It was another one of those nights. Four year old Emily awoke to the sound of screaming.
“Where were you?!” He father’s deep voice bellowed.
“Will you keep your voice down? I was with a friend,” came her mother’s quiet reply.
“Did this friend happen to have a dick?”
“God, I am not cheating on you Don!”
“Then what were you doing?!”
Emily would hide under her blanket, hands over her ears. She didn’t really know what they were saying, but she knew they were mad, and she just wanted it to stop.
* * *
She woke up Friday to complete silence, a welcome change. He dad had gone on a hunting trip with his friends up in Maine for the long weekend, so she had the house to herself. After getting herself breakfast and cleaning up a little bit, she packed a bag and went to the lake. Her friend, Allison, spent almost all of her free time at the lake, so she wasn’t that surprised to find her there.
“Emily!” Her friend exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”
“My dad’s hunting for the weekend,” she answered with a smile.
“Lucky break.” Allison was one of the only people who knew about her how her dad really was. Usually, she told everyone that he was the kind of dad everyone dreamed of, the kind she dreamed of. A father encouraging her to follow her dreams, greeting her with a smile when she got home, saying “good night” and “I love you” every day.
Allison was the complete opposite of Emily, which is probably why they got along so well. Allison was loud and at times obnoxious. She did what she wanted and didn’t care what other people thought of her. And best of all, she was always there when you needed her.
They almost hadn’t become friends, wouldn’t have if it had gone Emily’s way. Emily learned from her parents that you can’t trust anyone, so she kept to herself. No friends, no tears and no fighting later.
That all changed when Allison moved to town just in time for high school. Emily will never forget the first time she saw her, strolling down the hall in a tie-dyed shirt and hot pink pants. Emily had History and the room was locked, so she was sitting outside until the teacher got back from lunch. Allison walked up to her and said, “Hey, you look lonely, want a friend?”
What was she supposed to say to that? No? Of course she wanted a friend; she just didn’t want the pain that she knew came with it. Relying on people never worked out.
Allison must have taken the silence as shyness because she sat down next to Emily. “Hey, I’m Allison,” she introduced herself, holding out her hand.
Since when do people shake hands in school? Emily thought. However, she didn’t want to be rude so she shook it. “Emily.”
Allison smiled as she lowered her hand. “Hi Emily, I’m new in town…Have you lived here long?”
Emily nodded. “All my life.” She started at the door, willing the teacher to appear or the door to magically unlock.
“That’s cool. I’ve kinda moved around a lot. I wish we could have stayed in one spot. Daddy promises this is the last time though. I hope he’s right, I’m tired of moving, and it’s nice here. Don’t you think so?”
