I'm staying at my aunt's house and I don't have wifi so I've been working on an update in my notes Im at this place with free wifi so I'm gonna update
~~~~~~~~Tina's POV~~~~~~~~ "This is the best pastry I've ever eaten," I declared, munching on one. Both Luke and Chris agreed enthusiastically. We were just finishing our lunch when a woman came by our table, wearing an apron. "What do you think of the pastries?" she asked, smiling a friendly smile. "They're great!" I replied, noting the familiarity and love she had when she looked around the room. "Are you, by any chance, Mrs. Gilmore?" "Yep, that I am," she confirmed. "And you three must be newcomers! What's your names? I always try to know the names of my customers." We quickly introduced ourselves, feeling at ease with the cheerful way she treated us. "Are you too siblings?" She asked Luke and me. "Yep, twins. And we live in Mineola, not Garden City." "So what brings to here? To try my infamous pastries?" she questioned, a twinkle in her eye. "Well, that's what we were hoping you could help us with," Chris interjected before I could tell her we were visiting relatives or something. "We're looking for a friend, and we think she might be here. Have you, by any chance, seen a girl about our age come here at all? She's blonde, blue eyes, about as tall as Tina, kind of skinny…?" "Oh you mean Ashley? She's so sweet!" Mrs. Gilmore exclaimed. "She comes here a few times, and absolutely loves my pastries! She says she loves hanging out in the park. You should check there!" After thanking her, we went off in pursuit of Ashley. ~~~~~~~~Ashley's POV~~~~~~~ I lay in the lush grass, my hair fanning out around my head. Breathing deeply, I closed my eyes and concentrated on thinking about nothing. But it didn't work. Why did I turn my parents in? I know it was for the best, but I haven't even visited them. I could still remember the look of shock on their face when I snapped. The regret on their faces when I screamed at them for being bad parents, the repulsion when I slammed the door in their faces, running into the night, tears streaming down my face. They hated me. They despised me for being a dysfunctional child, someone who would turn them over to the police… No! I couldn't think of that. It was too painful, those memories cutting deep into my soul… I buried them deep in the recesses of my mind, only to have them resurface, climbing, determined to remind me of that terrible night. I had been too emotional, too overwhelmed with grief to think straight. I wrote the note to the police, not the hospital like I had told Tina. But I was so ashamed of what I did, I couldn't face Tina. I couldn't face her and tell her the awful truth, that I betrayed my parents, over a little fight… A tear slipped between my lashes and slid down my cheek. "I love you, mom. I love you, dad. I never stopped. It was just hard to live with your… problems. I was trying to do what was best, but it just pushed you guys out of my life. I'm sorry, I'm so… so… sorry." I sat up, rocking back and forth, sobbing. "I'm so sorry, so sorry, so… sorry…" "…Ashley?" I didn't know if I was dreaming or not. That was the voice I longed to hear, to talk to me about my problems, to reassure me that everything was going to be okay. "Tina?" I choked out, my voice raw with emotion. "How… how did you find me?" "I saw your note," Tina said sadly, as if noticing my tearstained face. "And I'm so sorry I wasn't there when you needed me. But I'm here now. Are you okay?" She sat down next to me, suddenly cast in shadow by the trees. "No," I wept, the tears coming on full force. "Nothing's okay. I feel like my life is being torn apart. I betrayed my family, ran away from home, and lied to the police so they wouldn't take me away. You don't understand, Tina, because you have great parents. But when my parents are released, they won't try to find me. They'll abandon me like I abandoned them. And I couldn't bear that… so I ran away… like any coward would do." Tina hugged me. "No, you're wrong. I know your parents love you, and they will do anything to find you once they're better. You're a great person, and you're really brave to be able to do what's right for your parents. Luke and Chris are off looking for you somewhere else, but I'm sure they would agree with me if they were here. We all want you to come home, Ashley. Just come back, and we can figure something out…" But I was rocking again, shaking my head back and forth. "I'm sorry, Tina, I really am. But… I can't. I can't go back… I can't."
Yay I just got back! I'll try to update as soon as I can, but I can't update today because I'm celebrating the 4th of July with a big barbecue at my house. Thanks for bumping!
Check out my new story, Poisoned Eyes! I'll probably quickly wrap this up, because I'm going to be working on my new story a lot. Stay tuned for the next few days!!