25

"So take your gloves and get out."

Sawyer

The world awoke to a breathtaking winter morning as the first light of dawn painted the sky in hues of gray. A blanket of pristine snow draped everything in sight. Icicles sparkled like diamonds, adorning tree branches. The crisp air carried the faint scent of pine and wood smoke. I stepped out onto my driveway, waiting for Noah to hurry to school. My heart sank as I reached up to adjust my necklace, but the chain felt empty. Panic surged through my veins as I searched my pockets and around my feet, wondering where it could have fallen. In desperation, I dropped to my knees and sifted through the snow. I ignored the numbness in my fingers and dug deeper. It must have fallen off during our snow fight.

"Darling, what are you doing?" Josh called out, his voice tinged with concern.

Asher's footsteps trailed behind him. Tears stung my eyes as I looked up, my cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

"My pendant fell off," I said, my voice trembling with oncoming tears. "I think it fell in the snow yesterday."

Joshua dropped to his knees without hesitation as his eyes scanned the area.

"Don't worry." He placed his hand on my shoulder. "We'll find it, but we're going to be late if we don't leave now."

I shook my head.

"It's important to me."

"I know it is. As soon as school is over, we'll come right back here and search everywhere."

I looked behind him to find Asher missing. He couldn't deal with my emotions and escaped when he could. Josh reached over to wipe the tears with the sleeve of his jacket.

"We're going to find it." He promised. "We won't stop looking until we do."

??

I needed to be alone. To gather my thoughts and lose myself in the art. I always found solace here amid all the chaos. With each brushstroke, I poured all my emotions out onto the canvas.

The natural light streaming through the windows bathed the classroom in a soft glow. It made the worries and stresses of the outside world fade into insignificance. I glided my brush across the canvas with skilled ease as my mind got lost in the swirl of vibrant colors.

However, the door shattered my peace when it creaked open, alerting me to the unwelcome presence of Ava and Elsie. I gripped my brush in my hold as they entered.

"Wow, never thought we'd get you alone. Josh is usually trailing like a lost puppy." Ava said, her voice dripping with disdain as she strutted over.

My jaw clenched with indignation. They'd avoided me for months, so why decide to annoy me now?

"I'm busy right now," I said. "Go braid each other's hair or something. I need to finish this for class."

Elsie scoffed and rolled her eyes in exaggerated disbelief.

"Why bother?" She asked. "You're just wasting your time."

My knuckles turned white. I'd already been having a bad day, and they were adding fuel to the flames.

"The only thing I'm wasting my time with is you."

The smiles faded and anger replaced them as Ava reached forward for a brush. With a flick of her wrist, she launched a glob of paint onto my canvas. I gasped at my ruined painting.

"My bad." She taunted, her voice dropping with contempt.

With a primal scream of rage, I launched myself at Ava. With a thud, we collapsed onto the floor and grappled together as we crashed against desks and easels. We knocked over paint, but we were more hellbent on bruising each other than the mess we were making.

Our struggle echoed through the room, along with Elsie's, as she joined the fight. The noise must have drawn attention, as we soon had an audience, one of them being the principal.

"You three, stop right now!" His voice boomed with authority.

We reluctantly broke apart, our faces flushed and sweaty. His gaze swept over the scene before him, his face tightening in disappointment. He ushered the onlookers out of the room before turning back to us. He folded his arms across his chest.

"My office. Now."

I bit my lip and wiped the paint off my face with the back of my hand as I trailed behind Ava and Elsie with my head hung low. Being called to the principal's office was a first for me, and the unknown filled me with dread.

??