Romeo Save Me

Candles

Zora was sitting by herself in her bedroom, moping. She didn't really want to go to work today, as much as she knew she had to. Today was her least favorite day of all- her birthday. Today, she was officially twelve.

Another year older, another year just as sad.

She heard her Father knocking on her door and knew that she couldn't hide in her room any longer. She changed quickly into a long-sleeved shirt and a pair of jean shorts. She clipped a small barrette in her hair and forced a smile as she exited her bedroom.

There, her Father stood outside waiting, just like she knew he would be. He was holding a tray of orange juice and her favorite oatmeal, her favorite meal. On any day, she would have loved it, but not today.

Not on her birthday.

"Good morning, Zor Zor!" He greeted in his usual chipper tone, thrusting the tray over to her. The 12-year-old just sighed and rejected the tray, "No thanks, Dad." She said sadly, earning a frown from her Father. The man set the tray down on the nearest table, "But it's your birthday."

"Yeah." She sighed, "I know."

Knowing exactly what she was thinking, he wrapped her in a hug and held her close to his chest, "You know it has nothing to do with you, right?" He explained, kissing her on the forehead.

"I miss her." She admitted, "But Dad, how can you miss someone you never got the chance to know?"

"Oh, Zora..." He started to cry himself, "She loved you so much."

"Tell me more about her, Dad. What was she like?"

"Your Mother was...persistent." He explained, "She never let anything stand in her way."

The two stayed silent for a moment, the man squeezing her tightly. Letting her go, he smiled at his daughter, "We have to go. You have rehearsals today, right?"

Zora wiped away one more tear and nodded yes. She took her Father's hand and walked to the car with him. She arrived a few minutes late to work but didn't care all that much. Her castmates didn't see anything to her, as they all remembered what day it was. She had to fake a smile through all the sketches when really all she wanted to do was cry.

She was relieved when Marshell called cut, and the cast was released for lunch. Zora grabbed her lunch card and walked ahead of the others. She ordered the smallest portion of (what looked like) fuzzy beans. The lunch lady, who usually treated the Randoms like garbage, seemed concerned about the girl. The 12-year-old girl took a seat away from her cast, completely ignoring her pitiful tray of food.

Across the other end of the Commissionary, Sonny was watching the girl with concern. She hated seeing Zora this way, and so she made her way over to the girl and slid in across from her. She reached across the table and placed a hand atop Zora's, in an attempt to soothe her. The brunette knew perfectly well what was going on, and she just wished she could be noticed by the girl. But no, Sonny was a wallflower. The brunette gripped the girl's hand tighter, knowing that even though she could feel the contact, Sonny was invisible to the eye. Just another common face.

A warmth spread through Zora's body as she felt something...someone? Grab her hand. The girl should've been scared. But for whatever reason...she wasn't. Her hand relaxed at the contact and she even managed a smile. Sonny smiled right back, happy to see the little twinkle in Zora's eyes once more.

And then...for a moment...the 12-year-old saw something. Her eyes went wide as she saw a figure of a girl, smiling up at her. She pulled her hand away and looked side-to-side, wondering if this was some sort of joke. But when she turned back around, the girl was gone. When in reality, Sonny had just gotten up and walked over to Chad's table. He smiled at the sight of her and pulled up a chair for the girl.