Wildflower

Chapter 1

June 6th 1999 3:36 am

Her screams pierced the warm summer night causing the trees to shake with birds quickly taking flight. She'd been in a constant state of unending agony and brutal pain for the past two and a half hours. If they had been any closer to civilization the police would have been called.

A young girl with eyes like opals and sweat glistening on her skin was on her back being wrenched upward with the pain. She was only 16 and her body could barely handle the agony of childbirth she was going through. Another teenager, a petite redhead was beside her with a damp rag and was trying to comfort her friend to the best of her ability.

"Belle you're nearly there honey, you're doing great." She positioned herself in front of her friend and gently pushed back her skirt. The baby's head was just coming through.

"Flo.. Flo I can't do this." The girl cried. All she wanted was for all of this to be over and her baby in her arms.

"I can see it's head!! Belle I need you to give me another big ol' push when I count to three okay?" Belle nodded her face contorted in agony.

"Okay 1..2..3!!" With all of her might and with every inch of power left in her broken, fragile bones she pushed and pushed and then. A cry.

"Oh my stars, Belle you've got yourself a beautiful baby girl." Flo cried tears of joy that streamed down her face as she held the screaming infant in her arms.

"Give her here to me." Belle croaked in a weak voice. Bundling the small baby in a linen blanket she handed her to her mother.

As soon as she was laid on her mothers breast the baby seemed to stop her crying and fell fast asleep.

The girl managed a weak chuckle while looking at her baby. She was even more perfect than Belle believed was possible.

"My, my, you are your daddy's girl if you can fall asleep that quick."

The tent they were in was small and sticky with the smell of sweat and blood. There was an opening out of the tent and outside the night was clear and the moon was bright. The stars were like twinkling lights that Belle had in her old room and the Mississippi River had taken on a silver hue that made it seem like they were in an upside down world.

"What are you gonna call her B?" Flo asked gazing doe eyed at the infant. "What about Hilde, after your mama?"

"Remember that old story that your Aunt Vicky used to tell us bout that little girl who ran off into the woods and joined the fae. She met the Queen of the faeries who granted her the gift of happiness. What was her name again?"

"You mean Violet?"

"That's her name Flo, Violet."

June 6th 2017 3:34 am

"Just two more minutes Vi and then your able to go out in any night club in Europe" My best friend Poppy said with a huge grin. She's the wild one out of the two of us with her waist length mane of wild black hair and her fiery green eyes you could tell it a mile away.

"You're a funny girl if you think I'm gonna be out clubbing Po, my ass is gonna be at home sleeping."

I didn't even want to come out to the middle of the mountains near my town but Poppy insisted.

"You are gonna be 18 years old and if you think I'm gonna let you waste your life away at home you can forget about it." She had said to me. The two of us had always loved nature and the mountains near the town, after all it's where we had met nearly 9 years ago.

It had been huge news at the time. The disappearance of a young mother, a well liked, law abiding member of the community was always gonna be huge news. I had been helping search with my Aunt Flo and nearly two hundred other locals when I had met Poppy. She was new to the town but had already made fast friends with about every kid in our grade. I was shocked when she came up to me and started talking as we made our way through the overgrowth.

"It's your mama that's gone missing isn't it?" She had asked outright. I was taken aback at first but I had mumbled a reply.

"Yeah, she's my mama."

"Well that's shit luck."

Poppy was never one to keep her opinions to herself and from that moment on we had been best friends.

She glanced at her watch before sitting up like a shot in her sleeping bag and screamed "HAPPY BIRTHDAY YA FILTHY ANIMAL" and before I knew what was happening I was tackled into a massive bear hug.

I laugh loudly and throw my arms around her. She gave me a huge kiss on the cheek before rolling off of me and laying down. We were both camped out in a clearing underneath the stars with a dying fire at our feet.

"You know what Po? I think this has been my best birthday yet." I smile and grab her hand entwining her fingers in mine. I look and see that our matching tattoos are aligned. A violet for her and a poppy for me. The two little wildflowers.

We lie there in silence and I look at all of the constellations above my head. I'm counting the number of stars above my head when Poppy speaks.

"I hate this goddamned town , I hate it so much. All I want to do is get out of here."

I look to her face. Although she's the life and soul of the party and has spent most of her life being the joker Poppy got sad a lot.

"Well then its settled. We're gonna get the hell out of here. I don't care where we go, it doesn't matter."

She smiles at me with sad eyes "That's exactly what we'll do and we'll never look back. You and me forever little flower."