Has been a while since I last updated ... sorry guys, I hope you want to read my story again though :) The fourth chapter is finished since quite a week, but whatever. Here you are :)

Butterflies usually fly high

Chapter 4

Erin was late, but she didn't care. Neither did her dad.

He probably is sitting in front of the TV drinking his fucking beer, the girl thought while it sat down under a huge oak tree. It was slowly getting darker by every minute, her clock showed like 7 p.m. and Erin pulled out her homework for today. She was thankful for every minute she needn't to spend at home.

She usually kept a pencil in the right pocket of her pants and was now grabbing for it, but got an old-looking picture out.

Oh damn. Erin bit her lip. She totally forgot to leave this picture at home. It was showing her mother and Erin, grinning into the camera, having fun while building a snowman. This picture was taken long time ago, like 7 years, but Erin could remember like it was yesterday.

Oh Erin don't, she demanded herself, don't you dare to cry here. Do you want them to laugh at you again?

She felt tears coming up, way too late for hiding them, and Erin just buried her face in her palms. Shit.

And like always, she cried, cried and cried, nowbody came to help her or ask why. The park was almost empty and Erin pulled a handkerchief out of her pocket and wiped off her tears. The handkerchief was soon smudged with mascara and eyeliner.

I have to look like a total idiot, she thought, breathing heavily. And stared in the grass which was slowly moving in the breeze.

»Whats wrong?«

Erin raised her head, her eyes widened. She sniffled weakly, removing her hands from her face. »Uhm«, she spoke, and paused.

»What's wrong?«, the young guy repeated, looking at her worried, with dark brown eyes, weakly smiling.

Erin shook her head and tourned away. »N-nothing.« She shook her head once more.

The guy bend down deeper, looking into Erins eyes. »You can tell me.«

»I don't think so«, she whispered.

The guy stood a few inches over her now and smiled once more.

Then, finally Erin took a deep breath and begun talking, »Well, life isn't really .. great .. at the moment, you know.«

The guy laughed, Erin turned away and looked up to him, sniffling, not sure what to do or to say. Should she just stand up and leave? But he seemed to be pretty nice.

He placed his hand on her arm, stopping her. »I'm not laughing at you.«

»Yeah, nobody does«, Erin said in a sarcastic voice.

The guys smile was disappearing and he raised his eyebrows. »Wait«, he said, »aren't you that girl from today?«

Erin just looked at him.

»I mean aren't you that girl that bumped into me today?«

She surveyed him, blushing, and slowly remembered his eyes.

»Maybe«, she said then.

»Well, the name's Ian«, the boy said. »Ian McKinley.«

»Oh, you sound like the town I hate the most«, Erin said.

»I don't like it either«, Ian nodded and grinned. »What's your name? Isn't it .. eh .. Erica?«

»Erin«, she corrected him.

»Right. Doing homework?«, he asked her.

»Kind of. French Revolution sucks.«

»I've been through this shit, luckily.« Ian laughed again.

Erin grinned. She felt so .. happy. This guy made her feel happy, somehow. Maybe it was just the fact that somebody actually spoke to her. And she had never smiled in front of a guy. It seemed as she wasn't afraid to speak in front of that boy.

And then he noticed the picture in Erins hand.

»What's this?«, he asked frowning.

»Uhm, it's .. nothing.« Erin tried to hide the picture behind her, but failed.

»Oh come on, let me have a look?«, he asked again, trying to look cute.

»Well«, Erin sobbed, »it's me. With my mother.«

After looking on that picture, Ian said, »You seemed pretty happy.«

»Yes I were«, Erin smiled weakly. »I were, until my mom died in a plane crash. This is the only picture of us I could find before I had to move to Pennsylvania.« She sobbed again.

Ian gave her the picture back. »I'm sorry for you.«

»Mh.« Erin looked down.

After a few moments of silence, Ian begun to speak again.

»Well, maybe I can help you with your homework..«

»Oh, uhm, no I .. I don't think thats a good .. idea … well, I have to go home now«, she said, stood up and put her stuff into her school bag. »Maybe … later.« Nervous as she was, she left Ian under that huge oak tree and walked home, asking herself why she had been that stupid.

Stop being afraid of people, Erin.