India

Weak beams of sun came through the windows of her room in the morning, waking her up from sleep. India sighed, knowing she couldnt put this off any longer. It had been four days since she had last eaten.
Walking downstairs, she went to the fridge, opening it. Everything stared back at her, tempting her. Haunting her. She grabbed a punnet of blueberries and ate them first, moving onto the pantry.
Fifteen minutes was all it took her to eat exactly four donuts, two slices of bread, chips, cookies, strawberries, half a chocolate bar, pizza flavoured crackers, three spoonfuls of nutella, leftover chicken and three handfulls of lucky charms.
Running upstairs, India shut herself in the bathroom and shoved her fingers deep down her throat, gagging and throwing up everything in her stomach before it got the chance to digest and put one more ounce of fat on her tiny frame. There is nothing glamorous about being trapped within the grasps of an eating disorder. Nothing pretty about throwing up or starving yourself. Girls who aspire to be thin and 'try out' doing this to themselves, made India more angry than anything. There was nothing beautiful about sitting on a cold bathroom floor, tears and vomit smeared over your face and hand as she forced every last calorie from her frail body.
India cried as she threw up, not stopping until she saw blue in the toilet from the blueberries she had eaten first. Wiping her mouth, she flushed the toilet and stood up shakily, stripping down and getting in the shower.

India didnt really know exactly when this enormous whirlwind of self hatred had started. She knew it was around the time that she'd started getting picked on at her old school that things had gotten worse for her.
She really had herself to blame, after all. She had got herself into trouble, and that was never going to happen again. Precisely the reason she needed to stay away from the boy living next door.

Alex woke up a little later than he should have, sighing a bit to himself when he saw her curtain still closed.
The rain had stopped, which was definitely a good thing for him. Rain had never really been his favourite thing. Alex got up out of bed and showered, making sure his hair was perfect before he got dressed into some black skinnies and a green day shirt, pulling on his leather jacket and some vans.
He was determined to actually speak to India today, something about her just interested him. Saying a quick goodbye to his Mum, he walked outside, going to his car just as India walked out her front door, locking it behind her.
Alex bit his lip, taking in how tiny she was. Her legs were small and her face looked much thinner than it should be. She was still beautiful to him, in every single way. Alex decided he liked the way her hair was today, in a simple long braid over her right shoulder with her bangs pinned back from her face.

"Hey, do you want a ride?" He called out when he realised she was going to walk.
India jumped a little, turning around to see him.
"Um, no im okay." She half smiled. Alex didnt need to get caught up with someone like her.
"I dont mind, plus its cold. Hop in." He smiled, opening the passenger door for her.
India bit her lip, walking over to him after a second of thinking.
"You sure you dont mind?" She asked, noticing the small amount of stubble around his jawline.
"Of course not." Alex chuckled, closing the door after her when she got into the car.
Letting out a deep breath, Alex went and sat in the drivers seat, pulling out.
"I really do like your name." He said casually as he drove down their street.
"Thank you." She replied quietly, coughing hoarsly into her elbow.
"You alright?" Alex asked, biting his lip slightly,
"Yeah." She nodded, trying to hide it.
Alex let out a breath, turning down a street. He didnt understand why she made him feel anxious like this, he never got like this around people, especially girls.
"So why did you move to Baltimore?" Alex asked after a bit.
"Mum wanted too." She shrugged, not wanting to talk about it. Not to him.
"I see. So work..?" He pressed, not wanting the conversation to die.
"Dont know, probably." She lied, looking out the window as she played with the sleeves of her jersey.
"You look pretty today." Alex said quietly, glancing at her from the corner of his eyes. He knew something was up, but he just wanted to make light of the situation.
India looked down, playing with her hands in her lap. "Thank you." She said, not believing what he was saying at all.
He smiled slightly, hoping she took his compliment on board. He couldnt even remember the last time he called a girl pretty and really meant it.

India sat there in silence, her heart beating way faster than it should have been. She got so nervous around people, and Alex was no different. The second he pulled up at school, she said a quick thank you and got out, pulling her backpack on quickly. She just hoped this didnt draw any attention to her, the last thing she needed was people hating her cause she was Alex's neighbour.
She walked quickly into school with her head down, eyes fixed on her converse.
Her throat was so sore from that morning, and she really just wanted to go home and sleep.
India couldnt get Alex out of her mind, and that really annoyed her. She couldnt afford to get attached to anyone here, it would only cause drama and she would get hurt yet again. She was tired of being hurt by people.
A couple of people delt her sharp shoves in the hallways as she tried to stay out of their way, a few shooting dirty glares at her too. Everything that day only added to her bad mood. She wanted to be alone,

Alex was really starting to get frustrated at how often he found himself thinking of India throughout the day. Every single time he saw her in the hallways, some thought would cross his mind relating to her. He wanted to know more about her. Hell, Alex wanted to know everything. He knew it would be messy, she was broken. Anyone could see that. All he really wanted was to fix her. He wondered what she would look like with a genuine smile on her lips. Probably very beautiful.

"Alex!" Jack yelled for about the 11th time that lunchtime, waving his hands infront of his best friends face,
"Huh? Shit sorry man, i was just thinking." He smiled a little,
"Who is she?" Jack asked with a smile, crossing his arms on the table,
"What?" Alex frowned a bit.
"Whos the girl you're thinking about?"
Alex sighed. "The new girl. She moved in next door." He said, biting his lop slightly,
"New girl?! Fuck man. She is pretty hot." Jack grinned, giving him the thumbs up.
"No Jack, not like that. I actually think shes beautiful." He said, smiling.
Jack nearly choked on his food.
"What?! Alex what the hell!" He whisper yelled, kicking him under the table.
"Ow! Shut up, I know its lame, but she is." Alex defended himself.
"So you like her?" Jack asked, trying to sort all this out. He couldnt even remember the last time Alex liked a girl properly.
"I dont know, I dont know anything about her." He sighed.
"Ask her out or something, chuck a rose in her locker. Girls love that shit." Jack shrugged,
Alex grinned, shaking his head. "Of course." He said. There was no way in hell she was the type of girl to fall for that kind of stuff.

India walked out of school when the day was over, after having the worst day of her life. Nothing had really gone right. She'd been glared at and whispered about by far too many people, and almost every teacher had made her introduce herself infront of the whole class. To top it all off, it was pouring down with rain and she was now walking home, the rain conveniently hiding how much she was crying.
All she really wanted to do now was go home and take out all of her emotions on herself, the only way she knew how too.

A car pulled up next to her, and India didnt even look to see who it was. She knew it was Alex.
"India? What the hell are you doing, get in." He said, driving slowly alongside her,
"Im f-fine." She sniffled, her teeth chattering from how cold it was.
"No you're not, you'll freeze. Get in." He said firmly.
India sighed and pulled open the door, sliding into his car. She was met with a rush of warm air from the heater and blink 182 playing quietly from the stereo.
"Why didnt you tell me you needed a ride home?" He asked, driving fast again.
"I didnt need a ride." She sniffled, wiping her eyes.
"Are you crying?"
"No."
Alex knew she was lying. He wondered why she was so guarded.

India dug around in her bag a bit, her heart sinking when she remembered she forgot her keys. She was locked outside.
"Everything okay?" Alex asked, pulling up his driveway.
"I left my keys in my room." She said, sighing a bit.
"Dont worry, just come to my place for a while." Alex offered, looking over at her.
"No, its okay. I'll just wait for my mum."
"How long will she be?"
"She gets home around 9."
Alex sighed. "You're coming with me." He said, getting out of his car.

India stood in the doorway of Alexs room, not wanting to go in. Her arms were wrapped tightly around herself as she tried to stop shivering.
"Here, put these on." Alex said and handed her a pair of grey sweats and his ravens hoodie,
"Im not wearing your clothes." She said firmly, looking up at him.
"You're not wearing these either." He said, looking down at her soaking wet clothes.
India sighed, taking the clothes from him. "Wheres your bathroom?"
"Down the hall to the left." Alex half smiled, walking back to his closet as she went down the hall.

India walked back into Alex's room a few minutes later, wet clothes in hand.
"Where do i put these?" She asked awkwardly. Nothing about this situation made her feel comfortable.
Alex looked up at her from his seat on his bed, laptop on his thighs. "Just chuck them on the ground." He said, looking her up and down,
"They suit you, you look cute." He smiled, his eyes darting back up to meet her eyes. He didnt understand why his breath was knocked from his lungs whenever their eyes met.
"Thank you." She said stiffly and sat down on his desk chair, causing Alex to frown.
"What are you doing?"
"Sitting down."
"Sit down here." He patted the spot next to him.
India sighed a little and got up, sitting on the bed a good foot away from him.

Girls had never confused Alex before, he knew exactly what made them tick and what made them smile. India however, was a completly different story. His smooth lines and compliments had no effect on her, and it hurt him a little to see that she didnt believe what he was saying. Alex didnt like the idea of somebody telling her she was anything but perfect. Perfection was all Alex saw in her.
"What are you thinking about?" He asked quietly after a while, shutting his laptop.
India didnt answer his question. She was staring out the window as the rain hit the glass, her knees tucked under her chin. She looked so fragile, almost like a child.
"Nothing." She said. Her response was weak, almost empty,
"You like the rain?" Alex asked, laying back against his headboard.
A small nod came from her.
"You dont prefer summer?"
She shook her head.
Alex really wasnt used to people being so quiet.
"Are you going to say something?" He asked.
"I dont like talking, I never have much to say." She replied, pulling the sleeves of his hoodie over her hands tightly.
"You should talk more, you're interesting." He commented, smiling a little.
India smiled sadly, focusing on the rain.
"Indieee." Alex chuckled a bit, wanting to lighten the mood.
"India." She corrected sharply, biting down on her lower lip. "Its India."
"Im sorry." He said sincerly, biting his tongue. Had she never had a nickname before? Maybe she just didnt like them.
"I think im going to go home." She said quietly after a few more minutes, getting up.
"Is your Mum home?"
"Yeah." She replied, getting her wet clothes.
Alex sighed a little. "I suppose i'll see you tomorrow?" He asked hopefully.
A nod was all she gave, before his bedroom door swung shut behind her, leaving Alex alone with his thoughts.