Elise

Meg had bought a pallet of violet and gold pansies to decorate the peeling exterior of my family’s quaint farm house in late February, determined to make the outdoor space more inviting. She was mostly concerned with hiding the fact that the home was surrounded by corn and cotton fields, and smelled strongly of manure.
Now in this moment the flowers Meg loved so much were illuminating the backdrop of our evening. We were immersed in our notes, reviewing for our last high school exams. It was crazy to think that in just a few weeks we would both be eighteen and moving on with the rest of our lives.
“Is it cool if I stick around for dinner?”
Her voice startled me, as I had been wandering in my thoughts. “Sure, mom’s going out with Sharla Minton and Carol Evans tonight, so you’ll have to settle for take out or pizza.”
“Why can’t you just cook something for once.”
Meg was never one to be logical or rational, unless it was about food. She was careful to watch how many calories she had at each meal. It wasn’t just a random obsession she had no, her mother had been hospitalized for a heart attack back in December. Ever since, Meg was anti grease, and pro veggie. I admired her for it, but she had always been skinny. Not a sickly skinny though, the kind where your hips protrude and ribs shine through your shirt. Meg was toned, and lean. She had the body of a runner, but just enough curves hanging to her chest and hips to catch the attention of every guy in Attapulgus, Georgia.
“Elise?” Meg called as she rolled off of my bed to stretch by the window. “ Don’t you wanna do something cool this summer? To celebrate our survival through h---.”
I only laughed at this, she knew I was planning on moving into college early. Getting into Duke’s honors program is hard enough without the solemn remarks of your parents following you wherever you go.
“I’m being serious Eli.”
“I never said you weren’t Meg. But, you know that I don’t have the time or money to go on a beach trip with you guys.” I assumed that Meg was planning on inviting some of the other kids from school, another reason my stomach turned at the thought of a vacation.
“You guys? Elise we’ve been best friends since we could talk, let’s do something for us. To celebrate us.” Her voice was tense, like I had upset her. “You don’t move in until the 13th, you have time.”

Mary Ella

The disapproving words that haunted my dreams filled every crevice of the small white sorority house, swirling out of their mouths and up the stairs to my dark single room.
“When should we do it?”
“How are we gonna say it?”
“Who should be the one to tell them?”
I laid awake in my bunk for hours, my mind stuck on repeat, circling around the events of early December. How could we have been so careless? The moment we were caught like deer in headlights seared itself into my mind, I’m going to lose my scholarship.
I let my mind drift back to thoughts of my mother, how proud she had always been of me. What would she feel when she looked at me now? Would she even want to see me? The hum of the air conditioning unit added a line of melody to my solemn, shameful cries. I could not find the strength to face what lay below the spiraling staircase.

Alice

“Two large coffees, black. Hurry up Sal, the lines backed out the door.” 
The hustle and bustle of the morning coffee rush was a monotonous routine that I had somehow found myself stuck in. Every day was the same, Hi, how ya doin’? What can I get for ya? Scribble down something illegible, and hobble back to the kitchen. A gruff conversation with Sal, the world’s most mediocre chef, followed like clockwork. Walk back to the table, set down the order. Can I get ya’ll anything else? Scurry over to the next table, and do it all over again. On a good day I get more than a $1.00 tip, but it’s rare. People in Arkansas are stingy, and they absolutely hate spending more than two nickels on anything, much less an overworked and exhausted waitress.
The morning followed its typical run, about twenty-five people in an hour, and by 7:00am they had all cleared out. The place would stay deserted for the rest of the afternoon, just like always. I headed out the back door for a smoke break, careful to not let Sal see me flip open the dirty box of Camels, or else he’d be begging for one too, an expense I can’t afford. The long paper cylinder was warm from being pressed tight against my thigh in my apron all morning, and tasted bitterly of burnt grease. It did the trick though, it kept my mind away from the unhappiness I felt here. With each inhale my lungs clouded, and my mind slowed. I exhaled dirty smoke, and the stress of making the rent deadline flowed out with it.

Elise

“Come on Eli let’s go.” Meg yelled from the passenger side of my mother’s small, red Honda.
Meg had somehow managed to convince me to take a trip with her out to Arkansas to visit her aunt, but only for four days and we would be back home exactly then. Mom was not thrilled at the idea, and spent two weeks grumbling about how terrible of an influence Meg was. She told me that she remembers when she was my age, and that trips with just a friend often resulted in picking up random boys and bringing home liners filled with substances stronger than tobacco. I was furious with her for assuming that I would do anything like that, and I told her that I wanted to go to be with my best friend one last time, to make some memories. She was not satisfied with the answer, but she didn’t say I couldn’t go.
I had a whole itinerary planned for the trip, national landmarks, cool restaurants and anything I thought Meg and I would enjoy. I guess I was excited, or more so than I had let myself seem so many weeks before. I really had missed doing things with just Meg, without boys or gossip.
She was truly remarkable and as I climbed into the soft cushioned driver’s seat I realized just how attractive Meg was. She had short gold hair that fell lightly on top of her shoulders, and pale blue eyes that reflected the image of my house like looking into the ocean. She was beautiful, and I suddenly understood why all the  guys at school marveled at her. I wished I had put a little more care into my appearance, opting for some cut off shorts and an old faded t shirt from last year’s prom bake sale. I surely did not look like I belonged next to her.
“Elise? Are you even listening to me?”
“Huh? I’m sorry I got lost for a second.”
She rolled her eyes, and tugged at a section of her hair. “I said, I think we should take turns driving. It’s gonna take us more than 10 hours to get there, and it's not that I think you’re a bad driver I just-”
I cut her off, “Yes, now shut up and pick a song.”

Mary Ella

The next morning I slowly peered downstairs, afraid that my sisters would hear me. I had barely slept at all the night before, so worried that we were going to get into trouble. I could make out the voices of Amy and Constance, two of the girls at the party that night.
“It was harmless, no one is going to say anything. I mean, it’s college right? Everyone gets a little out of control sometimes.” Amy’s voice was so overtly nasally that anyone within a ten mile radius knew she was speaking.
“I just, I don’t know. I say we just tell the cops the truth,” Constance’s voice lowered, “you know, about Mary Ella.”
My stomach twisted tightly as I threw myself into the hall bath, forcing up the contents of my stomach. My vision was hazy and my palms were sweaty. I could not understand why I was being thrown under the bus, it wasn’t even my idea I just went along with it. I could feel my mind wavering on the brink of unconsciousness, as the events of the night flooded my mind.
Snow fell in soft flurries outside my large bay window, coating the landscape in shimmering white. The girls had decided that they wanted to go out one last time before we all went home for break, so we had plans to go to the party Sigma Alpha Epsilon was throwing. I was dressed in my usual, less than modest party attire. A tight black leather dress with some small 3 inch heels, and my perm frizzed up to the ceiling. I was exhausted from exams and was ready to lose my mind.
The front lawn was crowded with bodies, and the 50 year old frat house reeked of stale alcohol and tobacco. I pushed my way into the house trying to keep up with Constance and Amy, but keeping my head down just enough so I couldn’t get pulled to the side by a random classmate. The kitchen was littered with empty solo cups and crumbs, and a heavy fog clouded my vision. Things seemed to already be getting out of control, and I knew instantly that this party would be shut down by campus police.

Alice

“Alice, you’ll never believe where the h--- Johnny’s movin’ off to.” The deep, slow draw of my husband’s voice resounded against the walls of our small duplex, a sound that once made my heart skip, now only fueled my agitation.
“Faith said he got that new job, where is it? Somewhere out in Mississippi?” I questioned, moving into the cramped kitchen.
He pulled out a cold bottle of Corona from the almond colored refrigerator. “Some s***. Movin’ away right when the business is gettin’ started.”
The business, Moore’s Automotive was the sponge of every penny my waitressing had gotten us. David had told me it was his dream, to fix up cars day in and day out, and I supported him. He was my husband, and I owed him respect- at least that’s what my momma had always told me. David was a kind soul, always trying his hardest to give me everything I could ever need, just never knowing how to love me the way a man should. Lately, it seemed as though that I was the one supporting his dreams, and he simply drank away mine.
I pushed through the screen door to the front porch, needing some space to recollect my thoughts and plan how I would tell Jean, our landlord, that we weren’t going to be able to make the rent deadline, again. The air was hot and humid, leaving a damp path of moisture up and down my skin. A sudden breeze picked up the brown dirt of the driveway, and swirled it around a couple of times before gently releasing it back to Earth.
Laughter flooded my ears and the space around me, as the three small children across the street chased each other around the yard. I knew their mother, Emma Lee, we had been in school together most of our lives. She used to dream of having children and living in a small home here in Arkansas. She never wanted to get out, always content with the same order. I guess she got what she wanted. A small beat up double wide, with chipped white paint and three baby boys. Happy with the one tone color of the barren land around her. Why is it that she gets to live her dream? David gets to live his dream? And I’m stuck here drifting somewhere in between?

Elise

“Workin’ 9 to 5, what a way to make a livin’” Meg’s raspy voice sang along to my mom’s old Dolly Parton CD, tapping her fingers against the window. We were less than thirty minutes from her aunt’s house and were passing through a small town called Etowah, when Meg started complaining.
“Eli I’m hungry. We haven’t stopped for any food in over an hour and I’m starving.”
“Do you see anywhere to pull over? Huh? Because all I’m seeing is dirt.” I said, waving my hands around, exasperated with her whining.
“Look, right there. ‘The Conway Diner’. Eli pull over.” She grasped at the steering wheel, tugging the car into a small gravel lot.
The diner was housed in a small brick building with old, dirty windows and a poorly lit entrance. The gravel was uneven and as I stepped out of the car, my light green Nikes caught in a hole. Meg came around to my side, and laughed when she saw me laying on the ground. Her hand was soft and gentle as she reached down to pull me up, the afternoon sun bouncing off the top of her hair and settling in my eyes. The air between us was heavy, and for a moment I stopped worrying about the deadline to get home, and about moving in early to college. Everything stopped and it was Meg and me standing in an empty parking lot somewhere in the middle of nowhere, Arkansas and nothing else seemed to matter.
She dropped my hand and began heading towards the front door. “Come on, I’m hungry.”

Mary Ella
My eyes fluttered open, as my head fell back against the wooden cabinet of the bathroom. A mist of cool hibiscus flooded the small room, mixing unpleasantly with the stench of vomit as Amy sprayed Febreeze.
“Mary, you okay?” She squatted down next to me, wrapping an arm around my back and pulling me in closer towards her.
The kind gesture made my stomach churn and my blood boil, did she not remember how she slandered me just an hour before? I moved my body away from her, pushing my forehead into my knee and sighing.
I could feel her eyes on me. “Mary?”
“Go away Amy. I heard what you and Constance said about me. About blaming me for what happened.” I forced my eyes to look into hers, my heart pounding. “Don’t act like we’re all in this together, because we aren’t.”
“Mary, we’re all just scared. We know what’s going to happen, and it’s going to happen to all of us. Not just one or two, every single one of us.” The room seemed to close in on us and the smell of vomit and cleaner brought me back again to the night.
“H-ey Mary!” The slurred voice of Amy Schumer beckoned me away from the hot and sweaty bodies inside the small fraternity, out into the cold.
The snow had stopped falling and my exhaustion paired with the Vodka in my cup made the winter wonderland around me appear in a kaleidoscope of colors. Fresh footprints leading away from the house littered the sidewalk, and I saw a shaky figure stumbling down the street towards main campus. My body moved in the same direction, sure that it was Amy looking to get a breath of fresh air.
“Amy!” I called out, my voice echoing into the night.
My ears filled with the painful siren of a flying bullet, my knees locking tight and forcing my face into the snow. The screams of a man filled the air, and two more shots ricocheted into the night. It was silent this time. Two figures sprinted in the direction of the sorority house, and the body of a man lay crumpled in the snow.
My palms shook and my lungs heaved as I pushed myself toward the body. One foot after the other, dragging along limply in the snow. Fear overwhelmed my entire being as I realized the frame belonged to a professor at the university. His neck was bent up toward the moon and three large spots of red leaked from his chest onto the gravel. A small grey object lay beside his head. I reached for the gun, turning it over slowly. Sirens blared off in the distance as I dropped the gun, sprinting off in the direction of the house.

Alice

It was almost closing time and I was wiping down my last table with soapy water when the bell on the front door rang. The humidity from outside poured into the diner like a tidal wave as two teenage girls stumbled inside, laughing.
“Hi, ya’ll can sit wherever.” I tried to mask my irritation with a forced smile and eye contact.
The girls sat at a booth near the window. The flowing laughter of the girl with blonde hair prompted a blush from the brunette. The blonde gave her full attention to her overexcited friend, looking at her with pride and admiration. The conversation came easily for the both of them, never letting silence settle in between. There was a time when David and I acted the same way, we enjoyed each other’s company, happy and in love.
“How’re ya’ll doin’? My name’s Alice, what can I get ya’ll?” I interrupted their conversation as politely as I could.
The two ordered quickly, both requesting large mint chocolate chip milkshakes, and a basket of potato wedges to share. I stumbled back from the kitchen carrying a tray with their order, my toes following the line of the linoleum tiles.
“Here ya’ll go, can I get you anything else?”
“I think we’re all set,” the blonde said.
I walked back to the kitchen, my eyes following the grease stained wallpaper, wondering what I really wanted with my life. Did I want to go back to school? Get a degree and move away from here? Did I just want an excuse out of my failing marriage? How did I end up here?

Elise

The wind thumped through the open windows into the car, as Meg and I made our way back to Georgia. Endless runs of pavement sprawled out beneath the tires of my mother’s old car. The afternoon sun peaked out from behind a large pillowy cloud, and Meg’s head leaned back on the head rest. She smelled like wildflowers and Sundrop. Her hair messily sprawled out on her shoulders, lips parted slightly. She was beautiful.
Two weeks before move in day, and we were just now headed back home. Her eyes were constantly gleaming, her hands pulling me somewhere new. In the time that I had spent with her, my mind was clear. My heart no longer anticipated college, but rather welcomed it. I looked into her eyes and I could see no farther than I needed, and for once it was okay. It was okay to not know. It was okay to not be prepared. I felt calm when I was with her, and I get lost in how she makes me feel.
The interstate is stopped, traffic is stalled in Atlanta. For the second time this month I have no idea where we are, but this time it doesn't matter, because I'm here and Meg is here, and we're exactly where we are supposed to be.

Mary Ella

Hot tears flowed freely down my face as I laid back against Amy. Her shirt was soft and her body was warm. I was scared, and my body was shaking, legs bouncing against each other, soft cushions. Her arms could not contain the movements of my body.
A knock came from the large oak door of the bathroom. “Guys, they’re here.”
I felt Amy’s body crumble behind me, folding over onto my shoulder. Fiery tears burned through the sleeve of my shirt and broken cries filled my ears. Our worlds were falling apart, our backs could no longer carry the weight of our burdens.
Walking down the spiral staircase, awaiting the enclosure of cold metal around my wrists. It had only been a party. I had only been a student. How did I end up here?