. I've gotten used to life at the orphanage though, although it can be a pain sometimes.

    The sound of the 'lights off' bell interrupted my thoughts, RING RING RING

    I covered my ears and lay down mouthing goodnight to Indigo. The bell finally stops ringing and I hear the click of someone turning off the lights.

    I lay there trying to sleep, moving from one position to the next but I just couldn't get comfortable. So I crawl out of bed and tiptoe to the door of the girls' bathroom connected to our room. At least they let us use the bathroom during the night.

    I turn the knob and it creaks open revealing a bright bathroom, and a pale girl with light blonde hair sitting on the toilet. Ohhh nooo, not her I think.

    "Ahh, get out, get out, get out!!" she whisper-shrieked. I shut the door quickly and walked back to my spot, it didn't matter, I didn't need to use the bathroom, I just wanted to kill some time.