Mercy kicked the pebble and watched as it flipped and somersaulted into the small body of water they called a lake. The pebble made ripples in the water as it sank down to the murky bottom. Mercy imagined the pebble feeling cold and sad as it slowly sank to its fate. It was probably shivering and trying to float, but to no avail. She smiled as she thought about the rock landing on the bottom and sending dirt and minerals up to float until they settled back on the bottom. "Mercy, what are you doing?" her friend Kelly asked startling Mercy. "Sorry but the races are starting and the adults want you there." Kelly said walking away. Mercy quickly followed.


Little kids ran by chasing each other. Adults sat smiling at their kids and sipping their alcohol. Teenagers sat to the side trying to maintain the coolness they never had. To an outsider it would have looked like the typical happy family reunion but Mercy knew it was anything but happy. First it wasn't a family reunion. It was a huge week party for all the recovering drug attics in their family. Mercy's sister was one of them. Even though everyone was proud, the mood was always tense because no one wanted to offend anyone. Secondly almost nobody in her family liked each other. The adults weren't talking to each other, just drinking together. Mercy had dragged Kelly to the party to have someone to talk to but of course cheery, friendly Kelly had made friends with everyone and Mercy rarely saw her. Mercy wasn't jealous. She needed and wanted to be alone. No one worried when she disappeared for hours because she had always been a loner and everyone was surprised when they saw that she had brought a friend. Mercy leaned on the bench and tried to act unattached to the family playing on the playground. "If you try to avoid them then they will want you more." a voice said making her jump. Mercy looked behind her and saw an angel. Mercy couldn't help staring. "Sorry if I frightened you. I'm Dominic." the angel said holding out his hand. Mercy stared at his hand. He put it down and stared at her. "My name is Mercy." she finally said. The boy smiled. "For a second there I thought you were deaf." Dominic said. He rubbed his short black hair with his hand. "No, it's just that you are like beautiful. Are you Adonis on earth?" she asked completely serious. Dominic laughed and Mercy was mesmerized by the sweet sound. "No completely human and no trace of Adonis in me. I've never been called beautiful so thanks." he replied. Mercy blushed and looked away. "You're beautiful too. Is Aphrodite your mother?" he whispered softly. Mercy blushed again. “Want to go ditch your family with me?” he asked. Mercy nodded and quietly snuck away from the bench.
Dominic took her to the skating park across the street and they sat talking. “Dominic.” a voice whispered. Mercy looked around trying to find the source. The person soon revealed himself. He had been sitting in the bushes. He looked like an angel also but the complete opposite of Dominic. He had long skater red hair that crept into his eyes every time he moved his head. “Hey man.” Dominic said giving the guy a fist bump. The boy smiled when he noticed Mercy. “And who is this cutie?” he asked turning his playful eyes on her. They were the perfect shade of hazel. His hair fell in his face again and he shyly moved it away. Mercy was again memorized. Dominic playfully but with the warning still in tact shoved the boy aside. “This is my cousin Lorenzo.” he introduced. “Hello Lorenzo.” Mercy whispered looking down, knowing that if she looked up again then she wouldn’t be able to look away. “Did you get the stuff?” Dominic asked trying to get the attention back on him. Mercy looked up and stared at Dominic, wondering what he was talking about. She hoped it wasn’t stolen things. Even though the sex appeal on him would rise very high. Bad boys were hot. “Course. Wasn’t even that hard to get.” Lorenzo said taking a plastic bag out of his pocket and throwing it to Dominic. He caught it easily and hoped it. He smelt it and smiled. He looked at Lorenzo and gestured for him to join them. Lorenzo jumped onto the skate ramp and climbed to the top. “Let me have some.” he said sitting down next to Mercy. Mercy looked down at the ground and tried to remember if she had seen anyone this beautiful. “I know the ground isn’t that interesting.” Lorenzo whispered. Mercy shyly looked up into the face of the angel and watched as the corners of his mouth turned into a smile. He had prefect teeth. They were blindingly white. She was lost in thought so she didn’t see Lorenzo’s face getting closer until his lips were on hers. Mercy kissed back because she had wanted this and everything floated away. She pulled back first trying not to seem desperate. He chuckled and looked away. Mercy felt the heat rise to her face and looked away embarrassed. She felt like she was a middle scholar with a crush on a teacher. She looked up at Dominic to see if he was angry. He wasn’t even paying attention. He was putting whatever was in the bag in what looked like a blunt. He looked up at her, smiled and lit it. The smell of weed hit her like a wave. She didn’t flinch or cover her nose. She was used to it. Her sister used to smoke it. He handed her it and with his eyes said take it. She took it and let herself breath in the earthly scent the world made such a big fuss about. All that was on her mind was what her mother had said two years ago.

“Mercy, please don’t tell me you have been around your sister again.” her mother said smelling her. Mercy bit her lip and knew she was caught. “I was telling her to come home mom.” she admitted with a sigh. Her mother pursed her lips and walked out the door. Mercy knew exactly where she was going. “Mom! No!” she yelled running after her mother. Her mother had a determined look on her face as she walked to the park that was in the center of the cul de saq. Mercy’s sister and friends sat around smoking weed and popping pills. “Andrea Lillian Batting, you get in the house this instant and say goodbye to your friends. This will be the last time you see them.” her mother calmly ordered looking directly at her daughter. “Mom, what are you doing?” she asked in shock. Then she saw her sister and her confusion turned to disgust. “Mercy you are such a tattle tale. You told her I was here didn’t you.” Mercy gulped and hid behind her mother. “Andy, why? Have we raised you badly. Have we been neglecting you? Why drugs?” her mother asked starting to cry. Andrea looked helplessly as tears started to fall off her mother’s face. “Mom please just leave.” she finally said turning back to her friends. Her mother looked at her then sharply turned around. “Come on Mercy.” she said walking back to the house. That was the night Andrea had not come back. Their mother acted like nothing was wrong and at nine went to go tuck Mercy in, but before she left she had said the words Mercy had lived by. “I love your sister very much and if tough love is what she needs then she will receive. Just remember Mercy, you got your name when the doctors declared you dead but five minutes later you were breathing. God had mercy on me and if you ruin your life with drugs, will God have mercy on you?” then she left without another word.

Mercy looked at the blunt and was about to pass it to Lorenzo when he kissed her neck and all her resolve disappeared. She knew even she couldn’t turn it down now. Lorenzo took the blunt away from her and put it to her lips. She licked her lips to moistened them from the smoke that was drying them up. “Try it.” Lorenzo whispered in her ear. Mercy opened her mouth slightly and took a small puff of the blunt. She let the smoke roll across her tongue then out her mouth. She let her mind relax with the help of the weed. It was like being high in the sky and everything was perfect. She looked at both boys with a lazy smile on her face and knew she had found it. The way to gain the never in reach happiness.