The air was cold, each gust of wind making her lungs burn. The walk to the bus stop was longer than expected, or so it just felt like that because of all the temperature weighing on her shoulders like bricks. Her heels would drag against the slush. The mix of snow and dirty water from tires splashing at eighty miles an hour on drunken nights. The girl switched her bag from her right shoulder to her left, rolling it to erase the numbness. She huffed, seeing her breath in front of her, mingling with the crisp air.
After what felt like hours of sloshing in her shoes, she came across a bus stop. Her hands found there way across the trim of the metal bench, the cold stinging her finger tips. She sat, the wet feeling of melted snowflakes seeping through the denim of her warmest jeans.
The girls frail frame shuddered, remembering what she was running away from. Why she packed a bag and set off with nothing to her name but some change and a fifty dollar bill she swiped from Tods wallet. Remembering what brought her to a house of vodka stained carpets, and random women falling asleep in the bathtub.
"MOM! Please mom, please stay awake, please!"
Sirens came from every direction, making her ears pop. It sounded like a fan running too fast, as she watched the blackness.
"Hey, kid, what are you doing out here, it's like one o'clock," a figure shook the girl from her daze.
She just stared up at her, seeing the outline of a thin face through the darkness. The girl was in her early twenties, her dark hair down just a bit below her shoulders. Her neckline was a 'V' shape, leaving most of her chest uncovered. A deep maroon jacket clung to her pale skin.
The girl was lenient at first, but then decided to sit on the bench beside the shaking girl.
"What's your name?" she asked, rubbing her hands together.
The small girl just looked up, afraid to speak.
"Oh, me first?" she asked, pointing to herself, "I'm Beca. I go to college at Barden, just a few blocks down."
The small girl breathed in, wondering why the taller frame was at a bus stop this early in the morning.
The girl looked around, finding a barren street. A street light was buzzing, the nats flying toward the light.
"Uhm, i'm just waiting for my friend, she's supposed to be getting off the bus soon. She went to a party in the city," she nodded, hoping for a verbal response.
A few moments passed before the small girl spoke, "Do you know how much it would cost to ride to the next town over?"
Beca looked confused, "Uh, no. I'm-i'm not sure. Why are you running away?"
"What makes you think i'm running away?" she asked, looking down at her feet.
The taller girl laughed, "Your packed bag seems to give it away. Not to mention you are at a bus stop at one o'clock in the morning."
"It's not a big deal," the girl crossed her arms.
"Okay, well, do you have to go tonight?" she asked, hopeful.
The girl looked up and met deep brown eyes.
"I mean, i'd have to ask my friend, but i'm sure she'd be fine with an extra roommate for the night," she smiled.
The girls eyes widened at the thought of a warm bed and hiding from Tod and his long list of unwelcome guests.
"Its a small apartment, but we have a pull out couch."
The girl nodded, "your friend won't mind?"
Beca shook her head, "Nah. She won't really remember anything in the morning anyway. She went to a party in the city, if you know what I mean."
She earned a blank stare.
"Of course you don't, you're like ten," Beca shook it off and grabbed the girls bag as she saw the bus pulling up.
The bus stopped with a loud screech, a tipsy red head almost falling out of the sliding doors.
"Oh, Beca, hi!" she smiled, cheekily.
"Hi, how drunk are you?" Beca laughed.
"I don't know what you mean," she pursed her lips.
"You are wasted Chloe," Beca laughed, keeping the girl upright.
"No, I drank every beer I was given, I didn't waste any of it!"
Beca rolled her eyes, hoisting the other girl toward her side, grasping her hip tightly.
Chloe looked over her shoulder to see the small girl, "Oh, hi!"
The girl smiled faintly, flashbacks of a drunk Tod coming back to her. This girl was different though. She was more slap happy, rather than just slap.
"This girl needs a place to stay tonight, so I offered her the couch, " Beca nodded.
"Oh! What's your name?" she asked the girl.
Beca realized she wasn't sure of the young girls name either.
"Uhm, Emily," she bit her lip.
"Nice to meet you Emily," Chloe turned around and started walking toward the apartment, still being kept standing by a laughing Beca. Emily followed slowly behind them, hearing a muffled conversation.
"She's so cute, can we keep her?" Chloe cooed.
"She's not a puppy!"
The red head laughed groggily, " she can have my bed, i'm cold so i'm sleeping with you tonight."
Beca laughed, "Fine, but you have to wear pants this time!"