One year later...

Ariella played around with the fabric of the light lavender shirt. She twirled the strings on the bottom around her finger, gazing at the golden beads stuck on the bottom. They glinted in the shining white lights. Ari liked the look of them, but definitely not on the shirt. She wondered if she could pull them off without anyone noticing. Ari looked around cautiously and saw a store worker observing her with slight suspicion. She stuck her hand in her jacket pocket and pushed back a piece of brown hair. She wished she had money to dye it and buy better clothes. She was trying to save up for a makeover, but it was hard. 

She was biting her lip in contemplation and rubbing the beads when someone bumped her shoulder.

"Go for it, I'll cover you," he whispered. Her fists clenched up, and her body tensed.

Ari looked in her peripherals carefully and saw a boy with ocean eyes winking at her, then strolling casually to another rack of clothes. Ari wondered who he was and how he knew she wanted to steal the beads. She glared at him and decided she would just walk away. He looked like a street punk anyways. She pulled her thin jacket around her and left the section.

Ari hated clothing stores like this one: loud and blurry music, clothing that grandparents would buy on sale, and bored employees. The only reason she went to these kinds of stores was because of her money, which was close to nothing unfortunately.

She wasn't poor (she had her mother's old jewelry and savings to thank), but she could only afford to spend on food and mediocre clothes. She wished she had enough for a full makeover, fashionable clothes and dyed hair. She had been saving up for about a year, but it was difficult when food and other necessities were so essential.  

Speaking of food, Ari was about to go out of the store to get some when she heard a loud cry. She turned around to see an employee sprint to the section she just was in. What happened... she thought. People had started crowding around the area, and more employees rushed over. Ariel's interest was sparked, so she went back, just to check.

The scene was hectic. The blue-eyed boy was on the ground in a hot fever, groaning in pain. Ariel's eyes widened. A store worker was asking if he was ok and if he could hear her. He just kept rolling around, sweat on his brow. Some people had started filming. People these days. Ari remembered she had small cloth in her bag. If someone had an ice pack, it could be useful.

She pulled it out and went over to the worker. He looked up at her.

"What's this for?" he asked. Ari wanted to roll her eyes. She pointed at the boy on the ground. The man grabbed it and patted it around the boy's brow. For one second, the boy opened his eyes and winked at her. It was so quick that Ari almost missed it. She narrowed her eyes.

"He's ok, folks!" said the worker. He put his hand on the boy's forehead. "Yep, he's cooling down now. I'll call the hospital but you all can leave." The crowd of people shrunk slowly. The employee went back down. "Is there anyone you know? Anyone I can call?"

"S-She's my s-sister," the boy made out the words with difficulty and nodded to Ari. She backed away but the worked looked up at her again.

"Are you his sister?" he said. The boy looked at her with his eyes. She felt compelled to say no.

Ari nodded her head instead. Why are you so nice, Ariella?!

"Do you two have any parents?"

"They're outside at the pizza place," the boy said. "My sis and I came in to look around." He sat up slowly, and the man helped.

"Ok, well you two go to your parents and get to the hospital, alright?" The boy nodded, stood up, and went next to Ari, holding the cloth in his hand as if he was still in slight pain. He smiled gratefully at the employee and began out walk out of the store.

Ari followed him for some reason. She got the sense that he wasn't necessarily bad, but then again, she could be wrong. Once they were aways from the store, the boy turned around. She was surprised: he no longer was sweating in a fever and now was grinning instead. She stepped back just in case.

"I'm not going to hurt you, don't worry," he laughed. "Here." The boy took the cloth off of his hand, and Ari saw the golden beads she had been looking at. He put out his hand towards her, and Ari took them with narrowed eyes. "What? You didn't believe me when I said I could cover you." Ari took the cloth and the beads, and turned to leave, but he put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you going to thank me or..." She shook her head and walked away. He ran after her and combed back his messy hair.

The mall was not too crowded. It was a normal Saturday, families with their strollers and friends laughing loudly. Ari was disappointed; she liked crowds - they were the best for hiding. She walked faster but he kept with her.

"Hey, stop walking so fast," he said. "I'm just trying to say hi." She stopped, stuck the beads in her pocket, and glared at him, arms crossed. "Uh hi." Ari smiled unenthusiastically. "So...what's your name?" She shrugged. He raised an eyebrow. "I'm Henry, nice to meet your cold soul." Ari wanted to laugh, but kept her mouth in a straight line.

Henry looked like a typical guy. He was wearing a loose t-shirt, blue jeans, and worn sneakers. He stuck his hands in his pockets and awkwardly looked at her with a goofy smile. Ari guessed he was around 16 or 17, only a few years older than her.

"Sorry that was kinda mean," he said. "But uh hi. I just think you're kinda cute and I did help you steal something. So maybe..." Henry smiled hopefully, "I can get your number or something?" Ari was mildly flattered, but she shook her head. "Aw, why not?"

Ari shook her head again and walked off. He chased after her again.

"I'm guessing that there's someone chasing after you? You seem like sorta alone." Ari stopped in her tracks and stared at him. "That's a yes?" She pushed him and ran. "Hey! Hey! I didn't mean to be rude!"

Ari ran towards the exit of the mall, dodging around people who were staring at her as she sprinted out. She heard footsteps running after her. Who the hell is this boy?! How does he know? Why is he trying to help me? She ran out of the mall and squinted in the bright sunlight. She felt Henry touch her shoulder again, and she debated screaming. Ari concluded it wasn't worth it. She turned around, glarin again.

"Hey, you run really, really, really fast," he panted, hands on his knees. Ari shrugged again. "Why did you run?" She didn't say anything. Someone yelled, and they both looked over to see an African American girl waving Henry over. Ari took this opportunity to run again.

Before Henry could say anything, she sprinted, dropping one thing. He whirled around to run after her again, but the light brunette was too far. He looked down and saw a single golden bead on the ground. He sighed, picked it up, and went over to his friends.

\\

Ariella started walking after she got tired. She made sure the Henry boy wasn't following her (he wasn't) and then slowed to a walk. She sighed and pushed back her hair into a messy ponytail. The little beads hit her side from her pocket. Ari concluded she could sew or thread them onto her jacket later. She thought about Henry on the way back to where she stayed.

He was cute, probably a bit stupid, but cute. She shook her head. She did not have a boyfriend or any friends for that matter. And who was that other girl? They both seemed unique somehow, but it was just a hunch.

Ari reached the small dump she called home. Actually, it was never really a home to her, but it was the closest thing Ari had to a house. It was pretty much a pile of fabric she scavenged in the corner between two apartment buildings shrouded in almost complete darkness. She had a flashlight and a couple changes of clothes, but that was about it (next to some money and leftover jewelry). For changing and washing clothes, Ari snuck into the apartment buildings' bathrooms. It wasn't great, but she was used to it.

Ari sat in front of her canopy and put her backpack down, sighing. She zipped up her thin jacket because of the wind. She took out the beads, laid them out in the cloth, and smiled.

Ari was about to take out some thread when she heard a noise. She stopped and looked around carefully, making sure not to make a loud movement. She grabbed the handle of her flashlight and held it like a club. The noise came from the nearby Dumpster. Ari quietly went towards it, holding the flashlight.

A black cat came out of the shadows and meowed softly. Ari breathed a sigh of relief. It was the cat who was owned by the secretary of one of the apartment buildings. She brought it to work with her for "comfort," even though pets weren't allowed. The cat liked to wander inside and outside of the building, and it often came to Ari's little heap of trash.

The girl crouched down and petted its soft fur. It was a small cat with small paws and bright green eyes. Ari liked it because it never scratched or hissed. It purred gently and rubbed its head against her leg. She smiled and carried it towards her tent.

She sat down with a sigh and kept petting the cat. It curled up in her lap and started playing with the golden beads. Ari wished she had a normal life. The feeling came over her every once in awhile. It usually happened in the quiet days when her mind was blank and her heart was longing for a family.

Maybe she could have had a nice, complete family. A great group of friends. A sweet and cute boyfriend. Maybe even a cat. Ari smiled slightly at the thought.

The black cat slipped out of her hands, bored, and scampered off towards his owner. Her smile was washed away.

Everything always left her - a normal life was not a possibility.

A/N

ugh this was so short ajkasnfhoa

anYWAYS

idk why i started writing about a black cat buuuuut whatever