Stars Falling from Above

✩ 2 ✩

The sun peeks through the blinds hitting Riley's face. She moves around and grunts. After a minute of staring at the ceiling it hits her. "Oh shoot!" She bolts up and her hands ruffle around, struggling to find her phone. The dark blue blanket flips everywhere until the item falls out hitting the bed with a small thump. Turning it on, it says 7:40. "Am I even gonna make it in time?" She mumbled and jumped off her bed. No time for stretches. Grabbing clothes and struggling to button up her school uniform. "Ugh!" Giving up, she sighs and walks back and forth before trying again. Getting it right and running out of her room, speedily stepping down the stairs. Gripping onto the railing and swinging herself to the next room on her right.

Opening the fridge too quickly and a couple things fall. Lifting them back up and putting them back in. She hurry's and makes herself a sandwich and grabs a couple snacks. Peaking at the clock on the microwave "7:56! How the heck am I going to get there in 4 minutes!"

Rushing past the table, there's a sticky note stuck to it. Stepping backwards and reading it 'Riley, school is canceled today. Something about the teacher needing a break or something. Your mom is working, and I have an interview, the grocery list is on the fridge -Dad' everything drops from her grasp. "Oh, thank god." Sighing and laughing at herself while putting everything back. Putting the sandwich back in the fridge for later, closing it and seeing the list on a crumpled-up paper. "Dish soap, marble cheese, crackers..." her eyes trail down the list that isn't as long as it looks.

Turning on her heel, going towards the stairs. She goes back up to her room and throws on better clothes; Light blue Jean shorts and a plain, black T-shirt tucked in a bit at the front into her shorts. Coming back down, she grabs the list and ties shoes onto her feet. Getting up, she is about to open the door. She takes a deep breath and feels a chill in her veins. She doesn't want to go out but knows she can just avoid it, she is sure of it. An idea pops in her head and she runs back upstairs without caring about her shoes still being on. She gets her headphones and sticks them into her ears, plugging it into the phone. Putting on music and blasting it threw her ears loud enough to hear almost nothing. A smile plastered one her face but fades again when she gets to the door.

Feeling more confident, she opens it and locks it with the single key, hiding it in the plant. Sticking her phone in her pocket with the paper. Keeping her head down and starting to walk. Feet. The only things she has to see. The feet move around her and she moves around them. It usually works. Sometimes she won't be paying attention and trips over one which consists in her being yelled at. The song "Lover is a day" is heard from ear to ear as she speed walks to the store.

Making it there in no time at all, walking across the parking lot keeping her head high this time because of the cars going around. She gets to the front and doesn't bother to get a cart but grabs a basket with the store name stuck to the side. To her miss fortune it's busy. Going in, there's a bunch of sale signs all over. Riley goes over to the fruit, looking around and picking them up. She gets a small plastic tin of strawberries and puts it in the basket.

"Oh." Pulling out the list that she almost forgot about. First thing on the list is written pretty well. She stares at it for a second recognizing the neat writing. "Mom." Almost not believing it, her mother was the one who wrote the list, which makes sense because her father has terrible writing but it's abnormal because her mother wouldn't have time to even write something as simple as this. Lettuce was the first thing there. She grabbed a bag and looked back at the list and beside the word it had 'x2' so two went into the bag as told.

After a while she was at the check out and her items were getting scanned. "Alright and that comes to $68.76." Riley nods and takes out her card, putting in the pin and putting it back in her bag. Before she picks up the bags, she puts her headphones back in. After turning the music on she slips the plastic bags onto her arms.

A man is complaining to a star that works at the store as a cashier, but she tries to ignore it. Walking right past it, going to the doors. With her feet, she pushes the door open. Wide enough so she can get through in time for it to close. Making it out, the wind hits her. Making her short hair move to one side along with her shirt. Having to go across the parking lot and back to the sidewalk.

People walk past her like a herd of horses trying to win a race. They are all heading to work. The one thing everyone cares about nowadays. No one cares about anyone else but their family, and even then, only some people have family or even care about it. They will push by you, maybe knock you onto the ground and not even care to say a word. Money. That's all they want. Either so they can drink at night or just to look good. These people are just like her mom. She gets money and doesn't use it for housing needs, to be drunk and look good.

She feels bad for her father. He tries to work on his computer, but it doesn't seem to work as hard as her mother does. He tried his hardest to be almost as good, to get enough money to pay for their needs. That's why her father has been looking for a new job. He didn't go to college like her mother. It's disappointing that she only uses her smarts to get drunk. Riley is praying for her father everyday, hoping that he will get a job.

A man walks across the street like the light says he should but is getting honked at. Riley turns her head, hearing the noise over her music. The man tries to get across as quickly as he can but looks old and can't move as fast. The cars keep inching forward, threatening to hit him. Her feet start to move faster, not to get away from the scene but to get closer. She is now standing on the edge of the sidewalk where other people are, where they are not daring to cross and get involved. The honking keeps going and the man is panicking.

Riley has enough. Her hand wraps around the man's arm. She still has her headphones in so any yelling that's outside, she can't hear. She pulls him across and doesn't look at him. As soon as their feet hit the sidewalk the cars go zooming by.

Ow

Her hand lifts to her cheek where it is now red. She looks around to see who it was but there's no one who looks like they did it there. She looks up at the man and he's speaking. Taking out her headphones, she notices he isn't speaking, he's yelling. "-kes you think you can just touch me you dirty little prick!" Riley shivers as she gets hit again. "I was-" she gets pushed to the ground which makes her groceries drop everywhere. "You were what? You can't just touch people without asking them! I have no clue who you are. You could have been taking me somewhere to do who knows what!" Kicking her in the thigh and Riley lets out a small whim in pain. "Don't touch people you don't know, got that?"

Riley nods quickly and picks up the groceries trying to keep in her tears. She also throws her phone in the bag, it being a better spot to not fall out of. Standing up, struggling a bit and pushes by everyone. Feeling like one of the ignorant people who push people without a care. Tears start to spill out without her wanting them to. She doesn't know why she is crying. Is it because she just got yelled at? Or because she just got hit? No that's not it. It's because she did something wrong again. She always does. Getting yelled at for it, being told it or even just hearing people talk about it is tiresome to her.

The bags start to feel heavier. The one with milk feels like it's ripping her arms off. Finally making it to her door she struggles to put the key in the lock. Her eyesight is blurry, and she wants to be away from everyone that can see her. The door swings open hitting the wall and she drops the groceries on the wooden floor. Closes the door and puts the keys on the table. She stares at the groceries and tenses up.

Why can't I do anything right?

"Why can't I do anything right?" She repeats her thoughts and starts to feel more tired. Of everything. Yes. Of crying. Yes.

After a minute of staring at the ground thinking, which she could do all day, she lifts up all the groceries to the kitchen counter. Feeling in her pocket for the paper which seemed to be gone. She must have lost it somewhere, but it doesn't matter anymore. Her eyes are now red, and she keeps rubbing them when it seems more tears might come out. She puts the groceries in the right spots. Some of it being in the garbage because of the ground. Either being dirty or stepped on by people who didn't care.

Finally, after that she heads up to her room. Forgetting about her father but it also does not matter because he should still be at work. Closing her bedroom door, she turns and faces the door. Both her hands touch the door and split a bit apart. She keeps staring but after a second she feels tears spilling out like crazy and she slams her head against the door. Her Head is facing the wood where she can see tears fall on it making little droplets on the ground.

"I want everything to be gone... I want to be gone..."