Forgotten

Part 4

Alexis' POV:

I woke up the next morning, feeling like shit.  I had barely slept at all.  I had spent most of the night shivering.  Plus, I kept hearing strange noises, that left me way too scared to even think about sleeping.

I was cold, and tired, and hungry.  Everything was starting to get to me.

And to make things worse, I was in pain.  Every time I so much as breathed or moved, I would feel a sharp stabbing, pain radiating from my ribs.  

And the large gash on my forehead wasn't healing very well either.  It was infected.  And I had no way of cleaning it.  And every time it would start to heal, I would accidentally rub it or bump it, ripping it open again.  

I felt like I was on the verge of dying.  I was losing hope.  And I honestly didn't know how much more I could endure.

In short... I was just plain fucking miserable.  And I was beginning to think that I had just traded one nightmare for another.  Sure I was glad to be away from Cal, but this was its own type of hell.

Slowly, I got up from the cold concrete that was my bed and began my day in the usual fashion.  Digging through the dumpster.  I knew it was a pathetic thing to do.  And it hurt my pride, and I felt embarrassed, like a fucking loser, but I knew I had to do it.  I didn't have a choice.  Now is not the time for pride, I tried to remind myself.

I let out a loud sigh, as I dug through layer after layer of disgusting filth, in hopes of finding a diamond in the rough.  As I was digging, something strange happened.  I suddenly felt a presence.  I immediately stopped dead in my tracks and didn't move a muscle.  I slowly looked  up.  I squinted to get a better look.

It was her.  The pretty lady.  Standing there.  Looking at me.  Again. 

I was suddenly overtaken by panic.  Not knowing what else to do, I immediately dropped the garbage that was in my hands and ran as fast as I could and hid in a dark corner of the alley.  I hid as far back as I could, and made my body look as small as possible.  Not moving a muscle.  Not even breathing.  I was absolutely terrified.

What did she want?  And why did she keep coming here?  Did she want to hurt me?  Rob me?  Maybe she was a spy that Cal hired, to find me and take me back.  All I knew for sure, was that it couldn't be good.

I waited for a long time, what felt like forever, until I was sure she had finally left.  I waited until I felt like it was safe.  And after what felt like a long, long time, I cautiously peered around the corner.  

She was gone.  The coast was clear.  I leaned against the brick wall of an old building and let out a huge sigh of relief, glad that it was over.

But, all of a sudden, something caught my eye.  I noticed a large bag sitting on the ground.  I knew it wasn't there before.  I was sure of that.  

There was only one logical conclusion. The pretty lady must have left it.  For me.  But why?  What was it?  

Finally, my curiosity got the best of me.  I looked around, making sure no one was watching, then cautiously went over to the bag.

I peered in it.  The only thing I could see, was a blue blanket.  I quickly grabbed the bag, and took it to the back of the alley.

Once I was in the safety of the dark shadows of the alley, I carefully removed the soft blanket, and underneath it, was a note.

'I hope you can use these.  Your friend, Nikki.'

Nikki.  Her name was Nikki.  And she said in the note, that she was my friend.  But, I didn't know any Nikki's.  And I didn't have any friends.  So, I wasn't exactly sure what she was talking about.  It seemed strange.  It was all so confusing and there were just so many unanswered questions.  But I shook it out of my mind, because I knew these were questions I had no way of answering.  At least, not right now.

I turned my attention back to the bag.  And began to rummage through it, to see what else was in it.

My heart began to race when I saw the next item. There, laying right in front of my very eyes, was folded up air mattress and a pump.  A small smile graced my lips, and a tinge of excitement ran through my body, as I knew this was something I could definitely use.  More than anyone could ever know.  In fact, it was nothing short of a Godsent.

I couldn't move fast enough, as I quickly dug through the rest of the bag, in anticipation of what else I would find.

It had everything!  A pillow.  A heavy coat.  An umbrella.  And food, lots of food - bagels, peanut butter, Nutella, apples, and grape Gatorade.

My hands started to shake, and I could hardly contain my excitement, as I felt my eyes begin to well up with tears.  

There were so many things!  And I desperately needed all of them.  

Just when I was at my lowest point, and I didn't think things were ever going to get any better.  For me to have such luck, seemed unreal.  And I can honestly say, in all my entire life, I've never been more grateful.  Never in my life, did I need something as much as I needed this.

But immediately, another feeling washed over me.  I suddenly began to get nervous about getting robbed. Oh God, what would I do if that happened?  I needed these things.  I just couldn't let that happen.  I quickly started shoving everything back into the bag, as fast as I could, when I realized there was something else in the bottom, that initially, I hadn't seen.  

It was a notepad and pen.  The same notepad that Nikki had used to write my note.

-

Nikki's POV:

I trudged through another day of work.  But, I couldn't even concentrate on my shoot.  My mind was on the young girl.  I hoped she had gotten the bag full of supplies I had left this morning.  I had wanted to wait to make sure she had gotten it, but I knew she wouldn't come out until I left.

I knew it wasn't much, but I had hoped it would help.

I had somehow gotten through another day, and started walking home.  After a few minutes, I approached the alley where I always saw the young girl.

I looked around, but she wasn't there.  I was disappointed because I had hoped to see her.  Just to make sure she was still Ok.  

I looked around again.  But, still no sign of her.  I waited a minute or two for her to appear, but she didn't.  So, not knowing what else to do, I kept walking.  

Then, all of a sudden, I heard something crunch underneath my foot.  I looked down.  A nervous excitement began to pump through my body, when I realized what it was.  

I quickly bent down and picked it up.  It was a piece of paper from the same notepad I had given to the young girl. 

She had left me a note.

'Thank you.  Alexis.  But, you can call me Lexi.'

A small smile spread across my face.  I read it again, then quickly shoved the note in my pocket.  I looked around.  And sure enough, I saw a small figure hiding in the shadows, watching me.  But, as soon as she saw me looking at her, she immediately got scared and ran away.

I took my note pad and pen out of my purse, and scribbled down a note, and left it in the alley.

'You're welcome, Lexi.  Your friend, Nikki.'