FLASHBACK

I stare at the foggy grey rain clouds above. "Wow, the accuracy for this day." a lady says beside me. I look at the large crowd surrounding me. Everyone was wearing black including me. "Mommy?" I whisper, tugging at the bottom of her black velvet dress. Her dark lipstick and black smeared stained eyes made me look away with dread. "Yes, darling?" she asks, her voice thick. "Why are we all wearing black?" I ask, curiously. Charles had told me to be positive through these hard times. How does wearing this color make me feel any better? "It is respect to wear black for the passing, Arielle. Stop whispering now. That isn't polite." She says. I could see the anger behind her eyes and I knew it was pointed towards me somehow. I decided to stay quiet and not anger my mother. "I watch as they lay the small box in the ground and my mother falls to her knees. I was confused as ever and there was nobody to explain. Why are they putting my sister in the ground? Where is she going? I hear everyone sob and my head begins to pound. I didn't want to be here. I wanted to leave now. I turn towards Elizabeth who is trying to help my mother up. Shes whispering in my mother's ear as she breathes heavily. "It's going to be okay. Your daughter is watching. Be strong." I hear Elizabeth say. "Elizabeth, I wanna go home!" I scream. I couldn't take the sadness I felt any longer in this place. I wanted someone to take me away from here and never return. "Honey, Abrielle. Don't yell. It's okay. Quit crying." Elizabeth says, handing me a tissue. "Take me away from here. Out! Out!" I scream. I see as Charles rushes over to me and takes my hand. Tears roll down my cheeks and I scream. I hear others gasp and others cry. "Get me away from here." I tremble. Charles carries me and puts me securely in the car seat. "Are you okay?" He asks, as I sniffle. "That place is scary, Charles!" I shriek. "It's okay, Abrielle. You are away from it now." He says. "Don't ever take me here again!" I say, wiping tears from my cheeks. He reaches in the front of the vehicle and takes a bottle of something. He pours it in a small spoon. "Drink this, Abrielle." He says. I take it without another thought. The taste of thick cherry flavor takes over my taste buds. I then feel my eyes get heavy and I hear a deep voice. "What was wrong with her?" A man asks. "She needed her nap." Charles says. I then go unconscious.

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I wake to see Nikki shaking me. "I am here!" She shrieks. I sit up and rub my eyes. "I'm glad you could stay over." I tell her. She grins, widely. "Hey, it's fun out here away from the city." she says. I fake a smile. If only she know how insane I really am.

  "So how are things?" she asks. I look over at her. "Everything is fine." I say. "Abrielle, you're acting quiet. What's wrong?" she asks, observing me. "Nothing! Want to go for a hike!?" I ask, faking excitement. We had many trails that me and Nikki had always hiked up too. It was beautiful scenery. It had waterfalls, mountains, and just the feeling of nature was relieving.

    "Sure!" She says, with a smile. I go to my closet and look for a pair of shoes. I grab my worn out sneakers. Me and Nikki then set ourselves down the stairs.

  "Where are you going?" My mother asks, with a friendly smile. "We are going to hike a little ways. It's always good to have fresh air." Nikki says.

    We make our way out of the back door, and out the back gate. It led us to the trail. We walk a little ways in silence, as Nikki took pictures. "It's so peaceful out here, Abrielle." She says. I nod in agreement. "It really is." I reply.

   The sun was getting lower in the sky, and I knew that we would have to leave in fourty five minutes or so. "So any plans you want to do once we get back to the house?" I ask. She thinks for a moment. "Well maybe we can swim. The lights in the bottom of the pool is amazing! And the water will be warm." she says. "Good idea." I say.

    We the begin to hear the waterfall and Nikki screeches. "Oh my gosh! I am going to take the best pictures of my life." she says, smiling widely. "Hey, we need to take a video for my yearly video collage." She adds. "Nikki, I am always in it." I say, with a laugh. She laughs along. "Yeah, duh! You're my best friend." She states. "I know." I reply back.

    The waterfall comes into view and she squeals and runs ahead of me. I watch her snap pictures quickly. I couldn't help but smile at her excitement. She was acting like a child. The sun was now setting. "It's almost near dark. I think we should head home." I say. She continues to take pictures. "I think you've fed your addiction enough for awhile." I say. She laughs.

   "Just let me do the video." She says. I stand with a smile. "She records the waterfall and then the camera goes on me. "Do something memorable." She says. I pose and jump on a rock a few feet in front of her. She backs away slowly and suddenly I hear a scream. She slips and falls. The camera falls into the water and I hear a gasp. I look in the water and see Nikki bleeding heavily on her head. It was a gaping wound that would definitely need stitching. I reach for her as much as I can and I place her on the dry ground.

  The blood pours down the side of her face and I knew she was unconscious. I could hear her breathing which was a good thing for now. I reach in my pocket for my phone but I remembered I left it in my room. I reach for Nikki's phone that was hanging out of her pockets. "Nikki wake up. Please." I say, my heart pounding.

   I try to turn on her phone but the water damaged it. It kept blinking for awhile. I throw her phone in frustration.  I pull my hair out my face and I look around, noticing that its dark. I am in the woods in the dark and my friend is knocked out unconscious and could possibly be bleeding to death. I do the only thing I can do. I carry her.

  Blood soaked my shirt and pants and my face and hands. I finally get to the gate as the bright moon officializes night. I bang on the gate hard and yell for my mother. The gate swings open.

    "Honey, what happened?!" She screams. "Nikki fell! Please call an ambulance. She's gonna die. Shes bleeding badly." I scream. "Place her down on the concrete. Here's a towel." she says, running to grab her phone. I grab the towel and smooth it out. I place Nikki gently on it and see the bleeding has thickening and her shirt was drenched. She still was breathing which was the only hope I could hold onto.

    I hear sirens as three men come to the backdoor and take her. I follow after them. "I am following after them. You stay here, okay?" My mom says. I shake my head. "No, I am coming with you." I reply. She looks at me with sad eyes. "Abrielle, you know I can't let you do that." She says, grasping her keys and purse. "She's my best friend, mother." I reply. She exhales. "Fine." She says. "Let's go."

    We leave out the door, and into the car that I have never really sat in before. We pull out the driveway quickly, and I watch as the trees and gates finally turn into houses and then eventually I see stores and restaurants and then suddenly big skyscrapers I've seen in movies come to life. I watch in awe at my surroundings. The lights flash everywhere and the loudness and crowds at such dark hours awed me.

    We pull into a large building where many cars were just parked and off. I follow my mother through many halls and I see so many people. I then see we walk into a hall which had a big sign at the entrance that said, EMERGENCY ROOM .

  "You're going to have to wait out here for a little while." A lady with a high pitched voice says. My mother sits outside the room on a bench and I follow her and sit. "What happened, Abrielle?" She asks. "She was taking pictures of the waterfall and then she was making a video of me posing beside it and then she slipped on a rock and fell into the waterfall. I am guessing she hit her head pretty hard against the rocks." I say, looking at my blood covered shirt and arms.

    "Here you go." A lady says. She hands me a white hospital shirt and a couple of wipes. "Thanks." I say. She smiles and walks away. "Abrielle. Are you sure that's what happened?" She asks. I nod. "Yes, mother. What else would it be?" I ask, with frustration. I scrub my arms and face. "Why are you so bloody?" She asks. "I carried her remember?" I tell her. "That's right." She says, looking deep into thought.

  "Is she okay?!" I turn to see Nikki's mom breathless. "We don't know." My mother says, worriedly. "What happened!" She shrieks. "She slipped on some rocks near the waterfall. " I say, trying to be calm. "Was she bleeding," She asks, seeing my bloody shirt. "She hit her head." My mother says.

   "I am going to change this." I inform. They nod at me. "Bathroom is over here." She points. I walk in and change shirts. I look in the mirror at the blood stains on my neck and face. I wash my face and neck quickly.

    Once I walk back out, I hear my mother's voice. "I hope Abrielle has nothing to do with this." She says. They turn towards me and look frightened that I may have heard.

   "Hey honey. Come sit." She says. I sit beside her. "She'll be okay." My mother tells me. I remain silent because I knew the rage inside me would set free if not.

Why would they blame me for something so horrible?Maybe because you killed your sister. I close my eyes at the thought.

"Are you okay?" My mother asks. I nod. But I knew I wasn't at all.