narative-friendship

 30Min

Thank god Aubrey had a friend like Sam. No one would have ever guessed the genial girl who sent dappling rays of sunlight over every room she walked into would have ever make such a friendship. But Aubrey O'Brien didn't care. As long as the meek girl could clasp Sam's hand in hers, share icypoles from the corner store and kick stones off the footpaths with her she was satisfied as could be. 

Sam, after all, was a blanket. She muffled the wretched screams and crashes that floated through the walls. Her smile obscured the leers of the bullies. Insults and taunts lashed out at the frail girl would be stifled by Sam's toasty honey-sweet voice breathing sweet comforts into her ear. As Aubrey aged and weariness drooped into the folds of her eyelids, her waxy skin growing more and more pallid, she gave no heed to her own life if only she could feed off the joy that came with seeing her flowering, rosy-cheeked friend.

Even if she would have to pay the price.

So Aubrey would take on life's challenges if it meant the golden haired nymph could remain untainted. As she helplessly stared up at leather skinned Ruby Red as she had done so many times before, a niggling feeling within her urged her that this was for the best. Ruby's premature, sagging jowls loomed over the poor girl. Aubrey could already sense the redolence of cigarette smoke that lingered whenever Ruby was near, whenever her mother was near. She scrambled back, wincing as what was left of her skin and bones crushed against the wall as Ruby stepped forwards.

And, by the dim classroom window she could feel the gaze of another person burn into her. However this one didn't pierce her skin as Ruby's did. No, this one felt like concerned waves attempting to break out out from the glass prison and caress Aubrey's figure. Sam's wide glassy eyes drifted from her friend to the beast looming over her in the dark classroom. Ruby's smirk dispersed, as her eyes mousily darted over to the window. However, she was met with nothing but the scenery of school flora obscuring any awful scenes a passerby might encounter. She turned back to her helpless victim, fully aware of the screams and cries that would follow that no one but she could revel in.

Aubrey started into the distance, unmoving save for her greasy locks swaying in the wind. She was searching for something in the corner store carpark, her eyes raking over the desolate gravel and the flickering lamps. Or perhaps she was too absorbed in her own thoughts. It was hard to discern, looking at her puffy face. A busted, swollen lip coloured horrendous shades of mauve and crimson. A dark bruise obscuring a puffy, half-lidded eye. A stream of dried blood that had made its path down the philtrum and stopped at the busted lip.

"Aubrey, our icypoles are going to melt."

No answer.

"Aubrey?"

The ghostlike girl turned her head at Sam beside her on the footpath. Sam, of course, was untouched as she should be. Her skin remained effervescent in the dim carpark lighting. Her blue gaze glittered as it cast worried glances over her beat up friend. Aubrey finally mustered the courage to meet her friends gaze through only one working eye. 

However, as Sam's figure once again flickered into empty air, Aubrey had no gaze to meet. She drearily watched the hallucination dissipate, and a defeated feeling settled in her stomach like a heavy rock. She looked back at the flickering lamp. Cold icypole juice began to trickle down either side of her arms, but Aubrey continued to stare.