Young Writers Society

Alan Wright

Most of the others had ran. In a flash moment, I pulled the person closest to me, Ty, behind a large bush. We hid there until the sierns wailed by us, and eventually could not be heard anymore. Neither of us said anything to each other, but extanged a few worried glances.

A moment or two after the sierns could no longer be heard, I stood up. "We'd better get going and catch up to everyone-" If they didn't already get caught.

I left my unfinished sentence to hang there in the air as we kept walking. My and Ty didn't have much to say to one another. It was dark out, and my earlier ideas for a horror movie setting came back to me. Besides Ty, I was really alone here. And as nice as he seemed, Ty apeared like he'd be better off starring in a movie than fighting a mugger.

"You know," I said jokingly, trying to break the tension, "if you do end up in New York, we might have an issue. My dad was a huge Red Sox fan. He doesn't really aprove of new yorkers." I realized a second too late exactly what I had said. The past tense was.

I predicted his question before he even had a chance to say it.

Ksenia
Red was suddenly standing in front of me and extended his hand to me. I wiped away my tears while feeling really embarrassed. You're weak! You're showing him your weakness.. I took his hand and got up but avoided eye contact with him.
"Izvinite, vy nichego ne videli." The emotions made me switch to my native language and It made me even more embarrassed.
My eyes filled with tears again and I sighed deeply. Stop it!! Just stop crying! You're not a hopeless child anymore!
Once again I wiped away my tears and softly rubbed away some of the blood that had dried already.
"I'm sorry.."
I didn't know why I was apologizing, but it felt like the right thing to do after acting so differently.

*Sorry! I've been working non-stop on a final!

Ty-

"So your dad-"

But she cut me off before I could finish my question, "Yeah, he is." That was all she said and I could tell she didn't want to go into it any further. I didn't exactly want to start sharing stories either.

"I'm not much of a sports fan at any rate," I said.

We fell back in to silence and I hoped she didn't notice me stealing a glance at her every chance I got. I watched the way her hair swayed in the breeze and with her movement, the way her arms idled at her sides, and the way she tilted her head back as if in thought. She was graceful yet edgy. She looked more than capable of handling herself in any situation.

We were surrounded by forrest and the sun was dipping down below the horizon, leaving us in a husky glow.

"So why are you going to New York? I mean, besides just for the hell of it?" She asked, tucking her golden hair behind her ear.

I stuck my hands in my pocket to resist the urge to reach out and touch her. She was like a super charged magnet that I could resist, "Don't laugh, I'm auditioning for a show on Broadway. I know this girl who's doing the make up for the show, she worked with my..." I trailed off before I said 'my parents'. I had almost slipped. I shook my head and ran my hand through my hair.

"With your what?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"Nothing, it's nothing," I said, "So where are you headed?"

Red

She took my hand and stood, but tried not to look at me, embarrassed she'd been crying. She said...something in Russian.

"I'm sorry..."

"Sorry, for what? Having human emotions? Don't be. It's fine."

I pulled some Kleenex from my bag and offered them to her. she took a couple and dabbed at her arms.

"C'mon, let's go. We can't miss the bus!"

And with that we started off into the night.

Ksenia
I rubbed the Kleenex against my arms and tried not to fall while running next to Red. We both didn't say anything until we reached the road again. The gas station was only a few meters away and we sprinted the last part.
"Where are they?" I asked while looking around me paranoid.
The florescent lights annoyed me a bit and I tried to ignore the impulse to run away again. You shouldn't be here. You shouldn't have left the forest! The point was to run away from people, not bond with them!
I controlled my breathing a bit and started walking towards the gas station store with Red next to me. We both would have probably been better off in the forest or dead..
I was about to say that out loud when I remembered how he reacted last time I talked about dying.

Drea:
We didn't realize until the door opened that we were behind a rack of candies. I walked out to see kroshka and red standing by the door. Kroshkas arms were bleeding, and she had been crying. It comforted me to see reds arm around her.
"blue?" I called, "you got anymore of those bandages?" then I turned to kroshka and joined red in putting my arm around her,
"don't worry girl, well get you all fixed up."

((sorry it's so short))

Roxxie Onyx
I bit my lip and walked into the gas station my sweatshirt hood finally down honestly I didn't give care about my scars if they wanted to know let them ask I would tell them the truth. I walked to the back and looked up Drea was tending to Kroshka and Andy and Blue were standing off to the side. Red looked like he didn't want to leave Kroshaka's side but then he really didn't have choice at the moment. I heard Drea gasp and I saw she was looking at my burn scar's and I shook my head. "You'll know soon enough just take of her." I said quietly nodding at Kroshka. She hesitated nodded and turned back.
*Next time I post I'll post her story*

Ksenia
The others were standing behind a rack of candies. Drea came to us and put her arm around me while looking at my arms.
"don't worry girl, well get you all fixed up."
I was still holding the Kleenex in my hand and rubbed the fresh blood away.
"It's okay. Just a few scratches...We-we should get out of here.." I was wondering whether my eyes were still red from the crying and I looked down. You're weak.. I could vaguely hear my father telling me that crying was for the weak, for the people that were burdens to others. He was always kinda rude when it came to emotions. Crying was the worst.

I heard Drea gasp and turned around. The first thing I noticed were the scars on the girl.

Roxxie Onyx
"Tell me." Drea said quietly. I shook my head. "You have to take care of her." I insisted pointing at Kroshka. She shook her head "I'll be alright besides I want to know to." She insisted right back. I bit my lip wondering how they would react then reckless abandon came along with defiance. I pulled off my sweatshirt and held out my arms. They all gasped seeing the cigar and ciggarette marks along with many other scars. I then turned to them and showed them my back and they gasped againIknew what they were seeing white whipmarks laying over top each other. I turned to them and smiled a bitterly cold smile. "When I was 5 years old I kissed one of my friends who was a girl on the cheek and my father saw. He raged at me after she had left and I suppose he hit a spark of defiance and I started to shout back next thing I know I had my face pressed agains a wooden pot belly stove while he was screaming biblical phrases at me. They took me to the hospital 2nd degree not bad enough for a skin graph but bad enough to scar." Here I swallowed back the tears and traced the burn scars gently with my forefinger. " I was raised and lavished with love or at least that's what I thought. I knew there was something wrong I wasn't... shiny I guess or pretty. ThenI discovered I was bisexual and I did what I wanted to do. I brought my girlfriend home." Here I smiled still bitterly feeling tears track their way down my face. " My father screamed so loud when we kissed I thought he was going to pop a blood vessel his face turned so red. He took Anna home and when he came back... h-he forced me down on my knees and started to beat me with his belt. I remember screaming begging him to stop but he wouldn't and when he was finished he leaned by my ear and growled 'I'll beat it out of you I swear it.' That became a nightly occurence. Then Luna and I turned 15 a few days later we had a fight over her boyfriend and she stomped off. I didn't think about it." Here I sobbed quietly."I was walking till kind've ticked then t-then I saw blood outside of an alley. I looked inside and saw my beautiful twin sister her throat and stomach slit blood everywhere. I desperatley stumbled over and hugged her crying my eyes out. I don't remember anything after that except my father telling me I brought God's wrath upon the house then he started to beat me with vigor then finally I grabbed what I had and now I am here." I finished then I started to cry quietly.

Alan Wright

"Nothing, it's nothing." Of course it's not. "So where are you headed?"

His question took me by surprise. Quite frankly, I hadn't thought about it. I sighed, and ran my fingers through my long, tangled hair as I responded, "Far, far away from here' and fast."

"Why the rush?" He raised a curious eyebrow.

I don't know why I opened up. But I guess I had to tell someone. Why not him? Even though it was pretty obvious he hadn't told me one scrap of truth thus far. Yet something compelled me to trust him, and so I spoke.

"I came home this morning after an all nighter with some of the guys, and the house was torn apart." I let that sit in the air for a minute. "Everything was a wreck, and a bunch of things had been taken." Another pause, "And then I went in the kitchen, and I found my dad on the floor, dead." I felt a twitch in my nose, meaning tears were coming on. I cleared my throat to keep them from flowing, "So, I got what was left of money around the house, packed up, and left before any cops came along and tried to put me in some foster care home. And you know the rest of the story."

For the first time in my life, I understood what it felt like to really need a hug.

Ty-

I stopped walking and she took a few more steps then did the same. She looked up at me and I could tell from the glossy reflection of her eyes that she was holding back tears. I suddenly felt very pathetic. Here was this girl, this beautiful, scared, lost girl with real problems. And what was I complaining about? Becoming famous? At least my parents were alive. And they cared about me. And I hurt them. I reached out and brushed the hair from her eyes then slowly reached both my arms out and pulled her close to me.

We stood there for a long time with nothing but the sound of our breathing.

Then, abruptly, she pulled away.

"We should get going, find the others, I think I see a clearing up ahead," she said, and started walking again. At first her walk was slow, somber. Then she picked up her pase and went back to her forceful grace. I followed until the blaring lights of a road side gas station burned my retinas a left a soft buzzing sound in my ears. Alan pulled the door open, the muscles in her bi-cep flexing slightly, and we huddled inside, spotting the others. Everyone seemed to be...crying. I saw Alan roll her eyes out of the corner of mine and smiled to myself.

Then I saw it. At the back of the station, the coolers, stocked full. I surpassed the group of the others and pulled open one of the cooler doors, frosty, crisp air hitting me like a welcoming embrace. I stood in the breeze for a moment then grabbed a six pack and turned, scanning the shelves for something stronger. Rum, whiskey, I realized I didn't care, anything to get me drunk. Drunk was better than this backwards state of guilt and indecision.I stopped myself from grabbing a bottle of Tarantula and headed for the counter.

The elderly station attendant was trying hard to keep his eyes from falling shut. He stuck his hand out for my i.d. and I handed him my fake one. He gave it a once over, eyeing me skeptically, then passed it back and started ringing up the alcohol.

I looked up at the old television set suspended above the counter, the news was on but the sound was low. A human interest piece about a puppy finished and the chiseled face of a news anchor filled the screen. I froze as the words played across the bottom "'Tough Love' Prodigal son, Ty Griffith, still missing."

"Are you gunna pay or what?" the old man asked.

I handed him some cash and told him to keep the change before retreating outside.The almost fully formed night filled the sky and stars were starting to twinkle teasingly at me. I dropped my pack to the curb and rummaged through for my flask to pour the whiskey in. The burn of the first drink felt good and I took another before twisting the flask shut, tossing it in my pack, and popping open a beer. I sat on the curb next to the other five bottles, nestled in their cardboard cradle and took a long drink.

Alan came out of the gas station, "Ty?" she said.

I looked up at her and held out a unopened bottle, "want one?" I asked.

Alan Wright

The feeling of his arms lingered on me. Somehow he had known. He had seen through the cold outer shell. No one else ever had, ever could.

I was partially disgusted in myself. I was getting soft. Another part of me knew that I needed that. That I wanted that.

Until I saw the headline. It flashed across the TV screen. Maybe if the picture hadn't looked so much like him, maybe if they didn't have the same name, and maybe if I hadn't known he was lying all along, I wouldn't have thought anything of it. But the flicker of fear across his face caught me. And so now I know.

So, as I found myself watching his attempts to get himself drunk, I couldn't help but feel a little shock. Nobody's perfect, I had to remind myself.

"Want one?" Stupid colgate smile. I wondered absentmindedly how much his parents had paid for it. Probably millions. I hated being lied to. Not that he had any reason to tell me the truth. And to think I had been falling for this guy.

"Absolutely not." I had seen enough people get drunk in my lifetime to know that someone had to be the responsible one, "I didn't know you were twenty-one." My voice was almost bitter. Oh, of course, I would just be honored to share a drink with a famous little runnaway.

I wondered if he did it all for attention. Maybe that's what he was after. I shook my head and rolled my eyes. Pathetic.

"Oh, I'm not." He took another sip. His mind was slipping a little, I could tell.

"That's dangerous." I paused for a minute, "But you don't really care, do you? Mommy and Daddy Griffith can buy their little prince Ty out of anything." I don't know why I was so mad. And I should have known better than to fight with someone who was drunk, but yet as I walked back into the station I couldn't help but swing at the beer in his hand and feel slightly satisfied as it crashed to the ground.

Red

Ksenia and Drea and some other girl were talking, apparently the other girl was telling them why she ran/why she had those scars. I quietly removed myself for the situation. I really didn't want to have to tell why I ran away. It was just so...lame compared to theirs.

I wandered aimlessly through the aisles before I found a tube of Neosporin and bought it at the counter. When I returned to the trio of girls, I took one of Ksenia's arms.

"Just hold it out."

She complied and I yanked the cap off the little yellow tube and daubed little bits of the medicinal cream to the scrape wounds before repeating the process with the other arm.

"Now all we need're the bandages."

Drea:
Roxxie told her story, she was like the rest of us, lost, confused and trying to let herself be free. Then we went to work on Kroshkas arms. Not long after that, Alan came in, she seemed to think for a moment then went back outside. I looked at the clock, 10:09 we were starting to run out of time. Red backed out and found some neosporin, which he dabbed onto the girls arms.
"now all we'd need're the bandages" Blue brought over a few and we wrapped the girls arms. Suddenly I heard a crash,
"what the..." I muttered under my breath, and walked to the door, Alan trew it open looking steamed, behind her I saw Ty sitting on the curb, a bottle of alcohol in one hand, a smashed one on the ground, he looked confused. I moved past Alan and went over to Ty, I stood over him. Looking down at him I saw my old friend, Elliot*, in his eyes. The same brainwashed stare, the same glazed eyes, the heart wrenching reminder of what could happen. Ty tried to stand, but I pushed him back down onto the curb,
"Ahhhlann...?" his words were starting to slur. I grit my teeth and used the same voice I had used with Elliot when he was using,
"Get that crap out of your system, before you go in there and appologize."
I went inside and found Alan,
"Alan, I told him to get it out of his system, then to come apologize, but I know that you probably don't want to talk to him." her face was still angry and I continued,
"you want to talk about it?"

((just so y'all know, there's a star by Elliot because I do have a friend who this reminds me of and I changed his name. Sorry.))

Alan Wright

"Alan, I told him to get it out of his system, then to come apologize, but I know that you probably don't want to talk to him." She paused for a second, "You want to talk about it?"

I knew why it was bothering me now. It was the same look on his face that I had seen on my dad's every time he got drunk. Lost over my mother. I wonder what his majesty Ty's problem could possibly be.

"He reminded me of my dad, that's all. It just made me upset." I shrugged it off. Right now, his secret wasn't mine to tell.

"And your dad-"

I cut her off, "Was murdered. Was a drunk. Was the best father I could have ever asked for when he was sober. And was second best when he wasn't. End of story." Drea came over and pulled me into a hug. She didn't say anything more, but sat there and just held me. And right now, that was all I needed.

We both straightened up when we heard the screech of a bus outside. "Some on, we better go." Drea spoke, and I stood up with her.

Everyone else seemed to have heard the bus, and slowly we all began to walk outside.