Finding Pride - story from The Dumping Ground

Chapter Eight

chapter eight

'So, what's making you anxious hm?' Faith looked down kindly at her friend who had sat upon the swing.

'I'm not like... anxious. It's stupid really...' Elektra sighed, kicking the dusty ground with her metallic, blue boots. She didn't want to appear vunerable in front of Faith, or anyone for that matter- it made her feel like a fool.

'It's clearly not stupid if it's making you, Elektra, upset.' Faith responded encouragingly, causing her friend to roll her eyes at the emphasis of her name.

Seconds of silence passed by.

Faith held the swing's rope in her hand and turned to face Elektra.

'You said you'd tell me.'

Her stern, but genuine eyes met with Elektra's anxious, wandering ones. She didn't want Elektra to feel forced to speak out, but she knew it'd make her feel better, and tough love is always the go-to when handling Elektra.

The blue-haired girl sighed in defeat as her gaze travelled to the grassy ground in front of her. Something about the way her friend looked at her with such compassion drove her to open her mouth to speak.

'Okay, fine.'

Faith wasn't giving up on her, which wasn't the worst feeling in the world.

'Basically, when I was- I dunno, 14? I met this... girl.'

'Okay.' Faith exclaimed, slightly taken back by the direction of the conversation, but grateful that her friend was finally opening up. '...And?'

Another moment of silence passed as she awaited her friend's response.

'She was in the year above me at school and she was... lovely.' Elektra's voice cracked.

'Oh, Elektra...'

Remembering her first relationship was something that Elektra had avoided for almost 4 years,
which was why she couldn't believe she was actually talking to somebody about it- the topic felt overwhelmingly foreign to her.

Faith placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder and ushered her friend to continue the story.

'I.. really liked her. She was the opposite of me but in the best way possible.' She shook her head sadly.

'Um... one night, after we had been close for a few months, I messaged her.' She blinked back tears and took a moment to exhale. The memories were still raw.

'We talked about sexuality and all that stuff. It turns out that she had liked me the whole time too, and she... asked me to be her girlfriend.' This time, Elektra grinned weakly through the tears. She could vividly remember getting that message; that short moment was possibly the happiest one of her life. The fast-paced nature of her young romance was almost comical, but nostalgic.

Faith let her friend smile and relive the moment for a few seconds. Sensing that the tone was about to shift to something darker however, she made the effort to get closer to Elektra and make her feel more comfortable.

'What happened?' She asked cautiously, placing a hand on her friend's knee.

Elektra cleared her throat and shuffled awkwardly in her seat. She didn't want to expose her traumatic past, but at the same time she needed to relieve some of the inner turmoil she was suffering with.