Four days ago, Alan enrolled at this high school. In that time students tripped him in the hall, stuffed him in his locker, pulled his shorts down in gym class and stole his lunch in the cafeteria.

If he didn’t know better he would think that he was in a teenage movie of some form. In fact to survive he imagined he was the underdog hero in a movie where things would turn around for him—sort of like Peter Parker in Spiderman. But he knew that he didn’t have superpowers and that he needed to learn the back ways of the high school to survive.

Sitting in a corner of a set of isolated lockers on the east side of the school, out of sight, he sat eating an apple that he had in his backpack. God he missed Colorado. He was not the most popular, but he had friends.

As he took another bite of his apple he noticed that someone was approaching so he decided to try to tuck himself back farther into his hiding position hoping that whoever it was would not notice him.

The slender form of Billy Jean made it's way down the hall, blending in with the crowd of students between classes. She was terribly hungry and hadn't eaten anything all day and was feeling sick because of it.. Dizzy and weak. But it wasn't just today... Michael had told her to see a doctor, but she couldn't. She didn't have the money to spend and she didn't have insurance...

The school, she had learned in her days, was a great place for cheep food that was still decent. She turned down a hall though, one that was empty now or it seemed to be, but her sixth sence told her otherwise...

Looking around she saw someone in the hall, snacking on an apple...

Yeah... An apple and peanut butter would be nice... Did they have peanut butter in the cafateria?

"Hi." She said quietly to the boy snaking on the apple. "Why are you hiding over here?" She asked, pshing a small smile to her face.

With his head still down in his feeble attempt to be invisible he heard the girl’s voice. He wanted to look up at her, but just did not have it in him in case it was inevitable that someone else was about to prank or abuse him.

Weakly his voice broke loose from his lips, “Nothing. I’m just eating my apple.”

Perhaps he did have enough courage to at least look at her. Raising his head he looked through his long bangs to see what appeared to be a girl about his age with a slight smile on her face. “What are you doing down here?” he asked, still in a low quiet voice.

She brushed a strand of her short choppy blond hair from her face, her grey eyes noting the tone of his voice. Was he afraid? Was he expecting someone else?

But his question stumped her slightly. What was she doing here? "Um... I was just headding to the cafeteria... Gonna get some lunch and all." She said. "That's all really." After all, she wasn't here for classes, in this city she didn't exist except to those men who needed her services. But work had been slow lately because of the winter weather... She was running low on money, and though Michael of course offered her money, she couldn't accept it.

She'd been living with him for nearly three weeks now, and she owed him more than enough. She knew she woudl have to go back with the other girls soon... But she didn't want to leave Michael...

"But you are hiding though. Otherwise you wouldn't be all scrunched up in there, huh?" She knelt down to look at him better with a small smile. Though she would never really be a student here, it was nice to mingle with others her own age... It was different. A good different to pretend she was normal.

"I'm Mina. What's your name?"

Alan’s eyes reflected doubt. The cafeteria was no where near this end of the school which is why he was eating lunch over here. “My name is Alan.”

She knelt down effectively making him feel a bit trapped. It was nerve wracking to have a girl talk to him. It just never happened to him really. “Uh…yeah I am hiding,” he said hanging his head again. “The kid’s here are not like where I came from. This school sucks.”

Alan set his apple down on the floor besides the girl’s knee and put both of his hands onto his face trying to hide from her. “I’m sorry. I should get to class,” he pushed out from behind his imagined iron mask.

He peeked through his fingers to see if she was moving to let him out.

"Nice ta meet ya Alan." She smiled at him as she tilted her head. "You're not from here either though?" She was trying to make chit-chat with the boy... He seemed so afraid for some reason that she just couldn't understand. She felt.... sorry... for him. He seemed to be away from home. "Cause I'm from Phillidelphia. What about you?"

But he moved as if he wanted to leave and said he had to be getting to class, so she gave a small sigh and stood up. Her had swam slightly and she gave a slight wobble, but she was fine otherwise. "Okay then. I don't wanna keep you if you have to get to class of course." She said as she moved aside. "But there's no reason to be afraid of me... Okay?" She added softly.

She didn't mean to be so blunt about it, but there wasn't any other way really...

"You shouldn't be afraid of anyone... Don't let anyone scare you otherwise their just gonna keep trying to do whatever they want to you..." That was a leason she learned long ago on the street. If you couldn't do that, you were in trouble.

He caught she was from the states like him but when she moved he scrambled out into the hallway and after a few quick steps stopped dead in the hall. Alan was scared and he knew it. The real world never treated him right as he saw it, but he realized something as he fled.

Inside Alan’s head he realized that he was afraid of her because she was what he was hoping for, someone to be nice to him.

Slowly he turned around and lifted his head slightly, embarrassed a bit by his behavior, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude or lie to you. I still have 45 minutes until class. I can buy you lunch if you would accept that as an apology Mina.”

He nervously waited for the rejection.

Mina gave a small smile and shook her head at his offer. "Thanks, but don't worry about it. I can buy my own lunch. But maybe you could at least join me? It's been a while since I've talk to anyone my own age. That would be nice ya know." She said as she walked towards him a bit, happy that he wasn't running from her anymore.

"You're okay with that right?" She asked hesitantly.

But why was she turning free lunch down when she was running out of money? Why didn't she take his offer? She didn't know really... Maybe she just wanted someone who didn't know what she was to see her for who she was... That was a posibility....

Alan shifted the pack on his shoulder and looked into her face more, but not quite in her eyes.

“Yeah, sure, that’s cool.”

He started walking with her down the hall taking less crowded routes until reaching the main hall, full of activity, that they would have to cross to get into the cafeteria.

Alan stopped at short of the hall and stared at the kids between him and his destination, his eyes reflecting his building anxiety.

She walked with him until they got to the hall, but when she was halfway through the current of students she paused. Where was he?

Looking back, she saw Alan still standing on the other side. She couldn't really go on without him now, so she went back. "Alan... C'mon. It's not that hard just to go through these people." Reaching out she grabbed his hand, well more so his wrist, and gave him a gentle tug. "Oh, come on, Don't be afraid. They're not gonna run you over of you don't let them." She said with a nod.

He felt the tug on his wrist and realized Mina was pulling him towards the hall full of kids.

She said something him that he didn’t quite catch it, but understood its meaning. With her in the lead he navigated the hall without incident and made it into the entry way of the cafeteria with her.

Alan noticed that he was recognized by the same kid that had earlier in the week hazed in the lunch room. He was conflicted in that he did not want to get picked on or hurt again, but on the other hand he didn’t want to look like more of a coward than what this girl must already think he is.

With a nervous tension in his voice he said, “Lines over here.” He walked over a picked up a tray.

((Heh heh, I didn't know you posted :P ))


Mina smiled as she looked around. She had missed this kind of thing in school since her father had taken her out, claiming to home school her.

"Cool. Let's get some lunch then." She said with a smile. "I'm starving." Mina began to walk towards the line, waiting for him to follow. "So what grade you in Alan? And you never answered my question from before. Where ya from? I moved here about a year ago to live with my Uncle." Well, Michael could pass as her uncle anyway. A younger brother of one of her parents or something. "The city's kinda cool, but it ain't Philly. I miss home sometimes." She said, remembering before haow he had said that the kids were different. There was no doubt that he missed home. Hell, if she missed her... if you could call it a home... he was bound to miss his.

"Did your whole family move here?"

He followed Mina to the line keeping a weary eye on the bullies that were finally moving on to a much closer target.

Mina was still talking. “Uh, yeah I moved here from Denver with my family. Dad got a promotion and we had to move here.”

Looking at the food, he made his selections. “I am a freshman. Its hard enough,” he began to rant but thought better of it and withdrew his statement. Handing the money to the cashier, he looked around for a seat, wondering where a safe place to sit might be.

"Freshman huh?" Billy nodded. She didn't know what that was really like, having been pulled out of school when she was thirteen... But... "I bet it's rough. I'm a-" What would she be then? "sophmore. But I moved here before I started coming to high school..." She felt bad, having to lie to him, but if she didn't, would he tell on her that she wasn't supposed to be here? Did they have something about non-students getting food?

Paying for her lunch she went quietly through the line.

"I moved in from Philly though... Probably a lot different than Denver... But I wouldn't really know." She said as she came out, glancing about to find a place to sit. There were a few seats open at a table by the window. "How about over there." She pointed.

"But what does your dad do that they moved him up here?"

He eyed the seats she pointed out wearily and said, “Ok. Those seats look safe enough,” as he analyzed the proximity they sat between the cliques.

As they moved over to the table he answered her question, “Dad is an executive in one of those acronym telecommunications companies. He got a promotion to regional something, that job was here, and so he made us move. It’s so unfair.”

Reaching the table, he sat down in a chair that let him look out the window. “So you have been going here for a year, huh,” he said opening his soda.

As he turned his head to hear her reply he heard from the jock table, the one that had been picking on him, “Hey Miller, who is your girlfriend?”

Alan closed his eyes and mumbled to himself that he knew this was not a good idea.

"Yeah, you could say that I guess." Billy said with a shrug. She hated lying unless it was nessicary... "But that does kind of suck. But it wasn't like he could just commute from Denver to here yeah? And You'll like it once you get used to it. It's a great place really. Maybe I could show you some of the better sights huh?" She offered with a smile.

She was about to bite into the ham sandwich she had gotten when she saw Alan close his eyes and flinch. "Somethin-" The guy must have thought they were together. Billy rolled her eyes at the man. "Someone who's better looking than any woman you'll ever get." She snapped. She wasn't afraid of him. In her line of work, men hit her all the time. But that didn't mean that she had to take their shit all the time. Only when she was getting money out of the deal really.

Sure she was a little rough, with her choppy hair, her slightly pale skin, but she was still pretty. Otherwise she wouldn't have been very good at her job now would she?

"Don't bother with them Alan... They ain't worth anything..." But didn't he realise he had to stand up to them? That he had to fight back? Otherwise they would just keep it up. She wouldn't ever say it aloud, but he needed to grow up and be a man...

He swallowed hard. Why did she have to mouth off? Why did she do that?

Before the body behind the voice even began moving, Alan could hear the footsteps. It was not even thirty seconds before the bully and his gang had circled Alan and his “girlfriend” laughing and jeering.

“Miller, your girlfriend has quite a mouth on her. You able to back that up,” and to emphasize the point he tipped Alan’s open milk onto his lap.

Out of reflex, Alan shot up when the cold milk hit knocking the top of his head into the bully’s nose. The effect of which by those that had not truly been paying attention appeared that Alan had taken it personally and hit him square in the face…knocking him out.

Suddenly Alan found himself standing in the middle of a quiet cafeteria, within a circle of the jocks and cheerleaders who were eyeing him dangerously and over the still body of the bully who lay knocked out and bleeding on the floor.

Alan did not know at this point with the adrenaline running whether it was time for fight or flight.

"I can back it up myself." Said Billy as she stood. She was more than a foot shorter than the young man, but she didn't care. She just wasn't in a mood to deal with pushy men. "I could be-" But she fell silent, her eyes widening slowly as a hush fell over the crowd near by. Billy had seen what had happened... But who knew what others would think.

It was a good thing Billy thought quick on her feet. It was nessicary for a street girl.

Shifting around the table she grabbed his hand quickly, and took advantage of the stunned crowed to try and get out of their. She couldn't get caught here... She'd get in more trouble than she'd ever thought possible! They might even send her back to that Psycho-Camp!

"Come on... We gotta go." She said under her breath. She had shoved the apple she bought in her jacket pocket, and too hungry to leave her food, her sandwich was clenched in her other hand.

Allen was stunned and just allowed her to lead him.

Realizing that they were on the move the panic of what had happened hit him suddenly. His fear was building upon hers. He planted his feet and pulling his arm free from her grabbed hers. “Come on we have to get out here.”

Alan started pulling her towards the door that would lead them outside and onto the streets. Once outside and on the street he slowed down looking a bit confused of where exactly they should go next. Should they go to a coffee shop, the library, or just go their separate ways?

He did not know.

Billy had tried to stop him from going any further once they got out of the lunch room, but it was almost like a panic set in. An urge to distance himself as far from the problem as he could.

"Allen! Hold up!" She tried to say before he jerked her along like he was trying to yank her arm out of the socket. She moved quickly. "Allen! Stop it, you're hurting my arm." But he didn't seem to hear her. She would have just smacked him or something, but he was nervous and afraid. He shouldn't be hurt for that.

Billy gave a sigh and rubbed her shoulder slightly as he slowed down, now outside the doors.

"What the heck Allen?" She asked raising an eyebrow. "Are you okay? What was that all about? I mean you didn't have to drag me out of there ya know. I was just giving everyone time to calm down so we could appologize and all." She explained. Well, that was what she had been thinking of when they got out of the lunch room. it would be better to try to resolve it because now... If the guy went to the principal or whatever, they would be looking for Allen and the girl he was with.

And as far as she was concerned, they could find him. But she would be in bigger trouble if they found her.

"So... What's next? We can't hang around here too long... They'll search the grounds next if they're looking for you ya know?" She said as she leaned against the wall, taking a bite out of her sandwich that she had managed to hold on to.

He did not know what to do. It was clearly on his face he was going to panic and run. How could she be standing there eating a sandwich of all things?

“Christ,” he exclaimed, “he is going to kill me. I just know it. We have to go somewhere. We have to get off campus.”

Allen started looking at the streets in front of him trying to map out where each of them would take him. He could not go home and the library was out. “Let’s go downtown and walk the stores that will give me a chance to calm down.”

Turning back to face her, he saw the vice-principal heading down towards the exit they were standing out through the glass. A look of fear on his face, all he could say is “Oh crap.”

"Allan. Hun, just calm down... He's not gonna kill you. If anything he might even be afraid of you. Well, that's really the best you could hope for." Billy attempted to put her hand on his cheek, but he moved his head before her hand even got there.

"Okay, that's fine with me." She nodded. Poor kid. Really didn't know how things like this worked.

She saw the fear strike though and knowing something, or someone, had to be coming and he was just like a deer in the headlights... With a sigh Billy popped the last bit of the sandwich in her mouth, grabbed his arm and began to head towards downtown an area she knew quite well since that was where she had lived for the past few years.

"C'mon Allan. We need ta get moving and you not walking isn't helping any. I can't get caught here. We have to go." She said softly, but a bit of force in her voice. Looking over her shoulder she saw a man, not one that was particularly intimidating... But she got a bad feeling about him. Billy gave him another jerk before pulling him nearly the same as she had been pulled just moments before really. "Let's go."

He followed her in a haze, the exercise of the walk and movement of air into his lungs calming him down as they walked. The further they moved from the school the more relaxed he became eventually being able to feel comfortable enough to walk on his own.

Alan politely removed his arm from her grasp even though he secretly enjoyed her touch.

“I am so sorry for freaking out back there. The whole world seemed to be crashing down on me and I just did not know what to do. Tomorrow is not going to be a good day for me, but that is okay, none of them ever are.”

As they walked, he realized he did not know this part of town. The buildings and the people seemed unfamiliar to him. “Where are we Billy?” he asked in a very normal voice.

Alan looked around taking everything in; as his imagination started to prepare escapism scenarios it may need to depend on to survive yet an unknown situation. Escaping into fantasy that overlay the reality he faced was one of the major issues he was still working on in the therapy his mother had him attending twice a week.

She let him pull his arm away, but he still seemed so nervous. And physical affection was always something that helped her when she was nervous. Maybe it would help him too. But she would wait a few moments first. Let him clear his head a bit.

"That's okay. I'm sure things will work themselves out Allen. But you have to think of other possibilities other than the absolute worst ya know? Not everyone is looking to pick on you or beat you up." Billy said up at him with a smile.

"But we're headed downtown this isn't a way many people go, not the best of places after sun down. But I used to call it home..." She said softly. They might run in to one of her sisters... Probably Melissa... Maybe even Danielle. It was always possible. "It's about twelve blocks I think until you hit the main downtown. Well, the part everyone goes and isn't just all trashed like this place. That's closer to where I live now."

Billy gave a little laugh as he looked around nervously, taking in the street. She slid her arm around his waist and gave him a slight hug. "Don't worry, I know where I'm going and all." She reasured him.

They were a good distance away from the school now, so they really didnt' need to be worried about that. And Billy seriously doubted that they were going to put the police on alert for students skipping school. If so, and the police saw them, they could always go to her old appartment. There were so many places to hid things that no one ever found it was unbelieveable. She didn't know why they were there, but they were.

Alan listened to her and started taking her advice not to be nervous. Was it possible that he was finally making a friend? On top it, this friend was a cute one at that who had no compulsion about showing him affection that he craved from another human being. She hugged him and he smiled a quiet private smile.

“Well if you know your way then I am feeling better about this.” Looking around, “Where exactly did you live?” He looked at the buildings in the area and tried to imagine where Billy and her family may have lived when this was home.

He liked her. At that moment, he knew that she was someone he cared for even though they knew so little about one another, she was going to be his friend he decided.

“Come on Billy, which one of these was your home. I can’t guess.”

"Where? Um... It was actually two blocks that wasy some... In one of the appartments over there. But I moved out to live with a friend of mine. I kinda got in some trouble and I didn't want to get everyone else in trouble too. So... Yeah." Billy said quietly.

Luckaly though Michael was able to protect her while they were still looking for her. But two months later and nothing yet? They must have decided that she wasn't going to talk because she would have already if she planned on it.

Yeah... Turning in some people of the maffia up here and then getting sent back to Hilltop. She didn't belong there anymore. She was better now. She was stronger.

"They weren't my real family or anything. But they were the closest I've had in a while really. They always looked out for me because I was the youngest. Always let me know they were there. So they're still important to me." She continued. But she wasn't planning on stopping in and showing him the little Whore Floor as some called it. She didn't want to embaress him or make him think she was just a dirty woman... That wasn't the truth really...

"I'm sure you probably live in a better part of town though huh?" She said with a smile. "Welcome to the other side... not really a pretty veiw, but it's all we got really."

Alan mumbled, “You can’t judge the book by its cover Billy.”

The illusion of the suburb he lived in, the school he attended and the social status his parents tried to pay for were all bullshit and he knew it. It was like Denver, except at least in Denver he had roots, friends and a culture he was of a part. Here he was the outsider, his parents were outsiders and they hoped their money would buy them instant acceptance.

“I would trade my home for one that was real where the rules of the game were clear, but I don’t know if I would have the guts.”

He took her hand into his in order to calm his nerves a bit. Well that was not true, deep down he knew he just wanted to hold her hand.

As they passed by the street she spoke of he looked down it trying to picture her living down there with what limited information he had and failed miserably, but he did at least picture her. Most likely his picture was more good than the reality she had experienced, but all the same he did it.

“So how much longer until we hit the downtown?” he asked, “I could use some coffee.”

"There are time ya can Alan. There really are." Billy said simply. Looking at her now, she was a kid... A kid who had no idea of where she was going, but knew she didn't want to go back to where she came from. He would see it in her eyes if she looked at them, but he seemed almost too afraid. She didn't like the fact, but it was the truth. But perhaps because he was so innocent. That was why he couldn't see what was written in this book. well he coudl see it alright, but he wouldn't understand it. He wouldn't understand at all.

"But I'm sure your parents did what they thought would be best. But parent's don't always get things right... If they did, I would know who my real parents were... And if my foster parents had gotten everything right, I wouldn't be here now I would still be at home with mom... And dad wouldn't have changed." But she fell silent as soon as the words fell from her mouth and wished she could take them back. He didn't need to know about her life. he didn't need to know the darker side of the world just yet.

And she was greatful when he changed the topic.

"Oh... just another few blocks." She gave a little forced smile. "What, you don't like walking? But you seem hyped up enough Alan. You don't need caffiene to make it even worse." She gave a little laugh as she squeezed his hand slightly.

He laughed at the fact she called him on hyped up and was very happy that she chose to connect with through the squeezing of his hand, it made him feel special and made him want to do better with her.

“Then where are we going Billy?”

Alan did not notice the things she was looking to hide from him or even the fact she was seeking to hide them. In truth, even if all the ugliness of her life lay presented to him in full detail he would still only see the friend he was making right now in this moment in time.

The words she had spoken this day were not lost on him however; they just would not come to settle into his brain until later in the week when he reflected on this time he spent with her. They were words that over the next hours that would seep into his brain and infiltrate his future fantasies about her, tempering the context, but not diminishing them.

"I dunno." She gave a soft shrug as she smiled over at him. "Just somewhere I guess... I dun't wanna hang out too long in case one of my sisters notices me. They ask too many questions since they haven't seen me in a while." She said as she ran her other hand through her hair. "They're always worried about me and everything. I didn't leave on bad terms with them... But, yeah." She gave a little laugh.

"Anything else you wanna do though? Anything but coffee or other stimulant."

She gave him a little bump as they walked along. "I know there are a few cool book stores down there. And a nice little ice cream parlor too. I mean there are a lot of little shops and stuff down there."

He watched her as she talked about her sisters and not wanting to be caught. Alan was a little beside himself when she ran her fingers through her hair. It was innocent enough, but he found that she had caught his eye just right leaving him without breath for the briefest of moments.

Looking down the road, he could see that they would be through this section of the city and downtown relatively soon. She had provided many alternatives to the idea of going and getting coffee and he had to agree that maybe coffee was probably not the thing for him now.

Actually, the idea of ice cream sounded good. “I like that idea,” he said with a sense of excitement, “let’s get some ice cream and just do some window shopping.”

As they walked a little, further he kept trying to peek at her through the corner of his eye, when suddenly a thought projected from his mouth. “Billy. How old are you?” he needed to know.

Yeah... She didn't mean to distract him... Or make him think things that could lead to other things... He was still innocent... And innocence was something to be cherished and held on to for as long as one could.

Billy had hers taken from her... Not of her own will of course... But taken none the less. She saw the darkness in the world, the pain...

"Hm?" She said looking over at him with her grey eyes. "Oh, yeah, I thought it would be a good idea too. That's why I suggested it after all." Billy grinned.

As they walked thought she was looking at the scenery... Buildings, trees... Trash cans and benches she knew all too well. but it couldn't be helped really. Not even by his other question. And again "Hm?" She gave a sigh and shook her head. "I'm sorry... I can't help but be distraced around here... A lot of memories." She appologized with a sheepish smile. "But I'm sixteen. I'll be seventeen in another few months. I know I really don't look my age." She said with a smile. "Ive always been small, but that's the way it goes I guess." Giving a little shrug she looked down at the sidewalk. All this walking was making her tired... Like she needed a nap or something. Well.. .She had been feeling tired a lot lately. Maybe because all the stress was gone and she could relax now? Probably.

They walked a little further and finally transitioned from the dark building of her past into the living city. Following the sidewalk they found themselves at an ice cream parlor that they could sit and eat their ice cream. This was probably a good idea, since she seemed to slow down a half-step.

He found a booth and put his bag down on one side and asked her what she wanted. With the order in hand he walked over and placed the order. Alan returned to the booth, setting hers down in front of her with a plastic spoon and napkin and his across from her.

After taking his seat and quick bite, he spoke. “Well it has been quite an adventure today.”

He was not really sure what to say now that he knew that she was basically three full years older than him. It seemed odd that for his parents the difference of three years between did not seem like such a big deal, but here now with this girl it seemed like a giant chasm that would be nearly impossible to cross.