I carried my lunch tray to my normal spot in the cafeteria, and plopped down while placing the tray on the table and my backpack on the floor.
I squinted at the cheesy pizza that I chose to eat for hot a minute, observing it carefully. After discovering that it actually looked edible, I began to eat it.
Suddenly I felt someone sit beside me.
"Hey." A deep male voice spoke right next to me, invading my personal space.
I choked on my pizza in surprise, immediately chugging down water to clear my airways.
I peeked at the stranger in shock and found that a muscular tan boy with light brown hair was facing me, straddling the bench we were sharing.
He was staring at me with chocolate brown eyes. My skin broke out in cold shivers as I pushed away the memories I had with eyes like those. He must be new.
"You okay?" He asked.
I took another big swig of my water, not answering him in embarrassment as I felt my face getting red.
"So your name is Jayden right?" He continued, catching on to the silent treatment after a few minutes.
I shrugged.
"I'm guessing that is a yes."
"Sure." I replied knowing that he would probably stop talking to me when he would become a target by Marisa's gang. Wouldn't be the first time that has happened.
"I've seen you around and I was just wonder-" He stopped suddenly as I interrupted him by gasping in pain.
Something hard had bounced off my head, landing on the tile floor with a thud.
I turned and looked at the boy beside me and followed his shocked gaze towards the floor, finding a shiny red apple laying there.
I rubbed the spot where it hit me lightly with my fingertips.
I winced as I could feel a migraine starting to form.
Have you ever been hit by an apple? Not pleasant.
I was drawn from of my thoughts as everyone around us was laughing. Loudly might I add.
"Hey! Not cool!" The guy beside me yelled, fury all over his face.
I heard Marisa's ugly snicker above all. I sighed angrily. Welcome to my every day life. I bet you're wondering why Marisa has such a problem with me, huh?
Let's just say she's a rich kid who can't stand for others to have something she doesn't. She used to be my best friend, but that ended when she slept with Seth. My boyfriend, whom I had been dating for two years.
Let me rephrase that.
My now ex-boyfriend who I was with for two years before we broke up. Honestly, I should have seen it coming. The signs were there. The lack of energy in the texts he would send me, hours before he would reply, basing our relationship on what his friends would do, and after all, he was a college student and I was just in high school when things started to go wrong.
I noticed all the signs, but unfortunately I was blinded by Cupid's fat ass, which led to me making excuses for him.
Instead I ignored the bad things and glorified the things I liked about him, such as how good of a kisser he was and how special he made me feel when he would compliment my eyes. But isn't that what they all do? I could throw up due to my stupidity.
The boy interrupted me from my thoughts.
"Are you okay??" He asked, a worried expression overtaking his handsome features.
Yeah, like I need another pretty boy.
I stood up, ignoring him. I picked up my backpack from the floor, slinging it over my shoulder.
I nonchalantly grabbed my tray off of the table, dumping the unfinished pizza into the trash and laying my tray on the counter.
I paused a minute in thought then walked back over to my table and grabbed the apple off of the floor. I headed to Marisa's table.
She snickered as she looked at me once I got to her table.
"You know Marisa, I've never been one to say something helpful to snobby bitches." I stated while running my eyes over her form from head to toe.
She raised her eyebrows in surprise to me actually speaking to her. The lunchroom quietened down to a low chatter as some people caught on that I was standing up for myself.
"But," I continued, waving the apple around, "maybe instead of throwing your fruit at everyone you should try eating it." I simply stated while shrugging my shoulders.
I bent forward and came face to face with her, holding the apple directly in front of her eyes.
"It might help with the weight issue." I whispered loudly while winking at her. I laid the apple on the table and grinned at her.
"Try not to miss your mouth this time."
I smirked at her enraged facial expression and calmly walked towards the exit in the lunchroom as everyone at her table laughed due to her frozen up reaction to my confrontation. I heard her to tell them to shut up.
I pushed the door open and went into the quiet hallway, heading directly towards the bathroom. I entered the bathroom and locked myself in the biggest stall, sitting on the toilet lid.
Honestly she wasn't overweight, but if you tell a preppy girl that her reaction is priceless. Not that I'm one to normally do that, but Marisa deserved it.
I sat there and thought about everything. I really don't feel like going to class today. Or deal with people trying to talk to me about what just happened.
You know what? Screw it.
I jumped up and sauntered to a window that was in the stall. I tested the window to see if it would open. I pulled on the top. The top part slid towards me as the bottom part slid outside. I grinned happily.
I'm getting the hell out of here.
I stuck my right leg out and pushed my butt out a little to see if I could fit. I laughed in shock to see that I successfully fit.
I was on the first floor and the ground was just below the window. Did the school even think this through?
I threw my bag out first on a dry spot directly under the window sill and pulled myself up the frame. I heard the heavy bathroom door squeak open along with a group of girls chattering entering the bathroom.
"Can you believe that just happened? Marisa is so pissed." I heard someone giggle.
I slid my left leg through and clutched onto the frame tightly while lowering my body to the damp ground.
"Why is this one locked with nobody in it?" I heard one question while pushing on the stall door to access it and peering under it.
I quickly dropped to the muddy ground and pulled the window shut behind me quietly. I grabbed my bag off the dry spot I had thrown it in and bent down, creeping away from the school windows.
I raced off of the school property, feeling like a bird that had just learned to fly as the cold air I inhaled burned my chest.
I headed down the street with my hood on and headed towards the park that I have always went to when I wanted to think or if I was upset.
I sprinted down the familiar path away from the sidewalk.
Once the park was in view I headed towards the swing set. I sat on a swing breathing deeply, scrunching up my nose when I realized that I had sat in a small puddle water that had built in the seat of the swing from rain.
Whelp. It's too late now.
I embraced it and leaned my head against the chain, studying the old beaten down park.
Nobody went here anymore, really. I have it all to myself now. There used to be kids here all the time but that stopped when the kidnappings and murders started.
About a nine years ago, kids started going missing.
There was a preferred type of kids, little boys or girls were taken. When they found the body of 6 year-old Bessie Stewart in the shadow lake, the small town went into a huge panic.
The amount of missing kids went up to fifteen in the span of two months. That was when you started to never see kids at the park. Parents stopped letting their kids out to even be in their yard, let alone go to a park. They were even scared to send their kids to school.
The kidnappers were caught when they made a big mistake and took a little girl with a tracker in her coat.
That little girl was my childhood best friend.
Her name was Morgan. They tracked her location, but they were too late. They found her body in a dumpster. Used and beaten, body parts missing. She was their last victim.
The culprits were held in jail, and then were tried and found guilty for eleven deaths of children seeing as to that they only found eleven bodies. They were believed to have killed twenty in total, but since they never found the rest of the bodies, there was no evidence.
Some families never got to bury the bodies of their child. Just an empty casket after they realized that their child was never going to come back.
The men who committed this crime were sent to prison after that, far from here and our little old calaboose.
Three of the discovered bodies were found in the woods of this park.
A person would probably wonder why this is my favorite place to go, and I would tell them why without hesitating. This playground makes me feel close to Morgan again.
I used to have nightmares of what she would look like when she died. Pale, sweaty, blue lips. Sometimes she would be begging for help in the dreams.
There were also good ones though. Good dreams of us being together here, swinging and laughing while seeing who could swing the highest.
Every time I come to this park it seems to ease my mind and release my nightmares.
To me, Morgan was an angel. Her hair was so blonde is seemed that a halo was floating above her head when the sun would shine upon her.
When she died, it was as if the town died with her.
All the broken families moved, too heartbroken to stay and be reminded of their loss.
The tragedy seemed to have changed everything about Everfalls.
Instead of seeing joyful people everywhere, the sun shining and businesses prospering, in its place was a depressed town that seemed to always be cold. Most of the time it would rain. Families constantly left as they feared for their children's safety, causing businesses to get less business and lose money.
The park was now overgrown with wild plants and trees, but the swings and other equipment was still in decent shape. Just a little rusty.
The sun peeked through the clouds and I smiled, letting it warm my face and taking advantage of the rare warmth.
____________________________________
•Word count: 1883