CHAPTER 6: A Strange New Friend.

The small fire crackles in front of me, and it is the only thing that allows me to see my own hand. I stare at Bethany. It's still dark. Neither one of us could actually sleep so I suggested we set up a fire, it was freezing out. I cross my arms across my chest. All I have is a T-shirt. Bethany stares at my shivering arms, goosebumps lining it.
"You cold?" she asks.
"You think?"
"You don't have to be rude about it."
"Why do you pick on me?"
There is silence between us. I try to break it with, "I'm sorry, I--" Bethany cuts me off.
"No, I'm sorry. I guess I pick on you because I'm jealous. I know what you're thinking. How could I be jealous? I have rich parents, no siblings, I'm popular, and I'm pretty. But that's the problem. My parents pay no attention to me and they're never home. I am always lonely, and have no one to hang out with or talk to. No one at school is my real friend, they like me because I'm rich. And well, the pretty part doesn't have much bad to it..."
There's silence again. I wiggle my finger in my ear and pull it out again, as if it's plugged. I can't believe what I just heard!
We talk a bit more. I start to like her, understand her. We have more than I thought in common. Our parents are both making big mistakes, mom marrying Dave, Bethany's parents don't spend time with her. Also, we both have sibling complaints, I have too many, she has none. We both have lots of friends and we are both pretty. We also both have old fashion names. She says I should call her Beth and I reply that she should call me Anna. We sit there until the sun just stretches over the horizon. Then we run back to our shelter and pretend nothing ever happened.

***

It's morning. Well it was morning when I came back from my time with Beth, but now it's my kind of morning. It's 8:30. I heard people start waking up at what I figured was about 4:00am. Then I fell asleep. Now I'm awake though, so I pull on mom's sweater and duck out from under the shelter. Mom had left her sweater there for when I woke up. She has a coat plus this sweater, so she can afford to loose it. I have nothing. It was sunny when we got stranded, so I had taken off my jacket. Taylor has a jacket, but it's thin and she doesn't like it because it's pretty ugly. But what choice does she have but wear it? That's my question. I look around. people are surrounding something in a large crowd. I run to get closer. It's an older lady, Mildred! I think she might be having a heart attack!