Annie sat in the corner of the green tiled bathroom floor, her thoughts moving electrified and rapid through her mind. In a pale, fragile hand she held fifty-six red coated pills, enough she thought, to do the trick. She held the poison away from her body and slowly pulled her feet to her chest. She rocked this way for a few moments, the red coated toxins held as an extension from her body. She wrestled with her hellish deliberation, the one that had been taunting her for months now. “Nobody will miss me”, she thought.

“Those kids at school will be happy I’m gone; this will teach them.”

She squeezed her eyes shut, trying but failing to stop the flow of tears from escaping down her face. She wanted to be a single one of those salted liquid drops streaming from her eyes; running hastily towards an end, and then dissolving into the fabric of her yellow cotton dress, to disappear forever.

Annie took a ragged breath and leaned her head back against the cream colored wall. A shaky hand floated up to her parted lips, and with her heart heavy and racing, she began to tilt her cupped hand to deliver permanent sedation.

“ANNIE STOP!”, barreling foot-steps thundered into the bathroom.

Stunned, she dropped the red coated pills from her hand. They scattered all around her, each pang they hit the ground with, representing an ounce of pain leaving her tethered body. Stumbling into her brothers arms, she burst into tears.