Mega thanks to those of you who have reviewed! Love you guys! 3
Chapter Three
~Heart to Heart~
The girls head swiveled around, her eyes focusing hard on the ground.
There!
A small orange dot glowed on the outskirts of the city, and two shadowed figures were struggling around it.
Not taking the time to think, she veered a sharp right, aiming towards the ground as she dove. Five hundred feet, three hundred feet, one hundred feet. Her wings unfurled, yanking her upwards before she crashed.
The force sent vibrations down her back, but she took no notice as she landed behind the trees, already running the moment her feet hit the dirt. The scene revealed two men fighting around a fire, the smaller, dirtier man held tightly in a headlock.
"Come on, haha that all you got gramps?" The other man laughed, swinging his opponent around. The girl paused, taking a moment to decide who was really the victim here. Although it seemed obvious, she didn't want to beat up the wrong man.
"Lemme go! I didn't do nothin'!"
"Like this, ya, ya little bastard? Eh? How bout this?" The man released the other's head and shoved him hard, punching him in the nose.
Screw watching. This guy was practically begging for a good slugging.
The girl lashed out, catching the attacker in the side of the head. He stumbled, cursing while the victim scrambled to the other side of the fire.
"God-damnit, eh, eh you. What'cha think ya doin' girlie?" The guy grumbled as the teenager set herself up for a snap kick to his side.
Her foot connected solidly, and she caught a wiff of his breath as he grunted. Drunk, definitely drunk.
The man had a heavy five o-clock shadow, and his scruffy, graying hair was stiff and messy. He had a split lip, and that seemed to be the only visible injuries.
Well she was gonna change that.
His fist swung around, clipping her face as she skipped to the side. She never was much of a black belt, but she could put up a fight when need be.
"Go home." The girl hissed as her arm shot out, snaking around the man's neck and pulling him down as her knee came up. She smirked as he gagged, saliva bubbling at his lips as he folded over. She could only imagine the proud look on her friends face if she saw that. She was, after all, the one who taught the runaway that particular move.
The guy fell to the ground, knocking over the barrel that held the fire as he gripped his torso, wheezing for breath. The girl threw her foot out again, drop-kicking him in the head.
He gasped, his eyes closing as he went limp.
She stopped, breathing heavily as the guy lay unconscious. What she had done with those boys a while ago had just been for fun with absolutely no intention of any of them getting hurt. She was actually a bit flattered that they cared enough to turn her in.
But she knew that this was serious. Someone could have died this time.
"W-who are you?"
The girl looked back at the homeless man who had stumbled out from the shadows, dark eyes scanning the area frantically for any sign of the attacker. His lip too, was split, and the skin around his eye was darkening and swelling. He relaxed when he saw the man on the ground, and the girl walked towards him.
"Um, hi. Are you alright sir?"
The man smiled, showing his pale yellow teeth and nodded. "I'm alright. Thank miss, I owe ya. I'll make it up to you, I promise." He moved towards the barrel and pulled it upright; sighing when he realized the fire had gone out in the dirt.
"Why don'cha sit for a minute while I get this fire goin' up again. Then we can talk."
The girl bit her lip, wincing as the pain in her cheek became noticeable with the movement.
"Hey, you got a match on ya?" The man asked quietly, looking up at her. The girl bit the inside of her lip again, moving forward toward the rusty barrel after only a moment of hesitation.
"Move, I'll get it." She instructed, gently bumping him back with her arm. He backed away, letting her dip her hands into the barrel as far as she dared with the heat of the burnt wood. She was invincible to her own fire, not regular heat.
After a moment, she pulled her arms out, the inside of the rim showing the bright orange reflection of the growing flames. She turned and sat in the dirt, motioning for the older man to follow her example.
The two sat in comfortable silence, thinking over the things they wanted to say. The adrenaline from the fight was fading, and anxiety was replacing it. Her usual paranoia started to kick in, and her ears tuned themselves to the steady breathing of the man on the ground.
"What's your name kid?"
The girl looked up, her face blank as she replied bluntly, "Why?"
The man held up his hands, "Hey I ain't gonna tell anyone, just thought I'd make conversation. You don't have to tell me. The name's Alex by the way."
"Alex, okay." She muttered, still thinking. She wanted to talk to this man, she really did. But she felt as if every second here was putting her freedom in jeopardy.
A shimmer in the corner of her eye startled the girl, and she turned to look at the wrinkled photo on the ground, the light of the fire reflecting off it. The man noticed at the same time and reached out to grab it.
He recoiled as hot sparks peppered the ground, and the runaway snatched the photo and backed away, holding it close to her chest.
"It's mine." She snarled, much harsher than she intended. She tucked it back into her pocked, next to the other one as the man glanced at the fire, wondering where the embers flew from.
"Sorry, thought it was mine. Who is it?" Alex asked. He said it quietly and carefully, as if fearing her response.
"Friends."
"Oh."
There was a pause, and then he spoke again.
"You seem lost."
The girl cracked a smile, her eyes drooping slightly.
"Not lost. I'm never lost."
"Where you heading?"
"Anywhere."
"Have your friends with ya?"
"No."
"You ran away?" He said it more as a statement than a question, but the hint of uncertainty was still there in his voice.
"Yes."
"Wanna talk about it?"
"Wanna listen?"
Alex laughed, adjusting his old cap as he got more comfortable. "I'm all ears kiddo."
The runaway smiled.
"So that's it. Now I'm here." She concluded, wiping her tongue along her lips to get rid of the dryness. Water would have been amazing at that point.
"Now you're here." Alex repeated, his brow scrunching together. The girl nodded.
"Well I'm not sure what to tell you. It's been a while since I've dealt with the troubles of a teenage girl." He chuckled, a dry and hoarse sound. "My girl, moved away a while ago," he continued as the teen listened politely. "She went far, far, away. Somewhere on the coast I think. We lost contact a few years back."
"Oh, I'm sorry." The girl murmured, no longer concerned about herself. Alex leaned to the side and pulled a damaged photo from his pocket, handing it to her. It was a young girl, maybe fourteen years old. She had dark brown hair down to her chin, and her smile was layered in braces.
"Her name's Nikki. Cute as a button. Moved away with her boyfriend ten years ago." Alex said, his voice laced with sadness. The runaway looked up at him, and to her horror his eyes were watering, the salty tears dropping into the dirt.
"Umm, I should go." She stumbled to her feet, not ready to face an emotional breakdown.
"Yeah, I'm sorry 'bout your situation, and I wish ya luck. But, you should know," He smiled, wiping away a tear with his sleeve. "Running away from your life won't help anything. It'd be best to go home. I can guarantee, promise on my life, that you'd be accepted back with warm hugs and love."
She blinked. "Thank you." She handed him the picture and shook his hand, smiling her first genuine smile in almost three days. They said their goodbyes and went their separate ways, leaving the other man lying in the ground, a small, shiny black feather resting by his side.
The door slammed shut, and the girl took a good long look at herself in the bathroom mirror. Her eyes were dull, and there were dark bags under them, making her seem older and exhausted. Her left check was dark and puffy, bruised from where the mysterious man had managed to punch her. She leaned over and locked the door before stripping off her damp clothes, replacing them with another pair of jeans and a black t-shirt from her backpack. She brushed her hair, fighting through the snarls and tangles with effort.
After a good half hour in the McDonalds bathroom, washing her hair in the sink and brushing her teeth, she snuck out again, avoiding the stares of the women behind the counter as she observed her dripping wet hair and dirty bag.
Her wings itched to be stretched as she left the restaurant, and the clouds parted to reveal the clear night sky. A faint tint of light was peeking up from the horizon, lighting up the darkness just barely.
Her soul wanted to fly, but her brain wanted to sleep. She shook her head, and set her mind on walking to the nearby park to settle in for the night.
Well, more like morning.
The girl pulled out her phone from the side pocket of the bag and turned it on, wincing at the twenty seven unread texts and thirteen voicemail messages. She checked the time quickly before turning it off again, afraid to even look at the sender's names.
So, it was actually four thirty in the morning, but it was still time to sleep.
A large oak tree loomed over her, and she spread her wings to flap to the high branch. She left them out to stretch, too tired to really care about who saw. Her back pressed up against the trunk while her leg swayed lazily along the side, the other one bent. Her eyes felt heavy, and she closed them willingly.
A small drop of water fell onto the runaway's nose, making it twitch. Her eye cracked open as another one fell onto her cheek, and then another. It was raining again. Lovely.
She shrugged and wiped at her nose, ignoring the other drops that targeted her. Now, all she wanted to do was…sleep.
Phew, that took a while. Still kinda short, but I didn't want to drabble on and on. Not sure how this one turned out. It was kinda tricky to write, and I didn't want to overdo anything. Let me know if I did please.
REVIEW! I hate to do this but I'd settle for at least four or five reviews before the next chapter, whenever I start that one. At least it's not as bad as the ten or twenty review requests I see sometimes…. Again, thanks for those of you who have reviewed! =D