American Sweethearts

31

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"Are you sure you want to go alone?" Lena asks. "We can come."

"No, it's okay," I assure her. "I'd rather be alone."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," I chuckle. "I'll be fine."

"Okay, well, we'll be right out here."

"I'll see you in half an hour or so."

"Take your time."

"Wait!" Stacey calls, stoppinf me from walking away. "I need to take a picture of you two."

"Of us?" Lena scowls.

"You and your new hair!"

I scoff. "I am not taking a picture infornt of a graveyard!"

"Oh, come on, girl," she insists. "Just pose infront fo the car. Hop on the hood."

I give her a quizzical look, but Lena is already skipping over. She wriggles her bum up, taking a seat on the car. I give in, joining her there. She throws her arm over my shoulders, and I place mine around her waist. I smile brightly, waiting for Stacey to take a picture on her phone.

Lena and I both made bold choices at the hairsalon today. Lena cut her hair into a bob, and added some teal coloured streaks. I was surprised by the choice, but it really suits her. She's had dyed hair before, but never like this. She's never had her hair this short either, but she pulls it off well.

As for me, well, I only trimmed the ends slightly, so it's only a little shorter than it was before - about down to my boobs. But now, it's all light blonde. That's right, I decided to bleach it all. I know yesterday I was thinking I wasn't brave enough for it, but I made a spilt-second decision to risk it. It did take quite a bit of encouragement from Lena and Quinn, but I absolutely love it. I liked it when it was dark blonde, too, but this just looks a little more... fun.

"You two look so pretty!" Stacey gushes. "I think we should adopt Lena into our family, don't you think?"

"Definitely," I joke.

"I'll start the paperwork."

She puts her phone down, letting us know she's finished taking our picture. I slide off the hood of the car, but Lena stays put.

"I'll be right back," I tell them. I walk away from them, stepping through the gates of the cemetery. There's not many people here, but that's to be expected on a Monday afternoon. Especially when it's such bad weather. It's obvious winter is coming. And so should a new season of Game of Thrones.

I walk along the familiar pathway, heading in the direction of my parents. They're burried right next to eachother. It's a lovely little corner of the cemetery - as lovely as a cemetery can be. We've decorated it with pot plants and flowers, and the groundsmen mow the lawn every week.

Its surprisingly expensive to uphold a grave. We have to pay a monthly fee, and it's far from cheap. At least when you're cremated, your camily memebers can avoid that cost. But my parents never liked the idea of cremation. They insisted on being buried next eachther. It was even mentioned in their will, along with a hundred other demands about their funeral. Turns out, they'd pratcially planned the whole thing. It didn't go exactly to plan, but it was close enough.

I take a seat inbetween my parents gravestone, spreading my legs out over the grass. I pick at a bunch of flowers, twirling them between my fingers.

"Hi," I say. "It's me, your youngest daughter, Sarah. I like to think I'm your favourite, but then again, I killed you, so..."

I laugh at myself. I know how stupid it sounds, but it's what I feel anyway.

"I don't know why I introduce myself every time I come here, but I feel like I have to now. I haven't been here in so long, and I'm sorry for that. I've been away at college for the past few weeks. It's almost halfway through the semester now. I've been doing well, I think. I haven't gotten any grades back yet, but I've been enjoying it. I still haven't decided on my major, though. I like my music classes, but biology is more interesting."

I let out a deep sigh, sitting with my thoughts for a moment. If it rained right now, I wouldn't mind. It might add a dramatic effect.

"Lena and Owen are great," I continue. "Owen and I get along well. We're always joking and laughing. He makes me feel at ease, which is great for me, you know? I feel comfortable in the apartment with him. But then there's Tyler. He's Owens friend, and the other guy we live with. He's... different. He's the most annoying person alive. We're always arguing, but the more I get to know him, the more I realise that he means well. It's harder with him, but I'm beginning to trust him. It's funny, because we're basically opposites. He's a criminal, and I'm well... not. I'm always careful with what I do, and I try to be polite and careful with what I say. But Tyler just doesn't. He's a bulldozer. He'll say what he wants regardless of what other people think."

I can't tell if I like it or not. When I first met him, I thought he was a dude asshole, but he's growing on me.

"Lenas made a lot of friends," I change the subject. "She's loving it. She parties all the time, I don't even know how she gets her coursework done. Her friends are lovely, though, but they're mostly just friends because they're the only girls in engineering. I've made some friends too, but mostly through my support group. Which, by the way, is super helpful. One of the girls I met there, Steph, inspires me a lot. Some bad things have happened to her, but she's mostly used it to fuel her passion for women's right. She's tough as hell, and that's how I want to be."

"I know, I know. We're all strong in our own ways," I roll my eyes. That's what dad used to tell me. "But I wish other people perceived me as strong too, instead of just a shy girl with a love for indie music and fashion. I feel like I've changed since I started college, though. I've been out in a lot of situations where I've had to stand up for myself, and I feel more powerful because of it."

"I wish you were here to see me," I continue. "I know you probably can. You're probably following my every move. I guess, what I really want is to hear your opinions and perspectives. I want to know what you two are thinking, and how you feel about the decisions I'm making. I wish you where here to live my life with me."

Just as I finish my emotional talk, my phone ring. I slide it out of the pocket of my dress. It's Quinn.

"Hi sis," I say. "I'm with mum right now."

"What the hell are you doing hanging around with a kid like Tyler?"

"What?" I sit up, surprised by her angry tone.

"He's a criminal, Sarah! He's on parole!"

"Yeah, he set fire to his-,"

"Fire? No, no, no. That's not what I'm worried about! His record is full of violent assaults, DUIs, and theft!"

"What?" I repeat, completely confused.

"We are moving you out of that apartment! There's no way you can live with someone like that! And that's not all!"

"What is it? Did you find anything else?"

"He's... he's..."

"Please, just tell me."

"His mother is Lee Scott," she says. "You remember who that is, right?"

I could never forget. I pull the phone away from my ear, ending he call.

"Sorry, mum and dad, I gotta go," I jump onto my feet, running back to the car.