Best Friends

Scarlett’s reddish, brown hair was pulled back into a bun as she walked down the dirt road to Mitchell Langsley’s house. Her thoughts whirred around in her head as she walked; she had to tell him something before it was too late. Her deep, sapphire eyes were pointed forward as she spotted the old farmhouse that stood in the fields.

“Miss Mansey, how are ya taday?” Jake, the old hired hand, asked as she walked up the wooden porch.

“Been better, Jake. Mitch home?” she asked hurriedly, he knew something was up, but he held his peace.

“Inside thar.” He said, pointing inside the house. Scarlett opened the old, wooden screen door and walked in. She looked in the kitchen first, but no one was there and so she tried the family room next. There she found Mitch’s little sister, Mary. When she asked if she knew where he was, Mary told her she didn’t know. She was starting to get impatient, because she had something really important to tell him. She quickly brushed a strand of stray hair behind her ear. Her next idea was to run upstairs and check his room and she was glad she did.

“Hey, Scarlett, what’s up?” a boy of about eighteen or nineteen asked when she came in. When he looked up at her, he brushed a strand of dark, brown hair away from his green eyes. He was sitting on his bed; a book in his hand, leaning against the wall his bed was against.

“Mitch, I have somethin’ I’ve gotta tell ya.” She said, sitting down on his bed with him.

“Sure, what is it?” he asked, sitting up straighter, noticing that she seemed upset about something.

“Daddy, just got letter from the bank taday. Says we gotta move, we ain’t allowed ta live in the house anymore.” She said, tears coming to her eyes. He quickly moved to comfort her. He was one of the few people she cried in front of. She’d told him once how she hated crying; somehow it showed a weakness. He knew that this was because she’d last seen her older brother, Danny, crying right before he’d killed himself. He knew that it was because of her brother, the brother whom she’d loved with all her heart, that she viewed crying as something weak.

“Scarlett, how’d this happen?” he asked, after her sobs had subsided and she was now just wiping away stray tears.

“Mama says it’s ‘cause he wasn’t able ta pay the mortgage. I’d thought we were doin’ fine, but ‘cause I’m young, I don’t get told nothin’.” She said, her sadness switching to anger. That was Scarlett she went from one emotion to another in a heartbeat.

“Do ya think ya weren’t told nothin’ was ‘cause they didn’t want ya worryin’?” he asked, looking her straight in the eye. When he asked this question though, she put her head down, a little ashamed. He was right; her parents were just trying to protect her.

“Why do ya always have ta do that?” she asked, looking serious, but looking closely he knew that she wasn’t mad.

“Do what?” he asked innocently.

“Be right.” She said, a smile on her face. He reached out his arms to put around her and she welcomed his arms around her thin figure.

“I’ll always love ya, Scarlett Mansey. Yer the best friend anyone could’ve asked for.” He said and she could hear the sincerity in his voice.

“Thanks Mitch. I’ll write and call as often as I can. I promise ya that.” She said, wrapping her tanned arms around him. They stayed like that for a second and then pulled away. She was really going to miss him. He was the only person that ever understood her. When she’d first met him, she had been going through a tough time with having just lost her brother. She’d been angry a lot, but somehow he’d gotten through to her and ever since then they’d been best friends. He was going to miss her, but knew that they’d write and talk on the phone and when one of them got enough money they would go visit each other.