Soft, tan skin. Long, thick dark hair parted perfectly into two braids covering either ear. Her light blue overalls and pink shirt haphazardly stained with finger paint. Freddy smiled. Little Kimi, so sweet. She sat at the short table-perfect height for her- practicing her letters. The other children had finished five or six minutes ago, and were out to recess. Stepping into the classroom, Freddy quietly walked over to her, plopping down in a pint-sized chair.

"Hi Kimi," he said in the sweet voice all the kids loved, "Whatcha doin'?"

"Writing 'S'," she answered matter-of-factly, "I can do it with the dotted lines, but I keep making it backwards on my own," she proceeded to write a backwards 's', as if to prove her point.

"Wow, real tough stuff, huh?" Freddy joked, placing his hand surreptitiously on her shoulder.

"Yeah," came the short, clipped reply.

"Well, I think that you deserve a reward for all your hard work.I didn't want to say this when all the other kids were around, but I have some candy, down in my magic cave,"

Kimi brightened for a moment, then looked crestfallen.

"I can't have candy. Me and mommy are on a diet and she'd get so mad if I ate sugar," she said in that exaggerated way only kids can.

Freddy remembered seeing her mother: a skeleton of a woman, whose face looked like skin stretched taut over a skull. He pushed her out of his mind and redoubled his efforts at persuading the child.

"I'll make you a deal, then. You don't tell mommy about the cave, and I won't tell her about the candy. Shake on it?" Freddy offered his hand.

Kimi pondered for a second, then placed her tiny hand in his large, rough one. Freddy gripped her hand tight and pulled her close, so that her ear was right next to his mouth.

"Remember, Kimi, no telling."

Kimi snapped awake suddenly. For a moment she was confused as to where she was- then she remembered. She was on her way to her first day at her new highschool. Her mother, in the driver's seat, was wearing her waitress uniform. She'd go from the school directly to the diner. It was ironic, Kimi thought, that someone with such a fear of food was going to be around it every day. Subconsciously, she fingered her collarbones, which stood out in sharp relief. Her mother caught the movement out of the corner of her eye and did the same. In unison, they wrapped their right thumb and forefinger over their left wrist. Kimi wrapped both hands around her right thigh, where both thumbs and middle fingers touched. Her mother wrapped her hand around her left bicep.

"Checks out," they said together, almost laughing at the little ritual they had shared for seventeen years.

Kimi stepped into the classroom four minutes late. The physics teacher glowered at her. It's October, it's not like you're teaching anything important, Kimi smiled and apologized.

"Everyone," the portly man addressed the class, "This is Kimi Locklear. She's just transferred from Chicago, and I expect you to all be welcoming. Why don't you go sit by Nancy, over there in the corner."

Kimi nodded and made her way to sit by the pale, brown haired girl.

"Hey," she said absently, doodling in the margins of her notebook.

"Hi," Kimi replied, equally as absent.

She made a quiet note of the fact that the girl was slim, but not nearly as slim as she was. Almost as if to prove her point, she unbuttoned her jacket and let it hang over the back of her chair, revealing the black thermal shirt with a wide neck that oh so perfectly displayed her collarbones and sternum. Nancy glanced over, eyes widening at the prominently displayed bones.

This girl has some issues.

Nancy and Kimi shared a few classes; they ended up talking a lot more throughout the day, finding that they were kindred spirits whose interests made them outsiders to the general population. The day ended, and they both headed to their lockers.

"So what's there to do in Springwood?" Kimi queried.

"Not much but go to a diner. I was actually going to head to the one I work at early for a bite to eat before my shift starts. Wanna come with?" Nancy asked, planning on heading out alone.

"Sure."

The affirmative answer surprised her, but it would be rude to retract the invitation.

The two girls sat across from each other, poring over the menus. A tall, tanned, stick-thin waitress walked over to take their order.

"What will you two- Kimi, how'd you get here?" The woman laughed.

"Oh, hey mom. I didn't know you worked at this diner," she seemed to grow sheepish. "My new friend, Nancy, drove me. Cause, y'know, she works here too."

Nancy smiled and nodded.

"Oh, that's great. Well, what will you two be having?"

Nancy ordered a fairly standard lunch, a veggie burger with a side of fries. Kimi took a bit longer, suddenly that chicken sandwich she had been considering didn't seem so appetizing. She went for a grilled cheese off of the kid's menu instead.

"Grilled cheese?" Nancy whispered incredulously after Kimi's mother left.

Kimi merely shrugged. They made small talk; Kimi learned that Nancy had a boyfriend, Quentin. Kimi talked about living in a big city, and the lay-offs that had forced them to move to small-town America.

"How long has it been just you and your mom?" Nancy twirled the last bit of ketchup with a fry.

"Thirteen, fourteen years, maybe? My dad got arrested for arson, and we haven't had contact since," Kimi shrugged. Her eyes drooped as she stirred her soda with a straw.

"Oh, I-I'm sorry," Nancy cringed.

"Ah, don't be. He was a deadbeat anyway," Kimi yawned.

Nancy didn't find the conversation so hilarious and excused herself, scooting off to get into her uniform. Kimi waited a minute before heading into the bathroom. It was one of those one-room types with a little bottle of lavender soap and a roll of paper towels perched on top of the paper towel dispenser. She sighed in relief and locked the door behind her, walking over to the toilet. She bent over, placing one hand on her knee and shoving the other into the back of her throat. Her stomach lunged as it emptied its contents into the porcelain bowl.

Kimi wiped her chin with her sleeve and walked to the sink, washing out her mouth. Satisfied, she turned to leave, but- where did the door go? She rubbed her eyes, and the entire bathroom was gone. She stood in an abandoned preschool filled with filthy water up to her ankles.

"What the hell?" she wondered aloud, stepping forward.

A tall, lean figure burst upward from the stagnant water. Kimi screamed and threw her hands out in front of her, pushing uselessly against the man's chest. A hand roughly grabbed her jaw, forcing her mouth open. She screwed her eyes tight shut from the bruising pain. The sound of metal on metal filled her ears. Terrified of what she might see, she opened one eye. Her vision was filled with a bright blue gaze and a horribly burned and melted face. She looked towards the metallic sound- some sort of claws or knives tipped the ends of his fingers, two of which were headed straight for her. She screamed again as they drew closer, aiming for her mouth. A rasping chuckle rumbled forth from the man as the knives approached her lips. So close, just another inch and they'd split open the soft, pink flesh-

Kimi woke with a start, shoving herself back against the booth. She blinked a few times, looking around the diner. Everything seemed normal; there was no burned man, and no knives. She shook her head and stood, slapping a twenty on the table.

"You need the keys, hon?"

Kimi jumped, turning to face her mother, who dangled a set of keys in front of her.

"Yeah, thanks," Kimi snatched them and rushed out to the car.