Thirty Eight

Raven sat quietly at the breakfast table, picking at the corner of her toast. The chatter around her felt distant as if she were inside a bubble. Julie, who was sitting beside her, was laughing with her friends, Kyle and Emily. It was Julie's idea to come here after the chaos yesterday, and Raven had no energy to refuse.

Julie turned to Raven, pulling her from her trance. "Raven, I didn’t get the chance to properly introduce you to my friends yesterday." She said, smiling apologetically. "This is Kyle, and this is Kyle's sister, Emily. Yesterday was a bit, huh?"

Raven forced a smile. "Yeah, just a little."

Kyle, a tall guy with blonde hair, reached across the table, offering his hand. "Nice to officially meet you, Raven. Julie’s told us a bit about you."

"Umm, you mean a lot. Julie won't shut up about you." Emily said. "I guess I can't blame her for that, you're... pretty." Emily sounded a bit off to Raven, but she didn't comment on it.

Raven shook Kyle's hand and nodded. "It's n