Anthízo, Percy Jackson

VII. she would never be alone

WHEN KARINA WAS ten, she met a girl named leah.

karina had ridden her bike to the farmer's market earlier that day to submit all of the fresh strawberries and vegetables that had sprouted just earlier that morning, and to receive her and her dad's monthly pay for their contribution to the market. that's the only way they survived on their farm— growing, selling, and receiving pay.

she loved the atmosphere of the small stands all cramped and lined up together to form a makeshift shop for her little towns' residents. she'd admire all the different types of people and families that roamed through, ranging from broke college students that were studying agriculture or botany at the local college just about 30 minutes away from town, to families of five browsing around on their day off, letting their kids pick out different assortments of fruit and and organic chocolate. 

watching these people made younger karina feel so insignificant to the town around her. everyone had a life different than her's, all of them going to a different place, with different people who are also living a separate life from her. even at her young age, karina's mind had matured to a very high level, and as she watched kids (the same age as her) stumble and laugh around the market, she realized that she would never be like them. she was never a small, air-headed toddler who got their parents to do everything for them. she never got to be dependent on her motherly figure to pick her up after she fell, or got to sit on her father's shoulder's as they traveled through the streets of town at night, admiring the quiet calm that her town possessed in the late hours. she was never allowed to live out a childhood.

she was always, and forever will be, alone.

"excuse me?" a voice called from behind karina, startling the small girl as she whipped her head around, turning to see a girl, about the same age and size as her, staring at karina with excitement in her eyes.

the girl was wearing a pair of denim overalls, with a plaid red and white shirt underneath, the sleeves rolled up. she had a bushel of crazy, and beautiful curls sat atop her head, wrapping up in a bandana to keep out of her face. she had smooth, dark skin, and her eyes reminded karina of copper— shiny and bright. she had a huge smile on her face, and tucked underneath her arm was a weaved wicker basket, with an assortment of fruits and seeds collected inside of it. karina realized that she had the strawberries from her farm, and she felt her a small smile accumulate onto her face.

"h—hi," karina said nervously, shifting the bag of sunflower seeds from her right arm to her left. she tried to make herself seem less nervous, but it was obvious that she was anxious. karina didn't get to interact with people besides her father very often, so having this girl come up to her with such excitement made her nervous, and she didn't want to mess anything up.

"hi!" the girl beamed, extending her hand. "i'm leah, and i live on bruster street, just down the road from here."

karina didn't notice her hand shaking until she connected it with leah's, making the girl's hand tremble as well. "i—i'm karina," she said as calmly as she could, trying to smile without seeming scared.

"nice to meet you!" the girl exclaimed. "i noticed that you sell the strawberries from that stand over there," she pointed to one of the stands in the corner, where everyone seemed to be crowded around. "and i just found it strange that a girl my age is the one who raises those— considering how good they are!"

karina's face looked quizzical, as if she were confused on why so many people were trying to get to her crops. "are they really that good?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

leah looked at her with a confused look. "have you never tried them?"

karina shook her head.

the girl's face turned shocked. "you've never tried your own crops?"