Second Chance

Chapter 7: Singing Realization

Lenny drove carefully down the abandoned road, we had all piled into her van and were sitting in silence, "When I Was Your Man" by Bruno Mars playing on the radio.

The song was about how the guy didn't treat his girlfriend right, and she breaks up with him, and he accepts that he was in the wrong. Although there is one part of the song that, well...

"Oh, I know I'm probably much too late."

"To try and apologize for may mistakes."

Those lyrics discribed perfectly how horrible I felt for what I'd done.

"OH! I HOPE HE BUY'S YOU FLOWERS!" The girls were singing. "I HOPE HE HOLDS YOUR HAND! GIVES YOU ALL HIS HOURS, WHEN HE HAS THE CHANCE! TAKES YOU TO EVERY PARTY, CAUSE' I REMEMBER HOW MUCH YOU LOVE TO DANCE! DO ALL THE THINGS I SHOULD HAVE DONE, WHEN I WAS YOUR MAN!"

The song ends and suddenly Velvet's song "Perfect" started playing.

The song she'd written for Orchid.

Lenny switches off the radio and just stares ahead.

Everyone was silent.

Someone clears their throat and we all just sit there.

Orchid turned the radio back on and switched the channels.

"Can't believe, the world that you-"

She switches the channel before the guy singing could sing "revealed to me".

"Wait, let it play." Lenny switches the channel back to "Stronger Together".

"I feel, the same." The other singer, (a girl because it feels like there's a rule that all love songs have to be sung by a man and a woman which is stupid) "You push me through the doubt, the pain. And as our paths collide, again. I know what to do..."

"Take my hand!" The man sang.

"As we stand! Let's face the world!" They both sang. "There is nothing that can defeat us!"

My hands grip my jeans tightly, I didn't want to cry. Not again. Not for what seems to be for the billionth time this month. But a tear rolls right on down anyway.

Velvet's perspective:

I look over at Veneer sitting next to me, a tear was rolling down his cheek.

Oh my God. I thought.

"Turn it off." I hiss, reaching towards the radio and switching the channels.

I knew the history behind that song. It was their song. Or at least it used to be. Back when we were all in high school.

I missed those years. Back when everything was easier, when things were simple.

When things seemed perfect.

Even though they weren't, I'd been an abusive sister. Hitting him, screaming at him. That wasn't perfect.

It was terrible.

I carried that guilt, I have been for so long.

I was stupid. I made a stupid decision, a horrible decision.

I felt so dumb that I actually thought karma would never come.

But it did, and now I have to deal with the consequences.

And if that means solving this and going to prison for fifteen years, then I'm going to have to do just that. Sure it sucked, but it's what needs to happen. I need to punish myself for what I've done. I almost killed someone. I need to deal with that and straighten myself, and my life, out. And I need to try, at least try, to rekindle my relationship with Orchid, work on my relationship with Veneer, and make up for my past mistakes.

I didn't know how to do that yet, but I'll have to find a way to. It's a necessary decision that I need to make.

I knew that me and Veneer would probably get more time in jail due to our running away, but I can deal with that too.

I'm going to have to. I can't hide from my problems. It's just something that I need to stop.

I need to fix myself, my life, my relationships. Everything.

We drive into a city, and I realized.

We were in the suburbs.

Alright! So if anyone's wondering about Velvet's and Veneer's new looks: