(Riley's POV)
I was engulfed in my Papa's arms as soon as I stepped into the cramped, little house of mine.
"Oh, my dear boy!" He whispered as if I'd been lost for days. He stroked my hair, kissing my forehead. "What's that you got?"
I held up the basket that Mrs. Nickson had given to me. In it were various medicines, bars of soap, and an envelope. "Nathan's mom gave it to me."
He looked skeptical as he accepted the basket with a nod. "Alright, I'll look through it. Are you alright? Why are you wearing those clothes?"
I'd almost forgotten I was decked out in expensive clothing. My skin and hair were the cleanest they'd ever been and I smelled like a flower bed. "I took a bath."
Papa tilted his head, but he didn't inquire further. With a solemn sigh, he tousled my hair with affection. "I'm sorry, Riley."
"What for?" My eyes widened in surprise.
"I let you down. I let you all down." He stared at the basket. "I managed to get some food. Go ahead and eat; the rest is yours." Before I could inform him that I'd had a hefty meal already, he retreated into his room where Momma lay sick. Still. I prayed one of those medications worked for her.
I walked into the room that I shared with my siblings. Ricky was asleep on the makeshift bed on the ground. The twins were on the mattress slab on the other end of the room, covered with thin blankets. Ryan was awake, rocking eight-year-old Ria to sleep. Her eyes were half open.
When Ryan saw me, his eyes lit up happily. "Oh, thank God you're back," he quietly rejoiced. I dropped my backpack, still standing in the doorway.
"Are those Nathan's clothes?" Ryan asked, squinting his eyes.
"Yeah, he let me have them. Two outfits actually."
"Did he... did he give you food?"
I nodded and Ryan smiled. "Did you bring any home?"
Guiltily, I rubbed my arm up and down. "Not exactly..."
His eyes saddened in understanding. "Oh... s-sorry, I thought..." He was disappointed, I could tell. I couldn't bear to look him in the eyes. "We ate, but the twins are still hungry. All they can do to fight it is to sleep and I've had to hear their stomachs rumbling."
I bit my lip to keep it from trembling because I was indeed going to cry. It wasn't new for us to slumber through our hunger. I shouldn't have eaten all the food Nathan gave me. What was I thinking?
"I'm so sorry, Ryan. I let you down." Those words hit me harder because Papa had said them to me just minutes ago.
He sighed. "No, you didn't. You have nothing to be sorry for. You know, how come it takes Ria centuries to fall asleep with me, but two seconds when you rock her?"
I smiled, my blue eyes shining at our sister who was now asleep. "Because unlike you, I sing to her."
"Show off," he teased, a light playfulness in his boyish voice. I smiled softly.
"We should all get some sleep. I'm exhausted." As I settled down for bed, my mind drifted to Nathan. I'd gone to his house under the impression that I would be helping him make party invitations. I never got the chance to ask him why he said I was the reason he couldn't throw a party.
But that was the least of my concerns. I had learned too much about him today, about his life at home. I wondered how this would affect his actions toward me. Unfortunately, I knew I had no choice but to wait and find out.
**
"I'm happy to see you so bright and early, Riley!" exclaimed Ms. Daisy, a cheerfulness in her voice. She was wearing yet another pretty dress, embracing her slim, petite figure.
"I'm really excited, Ms. Daisy," I replied as she let me inside of the music room.
"That makes me happy. Okay, we'll have at least 20 minutes each morning before classes start and as much time as you need after school. How's that sound?"
"That's good. I told my parents and they're happy I'm learning an instrument."
"Awesome! I'm happy to teach." She led me into an adjoined room where, in the forefront, was a beautiful traditional piano.
I gasped. "Oh wow!" I marveled at the sight of it. It was larger than I'd pictured, but my imagination was very limited.
She chuckled. "I know. I learned how to play my first song when I was seven so you can do it, too."
I'd never been so excited in my life, not even when food was concerned.
"Oh! I almost forgot. My nephew told me you and your siblings wanted six backpacks." She smiled. "I got them, and they each have school supplies in them. They're from the annual drive at the church."
I gave her a look of confusion. "Nephew?"
"Wyatt. He said you two are friends."
I was still getting used to that term, friends. "I had no idea you're his aunt!" It made sense. Wyatt was just as sweet and selfless as she was. "Thank you so much. My brother Ricky might actually cry."
"Oh, it's nothing, really. I'll let you and your brothers pick them up after school."
"Okay." I was surprised at how free and open I felt around Ms. Daisy. She felt like family in a way, like I could tell her anything.
"Alright, Riley, let's learn some music." We sat down at the piano together. "Tell me something. Who would you say inspires you in music?"
I hummed in thought. "Whitney Houston."
"Wow, that's a great choice. Can you tell me why you look up to her?"
"My Momma has a bunch of her CDs so I always listen to them and try to sing like her." I blushed as Ms. Daisy smiled at me.
"Do you wanna sing one of her songs for me?"
I felt nervous, so I just shook my head. She chuckled. "I definitely understand. Whitney was and is a legend, and I'm genuinely surprised you even know her. When I ask other kids who their musical inspirations are, they say kidz bop. Which is fine, but of course it's no Whitney. It says a lot about you. You're very impressive, Riley."
I smiled at her, grateful for all the compliments. "Greatest Love of All. That one's my favorite. I'll sing it."
"Awesome. You start and I'll match the key."
I swallowed and took a nervous breath, trying to steady myself. "I believe the children are our future, teach them well and let them lead the way..." She started playing the piano and I drowned in adoration, not missing a note. "Show them all the beauty they possess inside, give them a sense of pride to make it easier... Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be..."
This song had a great impact on my heart. Whenever I played it and heard Whitney sing it, I thought of a beautiful place in a beautiful world, much different from the one we lived in. A world where Nathan was kind to me. A world where I wasn't poor, where I was... happy.
I didn't realize I'd stopped singing until Ms. Daisy placed her soft hand atop mine. "Riley?"
"Yes, Ms. Daisy?"
"In all my years, I don't think I've heard a voice quite as beautiful as yours."
I doubted that. "Really?"
"Oh, of course. I can't believe... I can't believe you're only eleven!"
I let out a short, free laugh, making her smile. "Thanks, Ms. Daisy," I appreciated. But she was speechless for a moment. Then finally, with a hand over her heart in sincerity, she whispered words I never imagined I would hear. "I'm looking at a star."
***
I had to leave the music room at 7:55am because classes started at eight o'clock. I felt lighter than usual, but I knew that this floating-on-a-cloud feeling wouldn't last. Not while Nathan was in school.
"Hey, Riley," Wyatt greeted when he saw me.
"Oh! Wyatt. Um... W-we can't— I can't be seen around you," I stuttered. I gave him a pleading look, hoping he would understand and not be offended with me.
"Why, because of Nathan? I'm not gonna let him hurt you!"
"I know, but he'll catch me when no one's around. Please, you should go."
"Riley, no. We're friends. Why is that a bad thing? Are you not allowed to talk to me or something? Is it just me?"
I shook my head. "It's not just you; it's everybody. Nathan doesn't let me have any friends at all. That's why he told you lies about me, so you'd hate me. Oh, god— please don't tell him I said that!" My fingers trembled at the possibility of him finding out I was talking about him.
Wyatt just stared at me in shock. "Of course I won't tell, but are you serious? So he's basically controlling your life and you just go with the flow?"
I shrugged in response. "I'm not strong like all the other kids. I don't know why he picks on me all the time."
"It's like you said. He knows you won't stand up for yourself, so he does whatever he wants to you. But you gotta prove him wrong, Riley. You gotta look him in the eyes and say, 'Nathan, you have no control over me.' Stand your ground."
"That's the hardest thing in the world to do. He'll just slap me."
"Then you slap him right back. He'll be frozen in shock, so you steal that opportunity to clock him right in the jaw. Break its hinges! Here." He stopped me. "Give me your hardest punch. On my arm, go."
"No, Wyatt—"
"Do it, I'm serious. Do your worst, Riley."
I held firmly onto my back pack straps, staring into my friend's olive green eyes. He sighed. "You wanna get picked on forever?" I shook my head no. "Awesome, now punch me."
I huffed. "I would, Wyatt, but I don't know how."
"Oh. Well, why didn't you just say so?" He laughed before demonstrating it. "Clench your fist like this and hold it up."
I did exactly as he told me to and he held my fist to analyze it. "No, too loose. Make it tighter." I tightened my fist, adding lots of pressure to it. "Great." He released my hand as it was to his satisfaction. "Now, give me a punch so hard, you'll rip me a new ass."
I gaped at his choice of words, laughing loud and ruining my perfect fist. He chuckled, startled by how loud my own laugh was.
"I'm being for real!" He giggled.
"What's so funny?" I heard the much dreaded voice and all my happiness dissipated. I froze where I stood, watching as Nathan joined us, his arms crossed.
"Oh, nothing," Wyatt replied, slinging an arm around me. My heart rate increased dramatically, pounding against my fragile rib cage.
"Excuse me?" Nathan demanded, looking between the both of us, then at Wyatt's arm over my shoulder. He glared at Wyatt, most likely with an urge to throttle him.
"Riley has something important to tell you." He pushed me forward, and I gasped as my weightless body fell right into Nathan's arms. One of his hands was on my back as the other settled on my slim waist, and I was expecting him to shove me away. So why didn't he?
"I've never heard you laugh before," he told me in a gentle voice, taking me by surprise. I moved my hand to his shoulder to stay balanced. He let go once I steadied myself then he continued to speak. "Your laugh is... It's nice." Funny, now he was the one avoiding my eyes. I didn't know what to say, so I remained silent. He turned to leave, paused, then looked at us. I swore his cheeks pinked up a bit before he left us there.
Wyatt and I glanced at each other awkwardly. "What was that about?"
"I don't know," I responded, a little terrified. I had an inkling that I was going to pay for this incident later. He'd specifically warned me not to make friends.
"Freaking Nate." Wyatt clasped his hands and looked down at the floor innocently, mocking Nathan. "Your laugh, um, was—it was nice. What the hell was that about?"
I bit my lip, trying not to laugh again, but I genuinely wondered the same thing.
"Hah! I think I know why he makes fun of you, but it's gonna seem really– and I mean really far fetched."
I was confused. "Why?" I asked curiously.
"Riley." He sent me a blank face. "The kid likes you."
My expression morphed into total disbelief. "Likes me?"
"Yeah. He's crushing on you. Hard."
"That's—no. He's hated me since elementary school. Besides, he has a thing for Alyssa."
"Well, he wouldn't be the first guy to use a girl to mask his true feelings for a boy."
I shook my head in disagreement. "No. No."
"Ah, come on, Riley! It's obvious."
"He likes Alyssa," I insisted.
"Pfft, everybody likes Alyssa. Alright, how about this? We should test my theory and see if I'm right."
We began to walk to class. "How though?" I inquired.
"Come over to my house. With my aunt's help, you'll look like a prince. You're handsome, Riley, and your eyes are a rare blue. There isn't a word in English to describe them. As far as I'm concerned, Alyssa's not even competition. Without a doubt, Nathan will forget she exists, then we'll know for sure. Agreed?"
We walked into class and because I was distracted, I just nodded without another word.
********
Hello, author here :)
Hope you're enjoying. I just wanted to give you guys a mental image of Riley's eye color. I picture them to look exactly like meg foster's eyes. Witchy, hypnotizing blue. Here's a perfect example:
Yeah. Her eyes are actually that stunning 😭