The first time Lauren heard “Walking Her Home” by Mark Schultz, she was lying on her bed crying about yet another fight with Brett. Why had he said those hurtful things?

            “I thought he loved me,” Lauren pondered aloud.

            Their relationship had been on and off for the past two months. It was getting rather hard with Brett now away at college while Lauren was beginning her senior year of high school, but neither one of them wanted to give up. Their love would last forever, but could it carry them through this year? Lauren began to lose faith.

            Turning the volume knob on the radio to the left, she took a deep breath and called Tammy’s cell phone. Tammy knew the situation and, for that exact reason, kept stocks of what her and Lauren called boyfriend ice cream for those many times when boys were just awful. It was full of rich chocolate, and most times, the girls would polish off a whole pint container in an hour.

            Tammy answered the phone groggily, but sat right up when she heard Lauren’s sobs. “Lauren! Is it Brett again? Alright, c’mon over,” Tammy told her friend, rolling her eyes. After hanging up the phone, Tammy slipped into her jeans and robe, and ran out to the bomb shelter the girls used as their hideaway

            Her mom had set up a kitchen for them since they’d used the shelter so often during the past couple of months. Tammy pulled out two spoons and the boyfriend ice cream as the door swung open revealing Lauren’s splotchy, tear stained face. Tammy took a deep breath before heading over to support her friend.

            “Tammy, it was awful. Completely my fault,” Lauren managed to get out between sobs.

            “How can you say that, Lauren? Brett is not a good guy. He doesn’t treat you like you deserve to be treated. You’re more respectable than this,” Tammy whispered to her friend.

            “But I knew he was already upset. I should have kept my complaints about missing him to myself,” she argued her eyes welling with tears once again.

            “I know you love him, Lauren, and he says that he loves you back. But the way he treats you, whether he is already upset or not, is completely inexcusable. A man will come along who is three million times better to you than he is.”

            Usually, Tammy’s talks made Lauren feel better, but not tonight. She knew that Tammy didn’t like Brett in the first place, but she didn’t think Tammy would be so mean to him. Lauren sat up from the bed knowing that Tammy was hoping she’d break it off with Brett for good.

            “Tammy, how would you feel if I told you to break up with Todd?”

            “Our situations are different, Lauren! Todd doesn’t emotionally abuse me like Brett does to you. What happened to my best friend, the one who was always upbeat and carefree? I’ll tell you what happened to her. She-”

            “Tammy, please don’t-”

            “She was killed slowly by her boyfriend’s overly assertive and manipulative manner!”

            Lauren sat speechless, unmoving. A single tear ran down her radiantly spotted face to her exposed wrist. Tammy watched it fall and noticed the scabs on Lauren’s wrist. Too late, Lauren realized what Tammy knew but quickly pulled down her sleeve anyway.

            “Do you cut yourself? Lauren! Look at me!”

            Instead, Lauren hastily grabbed her things and took off running.

            Tammy knew that all she could do was wait for Lauren to come back. She put the key under the mat, closed the door, and locked it. Tonight wasn’t going to be a night that she’d easily sleep. After putting the unopened boyfriend ice cream away, she popped some popcorn, put 10 Things I Hate About You in the VCR and plopped onto the bed to watch it.

            Thirty minutes passed, and there came a knock- their secret code- on the door ever so quietly.

            “Mat!” Tammy yelled through the cold steel door.

            The lock clicked, and Lauren shuffled back through the door way not even looking up at Tammy. She walked to the freezer and pulled out the solidified pint of boyfriend ice cream along with two spoons. As she sat down on the bed, Tammy took a spoon and started to help her friend eat the rich chocolate which was slowly turning to soup.

            “Laur?” Tammy started hesitantly, “I think we need to get you help. I promise to go with you. Cutting is an addictive habit, but it’s a bad one. I love you like a sister, Lauren, and I hate to see you suffering like this. It’s just not right.

            “I don’t need help, Tam. This is one battle you have to let me fight. I know you mean well, but it hurts when you say mean things about Brett.”

            “He’s not good to you! You deserve to be treated so much better than that!”

            “For once, your ‘help’ didn’t really help this time at all,” Lauren sighed.

            “Let’s just try to sleep. It’s our last week of summer; we have to enjoy it.”

            They lay down on the queen sized bed, and soon Lauren could hear Tammy’s hard breathing. Lauren spent another hour lying next to her friend, but sleep just wouldn’t come. The light above the stove was still on, so she hopped out of bed, retrieved a deck of cards from the cabinet, and sat down to play solitaire.

            When Tammy awoke the next morning, she found a note attached to her arm.

            “Tam,” it read. “Went back home. Made pancakes, they’re on the counter if you want. Love, Laur.”

            Something was not exactly right about this note. Rushed.

            There was no answer on Lauren’s cell phone. When she hung up, her phone chimed “Sisters” by Bette Midler. Someone from Lauren’s house was calling.

            “Tammy? Hi it’s Ashley Dawson. Lauren’s mom. Is she over there?”

            “She left before I woke up this morning, Ashley, and she won’t answer her cell phone for you, either?”

            “No. She must be awfully busy if she won’t answer to either of us calling. Let me know if you hear from her, Dear. Bubye.”

            “Bye.”

            What could Lauren be doing that could be so pressing that she wouldn’t answer her phone.

*                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                    *

            Lauren stood on the bridge overlooking the Mississippi River, tears streaming down her face. Tammy couldn’t understand. Brett was good to her; sometimes he just got a little stressed.

            A car honked startling Lauren back into reality. Tammy’s 2006 Ford Mustang pulled up to the curb behind her.

            “Lauren! Are you going to jump? Honestly! Do you think Brett is truly worth th-”

            “God, Tammy! Don’t have a hernia!” Lauren hadn’t even thought about jumping. “I’m not going to jump. I’ve just been thinking about my relationship with Brett. I know that I have to end it, and I need your support. Putting my thoughts here into action honestly scares me. I love him. Where do I begin? How can I end it?”

            I’m glad you made this decision, Lauren. Seeing how he treats you really hurts me. This is going to be tough, but we can make it through this together.

*                      *                      *                      *                      *                      *                    *

            “Brett,” Lauren said hesitantly. “Do you have time to talk?”

            “Maybe a little, Babe. What’s up?”

            “I…uh…”

            “C’mon Lauren! I know you can do this,” Tammy whispered in the background.

            “I…don’t want us…to be…together anymore.”

            “What are you talking about?”

            “You don’t treat me very well, Brett, and I deserve to be loved and treated better. I don’t like getting hurt.”

            “Whatever. You’re not worth it anyways.”

            *Click* Lauren hung up her phone. Brett wasn’t going to be allowed to talk to her like that anymore.

            Tammy jumped up from her post at the table in the bomb shelter and ran over to Lauren where she sat on the bed, tackling her in a hug. Tammy could tell Lauren was going to be in a lot of pain.

            During their last week of summer, Tammy avoided talking about men, especially about her relationship with Todd, which was going very smoothly. Todd was so good to understand that Lauren needed her. She’d make sure to thank him if she ever got to see him again. Lauren spent all her time in the bomb shelter, going home only a few times to get some clean clothes and let her mother know she’s alright. Tammy knew Lauren needed to heal, but by the fifth day was starting to get sick of her. Todd and Tammy didn’t get to have their weekly movie night or any other dates in their last week before they began their senior year. Todd was beginning to resent Lauren for taking all of Tammy’s time.

            When school started, they both acted like everything was fine around Lauren, but once she was out of earshot, they’d talk about her being so clingy. Tammy was almost getting suffocated by her. They decided that Tammy needed to have a sit down talk with her about this.

            “Lauren,” Tammy began ever so gently, “I know you still hurt from your break up, but my relationship with Todd is suffering. We need to be able to spend time together. How can we build our relationship if we never get to go on dates or spend any time together at all? It’d be hard. Not that we’re unwilling to work at it, but we miss getting to spend time together. I want to be here for you, Laur, but you’ve got to let me have time with Todd too.”

            “Fine, Tammy. I’ll get out of the way. I’m sorry that I’m ruining your relationship.”

            “Lauren! That’s not what I said. Todd and I need some time together. How about you and I have a weekly movie night too? Cause I want us to spend time together!”

            “I don’t know, Tam.”

            Lauren got up and walked away. She needed to have some time alone to think. Because Tammy knew about her hanging out on the bridge, she had found a new place to go when she needed her space, the dock on the pond out in the forest behind her house. When she made it there, a man was standing on the dock. She didn’t even give him a passing glance, but quickly went to stand on the other side of the dock.

            Suddenly, Lauren could sense that the man was standing directly behind her. She quickly whipped around to see what he was doing, but when she did, she lost her breath, her consciousness. The man had taken hold of her head, and her neck broke as she twisted to see him. Working quickly, he pushed her body into the pond, then left.

Knowing that her body would be found soon enough, he headed back up to school, where he should have been.

Keyword: Scars

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