Paradise

“Jesus, Mom, you can’t just sign me up for things I clearly have no interest for! I don’t want to write for Seventeen magazine! That goes against everything I believe in!” Remi stood at the end of the table, her hands grasping the top of the detailed chair and stared at her mother who was sitting opposite of her, looking down at a pile of papers. Once Remi was finished talking, her mother paused, and then looked up at her daughter. Slowly, she removed her glasses and set them down next to the papers.

“Sweetheart, it’s just an internship. It’s only for a week. You need to put your writing skills to use this break. We all know you don’t have any plans,” she said in that monotone voice Remi dreaded hearing. Remi’s mother raised a brow at her daughter and went back to shuffling through the pile of papers.

The relationship Remi had with her mother wasn’t the best. It was complicated, yet when people saw them out in public it would seem as though they had such a healthy relationship. Remi’s mother was an author, but not just the typical author. Remi’s mother was an adult writer slash children’s author. It was hard for Remi to accept once she found out, but as the years went by it sort of faded in the background and soon, it was forgotten.

Her mother usually spent most of her time in her office. She spent hours and hours in there writing away while Remi usually sat outside on the front porch looking at things that caught her interest, and then, she blogged about them. Having her blog made it easier to escape the real world. It helped Remi forget about the weird relationship she had with her mother and the fact that she hardly saw her father, but knew their relationship was way healthier than the one with her mother.

Remi’s escape was writing, but not just any writing. Blogging writing. And despite the criticism she always got from her mom, Remi had become an expert at ignoring those who never believed she could do it.

So Remi watched her mom pick up a piece of paper, examine it, and completely ignore the conversation. The brunette grasped the details of the chair a little harder, but managed to keep a calm look upon her face.

“Wow mom, you really care about me, “ Remi replied in a sarcastic tone as she shook her head and turned to walk up the stairs. “I really hope you have writer’s block this week!”

Remi walked towards her room as soon as she stepped onto the second floor. She pushed her door wide open and slammed it shut as soon as she entered her private oasis. She groaned and balled her hands into fists. Her mother aggravated her more than anything; she irritated her all the damn time, and yet, Remi did nothing about it.

All she wanted was her mother to believe in her.

But when was that going to finally happen?

It was about six-thirty when Remi opened her eyes from her nap. She turned onto her side and reached for her phone. Like always, she had no new notifications. Her ex-friends quickly forgot about her, yet they still treated her nicely. Remi still didn’t understand that.

A few seconds passed, her phone lit up and Remi raised a brow. It was from Alexa, or Lex, aka the blonde girl who called out Remi’s name earlier that day. Remi smiled to herself as she read the text message.

Lex
Don’t forget about the bonfire tonight, Rem. Would love to see you there. We miss you, you know? Can’t wait to catch up.

She placed her phone on the pillow and looked over at the nearest window. The sun was still out; it was almost at the setting stage and that meant the bonfire was almost starting. She could see it now – her friends loading up their cars with cases of beer, their guitars, graham crackers and chocolate, towels, and Frisbee. As she rolled off to the edge of her bed, Remi sat there and couldn’t help but be a little excited. Maybe tonight would be different.

Remi slipped out of her light wash denim shorts and pulled on a pair of her favorite dark wash highwaisted shorts she thrifted back in Michigan. She threw on an old band t-shirt and pulled her hair into a low ponytail. Remi slipped on her black TOMS and made her way downstairs.

She passed by her mother’s office and came to a halt as she reached the door. It was slightly open and she could hear her mom typing away on the computer; her nose sniffling every other word she typed. Remi kept quiet, and then left the house without even saying “goodbye”.

The car she drove around when she was back home was an old car her father gave Remi the day she graduated high school. It wasn’t anything special since Remi wasn’t going to be staying in California anymore and Remi was perfectly fine with that.

Remi looked at the beat up old car and smiled. She jumped in and headed towards the beach.

As soon as she got the parking lot, Remi saw the white van parked in the same spot from earlier that day. “Okay,” she said softly to herself as she turned her car off and pushed the door open. When she got out the car, Remi tossed her hoodie over her shoulder and turned to look at the white van. The doors were shut and the windows were all rolled up. The brunette shrugged her shoulders and made her way down to the beach.

When she reached the sand, Remi kicked off her flip flops and held them in her hands. She walked down the sandy hill until she saw a group of kids surrounding an already lit fire pit. She swallowed whatever had formed in the back of her throat and casually walked towards the group.

“Remington,” shouted the group as soon as she got closer to them. Remi smiled and dropped her hoodie on the log that was being used as a seat. “Hey guys,” she said, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear and then taking a seat on the log.

“Just in time, Remi,” said her old friend, Zack. He walked over to Remi and handed her a beer. “Drink up, Rem. Just like old times.”

Remi grabbed the beer and placed it on top of her lap. She looked up at everyone else who had started drinking and making s’mores. They were laughing and taking pictures on their phones, leaving Remi feeling out of place. It wasn’t the same; she knew it was never going to be the same.

Lex saw Remi from across the fire pit and quickly made her way to sit next to her. “Remington, drink up, babe! Come on, you’re the life of the party! Drink up,” she said, reaching for the beer and popping it open. Lex looked up at Remi with her bright blue eyes and smiled. “Come on, Remi…” she whispered.

The brunette looked at Lex and swallowed hard. Her eyes fell down onto the can of beer that was now open. She brought it up to her mouth and took a sip. The cold liquid froze her insides. She loved it. She missed it. Within seconds, she dropped the empty can on the ground. The blonde’s small smile slowly formed into a wide one and quickly, she reached for another beer, propping it open and handing it to Remi.

“Great job, Rem!” The brunette looked up to see another one of her ex-guy friends, Cody, staring down at her with a sinister smile on his face. She looked down at the second beer in her hands and without saying a word she brought the rim up to her lips and finished it within seconds. They kept the beer coming and soon, Remi had chugged down about five cans. She tossed the fifth one into the pit and covered her face with her hands.

The group began laughing as they picked up the cans Remi had tossed. Zack walked up behind Remi and placed his hands on her shoulders. The brunette’s head was spinning and she began swaying from side to side. Her eyes opened and she saw the fire, burning fiercely in front of her. Lex pulled out her phone and took a quick picture of Remi before Cody walked up to her. He leaned down and ran his hands down her arms. He moved in closer and pressed his lips to her cheek while Zack pushed all of her hair to one side and leaned down to press his lips against her neck.

Remi shook her head and shut her eyes. All she felt were their lips pecking away at her skin. She shrugged them off, but Cody kept her hands down firmly on her lap. She whimpered as she tried to stand but Zack forcefully pushed her back down. “Stay where you are, Remi. Don’t move,” he said into her ear.

Lex held her phone up and snapped a quick picture of Cody and Zack handling Remi and the rest of the group laughed as it continued.

Just like old times.

“No… no… get off… get off me,” shouted Remi as she tried to push Cody off her. He raised his hand at her and replied, “Don’t fight me, Remington. You know what I can do to you.” Then, without another word, he hit her and she fell into the sand.

Remi opened her eyes and saw them all grouped together near the fire pit, staring down at her with their phones out. They stood there and ridiculed her while Remi tried her best to get up without wobbling back into the sand. Her eyes began to water as she reached for her hoodie, but then Lex grabbed it. “You want this, Rem?”

The brunette nodded and the blonde threw it at her. “Take it. Leave. We’ve had our fun.”

As she picked herself up, she held tightly onto her hoodie and started running away from the group. Their laughs continuously played in her head as she let the tears fall from her eyes. They called out her name and told her to come back, but she knew it was a lie. They didn’t want her to come. They never did. They were never her friends to begin with.

Remi was their toy. They got her drunk, they abused her, and kicked her to the curb.

Yet she kept going back to them.

Her tears streamed down her cheeks as she walked back up the hill towards the parking lot. A guy who was walking towards her stopped and said, “Remi?” The brunette stopped and turned to look at the guy. “What? Wha… what do you want?”

It was the guy from earlier that day, yet Remi’s vision was so blurred she couldn’t recognize him. He had on a gray jacket and a purple beanie on his head. He looked at Remi with a concerned look on his face and asked, “Hey, what happened?”

She shook her head. “Nothing…” she replied before turning away from the guy. Quickly, he grabbed her by the elbow and turned her back around.

“Obviously something is wrong,” he said softly.

Remi dropped her hoodie on the ground and pressed her lips together. She stood there, sobbing while the guy continued to hold onto her elbow. She looked up at him and felt the hot tears stream down her face. Remi shook her head as she took a step towards the guy until her face hit his chest. She let it all out while the guy stood there, concerned and unsure of what to do. His arms slowly came around her shoulders and began rubbing her back.

“I’ll take you home,” he told her.

Remi wiped her face with her hands and said, “No, I can take myself home.”

The guy laughed. “In your condition, I don’t think so. Come on, you can lay in the backseat of my van. I’ll take you home,” he said softly, pulling away from Remi. “You can trust me.”

She shook her head. “I can’t trust anyone.”

“Why not? Why can’t you trust people,” he asked as he stuffed his hands into his pockets.

“It’s a long story.”

The guy nodded and bent down to retrieve Remi’s hoodie. He handed it to her and she grabbed it, then brought the fabric up to her face to wipe away the rest of the tears. He turned his back to her and began walking towards the parking lot. Remi looked at him. The light coming from the street lamp was the only source of illumination since the sun had already set.

He looked back at Remi and grinned. “I’ve got time, you know.”

Extending his hand out for Remi to hold, she stared at him and slowly, her vision was becoming less and less blurry. She didn’t even know the guy, but something about him made her want to talk. To put her trust into someone she just met was a huge risk.

But that was a risk she was willing to take.

Remi walked towards the guy and purposely bumped into his side, making him chuckle as he stuffed both hands back into his pockets.

“Where to, miss,” he asked as he looked over at her.

“Anywhere but here.”