Burned and Scarred

"You're scared of more than that. I haven't figured it out, but something about you is contradicting itself; like you hate part of your identity," She explains, and she couldn't be more right.
"I don't know," I say.
"Yes, you do. You just don't want to admit it. If you say it, it makes it real." I say nothing, once again. I take a deep breath.
"Fire." She says nothing. We continue to walk in silence, passing several wooden benches and streetlights.

~~~

"I don't like how everyone treats you. They're wrong. They are narrow-minded, and they don't see that. They see what they want to. They want someone to blame for things that they did. So, they made you the bad guy."
"So if I'm the bad guy, what does that make you?"

~~~

Aiden Westmoreland's parent died in a fire. A fire that he started. After waking from his coma, covered in burns, he is moved from Pittsburgh to the unfamiliar town of Lock Haven to live with his aunt. Labeled as am outcast and a murderer, he tries to live his life and forget what happened several months prior. With no friends and only one acquaintance all he focuses on is himself and coping with the trauma. That is, until she come along. Scarlett Brooks, or Scar, comes along and changes everything. Befriending him and standing up for him, the two grow close. Aiden starts noticing things he didn't before; everyday she comes to school with new bruises. But, he has enough on his plate when his panic attacks and social anxiety come back, he starts smoking again, and nightmares of his reflection plague his thoughts. As he faces the truth about the fire, and about Scar, he realizes that he isn't the only one who needs to be saved.

TW: Mentions of self harm, self harm, abuse, death of close family members, underage drug use (opioids and cigarettes), underage drinking, mild bullying - See A/N at beginning for more info