Bleddyn froze as the unmistakable agitation of the front doorknob trickled into her hearing range.
"C-cr-cr-crap," she muttered, heaving herself back up and clutching wildly for her bedroom door's handle as a myriad of spots swarmed across her vision.
Getting down the stairs was an effort, but she had time to drape herself against the counter before the door yielded.
Ash strolled in, her brunette hair confined to a perky bun set high on her head. She leaned against the banister and reached down to untie her shoelaces. Two consecutive thuds announced that she'd simply kicked off her sneakers without regard to their resting place. She barged into the kitchen, radiating enough energy to light a few lamps and then some. Humming to a song buried by the passing years, she flashed a beaming smile at her wilted daughter, seeming not the least bit startled to see Bleddyn with a battle-scarred face. Bleddyn, in turn, graced her with a blank glare. Better her than Dad, I guess.
Ash rolled up sleeves heavily concentrated with mud, probably the result of a vigorous cross-country session, and helped herself to a seat a the kitchen table. "Gage called me and informed me that'd you'd been involved in a fight among his patrons."
"No greeting, just immediate accusation? Guess the right to a fair trial is void for teenagers."
"I'm disappointed in you." Her back remained comfortably to Bleddyn.
Irritation flushed Bleddyn's pale face to a healthier shade. "He blew up at a waitress who'd done nothing!"
"I'm not responsible for who started it, Bleddyn. But I am responsible for manslaughter. Are you denying that you were involved?"
"No."
"Did you stop to consider how you'd affect not just your opponent, but everyone else?"
"No."
"Gage was lucky he was able to recover order enough that he didn't have to close for the remainder of the day. How would've you felt if you'd been at fault for a loss of all that profit?"
Bleddyn shrugged diffidently. It wouldn't be the first time someone lost profit due to her.
"I'm sorry you don't yet understand the devastation of business, then. You're lucky...." Suddenly a notch in the counter's flawless surface became the most interesting thing in existence.
I've heard it all before; no, I'm not going to become this perfect child all of a sudden because of your incredibly eloquent and emotionally rousing speech. Also, maybe if you'd yell for once, I'd listen. You've got to be like the first mother ever not to condemn your unabashed offspring in a completely level voice.
A sudden wave of nausea crashed into her. She couldn't stay here and lose her insides all over the floor. And if she resorted back to her bed, her keen mother would suddenly become much more interested in what'd she'd been doing today. I can see the usual verdict of house arrest now...
"I'm going out, Mom."
"That's fine by me. You agree to work for free in the pancake house for a week or so some time to make up for what you caused?"
"Sure, whatever."
She grabbed blindly for a baseball cap off of the coat rack, and nearly fell flat on her face as she leaped out onto the porch.
I could go to Alice's...no, Aunt Tayn would freak out if she saw me like this... Despite herself, Bleddyn almost snorted aloud at the thought.
Lachlan and Finlay's. Aunt River could care less who shows up in what condition, as long as they're breathing.
She pitched forward again, and had to plop down onto the cushions of a hanging chair. Her forgotten phone rolled down onto her lap. She checked it disinterestedly, expecting no text notifications and finding none. Everyone's still probably pinned by the rant I just avoided. She pocketed it, and tediously dismounted the porch, grabbing the handrails as if gravity could sweep her away.
Once safely rooted to the ground, she scouted around for her skateboard but found the parking lot to solely occupy Ash's dilapidated forest green Land Rover. It must've been left behind in the wake of the attack of the shady masked individuals.
Well, it'd just have to remain unaccompanied for a little longer, because even she knew better than not to return to the park for a good while after such a disturbance.
I'll have to walk...but...staggering like this...
She cast a sly glance into the shadows of the garage. Just the faintest hint of metal gleamed by a prowling quiver of sunlight. Her beloved dirtbike had been collecting dust in there for far too long.
Who cared how highly unsensible it would be to ride that thing through town in her state and licenseless?
There even was a disused pair of earbuds draped across the handlebars. She jammed the cord into her phone and them into her ears; within seconds of frenzied clicking, she had some intense tunes to egg on her recklessness.
As she flipped her wrist to turn over the ignition, something screamed for her attention from atop a dimly lighted shelf.
Her neglected helmet.
Bleddyn stared at it for the briefest of heartbeats.
Screw it.
Tires squealing, Bleddyn roared out of the garage and down the street.
Question of the Day - Tuesday, January 13th, 2026
What is this? Vent Gleet?
pollipazzi's 365 project
BYC's 52-week Photography Challenge. Week 1: (Jan 5-11, 2026). Theme: SUNSET
