I waltzed into the Youth Hall with ease. I'm sure some of the teachers saw my abrupt entrance, but none of them cared enough to say anything. They knew me well enough by now; they were certain I wasn't causing trouble. I went straight up to the staircase that led upstairs and planned on changing into a clean set of clothes, but was stopped when I saw a figure leaning against the railing, halfway to my floor.

"You came back," she said casually, "Looks like the tables have turned." It was Greer.

"Of course I did. What do you mean, the tables have turned?" I asked. It was just like her to speak in riddles. It also did not surprise me in the slightest that she had been standing there. Something told me she had been standing on that same flight of stairs for a while waiting for me.

"Last time you knew I ran off you thought I wasn't coming home. This time I wasn't sure you were," She shrugged, digging dirt out of her fingernails.

"You mean after Cady left and you ran away for an unspecified amount of time? Well forgive me for thinking you might not be coming back," I laughed a little bit.

"I assume that's the last time you realized I was gone," she said with even more nonchalance that usual.

"You leave more often than that?" I raised an eyebrow. It was hard to imagine that that girl could leave the Youth Hall often and never face an ounce of punishment. Westfield was so small— nothing could be so inconspicuous.

"Of course I do. What else would you expect?

"Nothing, not from you at least."

"Well I missed you last night," Greer sighed, "You're the only person here I like."

"At this point, same here," I admitted.

"Great. Now that that's covered, you should take a shower and go to class. I told the teachers you were sick, and nobody questioned it. I don't want you to get in trouble because then you'll never do anything risky ever again in your lifetime, and that's quite boring," Greer laughed, turned around, and walked right back up the stairs. I didn't follow right behind her, and when she got to the top step and noticed that I had not moved, she seemed perplexed. Girls like Greer were not used to others disregarding their suggestions. I used to do this often to Elizabeth Cady, and I always felt a burst of power when I saw how flustered she would become. Yet when I confronted Greer in this same matter, that power was replaced with guilt.

Greer, however, did not seem to mind. She turned right back around, flicked her hair off her shoulder, and left the stairwell. I considered returning the way I had come, but opted to follow Greer's direction and revisit the dormitory. I had to move forward; what other option did I have?

The only other girl my age was sitting on her bed alone when I entered the room again. The older girls had all been sitting together in the back corner. As the door opened and I appeared in its frame, silence swept over the dormitory like a heavy blanket. I did not make eye contact with anyone, and I bit my lip as I succumbed to Greer's instruction. I reached for a towel and a change of clothes and exited towards the bathroom to shower. As the cold water rinsed through my hair and rushed down my back, I began to cry once again. The reality became clear that I was left alone in Westfield with nobody but a girl who seemed to control my actions, and a hole in my heart from the ones who left. Our town had never been so small. 

A/N

Sorry for such a short chapter. Please let me know what you've thought of this story so far. I have a lot of ideas coming for it