A. H. Wong

Chapter Three

 

February 21st, 2012

 

Dawn

 

Maverick hadn't slept all night. She was sitting up on the roof, a long-burned-out cigarette perched between her fingertips, watching the stars and sunrise. Her feet and calves, clothed in her characteristic baggy jeans, dangled off the edge of the roof—seven stories from the grassy earth below. Her hair caught the dim light of the sunrise, glinting like fire against the black roof and her black hoodie. Her eyes, free of her contact lenses, were small green dots in a pale white face.

 

Her heart was racing quietly in her chest, but her mind stayed calm. She couldn't help feeling, though, that there was something happening—somewhere. Something bad was going on, and that something would make its way here.

 

Standing up, she hurled her cigarette onto the grass, watching it fall out of sight.

 

Turning her back to the abyss, she followed the cigarette's path, climbing carefully down the wall. Luckily for her, the metal bars on windows provided handholds, all the way down to the ground.

 

<3 <3 <3 </3 

 

Mid-Morning

 

The alarm sounded in Beatrix' ear, causing her to elegantly fall flat on her face from shock. Her legs and butt remained on the bed, and most of the blanket was creeping its way onto the floor, jolted into gravity's grasp from the suddenness of her movement.

 

Feeling more than a bit like a fool, Beatrix got up as gracefully as she could. She hit the button on her alarm, looking at the clock again. Eight in the morning. Perfect. Her and Martin had stopped talking, what, only five hours before?

 

It wasn't going to be a good day.

 

Looking down at her body, a thought creeps into her mind about how good it will feel to be able to change clothes regularly. No more worries about not looking good, not smelling good, stains on clothes.....

 

There was even a laundromat here, one that was completely free to all residents.

 

Her heart leapt, feeling rich as she stripped off her clothes. She quickly got dressed again, relishing the feeling of brand-new underwear and pants. When she was dressed, she stared at herself in the mirror: Still too long brown hair, circles from sleeplessness under her eyes, bandages bumping up her clothing on her knees and elbows. A dog bite scar on her left arm from a particularly nasty pitbull, and a scar from broken glass on the palm of her left hand—a broken bottle makes a decent weapon if you're desperate enough.

 

She bit her lip, before leaning forward to look at her face. There was definitely a lot of chapping on her lips, as well as a lot of scabs from being bitten so frequently. A shame, as she'd been told by a handful of people that they would be lovely lips if she cared for them. Still, wasn't likely to start doing that now—she'd been biting her lip for years.

 

A glance at the clock saw Beatrix racing out the door. She now had fifteen minutes to get breakfast on the first floor, get her books from the library on the fourth floor, and then go to her first class—English—on the sixth.

 

This was going to be a very, very long day.

 

Moving as fast as she could, she darted down the stairs. Praying for an elevator—and now clearly understanding just why Maverick and Janelle had barely blinked at the amount of stairs—she hit the first floor in under a minute. Finding the cafeteria was easy, as was paying for something vaguely resembling a chocolate shake. She chugged it down, realizing, as she did so, that it was a meal replacement of some kind. Perfect.

 

Now for the library.

 

With ten minutes before class.

 

She ran.

 

<3 <3 <3 </3

 

Ten Minutes Later

 

Beatrix collapsed into the first seat she came to just as the bell rang. The teacher gave her a look, before Taylor—who had walked into the room just after Beatrix did—said something too softly for Beatrix to overhear. The teacher, a dreary old woman with a long narrow librarian nose, peered at her questioningly for a moment longer before beginning class.

 

"Now, class, I'd like you to turn to page 29 of Macbeth....."

 

Before she could blink, Taylor plopped a copy of the play on her desk. He grinned at her, before whisking his way out of the room.

 

<3 <3 <3 </3

 

Late Afternoon

 

Taylor stretched out on his bed, staring silently at the cieling. His eyes traced the familiar lines and paint swirls he had made himself some years previous, back when he still possessed a creative drive.

 

He closed his eyes, forcing his thoughts away. He quietly dragged his mind away from all problems, all thoughts and worries, and focused on himself. Breathing slower, he let his mind sink into his hidden home, a place where no one dared tread.

 

<3 <3 <3 </3

 

Meanwhile

 

Martin, for the fourth time that day, found himself staring at the cafeteria without a single idea how he had gotten there. He looked up at the sign on the door, looked down at the map, and continued walking.

 

He'd find a safe place eventually.

 

<3 <3 <3 </3

 

Meanwhile

 

"I think I love you," Janelle murmured softly, kissing Maverick's hair. She brushed it away from the other girl's cheek, trying to force a smile to her full lips.

 

Maverick looked at her briefly, before closing her eyes. "I know you do."

 

"....Don't you love me?"

 

"Of course I do. I've loved you a long time." Maverick replied, sinking further into herself.

 

"But.....Why won't you look at me, then, baby? I-I mean....I love you. And you....You won't even look at me. What's a girl supposed to think?"

 

Maverick opened her eyes again, her small hands reaching out to clutch at Janelle's face. She held her lover's face still, fixing Janelle's eyes with her own. Before too long, she broke the silence: "Exactly. What's a girl supposed to think? I've always....I've always told you I loved you, Janelle. Always."

 

"But I....."

 

"Only told me the same now, after well over a year of me saying it."

 

Janelle flinched away, breaking Maverick's hold on her cheeks. Maverick let her go, closing her storm-grey eyes again. "I-I'm sorry."

 

"No, you aren't...." Maverick whispered to herself, before opening her eyes and bringing a smile to her lips. "Don't be, baby. I'm just glad you finally said it."

 

<3 <3 <3 </3

 

An Hour Later

 

Martin took her hand, and raised it to his lips. He gave Beatrix' hand a soft kiss, before murmuring against her skin: "I love you."

 

Beatrix paused, before whispering back, "I love you, too."