Torn, Scorn and pain like Thorns

Chapter 1

. On a hill side in the middle of the forest, there is a house where the most heart breaking tale of a heart and the yearning that unfolds. Through the trees and the dense vegetation, the smoke and light rise from the tiny little cottage. Tears and hair choked the young girl in the window, as she stared out at the rain. She couldn't think of anything more than the boy in her room. Her pink hair shone in the lightning strikes and the thunder crashes. They reminded her of the loss she had encountered all those years ago. The thunder sounded like the roar of a tiger as is slashed the very flesh of her neck, it was torturing her. Even though the she had her hole filled with him, she felt detached from the boy none the less. Mariah looked up; the clouds were sending her a message.

"Speak to me." She thought as she stepped out onto the balcony. Mariah reached for the Gutter to get to the roof Clambering up the side of the house her pink night gown flowed in the wind. Her grip was weakening in under the pressure of the rain. It became cold, the feeling was like a sensation of twelve thousand knives, not stabbing, but scratching, over and over all across her body. Mariah cursed at her stupidity, 'why didn't I get more than a bloody robe' she asked herself in her head. She looked down, it was coming off. She tried to grip the sleeves but she was slipping off of the ledge. Before she could grab the darn thing, the robe flew off and landed up one the infinite trees all around her. "Damn it she thought as she looked down, hanging off the house roof in the middle of a thunder storm I hope the neighbours don't see" she murmured. The rain poured down onto her now bare skin. Looking down, she realised that she was now completely nude. Mariah thrusted herself upon the roof and saw an old friend. "Kevin?" She asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Kevin looked up and widened his eyes, "Mariah…Nice…Show" she blushed. "Shut up Kevin! You haven't been here in over three years." Kevin didn't answer, for any reply he could give that had any truth behind it at all would sound very creepy indeed. Kevin had taken to the life of a real animal and had to become nocturnal as a result of all of the hunters that come out during the day. "Well...What about you, coming up on the roof, Stark naked, in the middle of the night, during a thunder storm?" Mariah was confused, you need to answer my questions with answers you know, as aposed to more questions." Kevin looked down at the girl opposite him. How innocent and honest she looked. "You should really learn to cover up, Mariah, you could get taken for..." Kevin stopped himself. " At least people can see my face, you keep yours covered up!" Kevin was hurt. "Do you want to see why I keep my face covered up? He glared at her. The green teen took his right hand and placed it on his chin. Slowly but surely he wiped his hand up his face and removed the hair, dangling over his right side. Mariah gasped in horror at the sight before her. "Kevin…I…I had no idea" Kevin cut her off "No, I guess you didn't and nobody must know, ever, you understand?" she could only nod as he placed his hair back over his face. His eyes wondered over to Mariah again. "Please stop crying Mariah please" she sniffed and wiped her nose with her arm and then remembered she was naked. "Here, I was going to keep and enjoy your looks an all but, I think you need it more" he handed her a coat her kept in his satchel at all times for emergencies. "Sorry, Kevin." He looked up at her in shock, "Why?"

"Truly, I had no idea, honest I didn't" she sat up next to her companion and looked over at him. "How's Ray" he asked "is he alright? I would have thought that you would be sleeping alongside him right now not invading my time half naked" she looked up at the sky again. "I love Ray, Kevin you know that but, I fear that he does not see me the same way I see him. He said that he wanted to be friends after the Asian tournament and even after the Russian one that Tyson won and became world champion somehow even though it was a team event, Ray said he loved me as a sister." She began to tear again

"Mariah…Maybe you don't need Ray to be happy, maybe the guy you need has been staring you right in the face for so long now you have just taken his look for granted and don't even notice him there anymore…Maybe?" She looked down and played with the ends of her hair for a while, "Maybe, but I don't think I can love anyone but Ray now." Kevin swallowed hard and turned for her. Without warning he threw himself upon Mariah and began to kiss her repeatedly. Mariah struggled and squirmed free of Kevin's death hold. Once free she slapped him twice around the face front hand and back and then one upside the head. "You worm, I didn't think you meant you!"

Without another word she stripped clean of the coat and leapt from roof to the balcony once more. Mariah was about to grasp the door handle when Kevin hopped down after her. "Mariah wait!" at that moment the curtain drew and the door opened. Ray was stood in the gap looking at the pair.

"Mariah, why are you na…" Mariah was not going to wait for the sentence to finish as she threw herself into his arms. "…ked, Kevin what happened out here?" Kevin didn't say a word, he just backed off. "He tried to kiss me" Ray took two and two together and got five hundred. Mariah is naked, Kevin looks guilty and Mariah is so happy to see me "You little rapist, COME HERE!" Ray yelled off the balcony as Kevin ran off into the distance. Ray held Mariah close to his chest and she heard his heart beat. "Why were you out there naked anyway?" she didn't know what to say. "Well my robe is at the end of the garden in Mrs. Winter's garden" she grinned "But now you can buy us matching monogrammed ones!" She sniggered as he looked down at her. Stroking her pink, thick hair Ray laid Mariah down in the bed and they both slept soundly until dawn. The next day breakfast was awkward, Ray glared at Kevin from across the table only ever blinking for when Gary's food flew over the table and hit his face, Kevin tried to keep himself to his self and Lee glared at Ray and Kevin. Mariah sat in the middle of it all trying to stop herself noticing all of the problems around her. "Nom, nom. This is delicious Mariah, thank you!" Gary grumbled, "You are very welcome, Gary, I am glad you liked it" Mariah grinned, finally she thought the ice is broken maybe a conversation will break out now! She was right; Lee stood up and asked aloud.

"What is the matter with you people?"

"Why don't you ask Kevin?"

"Well I didn't know it would go so badly!"

"You mean you thought I wouldn't have found out!" The shouting continued until the meal was over, Lee only didn't step in because of his desire for this to carry on as he secretly found it entertaining. Kevin got off the chair and tried to run, Gray stood in his way. "Where do you think you're going?" he asked. Lee stood up and actually intervened. "What happened…Ray" Ray looked down at the floor. "Yesterday night" he began "Kevin tried to rape Mariah!" Kevin bowed his head in shame. Lee looked at him in utter disgust. "You sicken me, you filthy little toad, you bring shame upon us all!"

"I didn't rape her, I tried to kiss her and she happened to be naked at the time, ask her I was clothed the whole time!" All eyes were on Mariah, she didn't like the pressure. "Well…" she started, Ray's eyes lit up with rage. "He was clothed but I didn't want it, and I was not stripped by Kevin, I felt like going on to the roof and I was in my night gown. The bloody pink thing was wiped away by the wind; he actually offered me a coat. You could say that he was trying to restrain himself from looking at my shame. I didn't even have a bra on!" Ray looked at her and turned. He walked over to the opening and left for the garden. "Ray!" Mariah called after him. She began to cry and ran for her room. Her pink clothes soaked in tears as she buried her face in her pillow. There was a knock at the door.

"Mariah…Mariah let me in, c'mon let me in!" she got up; she could not quite make out who it was "Go away! Who is it?" the voice answered back, "It's Lee, c'mon, you can't stay there all by yourself" "Door's open" it clacked and Lee walked into the room and sat by the poor girl. Mariah looked up, her eyes were covered in brine and her mascara smeared over her cheeks. "What have I done, Lee?" she asked. Lee only bowed his head, "you just need to give Ray a bit of space, and he'll come around". "How can you be so calm, the lie was told to you too?" Lee shook his head. "The thing is, Kevin may be a worm but he was never capable of rape. I knew that, but stepping fourth at that moment was not the time, as you know, everything has a right time" He said. Mariah got up and looked out the window to the pond. Ray was stood on a rock, skimming stones out onto the water and watching the coy fish. "I just want to go and hug him. But he won't hug me back will he?"

"The only way to find out is to go and try it. You know him better than I but if it were me, I would. Ray doesn't bare grudges. Go and apologize. Think about it. The wound is still fresh, you want to strike while flesh is bare rather than waiting until the cut scabs over and becomes course. It's pretty much now or never." Mariah looked at the mirror and tidied herself up. "Hup" she went as she jumped from the window, "Ow bugger" Mariah fell to the ground and landed on her rear end. Ray turned, "Mariah, are you okay?" she rubbed her bottom as he offered his hand to her. "Yeah thanks," then it clicked, "OH! No fair, it was my chance to come and make you feel better not you me." Ray was shocked "Oh sorry, you first." He held out his hand in an 'after you' fashion a butler would gesture when holding a door open. She caught on to the game. "Well, Raymond, I have come before you this morning to express my deepest and most humble apology in the effort to gain your friendship once more and a hug upfront" Mariah gave a crooked smile and a cheeky grin, as she always would when she's in trouble with any member of the gang. Ray just smiled and chuckled at her as he always did. "When do think you were going to tell me, Mariah?" Ray asked. She just looked up with her golden tiger eyes; "err…Never felt about right" Ray just looked at her and rolled her eyes. No matter how long he had been gone for, Mariah was the same think pink child he left all those years ago.

On the way back to the house, Ray noticed Kevin sat on the porch picking at his fingers and biting his nails. He looked up and glared at Ray and Mariah together. "You two deserve each other". He muttered. The pair looked up and Mariah got down on her knees and tried to talk to him, like she was coaxing a kitten out from under a chest of draws. "Kevin, I am so, so sorry. I should have said something…Friends?" she asked. "No. last night may have been a miss understanding but I did try it on with you and I insulted Ray. You insulted me, and I shamed the white tigers. I just waited here to tell you that I am leaving." Mariah's eyes were widened so far Ray thought the eyes themselves were making a break for it.

"You can't, Kevin you can't leave. Do you hear me, if you leave this village then I won't forgive you, ever."

"You forgave Ray!"

"But you are not my first love, are you." Kevin grabbed a bindle and jumped off of the porch and grabbed the pole stretched off of the roof. He shimmied along the metal spike and hopped up onto the roof. He ran across and left the sight of the girl who pushed him. Ray tried to hold Mariah in his arms and she broke free. "Kevin!" she yelled. Mariah ran for the back door and darted through the kitchen, the front room and pushed Lee to the floor. Out of the front door and screamed for Kevin. She fell to the floor and began to cry. Looking at hear knees and sobbing Mariah didn't notice the car coming. Mariah looked up and everything went into slow motion.'Ray was running like he was trudging through custard, Lee was yelling for me like he was genuinely fearful for my very life, his eyes lit up and his mouth agape. He was yelling my name. Then something appeared from the corner of my sight. It was green. The next thing I was on the other side of the road and looking at the tail end of the car.' Kevin set down the pink girl and tried to run. "Kevin…Wait". Kevin sighed. "What, I just want to go before it gets awkward, okay". Mariah smiled. "Too late for that" she added. "C'mon you didn't think it was going to happen anyway, did you? Every hero deserves a reward" said Mariah. Before he could say anything Kevin had a face full of Mariah. She grasped his head and placed their tongues together. Lips smacking Kevin's eyes closed. Mariah's too. "Well that was…something!" Kevin slurred. Mariah turned her back and winked at him. She ran back over to Ray and gave him a kiss and lifted her foot. The gang looked at Kevin. Kevin looked back. He sighed as he came back over road. The gang cheered for his return and the heroic act. "Hope you liked it" whispered Mariah into Kevin's ear.