Page 69 of Ravaged From Fate

“Yeah,” she replies. She nods at the bruised bag. “I can see you’re like that, too. We have that in common.”

“Got to let the aggression out somehow,” I remark. I know I’m talking to a kindred spirit here, so I can let my guard down for a moment.

Juniper nods solemnly. “I know what you mean.”

I can see in her eyes that she does.

“Are you from East Springs?” I ask. Since I’ve known her, Juniper has been friendly but guarded. Kind of like me. She doesn’t talk much about her past, instead spending all her time teasing Cyrus.

She shakes her head. “I’m actually from San Diego. I moved here three years ago.”

“Wow. Another stranger to East Springs.”

“Yep,” she replies. “I know what it’s like moving to a small town where you don’t know anyone.”

“Fair.”

“But you find your people, right?” She looks over towards Cyrus. “You find the people you click with.”

“Yeah,” I reply. “You do.”

My mind wanders to Elsa…

“How’s it been like settling in?” Juniper asks. “Any trouble and I will punch them into kingdom come.”

I chuckle at her offer. “It’s been going okay,” I say.

“Things take time,” she replies.

“They do.”

“The people you’ve left,” she says softly. “You might’ve left them… but they still love you. Trust me, I know.”

“Sure.”

She smiles at me. “I’ll leave you to it. Give that bag hell for me, okay?”

“Sure will.”

WHACK!

I’m back at it.

WHACK!

I need to work things out in my mind. Quiet the noise for good.

WHACK!

WHACK!

WHACK!

I punch the bag over and over again until only Cyrus’ voice can stop me.

“Yo, bro.”

I drop my sweaty hands and turn to face Cyrus behind me. I don’t realize how out of breath I am until I start to pant. Hard.