Gen Four- Chapter Eight

The coming of the new morning eased in so gently. I didn't recognize the moment where the dreams stopped and reality returned. My sluggish brain just relaxed and listened to the words, the comforting sound of a pleasant conversation that came from nowhere as the wafting warmth of a calm, sunny morning drenched me as a blanket.

     "...and she naturally hasn't noticed, as you can tell," the first woman's voice spoke. I could almost recall it from somewhere, but no answer came.

     "Are your family members mediums or something?" This time Jazzy spoke.

     "Not that I know. My grandmother apparently had seen a ghost though. My father said he saw strange lights in a place where fairies were said to roam, and my aunt said she saw a fairy directly. I had an experience myself where there was ghostly activity in the hospital I was staying at, although it happened while asleep. I'm, again, naturally more prone to believe some of that was real."

     "Not believing now is what would mark you as insane," Jazzy laughed. "You're one dedicated woman. Tell me more about this whole manipulating luck thing you do."

     "It's difficult to describe, but the best way to say it is I see these pulses of aura around her. The good surrounding her is light, and the bad is dark. I found after a certain time I can just...push some of the dark away. When I do, a vision of what I've dispelled flashes into my mind. This takes a lot of energy though, and, unfortunately, the darkness is growing more by the day while the light keeps shrinking."
     "Still, that's amazing! I wonder if I could do something like that."
     "I'm not sure. I'm here as I am because I willed myself to stay for a specific reason. Why did you decide to stay?"

Quiet took hold for a long moment, to the point where my sleepiness nearly made me forget about the conversation entirely.

     "I think..." Jazzy eventually mumbled, "I think that's because, like most of us, I was angry and upset about what happened. I didn't want to accept it."
     "I can understand that. Such a desire was what nearly what formed me. If I hadn't─" The voice suddenly halted. "Oh, she must be waking. We're weakening. I don't have much influence when she's awake."
     "You should─"

I sniffled as I snapped my head up. My eyes heavily blinked open, my body still tempted by the lure of more sleep even as it came to consciousness with the full energy of a good, deep rest. Yawning, I glanced around for Jazzy. She was nowhere to be seen. Strange. Hadn't I just heard her voice?

Honestly, I wasn't sure. I'd clearly been dreaming whatever I'd heard, and, like most dreams, the more I attempted to recall anything about it the more it slipped from memory. It got to the point where I wondered if I'd even been dreaming at all or if my mind was making things up. My stomach then grumbled to distract me further, so I downed the applesauce still in my pocket before stretching and getting up and on my way.

The park's water fountain quenched my thirst, and I was able to use the little bathroom both to relieve myself and wet a stack of bunched toilet paper to clean my face and wipe down what parts of me were reasonable. Honestly, how deeply had I taken for granted the basics I was used to, and now was I getting a good look at how much money and position dominated success to one's well-being. I kept my head down searching for more pennies and nickles for that specific reason as I walked. Jazzy had put forth a good argument in that the spot behind the court house was likely to be spotted, noticed, or used by someone else eventually. It wouldn't be a bad thing to have multiple places I could scurry too, and I needed more supplies.

Starting at the beach, I made my way down the waterfront. Sand turned into a road that began the journey out of the city proper into the open, nature-filled landscape. A heavy, salt-filled mist rolled of the sea around the time I made it to the industrial, factory-type area. Several buildings appeared promising for hiding as they seemed abandoned, but, geez, if the fog didn't turn the area into a horror movie waiting to happen.

Walking briskly away from that, a smaller road led me to a section of forest littered with willow trees. I normally liked them and ran through their branches like they were a sprinkler. The sheer number of them mixed in with the mist following me though instead made everything about my chosen paths regrettable. At least the sun shone brighter than it had the past few days. Better to explore this atmosphere in the safety of a glorious morning than waiting for an overcast day, huh? Continuing on did reward me as well.

     "Woah," I remarked in awe when I slipped through the worn fencing of a junkyard. There were so many trashed objects and wayward scraps of metal the towers overwhelmed me. Then the stench hit my nostrils to morph that awe into disgust. "Yuck."

This could be another opportunity, however. Something had to be sell-able or useful for me, but I needed to invest in some gloves and maybe a mask first. All the sharp or broken bits of rusty metal were a sure-fire way for infection or tetanus to take hold if I dove in carelessly.

But towards the edge of the area was where my prize lay. An old, beaten car not having been left behind too long ago sat harmless enough. One door was missing, the front hood was crumpled like a wadded paper ball, and the numerous stains on the seats were suspicious. On the other hand, a quick peek underneath the driver's seat revealed what had likely been a backup supply of cash. Fifteen dirty dollars were there in the lumpy wallet I fount taped to the cushion. It wasn't much, but it was certainly enough.

Good luck kept coming my way. A tiny resale shop full of mostly clothes ended the loop the road made.

     "Hello?" I called into the quiet room as no one watched the counter.

No one answered, and no one came. I browsed, ecstatic at finding some clothes made for someone my size. There was even a cute skirt despite it having some purple on it. I wasn't going to be picky at this point, especially when the tag on the items put them at a dirt cheap price. Gathering the two outfits, there I stood in that shop growing more ominously creepy by the minute for fifteen of those minutes.

     "Helloooo!" I called louder.

Seriously, did someone want their stuff stolen leaving the shop alone like this? I tapped my knuckles on the door to the one small room attached, but it was nothing more than a run-down public bathroom.

     "Hello! I want to give you money for your stuff!" I tried one more time.

When no one came, I counted out the money for the items, put it on the counter, and left with my, uh, purchases?

Unfortunately, I could hardly walk around carrying clothes and random objects with me. I chose to stay in my normal clothes for now and leave the other outfits hidden between some rocks in a thick brush of grass until I figured something out. If I had to lose them or my clothes from home, I would rather lose them. Now I added a backpack to my list of necessities. My mind spun browsing the collection a big box store had. There were cheap ones for nine or eleven dollars, but even me just touching their straps felt like it would break them into pieces. The kind I required had to be one of the ones marked at least twenty, a high number for me right now. I only had ten.

     "Ow." A crick in my neck formed after I returned to staring at the ground for coins. The hours blessedly passed quickly with how the day was going though. Getting more things to wear prompted my spirits to give myself a break by forgetting cash momentarily and shifting to the route out of the city on the other side. The first had met against the sea, but this way had to lead to the suburbs for well-tended houses replaced towers of apartments. Concrete shifted into grass while friendlier trees line the sidewalks. Heck, I went so far even the sidewalks vanished. The sloping of the mountains upwards drew my gaze to the sky where it worked my crick in the opposite direction.

The tiniest of raspberry bushes provided me a snack to push on. I could have eaten more from it, but finding a slimy bug I honestly had no idea how to describe comfortably curled inside the hollow portion of the piece I was about to put in my mouth had me flinging it away with a shriek and wandering from the bush with a scurrying pace. I tried hard not to imagine having eaten a bug in my other bites without knowing it. My pace slowed once the offending objects were out of sight. Again, my shoes weren't the greatest for an extended hike. I hoped my soles would harden though, for new shoes would be at the bottom of my list.

     "Oh my gosh, yes," I remarked to myself five minutes later.

I'd set out to find a backup location, and I felt I'd finally done that. The current road faltered to a stop at the smallest of lakes where a tiny school of fish wiggled and zoomed here and there happily. A small dock jutted into the middle of the water, and off to the side sat a picnic table, grill, and trash can. Not a bad place to sit a make a meal. Better yet was that past a line of bushes and trees was formed from the mountainside an arch of stone enclosed on all sides save the front. That alone was a huge check for a potential shelter made in the woods. So far, the lone thing working against the area as a base was its long distance from the city where food and supplies were easier to stumble upon.

However, more scouting on the cliffside revealed those protective arches were everywhere. A bit of time and effort would turn them into reliable places of refuge indeed. I spent the rest of the day and scratched up my hands doing just that. The first hour passed with me simply gathering the best sticks and smaller branches I could find. After that came the weaving. Oh gosh, the weaving. Mr. Mint had taught me a number of practical survival lessons when the day were warm. We'd gone into the forest for a time to bundle up long grass to make into ropes. There was no shortage of long grass to be found in Aspen Harbor's hills, and to my benefit there hand't been much rain lately. The grass was dry and better suited to last longer. I sat on my bum for hours and hours, taking off my shoes after the first to let my feet relax, and created three impressive coils of building material. Enough sun remained for me put together the first of the walls.

In the end, I chose to hurry to the city before I lost all light. The back of the courthouse still seemed like the safer option, and I needed food. The latter sadly had to come from me sacrificing a dollar to a vending machine for a package of cheese crackers. A second, unintended package dropped out though, which was nice. That was breakfast for the following morning after a slightly disappointing night of Jazzy not showing up. I didn't sleep as well without her there. Her absence was part of the reason why I went to Cala's place earlier than planned. I didn't want to risk running into her parents for fear of them wanting to speak to my non-existent parental figures. Thankfully, Cala was outside playing again when I showed up with her parents gone for two hours already. She dragged me inside the second she saw me having recorded last night's new episode of Merge Monsters without watching it so we could see it for the first time together.

     "Oh no!" I gasped towards the end.
     "What?" Cala wondered.
     "Take a look at Snowy's expression as she's standing there in the background when Carnation mentions the Evermore Light. Snowy mentioned at the beginning of last season how she's been looking for the Amethyst Merge Flower. She's been acting out, being more frustrated and impatient with the group's progress. I think she might sneak off or trick them to go get one for herself."
     "Aww, no. I hope she doesn't turn bad. She's one of my favorite characters," Cala pouted as she rewound the episode to see for herself the character's expression.

We watched the scene two more times to pick up on all the subtle hints in body language and tricky wordplay. Merge Monster's audience was growing up since the first season aired. The episode tackled more mature topics and weaved its plots more intricately. Grandpa had watched it with me, of course, but never got into it as deeply as Cala did. The two of us rewatched the entire thing one more time to make sure none of the foreshadowing escaped our notice. Cala refused to accept Snowy would become a villain, so the two of us predicted she'd simply run off on her own instead ignoring the dangers. The rest of the group would then have to come save her from her hubris.

It wasn't until after the episode ended that Snowy's connection to my own situation hit home hard. I shook my head vigorously ignoring what might be the universe's hint to get over doing things on my own and trusting those who swore to help and protect.

     "Is it okay if I stay for lunch?" I asked when the hunger returned.
     "Of course. Go ahead and take whatever you want from the kitchen. I ate a big breakfast and snacked a lot, so I'm not hungry myself yet. The only thing is mom and dad won't allow me to use the oven or stove."
     "That's fine. I'll find something that doesn't need them. Thanks."

I found a can of soup that I liked, yet the strangest idea came to me after pouring it in a bowl to set in the microwave. The idea was deception. A lie flew into my head out of nowhere with humiliating speed and efficiency, but I couldn't cast it out. It wasn't anything harmful, it taunted. It just made use of a kind person's resources, and it did it in a way that required no sacrifice. I bit my lower lip. That...that would be okay, right? Regardless of whether or not it was, I dug my fingers into the cold soup to splash some onto my hair, face, and clothes before purposefully dropping the bowl on the ground and squealing.

     "What happened?" Cala rushed over.
     "I'm so sorry," I forced a puppy dog face, and the guilt in it was real indeed. "I accidentally knocked the bowl over, and the soup got over me and on the floor."
     "Ew, yeah, I see. You got carrot in your hair. You can take a shower if you want, and I'll run your dress and cardigan in the laundry in the meantime. Mom's been bugging dad to do the load he's been leaving around, so I can throw it in with that."
     "Are...Are you sure?"
     "It's no problem. I'll get lots of brownie points as reward when mom comes home to see dad's clothes done," Cala grinned impishly.
     "That's good. It's still really nice of you to offer too," I smiled.

Cala simply beamed brightly at that.

How glorious that shower was! My hair had begun to stick to my scalp with an aching burn while the stench sneaking out from the places I couldn't properly clean with wet toilet paper grew with every passing hour. It was lucky I hadn't entered puberty yet, for grandpa told me I'd get stinky a lot more easily once that happened. Unfortunately, I kept the shower short to not raise suspicion or be rude. I scrubbed my hair threes times, went through two rounds of body wash, and cleaned my teeth with my finger as quickly as possible before allowing myself one minute of pure relaxation with the rushing water and steam. The fluffy towel I dried myself with wasn't such a bad trade-off, and Cala provided me a pair of her comfy pajamas to wear while my clothes were washed to perfection like I was. The remaining guilt had me offering Cala money for using the toiletries and laundry detergent, but she refused everything.

     "Jazzy, you're back."

I stayed with Cala as late as I could, researched at the library until the sun set, and made my way to the courthouse where my unlikely companion once again appeared behind me without notice.

     "I'm always here," she joked badly as we sat down together. I was curious about why she scooted as close as she did, but I didn't mind. Jazzy had said she couldn't do much to help me. However, having an adult nearby did make me feel safe.
     "You must have been a ghost last night then, because I didn't see you," I rolled my eyes.

She didn't say anything in response. Just gave me a strange look before going deep in thought.

     "Hey, you mind if I try something really quick?" she asked.
     "Uh, sure?" I shrugged.

I don't know what I expected, but her reaching and placing her palm against my cheek hadn't been a guess. I waited for the next step in the impromptu experiment. Jazzy just kept her hand there though until a pang of tiredness hit me and a loud yawn escaped. My head even went a little fuzzy with exhaustion.

     "I see." Jazzy pulled her hand back.
     "See what?" I wondered, yawning again.
     "Your next Halloween costume should be a battery," she laughed.

I raised a brow at her. Jazzy had come off as a sensible women, but now she made little sense at all.

     "I can't have a 'next' Halloween costume though. I've never worn a costume before," I admitted.
     "Yeah?"
     "Yeah. It's part of what I was saying before with my grandpa and dad being bad people. We lived really isolated because of what they'd done, so I couldn't exactly for trick-or-treating. I didn't even meet someone my age until a few days ago, and here I lied to and manipulated her today so I could have a free shower and get her to wash my clothes..." I curled my legs to my chest.

That turned the air somber.

     "You're not a bad person because of it," Jazzy ploughed on regardless. "Trust me. You're in a bad spot, and when you need to survive the objective morality of those who don't have to claw and thrash for the smallest bit to keep you going doesn't hold you to the same standards."
     "I don't know if I agree with that. Lying is still lying. Stealing is still stealing. People might sympathize differently with someone depending on the reasons for their actions, but it doesn't change the action or the consequences it can create."
     "You've got a good head on your shoulders, you that, babe?" Jazzy gently pet my hair before quickly withdrawing her hand.
     "I'm not starting to feel like I do. I made a lot of progress in keeping myself okay, but now with what I did to Cala it's as if that's the only thing that matters."
     "Nutmeg, sweetheart, if there's anything I can say to you from someone who struggled and acted worse than you, it's that what you're doing needs to stop. You're not cut out for this. It's scary to face the unknown, but you need to trust your mom's parents and family. You'll be happy living in Berrybrook, I can promise you that. It's what you deserve."
     "I─" I started before frowning. "How do you know─"

Abrupt noise from the left interrupted my question. From the darkness bounded two figures, and it didn't take any time at all to figure out what was going on. The red and blue man was in the process of tossing off his work shirt as he and the orange woman rotated against the wall with mouths so deeply entangled they didn't notice Jazzy and me right away. Grandpa and dad had naturally told me about sex, and Mr. Mint had gone over it in Health class as well. I'd never found the thought of it appealing, and the more I watched the two before me growl at each other and listen to their lips making stupid smacking noses with their kisses the more disgusting it seemed. The inevitable eventually happened though. The couple continued their flip-flopping along the wall until they properly rounded the corner where the man clutched the woman to him tightly. He buried his face into her neck sliding down to her chest, came up to breathe, and had his eyes go wide when spotting me.

     "Hey," he sharply snapped to break his companion out of their bizarre entanglement, motioning my way.

The woman turned on her heel with a start. A snobbish glare hardened her eyes while a snobby nose turned up upon taking the sight of me in. She and Jazzy clearly had the same profession, but that was as far as their similarities went.

     "Brat, get out of here," she commanded as if I was the one who appeared out of nowhere.
     "You get out of here," I challenged, standing up. "I was here first, and this has been my spot."
     "Your spot? Girl, don't try to act like you know what you're on about here on the streets. I've seen far too many spoiled runaways like you acting up because mommy and daddy didn't buy you a new phone. Go home."
     "No, you don't know anything. I'm not spoiled, and I don't have a home to go to. Jazzy and I were here long before you were, so go wag your tongues together somewhere else," I huffed.
     "...Jazzy?" the woman repeated, some of her arrogance dropping in her confusion.
     "Yeah, Jaz─" My sentence trailed off as I turned to find her gone. How had she disappeared so fast? Why would she leave me?
     "You're either mad as hell or some bitch is trying to pick up her old customers. Jazzy has been dead for sixth months."
     "Dead?" I questioned, stunned.
     "Murdered right here, which is why no one's been using this location anymore. I don't care though. They caught the guy right away, and this area is one of the best spots in the city."
     "Bu-But I've been talking to her! She's purple and has a tattoo here and here," I pointed to my forearm and shoulder. "She's very much real!"
     "Then as I just said, idiot, someone is mimicking her down to her tattoos to take advantage of a dumb or uncaring clientele list. The actual Jazzy is dead."
     "I─"
     "Hey," the guy spoke once more, towering over me and folding his arms menacingly. "I don't care what problems you've got going on or who's been lying to you. You're ruining my well-paid hour, so scram."
     "This is my..." My voice already weakened faded more. The guy glared harder.

I ran off.

I ran so hard and so fast the rain that began to wet my cheeks I assumed to be tears sliding down my face. The downpour came from nowhere and drenched everything. It hurried anyone left on the streets with a rush permitting me to speed onwards without interruption. Honestly, I had no idea where my feet took me until I rounded the last corner. The playground. Free of youths, it was the one place I might find refuge. The small lake and rock arch were too far away to depend on in moments like these.

Moments I wished to never experience again. My chest heaved with a tightness and swell not coming from the physical exertion. Tightly until my fingertips ached did I clutch my arms across myself to hold back what thrashed within. Not now. I couldn't stand here in the rain and bawl like a baby. I shook my head flinging water off choosing to make the lower level of the jungle gym my place of safety. The ground was cold and damp, but the cloth roof up top didn't do the best job at holding back the elements. At least at the bottom I had both the roof and the wooden platform above my head to stop most of the rain from reaching me.

Unfortunately, that didn't stop the wind building in fury from flashing rain my way. My situation remained miserable as even summer's remaining heat couldn't combat the cold from drenching every inch of me. The infuriatingly slow minutes clung my clothes to my skin like glue, seeped water into my socks where I could feel my toes wrinkle and ache, and otherwise made me lament my life. What had I done? I only ever meant to make myself useful. To be good.  Why was I stuck in this position where every path seemed to lead to my doom?

I rest my head against the inner wooden pole that blocked a little more of the storm. No way could I sit down with the weather like this. Guess I was spending the whole night on my feet, huh? I would have to do better checking the weather predictions while at the library. I'd done what I could to put the stick wall and leftover rope I'd made somewhere protected, but there's no way my hard work wasn't also getting damaged. I'd have to look up waterproofing techniques as well. Planning out my actions distracted me minimally. However, there was no distraction from the set of car lights pulling up along the playground's sidewalk. My chest did more tumbling realizing the driver was indeed stopping and not just driving slowly because of the rain. Worse yet, the car was a police cruiser where an officer stepped out with purpose wasting no time heading towards my position.

     "Excuse me?" the officer called, walking over. He'd come too quickly for me to snap out my frozen state at someone finally catching me. "What are you doing out here in this rain, honey? We got word to patrol this area more frequently due to some teens causing problems, but I didn't expect for my headlights to show you standing here."

I gulped hard, clutching to the jungle gym's beam. I really hadn't ever been one to believe in signs or the fate of the universe, yet with how this night was playing out there was a direction being prompted here.

     "My, um, my dad and grandpa," I mumbled pitifully, "they got arrested in a raid. I had nowhere else to go after they were caught, and I've been too scared to ask anyone for help."

The police officer scanned me up and down, and I let him stare even if goosebumps not from the cold shivered my arms. Paranoia had to be tossed aside. Jazzy was some sort of big liar or a fake, but her words that I wasn't cut out for this weren't untrue. I had to trust. Clearly, just because someone was an adult didn't mean their words were infallible. Maybe Mr. Flaxen was wrong about mom's family.

     "There's no reason to be scared. Even if your dad and grandpa did something bad, a sweetheart like you wouldn't get in trouble for their actions." The officer smiled as he took a step closer. My shivering only grew worse while my stomach churned at his terms of endearment. Jazzy had talked like that to me too, so why hadn't I felt this way then?
     "I-I do have some family. I worried they might not like me though since dad and grandpa did bad stuff to them. The people they worked for are also influential and scary, so...so if they find out the police have me, they could come after me too to stop their secrets I know from getting out," I forced myself to admit. The police out of everyone in this city would know my situation. Honestly, I likely had to say nothing but my name for everything to fall into place. I tried, but the words remained stuck.
     "Is that so? Well, I'll personally make sure to keep you safe, so you don't have to worry about retribution. How about we go somewhere where you can get warm and dry? I'm sure you'd like something to eat too."
     "O-Okay..."

Intending just to follow, I flinched as the officer smiled wider and wrapped me in something of a side hug to guide me to his cruiser. He surely just wanted to make sure I was warm. He surely just wanted to be reassuring. Still, why did the fright in my stomach soar even as the goosebumps doubled in size? The sensation of hands on my back pushing me forward now reappeared...to try and pull me away.

     "W-Wait." I slipped out of the officer's hold.
     "Come on, sweetheart. You'll catch a cold if you stay out here much longer." The officer smiled wider, but the larger it got the more ominous it became. His large hand clamped down on my left wrist.
     "No." I tried to wriggle free, which made his grip harder.
     "Get in the car," he now demanded.
     "No!"

I stomped on his foot. The heel of my shoe helped now with the hard edge piercing into the soft of his toes. Unfortunately, the officer accustomed to high intensity situations recovered far faster than a normal person to lunge and grasp me again. I acted fast too though. The stick in my pocket was in my right hand jabbing into his forearm before I could fear my own actions. The point sharpened to perfection punctured an inch deep into his muscle where he howled, released me, and I flew into the darkness.

I thought of nothing other than sprinting as fast as I could and losing the officer however I could. My path weaved erratic as I avoided the brightness of the city and used every shadow I barreled through for protection. The terrain sloping into a steep incline taking me to the more affluent suburbs and its forests was a hindrance I ignored. Even the rain pouring down as a harsh waterfall meant nothing. On and on I pressed until the limitations of my body outweighed the adrenaline of my fear reaction. So there I stood, at the end of an isolated corner of forest where the rising slopes created a half circle leading to the true mountain side.

And as I stood, I stood impossibly still. My head hung low, it taking a minute or so for the warmth running down my cheeks to register as tears that'd finally come. Had I known better, I would have understood the shaking of my shoulders and the overwhelming push of the bubble within my chest as an overload of the emotions held back trickling out.

     "...utmeg..."

Then I heard her voice. Jazzy's. So faint and distant, it came as the mockery of wind and rain than from her lips.

     "I'm sorry," she whispered from nowhere and everywhere. "Don't give up. You need to go to your mother's home."
     "No!" I yelled with a fury of my own to challenge the storm. "Why should I listen to anything you say!?
     "It's not safe for you out here. That man...he was the unfortunate percentage that exists. The others will help. You just have to trust─"
     "NO! Don't tell me to trust! Everyone in this world is a liar! You're a liar! That cop was a liar! The Company are liars! Dad and grandpa are liars! I'm a liar!
     "I didn't lie to you. I just...didn't..." Her voice grew softer, heartbroken.
     "You did! You're not Jazzy, because Jazzy's dead!"
     "Nutmeg, I─"
     "No, no, NO! Just LEAVE!"

My hands clutched my head, for a searing headache split my skull. In a state already overflowing, the new swell jolting within me released without hesitation. I screamed at the pain, arching my back. I never noticed the pulse, the bursting of force tossing the falling rain from me, the rain already having drenched me away in that small explosion of energy. All I knew was the pain eased from the unleashing of the command. The storm kept raging, but Jazzy fell silent. Silent as if she'd never been there at all.

Everything within me crashed after that. Only enough energy remained for me to wander close to the slopes where an overhand and slight crack in the rock provided a place to keep the majority of rain from me. I sat down despite the cold and mud, and at some point I even fell asleep. A persistent cough woke me when the sun crested over the rocks. While I had no desire to get up and move, not being able to feel my feet forced the matter. They thankfully were simply numb from cold and not suffering from frostbite. How painfully the moment drove in the fact that summer wouldn't last forever. Not only did I need good shelter, but I would somehow have to survive winter.

I waited until the last of me dried to sluggishly trek to the other side of the city's outskirts where I'd hidden my spare clothes. Of course, they were soaked. I laid them upon a large rock to dry in the sun, sitting next to the stone myself and resting my head upon it for a bit more shut-eye. I finally changed when the clothes were no longer damp. Something about the night made leaving my old clothes behind less of a care. Cala's apartment became my destination from there. I couldn't help myself, try though I might, from gorging myself on the snacks she offered and taking several large gulps of the nasty cold medicine from her bathroom's cabinet when the cough wouldn't stop and my face began to tingle from fever.

     "Cinnamon, let me show you this─"

When we played in her room and I sat on her bed to wait for her to show me a Merge Monster toy she'd forgotten about until now, I conked out as soon as my head hit the pillow.

She was kind enough to let me sleep until I woke up. My eyes cracked open some time past lunch, and the ache of my eyes now burned harder with the desire of tears again at her having made a huge spread of little sandwiches to munch on while we watched television.

     "I'm sorry about falling asleep. I've had to share a room with my older cousin, and she snores so impossibly loud. I've been getting next to no rest."

And the lies kept spilling out of my mouth regardless. I wondered for the briefest of seconds what would happen if I told Cala the truth. If she was this kind, her parents had to be the same. They could help me, right? But my throat tightened with every breath I took to speak the words. I couldn't do it.

     "It's okay," she smiled. "Dad took me camping last summer. When he snores, it's like there's three lawnmowers eating at each other. I don't know how mom shares a room with him and isn't a zombie."
     "That's funny," I laughed. "I still feel bad though. This is the last day for me in town."

I don't think my lie would have worked out in the long-term if I'd chosen to say I lived in Aspen Harbor, but I hated the fact that summer vacation was almost over. This was the last Friday. My 'family' and I would be returning home tomorrow, or so was the story I weaved. But seriously if thinking like that didn't make me hate myself more. Make no mistake I didn't love spending time with Cala and was overjoyed with her considering me a friend, but when I inwardly complained about not being able to come over anymore it was because my first thought was how I was losing access to what Cala could provide.

More than anything, I wanted to say goodbye to her with a clear conscience. I wanted the words trapped in my throat to come out. At the very least, I wished to say our goodbyes not feeling even more guilty. Sadly, I couldn't escape the path I'd chosen. A weather report banner scrolled over the top of the movie Cala and I found when flipping through channels. More rain was coming. I naturally required many things to get through the storm without becoming miserable once more, but a backpack remained a high priority. A better crack in the mountain or completing my shelter could keep me dry, so a way to carry everything with me seemed more prevalent. I'd only found two pennies this day though. Another dollar would likely have to go to a vending machine for dinner, for I didn't risk taking anything out of the trash when a cold was already trying to claim me. Twenty dollars for a backpack was a fortune to find.

But Cala's parents likely had a bit to spare. To a normal family like hers, twenty dollars was a mediocre meal for two. Something that wouldn't destroy them. Something that would barely be missed. In fact, Cala decided we should end our time together by having a fun meal. She ordered a pizza for us, a total of thirteen dollars including the pop and garlic sticks. The buzzer rang, Cala left for the lobby to get the food, and my mind rationalized...I was right.

I acted too fast to convince myself to stop. To stop being such an idiot. To stop being the kind of person I acted like I loathed. There I rushed into Cala's parents' bedroom. There I hurriedly searched their drawers until I found a secondary wallet tucked away in the underwear drawer to slip a twenty from it into my pocket.

When Cala returned, I sat in the same spot she left me in. I was as excited about the pizza as I was before, and I showed no signs of anything being amiss as we stuffed our stomachs until they hurt, watched whatever we wanted, played video games until our brains were numb, and slumped our shoulders when the clock chimed its time. I had to get going.

     "Here's our number if you want to call. Let me know if your family comes to visit again. My parents have been saying next time they'd like to meet you and your parents. Maybe we could all go out to a movie together or something," Cala beamed as she handed me a slip of paper.
     "That sounds great. I'd love to do that." I was just as enthusiastic back. "Thanks for having me over. It was getting boring spending every single day with the rest of my family who like to do the same things over and over again."
     "You're welcome. You made it fun for me as well what with none of my friends getting back until tomorrow."
     "Tell them hello for me, and I hope you all have a good school year."
     "You too."
     "Thanks."

Cala brought me in for a hug. I squeezed her back tightly.

     "Bye, Cinnamon." She began to wave me off.

She didn't even know my real name. I waved back, hiding the sadness in my smile.

     "Bye, Cala."

I turned on my heel, and I walked away.