" The Angel Boy "

" The Party "

I woke up at 5:13AM and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. Today was November 7th, Z's birthday. I yanked the blankets off of me and embraced the cold air, suddenly feeling the hurt in my stomach.
I curled up into myself, before getting up and grabbing an antacid. I grabbed a Spylt from the fridge and shook it gently before drinking it. I started waking up a bit, and went to take a shower. As I rubbed the suds away from my body, I thought.
Z had been my best friend for around seven to eight years, and she had always been a bit.. self-centered, I suppose you could say. We hadn't been talking much recently, but I was still invited to her birthday party.
I wasn't sure what to get her, so I just picked a card that I thought matched her, and wrote inside it. "Happy 12th birthday!" I continued to buy some Mini Brand capsules and other items I thought maybe she would like. Quickly, I grabbed a Squishmallow that was scented like coffee, I knew she liked coffee, and threw it in the gift bag.
I sighed, and got in the car. I sat in the front seat and drew on my iPad as we drove to the party. On the highway, I peered out the windows admiring the scenery, and I thought I saw someone picking roses, but once I closed my eyes and reopened them, they were gone.
I laughed a little to myself, before continuing to draw the figure I had seen picking roses. Obviously, I was in the car, and I was no artist in any way. The lines, shakey, were curved to the best of my ability and slowly formed a body. I drew the eyes, circular, and slowly added eyelashes.
Before I knew it, we were at the party. My mom dropped me off to go to the mall, and left me outside to go say hello to Z. I knocked on the door, and when it opened I greeted her. "Hey Z!"
"Ver!" It was one of my less preferred names, but I allowed it since we had known each other since what felt like forever. "Hiii!" I waved back, and stepped inside.
The grey wood floor had replaced the old dark brown wood, and a long rug went down the hallway. Going down the hallway, ignoring the stairs to the right of me, I glanced around her house, taking it in, reminiscing on the other times we had played here. The small bathroom to the left in the hallway, across from the shoe closet they would barely ever open.
I set my waterbottle on the ledge opening next to their couch. It was a gaping hole in the wall with a laminated wood plank acting as a shelf. I set my present on the floor over next to the sliding door which led to her balcony, as the other presents were also there.
I set my eyes on the kitchen table, where there were many patches and letters and decor. I got a bit overwhelmed, and took some deep breaths. Oh, how I wish my mom was here right now.. There were many other girls here, and I knew them all, and yet.. Z had spoken to all of them, and I had started to feel left out, as usual.
Before the tears in my eyes could start to pour, I ran out of the front door and down the hill. I ran to the trail down the street from her house and into the woods, jumping over logs, almost stumbling and falling over my feet, until I made it far from her house.

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