Letters From Nikita

Riley was never the kind of girl that shot up out of bed singing along with the morning birds; her movement was more along the line of a slow snail dragging across the floor. Sooner or later, she managed to make it to the bathroom. She wasn't really one for impressing people either. Riley did what she felt like and this morning, she felt like wearing a tank top and sweat pants to school.

It was the middle of her junior year at Claremont High. Like every other day, after she got ready, she headed out to the kitchen. Her little sister was sitting at the table in her blue, ruffled knee-length dress eating her breakfast. Her silky, blonde hair was loosely pulled back into a soft, French braid that their mother had most likely done. It seemed like the only thing that Kayla, Riley's sister, managed to inherit from Vivian, Riley's mother, was her long, silky blonde hair. Other than her hair, Kayla was the spitting image of Cameron, Riley's father.

Riley, on the other hand, was almost exactly like her mother. Riley, once, had the long, soft blonde hair her mother has, but she started dyeing it in the eighth grade to a beautiful, bright copper color. She has her mother's hazel/green eyes and pale skin.

"Good morning, Kayla," Riley said as she walked past her younger sister.

"Morning, Sissy." Kayla had said with a slight trouble, considering she has lost a front tooth the night before. Kayla had been wiggling it for week, but it didn't seem to want to come out.

"Good morning, Mom." Riley said as she slid past Vivian to get to the Trix cereal.

"Good morning, Riley." Vivian said to Riley. It was obvious that Vivian was still half-asleep.

They all ate their breakfast in silence. Riley was off to school first, and she felt like walking. The bus was over-crowded and all around unpleasant.

Riley kicked rocks along the side of the road as she continued on the path that she took five days a week, every week. Although, something was different today. She found a deflated balloon on the side of the road with a note attached to it. Riley was familiar with this kind of thing. They had to do it for a guidance lesson once. People write things on notes and, then, release them to fly away, symbolizing a kind of freedom from their secrets or regret. Of course, she had to know what was inside the note.

Dear whoever reads this,

My name is Nikita Shin. I'm from Corona, California, and I'm almost eighteen. I've spent most of my life alone, and I'm ready to be done. Call this a suicide note, if you wish. God only knows what kind of creep gets to open this letter and laugh at my sorrow, but this letter isn't for you. It's more for me. I've heard of people letting balloons go with a letter. Apparently, it gives a sense of relief, but I wouldn't know quite yet. I plan on finishing my temporary stay [I hate the word suicide] in a week. It's not like I have much to lose, nor am I much to lose. My mother is self-concerned, and I only have one friend who can easily live without me.

IF you're reading my note, I'm sorry to burden you with the thought in the back of your mind that some little teenager is killing herself in a week, but it was your destiny to pick up the note. I left a return address if you want to scream at me or talk to me or just to egg my house. If you plan on egging my house, you might want to come up with something else. You're lacking originality because my house had been egged more than once. It's also been TPed.

With love,

Nikita

Riley was speechless. It was her destiny to be nosy and pick up the letter. She didn't know what to do. Should she write back or should she just trash the letter? A girl's life was going to end in an week.

On the back of the piece of paper, Nikita's photo was printed and her address was written beside it. Nikita was gorgeous. She had short ,brown hair, and beautiful, deep brown eyes. Her meek smile made Riley smile. She couldn't let Nikita do it. Riley had to send a letter back. Riley looked down at the time. It was five minutes before the tardy bell rang. Riley picked up all of her stuff and hit the ground running.

She slid into her seat in first period just as the bell rung.

"Smooth one," Andrea said, once Riley was settled in.