The scratching noise of my pencil moving against the surface of the paper fills my ears, making me calm. I use the tip of my fingers to brush out the harsh lines, making them blend like a shadow into the picture. I make a little curl around the line, making it look like it has a flutter. I bite my lip and make a fading line, like a bright light shining against the image.
Just looking at the picture, you can tell what I'm feeling, you can feel it just as bad as I'm feeling it, it's almost like you ca-
"Are you drawing a burrito man?"
"What the ahhh-!" I yell and jump at least five feet in the air from where I sat, clutching my chest as I fall to the ground. I could feel and hear my heartbeat in my ears, that's how bad I was terrified!
I suck in a deep breath, my body trembling as I looked at the culprit.
"Why would you do that?" I ask, sitting up and resting my back against the wall. She shrugs and looks at my paper again, twisting her mouth in concentration.
I close my eyes, trying to calm myself. "This is good, makes me kind of hungry for a burrito." She says, scratching her pink head.
"Then go get one and stop scaring me!" I say and she laughs, smacking my back.
"Oh April, you're so funny." She giggled and I make a face.
"When did you get here?" I ask as I sit back on the chair, picking up my pencil.
"Last night, May couldn't come through, still sleeping from the stress. And I see you aren't tired at all so let's go bungee jumping." She grins stupidly and I raise a brow at her.
"Are you trying to get me killed finally? Bunjee jumping? Really?" I ask, and she nods her head vigorously.
"Please, pretty please, May is too scared because she thinks her heart is going to jump out of her throat Kira and Ethan are still in England and Chase wouldn't even spare me another glance, pretty please?" She begs, making puppy eyes at me. I stare into her green eyes, narrowing mine.
"Ugh, fine! But if I die, my blood will be on your hands." I say and she nods, placing her hand on her chest.
"I will gladly give up my life for yours." She says in a serious tone. I curl the top of my lip at her, raising a brow in the process.
"Alright, let me grab my phone to call someone and will my property," I say and she nods, completely oblivious to my sarcastic tone.
"Oh please do, I hope I'm the one." She laughs and runs out of my room, leaving me wondering where Temi and Lola had gone.
I grab the phone and some money then walk out of the room, praying in my head that I don't die. "April, hurry up! I want to have my near-death experience as soon as possible!" June yells and I gulp.
"If I die today, whether by bungee jumping or just out of frustration, I want all of my property to be given to the owner of the taco store down the road and in my room, I have a secret stash of candy bars, give it all to the gym teacher from high school, he needs to have some sugar in his body, and then bank account, donate it to the art museum." I ramble out as I stumble down the stairs and June raises her brow at me.
"So, what you mean is that your family gets nothing? Who do you think you are?" She asks and I glare at her.
"If you hadn't decided you wanted to take me to my death then maybe I'd give you two of those candy bars."
******
"Oh, my poor heart! Lord don't let me die in the hands of this evil child! I haven't seen the end of my candy crush and I'm in level two thousand and fifty-three!" I cry and hold my chest, laying on the chair. My muscles were frozen, my heart beating erratically like it had run a marathon.
"That was awesome, it was so terrifying!" June screams beside me and I glare at her.
"You know my heart is weak! I could have died!" I cry and she rolls her eyes.
"Oh stop being a baby, look at your hands, you're all shaky, I should get this on video, Ethan is going to die!" She laughs and pulls out her phone causing me to stand up abruptly but I fall back down on the chair because of my wobbly legs.
"I hate you so much! You don't even deserve half of a candy bar from my secret stash!" I accuse and she smirks at me.
"Whatever, come on, I'm hungry for a burrito!" She exclaims and pulls my arm, tugging me up as she starts running.
Lord, help me!
***
Does anybody else have a thing for each month where they turn vegan sometimes?
Well, I do.
Last month, I was perfectly able to eat meat, and anything that had meat, this month, I feel like my body is going to explode if I eat meat. So, I'm temporarily purely vegan.
This is why June is looking at me with a knowing look on her face as I order the vegan burrito. I smile to myself as I get my burrito. If only I could breathe life into this burrito, he could be my best friend! Yes! I'll go get plastic arms and another burrito maybe tomorrow and make a burrito man just like the drawing. Oh, am I a genius or what? Like... burst my head!
I feel someone tap my shoulder and I turn around, looking at a young girl in a cute outfit.
"Are you April Freeman?" She asks and I nod, a confused look on my face. "Can I get your autograph?" She asks with a hopeful smile on her face and I realize that she's clutching a book to her chest.
"Sure." I smile and sign in to her book. She giggled and then her eyes go wide when she sees June.
"Oh my gosh, June Freeman! I have all your pictures from when you first started your modeling, can I have your autograph?" The girl pleads and I roll my eyes, knowing how much she had just increased her ego, it's not healthy.
"Of course darling, how 'bout a picture to go with it?" She asks as she signs on her book. The girl squeals and pulls out her phone, June grabs my arm and hugs me close to her, the girl stands beside her and smiles widely, taking a picture of the three of us.
I lick my lips, hungry for the burrito that is still in my hand, "Alright darling, don't forget to always glow like the stars." June tells her as we walk towards the car.
"Why didn't you tell her to be the sun like mom always tells you?" I ask and she gives me a look that makes me start to rethink my question.
"Because, I'm already the sun stupid, and there can only be one sun, but there are many stars, so she can be one in a million." She explains and I let out a sigh.
Oh, gosh I'm so hungry! The beasts in my stomach are crawling out and I need to feed them! I need to quench their thirst! I need to satisfy their hunger! I need blood! Blood of the burrito!
"Can we please get back to the car, I'm dying!" I cry and she laughs, her pink hair glistening in the sun, giving a bright and new look to it.
I open the car door and sit down, getting ready to devour it. "Oh yes, mmmh, do you want to be in my belly Mr. Burrito? Oh yes, yes I want you in my belly!" I coo and smile at the burrito.
"April eat your damn food!" June yells and I smile childishly at her.
~~~~~~~~~
"April?" May sings, her voice taunting me, I giggle and hold my cheeks, biting my lip. "of April? Come out, come out wherever you are!" She laughs, her footsteps lightly tapping the floor, her tiny voice calling from just a few feet from me. I stifle my giggles as I stare at her legs, leaving the room. I let out a sigh of relief as I come out from me under the table. I check everywhere, trying to see if I'll find May.
When I don't find her, I tug on my hair and lick my lips, biting the insides of my cheek, the image of the fried plantain that Temi and Lola had made swarming my mind.
Ooh, I love food. I guess that's why I am a little chubby. Not like, fat to the extent I need to go for Revenge Body with Khloe Kardashian or something, but a little chubby around the arms and my thighs and my cheeks.
I guess I should probably exercise.
Meh, it's not my thing.
Sometimes I wonder how skinny girls feel, like, they look soooooo much like bones... not really but you get what I mean, like, they aren't just fat. Like, they don't even eat meat, only salad, what are they? Cows?
"Gotcha!"
"Ahhhhhhh!"
I scream, tripping over my foot and landing right smack on the floor. Tears spring to my eyes, clutching my chest as the tears flow freely from my eyes. I try to control my breathing, lying like a starfish with one hand against my chest on the floor.
"Dear Lord, save my heart! I think I'm having a heart attack. Oh, why would you do that to my poor heart?" I asked, sniffling and hiccuping.
"Oh stop crying, you still do this?" May asks as she comes over to me, sitting down on the floor. She stares into my eyes with her pale blue ones, amusement laced in them as her lips quirk up at the corners.
"You know that (sniffs) anytime I get scared bad, I- I cry," I say and rub my nose, blinking back the tears. She smiles her toothy smile, the missing tooth just before her canine making her look adorable, I could just pinch her cheeks.
"Sometimes, when I look at you, I wonder how much I look like the both of you but you're still more adorable than the both of us combined," I confess and she blushes like a tomato. I reach out, my fingers twitching, itching to pinch her cheeks. She slaps them away and I bring them to my mouth, kissing them like mom always does.
"How's Allen?" I ask and she blushes, looking away.
"Um, we've moved past the handshaking thing and we've started hugging, but like at arm's length, it's nice." She smiles and I laugh aloud. "Finally! My prayers have been answered, you guys are past the awkward to the slightly awkward phase!" I scream at the top of my voice and throw my hands up.
My eyes catch a shoe coming in my direction and before I could move out of the way, it hits me smack in the head, almost blinding me.
"Shut the hell up!" Temi yells and I rub my forehead.
"Are you trying to blind me? It almost hit my left eye!" I grumble and put the shoe by the door.
I catch Temi's eyes and find that she's glaring at me, her right eye twitching while the pale left one haunts me. Sometimes I forget that her left eye is blind.
"Which would be awesome, hehe." I awkwardly laugh and I hear May snicker behind me. I twist around and glare at her, her snickering stopping and turning into fake coughing.
"Where's June and Lola?" I ask as May walks past me, rummaging through the fridge for the rainbow fruit cup that she kept and I ate and replaced. She brought it out and I smile to myself.
"June dragged her off to one of her interviews, I think she's going for a photo shoot tomorrow." Temi answers and I nod, walking over to the counter where she was seated.
"And we have to get ready for the next show that's in a week, and you, my darling sister have to get your next painting done." She says, sitting on one of the stools, slowly eating her fruit cup.
I sigh, throwing a month in my mouth. "Yeah, Lola seems pretty jumpy about the show, it's been a long time since we danced as a team, you know, the three of us," Temi says and I laugh.
"Yeah, Ethan is finishing his movie tomorrow, he's coming over next week with mom and dad, Chase will also be graduating in a few weeks, a lot is going on these days, I kind of miss the days of high school," I say and they all nod solemnly.
"But think of it, we don't have to deal with McKayla!" Temi hauls and I throw my head back laughing.
Let's just say, McKayla was an annoying part of highschool.