The Cheap Bouquet

Annabella Harmon had always been the kind, elegant, girl that everyone at school loved. She might not have been very popular, but she was friends with almost everyone. Everyone knew they could always go to her whenever they needed to talk. They knew she could always keep a secret. Her grades were never lower than C's. She had her head on her shoulders. There is a catch, though; her father left her when she was a small child, and her mom couldn't care about anything other than going out every night and getting wasted.

Annabella completely ignored this fact for her entire life. She knew what was wrong with her family, but she didn't care. She had it so much better than some people. And she recognized this. Because of this flaw in her life, she made it her main priority to be the best that she could be. Up until five years ago, that is.

After her brother, Cody, committed suicide, she lost hope in everything; including herself. As a coping mechanism, she got into drugs, alcohol, and making friends with all of the wrong people. Her grades went down. She never tried when she decided to go to school instead of skipping; which was on very rare occasions. All of this, at only sixteen.

She accidentally comes across Tony Perry at a bar one night. He was one of the first people that Annabella just talked to. She didn't flirt with him, or try and get in his pants. They just simply talked about anything and everything. Annabella, of coarse, keeping her darkest secrets to herself.

The night goes on, and they both leave. But they meet again the next night. And the next night. And the next night. Maybe it's fate. Or maybe it's just coincidence.

Or maybe, this was a shred of hope for Annabella.