Chapter 6: The Beginning

If Ivy were being honest, seeing her reflection in the mirror felt…odd. Her once pale and sunken cheeks were rejuvenated with a youthful glow, her blue eyes shined a bit brighter, and her chestnut brown hair fanned across the small of her back- much longer than before.

"Huh," she mumbled to herself, cocking her head to the side. It was like…staring at her an old yearbook photo- except it mimicked her movements. It was gonna take awhile to get used to this.

Sighing, the girl peaked her head into the living room and found Yuri sprawled on the couch, his chest rising and falling in a slow rhythm, the occasional snore filling the air.

Perfect timing.

Ivy quietly crept past him to the front door, holding her breath throughout. She figured the less interactions with him, the better. Otherwise she may end up committing murder- and jail wasn't exactly the best place to fulfil all her goal. Huffing at the thought, Ivy slipped on her tattered black sneakers and slithered out the door. "Phew," After getting downstairs, she stepped out from under the small brick canopy that loomed over the doors and looked up the sky. The sun's rays felt lovely on her skin, much like the gentle breeze that faintly lifted her skirt. She glanced down at the watch on her wrist and noted the time.

"8:30," she breathed out. Just enough time to get to school.

"About damn time."

Ivy nearly jumped out of her skin. "Eh-?' She whipped around to find Cilian, leaning against the wall beside the door while with foot propped against it, arms folded.

"Yo," He straightened up with a smirk, and Ivy quickly placed a hand over her chest.

"Jesus, what the hell are you doing, creeping around like some perv." She hissed, puffing her cheeks.

"Perv? I'm hurt by that." His tone dripped with sarcasm, which made her eyebrow twitch in annoyance.

"What are you doing here?" She hissed through her teeth, heading down the sidewalk. Cilian quickly joined with a low chuckle, which tickled her ear for some reason. "I don't have a phone, and looking around for you at school would be annoying." His shoulders lifted with a hum, and Ivy glanced over to him through the corner of her eyes. At she wanted to say who doesn't have a phone in this day and age? She remembered her own situation and lack of a phone. Seeing as she couldn't find it in her belongings, this must've been the month she had to pawn it off for some cash.

Oh- but of course Yuri kept his in case he found a job that required it. Such bullshit.

Feeling her blood begin to boil, she cleared her throat and looked to Cilian. "I don't have one either, so I guess we should just meet up here in the morning."

Ivy noticed the male's eyebrows rise to his forehead. "You don't?"

"Yeah, current me is just as broke as future me."

Ivy heard Cilian snort and rolled her eyes.

"Oh I know you're not judging."

"I'm not, I'm not. It's just funny… we're in the same boat." The corners of his lips curled upwards- much like Ivy's single brow. This guy had a weird sense of humour.

"Well we won't be broke for long!" Ivy picked up her pace til the corner of the street was in view. However, she sigh from the sight of Vernon, the homeless man who practically owned that corner.

"Careful," Cilian piped up. He moved from the street side to the sidewalk and caught between her and the man. Ivy felt a smirk tug at her lips. "My, how chivalrous," She hummed, raising a hand to wave, "but you don't need to protect me from Vernon."

Seeing her greeting, the old man perked up and flashed a wide smile- revealing quite a few missing and gold teeth. He sat atop a few cardboard pieces with a thick blanket wrapped around his body. Peeking through it were grey sweats, matching his long beard. "Ah, Morning little lady!" He shouted, voice booming. When they got closer, he pointed at Cilian with a grin. "Oho, who's the new boyfriend?" He snickered.

Ivy chuckled, but noticed Cilian's ears turn a light pink while his shoulders hunched. Wow, did he get embarrassed this easily? How amusing. She snorted and playfully slapped his back. "Not a boyfriend, just a classmate. Worry about getting yourself down to the bingo house!" The two jested back and forth til they passed by and continued down the street. Ivy felt Cilian lean down towards her ear. "That normal?" His breath so close caused her to shiver.

"For us? Yeah. I met him at the bingo hall awhile ago when I needed some extra cash. First time I was there, he won fifty bucks 4 times in a row." Cilian pulled away with a lopsided smile. "Damn, lucky old man." He muttered, glancing back. Ivy shrugged, a soft sigh escaping her lips. Everytime she played, all that was won was an empty wallet.

"Everyone could use that kind of luck around here."