Cuddle Application

3 - Fran's and Ex-Friends

I just wanted to go home and sleep.

I reached for a car door on the blue Bug that belongs to Cora, but the handle clicked when I pull it and made no advance towards opening. I grumbled and dropped my backpack, leaning against the back of the car. The sun had warmed the metal, and I closed my eyes.

Cora lived in a wealthier neighborhood. The houses were all looming and bright, with large windows that showed off the expensive furniture inside and balconies jutting out from second and third floors. Some had massive, white pillars rising to the full length of the house, giving them a White-House architectural feel.

I lived in a smaller neighborhood with less impressive houses, but my home was still beautiful. Lina and I became next-door neighbors when she moved in two houses down roughly a year after we'd met. It had been one of the greatest moments of our little, prepubescent lives.

We lived in a town called Helaci, Oregon, which was just under Oregon City. With a population of 6,708, we weren't a tiny town, but Helaci still held a lot of small-town stereotypes and drama. A large percent of the population was elderly, but the only adults present were the ones who could get jobs. Helaci was older - a town based on a previous mining area. Now it was a mix between new and old, struggling to find its niche. Jobs were not in abundance, so looking to the future often included looking outside where we lived.

A large portion of Helaci were kids or teenagers that couldn't wait to graduate and leave. It was not a town of future promise, though I did love it.

There were two schools on opposite sides of the river, which created a rivalry on each side. The most significant difference was if you were looking for trouble, my school, Helaci High, focused on alcohol, and the other school, Pemberson High, named after the first mayor, Mr. Pemberson, focused on drugs.

We were rivals, but I never minded to that, considering we all came from one middle school. Most things in Helaci depended on what side of the river you were on.

Towards the north side of town, Helaci River was a rough Rapids area, housing a small waterfall that tumbled from the tall, rocky hills into a bubbly pool of wavy currents. The river traveled its way, smooth and gentle, into town, where it created a vast, majestic lake and the base of the town before becoming a river once more and traveling further south. Most of the big events and parties happened on the river.

I was still thinking about Helaci when my friends finally stepped out of the house.

"What took you so long?" I asked impatiently. "I couldn't even wait in the car because it was locked."

I was fully aware of how I was acting, but what Cora had said earlier about Josh was untrue, and it always made me mad when they talked about Josh as if they even knew him. And to add to that, I was seriously hungry and hungover.

"Sorry," Lina said softly, bright blue eyes looking down at the ground. "And, we deleted the account."

Cora, however, smirked while unlocking the car. As the vehicle beeped and I opened the door, I wasn't sure I believed either one of them. Cora's face looked like she was up to no good, but that wasn't unusual because the girl usually was.

I didn't dwell too hard on it, however, because I was never revisiting the shitty website, my drunken websurfing be damned.

The ride to school was quiet and tension-filled. I ignored both of them, feeling somewhat of an outsider with both of my friends. I didn't understand why they cared about my decision to ignore the cuddle account. The whole thing was probably bullshit, a way for creepy guys and perverts to find their next victim. It was like online dating but worse. Why would anyone want to cuddle with someone they don't know? I couldn't understand why anyone would sign up for such a thing, and the fact that I'd never heard of it before added to my feeling of doubt.