"Ava slow down!" My blonde haired friend yelled to me. Her sparkling blue eyes pleaded for help but I wasn't falling for that this time. I sped up faster and faster until I couldn't feel my legs anymore. My hair getting caught in my eyes and my earrings. I knew I should have brought a rubber band. I felt the cool wind on my face. I knew I could easily beat Marley. That girl is a fast and clumsy as a baby walking for the first time. Those chicken legs could barely walk a mile before collapsing. As I approached the finished line, I took a couple of seconds to walk to it in my best strut and enjoy the moment of being at least 30 seconds ahead of my bet friend. She’s great and I love her and all but its nice when you so something the best. For her it’s beating me at Mario Kart. For me, it’s beating her at races. ?
"I WON I WON!" I shouted"
Only because you cheated," my friend said while gasping for air as she crossed the finish line. ?
"Awww Marley are you sad that the hare beat your little tortoise butt? I said while trying to hold back laughter. Marley and I have been best friends since we were four and I of course have always been the faster one. But that never stopped Marley from thinking up excuses as to why she lost. She HATES TO LOSE. ?"You started like 10 seconds before I started! You call that not cheating? Hmph!" ?"Oh Marley," I said while pulling her into a hug. "Aw your right next time you can have the fair start."?
"Of course im right," she said while I gave her my best death glare. But I saw her smirk underneath my hug so I know she was kidding. ?She was so cute in her braces and her oversized glasses. She had on her Pokémon t-shirt and old basketball shorts her brother use to wear. While she wasn't the definition of cool to some girls, she was my coolest and also my only friend. But I wouldn't trade her for the world. ?
"Are you sure you have to leave tonight for camp?" I asked her. "Why can’t you spend the summer with me again?"?
"I told you! My mom wants me to make new friends so she figures in 8 weeks I will do that easily."
?"But what if you make new friends that don’t like me. And what if you want to hang out with them and not me? What if by the time you come back from camp and 8th grade starts and you're different? And what if..."?
"Ava you're rambling on again."?
"Sorry. I just don’t want to lose my best friend."?
"You can never lose me. You're too good for me anyways. I’m going to come back from camp 8 weeks from now the same girl I am today. Okay? Now hurry up and change I need get home to finish packing and you need a shower because you stink."?I roll my eyes. Leave it to Marley to turn a heart to heart conversation into a conversation about my sweat. ?
"You go on ahead Marley I will catch up with you later." ?
"Okay Ava! Love you baby!" She said as she kissed my cheek and skipped off the track, her blond hair bouncing on her back, her eyes radiant with a new found happiness. Wow, I thought. She really is excited to go to camp.

*Four Years Later*
Ava: ?
We played dodge ball today. I thought that sport was illegal in schools... but whatever that's not the point. There's no reason to actually talk about my gym class except that she was on the other team. Marley Stewart. We were best friends when we were younger. I don’t even know what happened. One minute were eating cheese doodles and stalking our crushes ok Facebook and the next she’s stepping off the camp bus in a runway worthy ensemble with the two skanks Natalie and Sammy wrapped around each of her arms. Where is the Marley I know? I didn't want this made up Barbie doll I wanted my best friend who didn't care what people thought of her. I thought maybe this is just a phase and she will come back. But I was wrong. As soon as our school saw the 'new and improved Marley' I was history and she was our new queen bee. As her snarky friends would say, she got an "upgrade". She ditched me for them. Those bimbos. No I'm serious, they're really stupid. They use their looks to survive in this cold blooded every man for themselves school. They all have perfect glossy hair, long glued on eyelashes, clothes from all the expensive brands, and their "it girl" personalities. Just think of them as the plastics times 10. And me, I have damaged brown hair, brown lifeless eyes, and cheap clothes from target. ?I don't hold a grudge or anything. Just because she left me alone at the lunch table 4 years ago looking like an idiot doesn't mean I shouldn't move on. Okay.... Maybe I'm still mad. She's just the worst! Today in the morning before 1st period I was putting some books in my locker when she came up to me and stared me dead in the eye. She took her French tip nails and stuck them into my homework. And then in a split second, my books were on the floor and my homework was everywhere. And she said in her high nasally pitched voice, "clumsy much?" like what the hell? I was just putting my books in my locker! But she just prances off. Her blue eyes once again giving me the Marley stare down. But this time she didn't make eye contact. And maybe, just maybe, it was on purpose. It even looked like she was crying....

Marley:
My parents got divorced. It was finalized last weekend. My dad cheated on my mom. It was February 14th. Valentines Day. The most romantic time of the year. My mom went over to my dads law firm to surprise him with a box of chocolates and red roses. Instead of finding him working hard at his desk she... well... he was working hard. Or doing it hard, as I should say. She found him on the desk, stripped down to his Calvin Klein underwear and on top of a skinny naked Brazilian woman no more than 25. She was his assistant. Gross. My mom took me out of school that day. But we didn't eat. We mostly cried. My tears falling down on my turkey sandwich. The waiter tried to offer us some free desserts, but it didn't help. The manager has to ask us to leave. I didn't care. Later that day, we learned he's been having an affair for a year with her. That didn't shock me. Then we learned a couple weeks later that she's carrying his child. If someone was to barge into my home and shoot me in the head, that would of hurt less. I haven't spoken to him since. I only saw him for the first time in a couple of months when we got the custody papers finalized. But when I looked at his face, I didn't see my dad. He wasn't the man who taught me how to ride a bike. He wasn't the man who gave me piggyback rides at the park when I was younger. He was just this man who was about to leave my life forever. I wanted to talk to him. Ask him why he did that to our family. But I couldn't. It was over. ?Natalie and Sammy didn't care. They acted as though I was this alien from Mars. When I tried to tell them, all they could say was, "eww your face is so blotchy!" or "you look like... gross". Seriously, these girls need wider vocabularies list because it seems like "eww and gross" was all they know. I started to forget why I was really friends with them. Oh yea. It was because at camp they decided to take me under their wing and make me popular. Kind of like a public service they said. Anyways, I don't want to go into that because that little 'public service' ruined my life. ?They said I was going soft. They said I was losing my edge. They said I wasn't Marley. I'll show them. I went up to this girl's locker and looked her dead in the eye. I gave the, "You're my b****, b****" look and smacked her books on the ground. She looked flabbergasted. Puzzled. And then I realized it was Ava. I couldn't. Not now. So I left. I wanted to cry, but I held it in. I hope she didn't see.

Ava:
Balls started to fly everywhere. I stood in the back. Like I said, this game is pointless. I saw Marley on the other side. She was throwing dodge balls like crazy. Especially hard may I add. And to think I thought she didn't want to ruin her manicure. Natalie and Sammy were gossiping towards the side about some guy they had a fling with over the summer. More kids on my team were getting hit and soon there were only a couple of us left. There was this Asian kid on my team who got a bloody nose from one of those violent balls so I figured I need to get out of this game soon before I got hurt. So I went to the front. Just then, Marley comes up and throws the ball strait into my stomach. I fall the floor in pain. So much for that plan. A big red mark appeared under my life is good t-shirt. She comes up to me and randomly starts yelling, "Hit me! HIT ME!" so I slapped her. I didn't think I wanted to but I got caught up in the moment. She crumbles to the floor and starts to sob. Of course right on cue, Sammy comes up to Marley and yells, "what are you doing Marley? Why are you acting like such a loser right now!" "SHUT UP B****!" Marley exclaimed. She grabbed my hand and whispered, "I'm sorry." And she ran off. Her heels scratched the floor, leaving pink scuffmarks. I looked around the gym. The flickering light bouncing off of traumatized faces. But I couldn't think. I saw scars on Marley's wrist.

Marley:
I've been cutting myself for almost a year now. When my mom went to her therapist, I went to the bathroom. Id gets my small pocketknife, sit in the tub, and cut my wrist. Id let the blood ooze from my wrist to the tub. I'd do it for like 10 minutes. Then I would clean the bathroom. Id scrub every spot so that its as clear as day. My mom doesn't suspect a thing. ?Today in dodge ball, I couldn't stop thinking about how to escape my life. But I saw this boy with a Mets hat. It reminded me of this time my family and I went to a Mets game. My dad caught a ball for me and my parents got on the kissing cam. They were so happy. My face gleamed with joy. I knew it could never happen again. The first ball hit a tall Asian boy in a Nike shirt. Why can't I have a happy life? The second ball hit an unsuspecting girl fixing her hair. And then I realized: I hit a dead end. The third ball hit a girl in a life is good t-shirt. It was her again. Ava. The girl who laughed with me, fought with me, but always was there for me. And I ditched her. Maybe this was karma seeking its revenge. I had to make it up to her. "Hit me!" I yelled. And she did. But that didn't help. And then my so-called friends started yelling at me. And Ava noticed my scars and... my life is just a soap opera that... needs to be taken off the air. I knew what I needed to do. I left the school. I had to run. I ripped off my Hollister shirt. It only showed my shallowness. I wiped off my make up. It made me look like a baby hooker. I took off my Steve Madden heels. No one could run in those. I took off all my bracelets, necklaces, and earrings. I now ran free and new. But I still couldn't escape my reality. Everyone hates me. Ava, Natalie, Sammy, but mostly my dad. If he loved me, why would he hurt me? He's an idiot. A f*ing idiot! But I couldn't help but love him... no stop! I ran down to the pier and stopped. This is it, I thought. Maybe everyone would be happier... if I just jumped. I jumped in. I let the salt water sink above my face. I let all the life of me flush out. I let all my struggles, all the drama, and all the pain just go away. I was free. Finally free. And then it went black...

Ava:
I saw her jump in the pier. I followed her about 10 blocks. My moms going to be mad that I'm cutting school. But this is more serious. Marley's dying. I went up to the edge of the pier. I saw her blonde hair in the murky water. She looked like a mermaid. A beautiful creature. But she was more than just a pretty girl. She was a pretty girl who was hurting. I searched my pockets for my phone, only to realize I left it in my backpack at school. I knew Marley wasn’t a good swimmer. When it came to being active, she sucked. I jumped in and swam down. It reminded me of the time her and me went to this exact same pier for a birthday party. She got mad because she didn't win the hula competition and I did. To make her feel better, I gave her my mini trophy and she gave me her ice cream cone. We sat by the dock laughing and talking. It was the best day ever. I can't believe I let that slip. I wasn't about to give up like I did 4 years ago. I swam down faster. I knew she couldn't swim let alone save herself. I grabbed her arm and I swam her back up. I threw her onto the dock and I check her pulse. No pulse. I checked her heartbeat. No heart beat. "HELP!" I yelled. No one could hear. No one was around. I didn't know how to do CPR. I could see the color of her face wash out. We were running out of time. "HELP!"



Marley:
I woke up in a cream colored room. There wasn't anything special in the room. I was hooked up to some kind of machine. It was really creepy. Then it hit me. I was in the hospital. From the pier. I thought I was going to go to heaven, not this. I couldn't remember much after I jumped in. I can remember faintly that someone yelling help and some ambulances blaring loudly. I thought I was dying and those were the sounds of death. Just then, a chubby 40 something nurse came in. "great you're awake! Let me get your family." My mom came in first. She came up to me. I can tell she has been crying. "My dear baby!" she cried. Then my dad came in. through the door I could see that Brazilian women breastfeeding their baby. He came up to me and kissed my forehead. He whispered, "I'm sorry." And left. That was the last time I ever saw him.

Ava:
?Marley and her mom moved away soon after this. When the press got a hold of this story, they couldn't stay here any longer. Her dad stayed to tell the story. I think he liked the attention. But soon, even he got tired and moved to Brazil with his new family. School eventually went back to normal. Natalie and Sammy got back to their usual shitty ways. They acted as though Marley never existed. That day I was honored by the fire station as an honorary hero. I didn't do anything really. I just yelled help and someone heard me. After the ceremony, I walked down to the pier and bought an ice cream cone. And I just sat by the docks all night, remembering her and our friendship. I should have fought harder for her. I gave up too quickly. But there wasn't anything I could do now. I just hope she's safe