Karma Bites

Softened Hearts

The next night

"The boy with the blue hair received the notes, I saw." The messenger stood in my doorway, when I said I couldn't talk to anyone, I meant in the daytime and to anyone outside of the white cardigans.

In the distance were cries of pain from some kid getting 'punished'. I'd been there many times, it wasn't my favourite experience surprisingly. Thankfully I wasn't known for that - I was the reason we didn't have our nighttime milk in glass containers anymore, glass bottles, glass trays, glass cups...all of it.

I sat on my bed with my head in my hands trying to block out the screams "t-thank you for doing that. It means a lot, can someone tell that kid to die quieter please? We all managed to do it" the girl fiddled with the plastic milk bottle in her hands unsure of what I wanted her to do next, it was actually quite amusing the way she did it.

She bit her cheeks and tried her hardest not to make eye contact while her fingers drummed the little cap of the half empty bottle. She lasted about 13 seconds before she spoke again "you realise everyone calls you 'milky', right? What exactly did you do?"

A sigh escaped my lips "I smashed the cups each time and stashed the shards, then I hospitalised a few of the staff with the tray...and I full on stabbed 3 people with a broken milk bottle. It was reckless, I wasn't thinking about anyone else or how they could use it to get out of here. I'm sorry?"

A sweet smile came across her face "so what can we do with plastic?" I raised my hands in surrender "oh no, not again! I'm not being known as 'plastic milky'!" She practically begged me to tell her "oh come on! Please? For our sakes?" She passed me the bottle to examine it carefully

"I suppose you could tear the plastic into shards? Stick them together somehow and make some sort of blade? Or choke them with it? Shove the cap down their throat? I don't know, there's a reason it's plastic" she seemed stunned by my ideas "now I see it, you mentally separate the components and think what you could do with them individually?"

Reluctantly I nodded before sipping my own milk, it was their way of trying to show us that they 'deserved' our trust like a child would trust a parent - so like parents, they gave us milk before lights out no matter how old we got. And yet, if we did treat them like our parents...they'd 'punish' us for doing what they desired?

Once the messenger was satisfied, she got up to leave but I had one last request to make "there's just one more thing I need..." I could see the regret on her face "I almost got caught today" I tilted my head gesturing to her empty bottle "and I just gave you a potential way out"

She gave me the signal that the girl was listening "I need my wooden knives, the ones 'mother' was blabbing about?" I put on my best puppy dog eyes pleading with her guilt to trip "ugh...fine! Fine. I'll get you your stupid knives, just take me with you if you manage to break out, okay?"

I grinned like the maniac I was made out to be "Deal! Now go bed before we get caught. No ones meant to be up walking around let alone in here" she ducked her head out checking if the coast was clear before shuffling down the hall clutching her milk bottle in her hands anxiously.

We all bore the same plain stone ashy grey nightshirt and shorts, if our hair was long enough - it was required to be tied back in some way and the staff wouldn't do it for you even if you snitched on all the shady stuff we do here. And usually they'd give anything to find out who's keeping weapons or illegal substances like I used to.

I used to be the queen of Ketamine! I'd drug the adults so kids could steal their goodies out their pockets but back then I wasn't the smartest and I accidentally put it in my milk resulting in me dropping to the floor in an unconscious state drawing a lot of attention.

I used to have other stuff too but there was nothing quite like Ketamine, just watching the adults flop face first into the easy-wipe flooring and a swarm of grey smother them then be gone like nothing ever happened. It was pure artwork!

"Lights out" the room fell into darkness as I swallowed the last drop of milk "Let me finish my milk first!" It wasn't like they heard me over the other moaning girls, but they never heard us any other time either so what did it matter?

I slid under my thin sheets and faced the wall in spite like I usually did. This would've been a great opportunity to swallow zinc which was my only skin care routine that I ever had in here, but like all the rest of my toys - suspended on suspicion of being a threat or danger to others or myself.