DIFFERENT-WINGED ANGEL

FEATHER #5

Olivia managed to hide from the inquisitive eyes of school students only in the far bleachers of the school stadium. The scheduled commencement of the local baseball team's training was a mere twenty minutes away. This brief window was all she had available to mull over the chain of recent events that had transpired.

She was feeling bad. Her shoulders were stiff, lacking any sense of relaxation or ease, and her T-shirt was drenched in sweat, giving it a sticky and damp feel against her body. The lingering taste of stomach juice that had accumulated in her mouth gave her a nauseous sensation, almost as if she were on the verge of vomiting. In an effort to stave off this unpleasant outcome, she consumed almost the entirety of a 1.5-liter bottle of water.

"Hey!"

Olivia quickly turned towards the voice, immediately noticing Mila cheerfully waving her hand.

"Your running speed is incredible!" she smiled, coming closer.

With an air of annoyance, Olivia's eyes made a noticeable circular motion in her sockets as she expressed her frustration, leading to an abrupt disappearance of the warm and joyful smile that had adorned Mila's features just moments before.

"Why did you run away again?" the girl asked in confusion, sitting down next to her.

Olivia casually sipped her water before answering, "I was hoping for some solitude, but it seems there's no escaping you, is there?"

Mila vaguely shrugged her shoulders. "You like to spend time in splendid isolation?" she suddenly asked.

"Yes."

"Why?" Mila continued to bombard the girl with questions. "Did you have a falling out with your friends?"

Olivia was silent, her gaze fixed ahead as she sipped her water. And Mila began to get annoyed when her questions were ignored. She suddenly snatched the bottle from the girl's hands and took a sip as well. Olivia's visage promptly transformed into a bewildered expression, and she hurried to take her water back.

"Are you going to remain silent?" The dark-haired girl asked.

"Are you going to keep getting under my skin?"

"Maybe."

Mila cocked her head to the side, waiting patiently. Confronted by the girl's probing look, Olivia understood she couldn't dodge the question.

"I don't have friends."

"Why?"

"Some time ago I had many friends. But they turned their backs on me when they found out that my birth parents abandoned me and my foster mom died."

"But it's ridiculously stupid," Mila winced. "Cruel, I'd say."

"Yeah," Olivia nodded in agreement. "But, as you know, at school the opinions of others play a big role. At some point I became a topic of discussion and was labeled as an orphan and so on."

"They're just stupid teenagers," Mila snorted.

Olivia nodded once more, showing her agreement with the girl's words. "And following my father's descent into alcohol abuse, I found myself pushing people away. Because I understood that if I had friends, I wouldn't be able to bring them to my place. Who knows, my father is already drunk or on the verge of reaching that state," she continued quietly. "And then people themselves stopped communicating with me."

"I'm sorry..."

"Don't," Olivia's face scrunched up in displeasure. "It's not your fault. And besides, I don't hold a grudge against them. There are no evil people in the world. Every evil person is a good soul who was once betrayed or hurt by someone."