Crooked Young
Dusty Memories & Sunkissed Smiles
KARINA’S POV
Sitting down on front of my wardrobe, I tugged out the cardboard box hiding beneath the bottom shelf. I was searching for a calculator, and failing miserably. I removed the tatty lid to find a selection of old books stored inside - not a calculator. Sighing, I pushed the lid back on and shoved it back under the shelf, where it would most likely remain until I moved out.
Spotting another box, I shuffled left a bit before leaning into my wardrobe to get it, almost hitting my face off the sliding door in the process. My hands tugged at the limp cardboard until it finally came towards me, groaning and tearing as it did so. Sprawled across the top of the box was ‘KAT’S SK8 STUFF’ written in my awful, 9 year old handwriting.
Lifting the lid off, I cautiously let my eyes fall on what was inside the box. There was a pair of ice skates - scuffed with a blunt, scratched blade - as well as a few dresses, some of which held fond memories. I lifted the skates out, placing them by my side, and then let my finger hover over the outfits. Finding it all reminded me of the days when my dad would take me to practice, a constant fatherly smile on his face as he watched me on the rink. He use to flaunt to my mum about how amazing I was (when in reality, I was terrible).
Picking up a navy blue dress that was peppered with sequences and rhinestones, I let my mind fall back to the day I wore it.
Following behind Alana, I held my arms out gracefully as I glided across the ice. From the sidelines, I could see my coach giving us all a supportive smile, her beady little eyes peering at us from behind her thick glasses.
Turning round and digging the tip of my skate into the ice, I searched the crowd for my parents. I scanned up for after row before spotting them, huddled under a checkered blanket with my backpack on the seat beside them. I wondered what was inside it, considering everything I needed was in my duffel bag that I’d left in the changing rooms, but was left little time to ponder. The music had began, and everyone was getting ready to perform.
Feeling Elise prod me in the side, I held back a grumble as I skated forward. Elise was horrible - she was always bossing me about, telling me I should wear this and do that. I didn’t see why she thought that I cared for her opinion, but she did, and she never shut up about it.
Carrying out the routine was the easy part of performing - the difficultly was looking where you were going. The spotlights were annoyingly bright, and the odd flash from the crowd sent my mind into a flurry. I wanted to do the routine, to soar and balance and feel infinite, but I didn’t want anyone to watch.
Coming to a halt next to Alana, I wrapped my left arm around her right, and we both flashed our best smiles. I looked into the audience in search of my parents, only to find that my mum had disappeared. I narrowed my eyes, focusing in on my dad who was sitting by himself - the blanket was folded up, the backpack was gone, and there was a member of staff wiping down the seat where my mum was. Trying to ease my worry, I assumed that she’d simply spilled her drink and had left to go to the bathrooms and clean herself up. She had done that before, after all. It usually happened when she was at her friend Chemo’s house though - she’d always come back in a different top or different jeans, her face pale with humiliation.
My arm was yanked roughly back, causing me to stumble out of the lights. The person continued to drag me away until we reached the edge of the rink, where they began to snap their fingers on front of my face.
"Karina!" Whined Alana. "You can’t just freeze out on the ice, everyone will laugh.”
I stepped off the rink, arranging the folds in my dress, and then looked up at her. Unfortunately for me, standing right next to her, was Elise.
"Don’t shout at her," snapped Elise, taking my hand and guiding me away. I watched the back of her head as she hobbled along, skates wobbling dangerously. Eventually, she stopped dead - leaning against the wall of the rink and hitting her blade against it.
"What?" I asked, running my hand over my slicked back hair.
"My mum told me your mum was sick," she stated factually, chin high and self esteem far higher. "Is that why you froze out there?"
"My mum’s fine," I told her bluntly.
"No, your mum has cancer," she said, shaking her head. "It’s okay though, I won’t tell. Are you okay?"
"Why wouldn’t I b-"
"Karina," interrupted my coach, an odd expression on her face. "Can I talk to you in private? It’s very important, Sweetie."
Glancing back at Elise, I watched as her lips pursed and her eyes fell to the ground. My heart began to pound against my chest, but I refused to let it control me. My mum wasn’t ill. My mum wasn’t ill. My mum wasn’t ill.
But she was, and she died six weeks later. I folded the dress up, my hands a little shaky at the memory, and placed it back in the box. That was the day I’d had my world shattered, but that was also the day I befriended someone who would help me piece it back together.
Rolling away from the box, I grabbed my phone and dialed Elise’s number. It seemed like forever before she picked up.
"Babe," she said instantly. “Single?”
"Single," I confirmed quickly. "Single?"
"Plural," she replied. "Bradley has a friend called Daniel."
"Interesting," I laughed. "Tomorrow’s Friday."
"And the day after that is Saturday. Are you coming to the party?"
"Owen said he’d pretend it was a date, we figured I might be able to get out then."
”’Pretend’”, she scoffed. “What are you going to wear?”
"I don’t know, and I don’t care. I’m just happy there’s a chance I might actually be able to go."
"Good things come to those who date Owen Sullivans,” she said. “I better go.”
"Live fast and eat bacon, asscrack. I’ll see you tomorrow."
"So," said Owen between coughs, "are you excited for tonight?"
I propped my head up on my hands, trying to hide the nervous disposition in my fingertips. Do not drum on the table. Do not drum on the table. Do not-
"Karina?"
"Oh," I blurted, my thoughts crumbling away. "Uh, yeah, totally. Are you?"
Owen nodded, dimples sinking into his cheeks. The bright sun cast a warm glow on the left side of his face, making his eyes sparkle. He was, for lack of a better term, a 'pretty boy'. He was nice enough, and he never did anything wrong, but he was just a little bland. This caused a great deal of inner turmoil - Owen was the type of 'young man' my dad would no doubt have begged me to date, so I figured he'd be proud if (well, when) I brought him home, and that would earn me big points with him. Despite that, I cringed at the idea of spending any more time with him. I was beginning to fear for my sanity as he, for the third time that day, told me about how his dog escaped last night. It was all terribly exciting.
"So, it that okay? 7:30?"
"That's great," I lied, "I can't wait."
He sat back in his chair, running his hand through his styled hair, and gave a toothy, unrestrained grin. "Me too."
Sitting down on front of my wardrobe, I tugged out the cardboard box hiding beneath the bottom shelf. I was searching for a calculator, and failing miserably. I removed the tatty lid to find a selection of old books stored inside - not a calculator. Sighing, I pushed the lid back on and shoved it back under the shelf, where it would most likely remain until I moved out.
Spotting another box, I shuffled left a bit before leaning into my wardrobe to get it, almost hitting my face off the sliding door in the process. My hands tugged at the limp cardboard until it finally came towards me, groaning and tearing as it did so. Sprawled across the top of the box was ‘KAT’S SK8 STUFF’ written in my awful, 9 year old handwriting.
Lifting the lid off, I cautiously let my eyes fall on what was inside the box. There was a pair of ice skates - scuffed with a blunt, scratched blade - as well as a few dresses, some of which held fond memories. I lifted the skates out, placing them by my side, and then let my finger hover over the outfits. Finding it all reminded me of the days when my dad would take me to practice, a constant fatherly smile on his face as he watched me on the rink. He use to flaunt to my mum about how amazing I was (when in reality, I was terrible).
Picking up a navy blue dress that was peppered with sequences and rhinestones, I let my mind fall back to the day I wore it.
Following behind Alana, I held my arms out gracefully as I glided across the ice. From the sidelines, I could see my coach giving us all a supportive smile, her beady little eyes peering at us from behind her thick glasses.
Turning round and digging the tip of my skate into the ice, I searched the crowd for my parents. I scanned up for after row before spotting them, huddled under a checkered blanket with my backpack on the seat beside them. I wondered what was inside it, considering everything I needed was in my duffel bag that I’d left in the changing rooms, but was left little time to ponder. The music had began, and everyone was getting ready to perform.
Feeling Elise prod me in the side, I held back a grumble as I skated forward. Elise was horrible - she was always bossing me about, telling me I should wear this and do that. I didn’t see why she thought that I cared for her opinion, but she did, and she never shut up about it.
Carrying out the routine was the easy part of performing - the difficultly was looking where you were going. The spotlights were annoyingly bright, and the odd flash from the crowd sent my mind into a flurry. I wanted to do the routine, to soar and balance and feel infinite, but I didn’t want anyone to watch.
Coming to a halt next to Alana, I wrapped my left arm around her right, and we both flashed our best smiles. I looked into the audience in search of my parents, only to find that my mum had disappeared. I narrowed my eyes, focusing in on my dad who was sitting by himself - the blanket was folded up, the backpack was gone, and there was a member of staff wiping down the seat where my mum was. Trying to ease my worry, I assumed that she’d simply spilled her drink and had left to go to the bathrooms and clean herself up. She had done that before, after all. It usually happened when she was at her friend Chemo’s house though - she’d always come back in a different top or different jeans, her face pale with humiliation.
My arm was yanked roughly back, causing me to stumble out of the lights. The person continued to drag me away until we reached the edge of the rink, where they began to snap their fingers on front of my face.
"Karina!" Whined Alana. "You can’t just freeze out on the ice, everyone will laugh.”
I stepped off the rink, arranging the folds in my dress, and then looked up at her. Unfortunately for me, standing right next to her, was Elise.
"Don’t shout at her," snapped Elise, taking my hand and guiding me away. I watched the back of her head as she hobbled along, skates wobbling dangerously. Eventually, she stopped dead - leaning against the wall of the rink and hitting her blade against it.
"What?" I asked, running my hand over my slicked back hair.
"My mum told me your mum was sick," she stated factually, chin high and self esteem far higher. "Is that why you froze out there?"
"My mum’s fine," I told her bluntly.
"No, your mum has cancer," she said, shaking her head. "It’s okay though, I won’t tell. Are you okay?"
"Why wouldn’t I b-"
"Karina," interrupted my coach, an odd expression on her face. "Can I talk to you in private? It’s very important, Sweetie."
Glancing back at Elise, I watched as her lips pursed and her eyes fell to the ground. My heart began to pound against my chest, but I refused to let it control me. My mum wasn’t ill. My mum wasn’t ill. My mum wasn’t ill.
But she was, and she died six weeks later. I folded the dress up, my hands a little shaky at the memory, and placed it back in the box. That was the day I’d had my world shattered, but that was also the day I befriended someone who would help me piece it back together.
Rolling away from the box, I grabbed my phone and dialed Elise’s number. It seemed like forever before she picked up.
"Babe," she said instantly. “Single?”
"Single," I confirmed quickly. "Single?"
"Plural," she replied. "Bradley has a friend called Daniel."
"Interesting," I laughed. "Tomorrow’s Friday."
"And the day after that is Saturday. Are you coming to the party?"
"Owen said he’d pretend it was a date, we figured I might be able to get out then."
”’Pretend’”, she scoffed. “What are you going to wear?”
"I don’t know, and I don’t care. I’m just happy there’s a chance I might actually be able to go."
"Good things come to those who date Owen Sullivans,” she said. “I better go.”
"Live fast and eat bacon, asscrack. I’ll see you tomorrow."
"So," said Owen between coughs, "are you excited for tonight?"
I propped my head up on my hands, trying to hide the nervous disposition in my fingertips. Do not drum on the table. Do not drum on the table. Do not-
"Karina?"
"Oh," I blurted, my thoughts crumbling away. "Uh, yeah, totally. Are you?"
Owen nodded, dimples sinking into his cheeks. The bright sun cast a warm glow on the left side of his face, making his eyes sparkle. He was, for lack of a better term, a 'pretty boy'. He was nice enough, and he never did anything wrong, but he was just a little bland. This caused a great deal of inner turmoil - Owen was the type of 'young man' my dad would no doubt have begged me to date, so I figured he'd be proud if (well, when) I brought him home, and that would earn me big points with him. Despite that, I cringed at the idea of spending any more time with him. I was beginning to fear for my sanity as he, for the third time that day, told me about how his dog escaped last night. It was all terribly exciting.
"So, it that okay? 7:30?"
"That's great," I lied, "I can't wait."
He sat back in his chair, running his hand through his styled hair, and gave a toothy, unrestrained grin. "Me too."
Notes
PLS READ: just a short chapter so you guys can get to know a little more about Elise and Karina's friendship, as well as her past. This does NOT mean that, all of a sudden, the focus is on her mums death. Its not going to be a big part of this story. Not everyone's lives (ie stories) revolve around grief, and this is what im trying to highlight. Im trying to show that, in time, you'll be okay. Because I know that a hell of a lot of people dont, or didnt, think that (me included). Just- just stay awake, okay guys? I love you all.thanks for reading!<3
OMFG <3
7/6/15