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Prologue Two

Birkley

Seven years old:

“Back straight, Birkley. Pick up that flute and do it right this time,” my mother yells at me.

“Yes, ma’am,” I say before doing exactly what she said.

“You will never make it into Julliard with that kind of piss poor playing,” she tells me, holding her ruler up and slapping me across the knuckles before telling me to start over.

It takes everything in me not to rub my knuckles, not to wipe the blood away from the continued bleeding, not to cry. However, I know all that will do is make her even madder. She wants perfection. She expects it in everything I do. When that doesn’t happen, she gets angry and shows me exactly how disappointed she is. I have to wear cardigans to school now, even in the hot summer, to hide the bruises she leaves on my arms. Well, actually, they are all over, but my arms are the ones people question the most. Especially when they are shaped like her handprints.

“Are you dumb? It’s a B flat,” she yells at me. Her face is screwed up in anger when she turns, and I know what’s coming.

“I can be better, mommy, I promise,” I say, but she’s too mad. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen her this angry. It's probably because daddy hasn’t come home from work since yesterday morning. He’s always leaving for days and then comes home to mommy yelling about another woman. I hate when he leaves me here. Mommy takes out her anger on me, but something's different this time. My mommy doesn’t just look mad… she looks murderous. I know if she gets a hold of me this time, I might not be able to hide it. I drop my flute to the floor by accident as I quickly get to my feet, trying to get as far from her hatred as possible. That makes her even madder.

“Oh, so now you want to be a disrespectful little bitch? Do you know how much that flute cost your father and me? You care so little about our gifts. You just want to throw them to the floor!” she yells, lunging at me.

I scream and turn, taking off out the back door of our house as I hear my mom chase after me. I run to the woods at the edge of the backyard. I’m not sure where I’m going. All I know is I have to get away. I keep running until I have no clue where I am. The sun is setting, and I’m in the middle of the woods, not sure which way I came from. My breathing comes out faster at the thought of being lost out here all alone at night. I hug my knees and let the tears fall from my eyes.

“Hey, are you okay?” someone asks behind me, touching my shoulder. I scream, not realizing anyone else was out here, and he jerks away, holding his hands in the air.

“I'm sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. I heard you crying and wanted to make sure you were okay,” he says.

I take a deep breath, looking into his eyes. One has a black mark around the edge, like someone hit him in the eye. He also has a long line across his lip, like he somehow split it.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scream. I got lost, and I don’t know how to get h-home,” I say, my voice breaking at the end.

“I can help you. I walk through these woods all the time. I live out that way, but I still like to explore,” he tells me, pointing in the direction he came.

“You could help me? Really? I live in Shallow Dove.” I tell him the subdivision my parents and I live in. It’s a popular subdivision in our town, so most people know it when I mention the name.

“You mean those big houses, past the big Baptist church in town?” he asks.

I nod, thankful he knows the one I’m talking about.

“I know where that is. We aren’t too far,” he says, smiling and holding his hand out.

I look down for a minute, wondering if I can trust him, but what other option do I have? To sleep in the woods? I take a deep breath before placing my hand in his and letting him guide me forward. We talk as we make our way through the woods. A tree limb catches the sleeve of my cardigan and pulls it down my arm. I squeak, and he turns, seeing that I’m stuck. He helps me untangle the branch, but I see his face change when he notices the bruises on my arm. I pull my jacket back up and over them.

“Don’t worry, I have them too. Did your mom and dad give you those?” he asks me.

“My mommy,” I whisper, holding in tears. I don’t want to be some stupid little girl crying in front of him. I’m a big girl now, no tears.

“My dad gave me these,” he says, pointing to the bruise on his face and the split lip. Before I can reply, he pulls me out into an opening in the woods, and I see we are only two houses down from my backyard.

“That’s it. That’s where I live. You did it! Thank you so much for showing me my way home,” I say excitedly.

“It was no problem,” he says. I smile at him before turning back toward my yard.

“If you want to come home with me, I can ask my mommy to drive you home,” I say, turning back around to him, but when I do, he’s gone. I look all around, but there’s nobody there. He disappeared so fast. Where did he go? I didn’t even remember to ask his name.

I look around for a few more minutes before frowning and making my way home. I wish I didn’t have to go back. I wish I could stay out in the woods with him too, but now he’s gone, and I have to face my angry mother all alone. Like always.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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