Living Dead [A Marina and the Diamonds Fanfiction]

Chapter 4 -- Tourniquet

It's okay. I mean, I'm glad she's a fan. Right? The voice in my head voiced my confusion. I wonder how she'll react when she sees me. I hope she doesn't go all crazy and giddy like the rest of them. I am not up for that tonight, at all. Bile rose up in my throat. "I hit her. I can't believe I actually hit her." I sobbed inwardly, letting no emotion escape me except through those words. I began to sing, hoping it would help get my mind in order. Deep breaths, Marina. Just like they taught you in uni.

"Yeah, I wish I'd been I wish I'd been a teen, teen idle / Wish I'd been the prom queen fighting for the title / instead of being 16 I'm burning up a Bible..."

My heart slowed after finishing that chorus, and I heard a quiet, childish voice moan, "Ow...." I looked over to see the girl awake, small sobs wracking her body. Wavy hair, heart-shaped face, and eyes of the lightest maple color, almost orange.

"What's your name, lovey?"

"Amber." Well, that's fitting. As she looked at me for the first time, Amber smiled a small, sweet smile, as if wanting to laugh, and said, "That was beautiful, by the way. You sing that song really well."

"Thank you."

"And your name is?"

"Marina."

"Nice to meet you, Marina." That laugh in her eyes didn't fade. It was almost sarcastic. But then her face fell as if hit by a ton of bricks. Her brow furrowed, and she gave off an aura of intense worry. She asked in that same childish whisper, "Are you going to take me back home? Mom's only going to throw me out anyway. She sent me to rehab a year ago because I was fucked up, and she can't pay for another failed round, she said. She won't let me be a burden anymore."

The officer in the front seat spoke up. "We're not going to hurt you, and we're not trying to frighten you, miss. We're taking you to a medical hospital. They're just going to see if you're okay. Miss Diamandis is going to stay with you until we can get you back to your mom. She'll have to deal with it."

"What if I don't want to go back?"

And at that, the officer was completely stumped.

The rest of the car ride was silent. When we got to St Josefina Childrens' hospital in Bel Air a few minutes later, they really had nothing to say except that Amber was fine but to look after her closely. She had only fainted and they didn't think my car even hit her, as there were only a few scratches and a minor blow to the head sustained as she fell. But like always, I didn't ask questions. When we got back to the car, the police officer had something to say.

"Amber, your mom didn't come home from work. She's been gone a week, no trace. You didn't know, I guess. We ran it by a judge and you are now in Marina's custody as a foster; because we don't know what to do with you and she's paying for your medical expenses. We'll try and find her, but you're not going back home. At least not until she's released from 5 years on abandonment charges for this and her previous offenses."

Oh.