How Do You Do?

17: The New Change

Sick Boy Soldier -Palaye Royale

Waking up, the first thought in my mind is panic. The nightmares still come, though not every night, but they get worse. I rush to the bathroom and empty my stomach. Feeling the acid in my throats for the third morning in a row makes me roll my eyes as I finally compose myself, cleaning up after my mess.
    Looking in the mirror, I sniff, a lock of my red hair falling in my face.

  Hair as red as yours simply makes me go wild.

   I scream loudly and crash my hand down onto the glass, where Rick smirks knowingly at me. His reflection shatters, pieces of the mirror flying off and a few embedding themselves in my hand. His words ring in my head, repeating over and over, and I look back in the mirror to see my reflection, crying. I stumble away from the mirror, covering my heard to stop the words. My back slams into a wall, and I slide down it to sit on the bathroom floor. I don't notice Clara and Auggie weeping at the doorway, not do I notice Alice staring at me scared. All I can think, even after I calm down, is that I need a change, after everything that he did and said. So as I stare at my red hair, all I can think is, a change is good.

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

Remington

I get a frantic call from Clara, the little angel, saying that Stevie had a break down and smashed her mirror with her hand while screaming. I let out a string of cusses once I hang up, quickly throwing on a pair of jeans and my leather jacket, and grab my keys for my motorcycle, making my way out of my house, telling Seb and Em that I'll be back in a bit.
Waiting outside is Tawnie. I mentally roll my eyes. "Hey stranger," she purrs, and I smirk.
"Sup, Tawnie." Though she's after me, we're friends, so I just ignore when she flirts.
"What're you up to?" She leans on me at this, and I move away before she latches onto my arm. I don't do clingy.
"I'm just going out," I respond, not really wanting to tell Tawnie. It's none of her business anyway.
"To see a girl," she asks, the jealously in her voice and written all over her face in a frown. I don't respond, cause I have no reason to lie. She tsks, and shoves passed me, hard.
"What the hell," I hiss, stumbling a bit. Her attitude is really starting to puss me off. She spins around, looking angry.
"I come all the way here to see you and you're just going to run off to some little skank? I can't believe you!"
"She's not a skank!" I snap, getting angry. Not like you. (Okay, quick note, I think Tawnie is super sweet and I'm no way do I think she is a bad person, it's just for the sake of the book)
"Sure, she just takes away all of your free time. I bet you she starts to cry when you leave." My mind flashes to the image of Stevie, tearing up as I left the other day. I clench my jaw, making Tawnie laugh. "See? And she probably clings to you when you try to leave." I say nothing, knowing it's true. But she went through a traumatic experience. "One day you won't be able to leave, Rem, and you'll be miserable. You're a free spirit, you don't do strings attached. Why don't you save her the heart break now, and save yourself the trouble?" My mind kicks into overdrive, and I realize that Tawnie is a little bit right. I'll only end up hurting Stevie, and she'll get attached. I'll only end up disappointing her. I mount my bike, tossing my extra helmet to Tawnie.
"Get on."

•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•.•

Stevie

With Greyson watching the angels for a few hours and after I've gotten eight stitches in my left hand, I make my way to Fusion, or in other words, my part time job. The hair salon is how I pay off my mother's debt, and the people who work there are like family to me.
When I enter, May, a small blonde girl with a halo of curls and massive mossy green eyes, squeals and launches herself at me. "Evie! I've missed you so much!" Her eyes well up with tears. I smile at my sensitive friend.
  "Hi, May!" I squeal back, hugging her with the same amount of force she's hugging me with.
   "How was New York?! Was it fun?! Did you improve on your art like you've always wanted?!" I smile, and nod.
  "I did. New York was really inspiring, and it was like a dream." My heart starts to ache for the place where my problems had ceased to exist. "But I'm actually here to get a change."
  May's eyes widened. "B-but you love your red hair!" My smile doesn't move, but I feel my eyes darken, Rick's face flashing through my mind. My hands wrap around a strand of my wild crimson hair.
   "I used to. Now it disgusts me." The sharpness in my voice makes the small girl flinch.
   "Evie? What did I miss while you were gone?"
   "Tell you what," I breathe, relaxing so that my smile is genuine. "I'll fill you in while you do my makeover."
   May smiles brightly. "It's a deal."

  And so I fill her in, her gasps, anger, and pity building up in my eyes and pouring down my heels in small waterfalls, and I don't find the strength to stop.
   "But I met someone through all of this," I tell May, a blush creeping up onto my cheeks. May makes kissy noises at me, and I laugh at her. "You hush," I tease. "But he's kind, he treats the kids like they're angels from heaven, and he doesn't care about my history. It's almost too perfect."
   "Well, take it where you can get it, honey," he calls over the blow dryer. "You may not get another guy like that." I smile.
   "Okay, you're all done," she says, pulling off the cover. "I'm surprised your curls are still as vibrant as always after all that bleaching." I flip my now platinum blonde locks over my shoulder, and grin at it's beautiful shimmer.
"We look like sisters now," I tease, and May laughs.
  "Alice could pass as your kid now," she jabs back, and I nod my head in agreement. I mean, it's true.
   I pay and hug May goodbye, promising to return to work soon before heading back home.
   The entire way home, I smile brighter than I have in the passed few weeks combined. I'm so elated that I practically skip inside my home, not noticing Remington's bike.
   When I enter the house, the  triplets stampede me, cooing over my hair, Alice being the happiest about it.
   "Now I don't look like the odd one out!" Alice cheers, hugging me tightly, while Auggie and Clara aren't too bothered, considering their hair shades are close enough to each other's to not look like their the new odd ones.
   "Remmy's here," Clara says shyly, and Alice nods in agreement. My heart skips a beat, and I immediately start my journey to our living room.
   "Wait--- Evie!" Auggie says, grabbing my arm to slow me down.
   "Stop!" Alice yelps, jumping in front of me to try and halt my moving.
   "I wasn't done!" Clara calls from behind us.
  "What is i--" before I can look at them, something else catches my eye. Red. Very red.
   Remington is here, like they said, but so is another woman, a  red head who's all over him, which Rem doesn't seem to mind. I start to feel hollow as I watch her hands travel across his chest in a seductive manner, while he smirks down at her and bites his lip

I knew it was too god to be true.

Happy Valentine's Day! I'm breaking hearts XD