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RADIOACTIVE ROSE

WILLOW

I stare at the gloomy sky, the sun veiled by sluggish rain clouds, threatening to unleash Mother Nature’s tears onto the earth below. Pencil in hand, I attempt to capture the melancholy scene in my sketchpad—the same weight of uncertainty that hangs over Riley and me.

Our future has never felt so unclear. Sure, bouncing from one foster home to the next has always been chaotic, but now that the system has chewed us up and spat us out like stray dogs, we’re truly lost. We’ve never found a place that feels like home.

But in my heart, I know—wherever Riley is, that’s home.

Out on the pavement, Riley’s on her skateboard, blowing off steam the only way she knows how. It’s her go-to whenever her anger threatens to explode. I watch her, entranced by the way she moves—so effortless, like the world bends to her rhythm. Her worn combat boots, thrifted over a year ago, push against the cement with each kick. Her baggy black cargo pants and oversized tee billow in the wind. We couldn’t be more different in style, and yet, I wouldn’t change a single thing about her.

Everything about Riley is bold, loud, and unapologetically rebellious. A vivid streak of neon green slashes across her side bangs, framing her intense eyes—a striking electric contrast to her onyx waves, like a visual echo of the storm she carries in her soul. Nothing about her is ordinary. Every inch of her screams defiance at the world, a walking middle finger to society’s concept of “normal.”

She is everything I’m not. They say opposites attract, and we are the living embodiment of that. She calls me her strawberry sunshine, and to me, she’s my radioactive rose.

We just…meld together, two halves of one soul, bound by something that could never be broken.

Riley attempts a boardslide on the curb, but she loses her balance and crashes hard. She lands on her back, her fist slamming onto the pavement in frustration.

“Shit,” she huffs, offering me a lopsided grin that doesn’t quite reach her eyes.

I rush over and kneel beside her, brushing her neon green bangs out of her face. Her caramel eyes meet mine, and for a brief moment, her fierce resolve cracks, exposing the vulnerable girl underneath. Her sun-kissed bronze cheek sinks into the palm of my hand as though seeking comfort.

I glide my thumb gently across her cheek, trying to tell her without words that it’s okay—that she doesn’t have to carry the weight of everything alone.

She sits up slowly, her hand catching mine and holding it against her skin. “What are we gonna do, Will?” she asks, her voice trembling. “I don’t know how to protect us—protect you —this time.” Tears brim in her eyes, threatening to spill over.

Ever the protector. My knight in grungy armor, cloaked in toxic hues and fierce rebellion.

I link my pinky finger with hers, lifting her hand to my lips to press a soft kiss there. She leans forward and does the same to mine, just like we’ve done since we were kids. It’s our secret pact, our unspoken promise: no matter what, we’ve got each other, and somehow, we’ll make it through.

“You always know how to keep me grounded,” she murmurs, her eyes fluttering closed as she exhales deeply.

When her gaze meets mine again, her fingers reach up to brush gently over the burn scar on the side of my neck. “We will find a way,” she says softly, her voice steady now, as if saying it aloud makes her believe it.

And I know we will. Together. Like always.

I don’t hide my burn scars anymore. I used to—wrapped in baggy clothes, scarves, and anything that could conceal the marks etched into my skin, the story of my life before. It took me a long time to open up to Riley about what happened, about why I ended up in foster care, and what ultimately caused me to lose my voice—or rather, why I chose silence.

Watching your house go up in flames with your parents still trapped inside, screaming for help, does something irreparable to your mind. The firemen saved me first because I was a child, they said. But they didn’t make it in time for my parents.

The last sounds I heard before I last spoke were the cries and screams of my parents burning alive. Something snapped in my brain that night, a crack too deep to heal. I should have died there with them, but I didn’t. The shock of surviving while their voices were silenced forever was unbearable. It was as if my mind decided my voice no longer had a right to exist when theirs could not.

Back then, I wished they hadn’t saved me. I lost everything in that fire.

Until Riley.

The day I met her, my person, I found the strength to keep living. She taught me how to love myself, even when it felt impossible—when the fire had taken not just my family, but my sense of self.

I don’t remember much about my parents or my early childhood. But I know this: I have never known a love as earth-shattering as the one I’ve found in Riley.

Unbreakable and forged from childhood trauma and loss, we are like shattered glass melted back together—stronger at the seams, unbreakable where we were once broken.

She. Is. Mine.

And I am hers, irrevocably and forever.

I stand and offer her my hand, which she takes without hesitation. The moment her arm slings around my shoulders for support, the rumble of an old, rusted red pickup truck catches my attention. It pulls up beside us, and a grin breaks across my face before I can stop it—I’d know that truck anywhere.

The passenger window rolls down, revealing Felix Crumbley waving eagerly from the driver’s seat. Felix, our only friend in all four miserable years of high school. If it wasn’t bad enough being tormented and ostracized by our foster parents, the bullies at school somehow managed to make it worse. But Felix? He never saw us as freaks. He never treated us like we didn’t belong.

Felix is an outcast in his own right, though he’s always had a group of geeky friends to keep him grounded. That was his world, his safe space. For us, it was just him—a single ally in an ocean of over-inflated egos of the hockey team and bimbo cheerleaders.

“Well, well, if it isn’t just the two ladies I was looking for,” he quips, pushing his thick-rimmed glasses up the bridge of his nose.

Riley tilts her head, her brows arching as she shoots me a look—one I know all too well. That menacing glint in her eye, the slight upturn of her lips—it’s the “I’ve just got an idea” look.

She saunters over to the truck, resting her arm casually on the window. “As fate would have it, Felix, you’re exactly the person I’ve been meaning to see.”

Felix’s cheeks flush a deep pink, and he nervously runs his fingers through his unruly brown curls. “Oh, yeah? What for?”

I smirk to myself, watching the scene unfold. Felix has always had a painfully obvious crush on Riley. Not that he’d ever stand a chance. They couldn’t be more different. Riley would chew him up, spit him out, and laugh while he grovels for an ounce of her attention.

“Well, you know our situation,” Riley begins, her voice dripping with exaggerated drama. “Our foster monster gave us one week to come up with enough money to move out on our own. She’s cut the invisible cord on us.”

“Oh, no. Riles, that’s so terr?—”

She cuts him off with a sharp wave of her hand, her eyes sparkling with mischief. “Your dad owns that pizza shop on Main Street, right? Pizza Crumbles?”

Felix nods enthusiastically, adjusting his thick glasses. “Yeah, why?”

“Well, isn’t there that furnished space in the attic that could potentially be used as a tiny apartment?”

Felix hesitates, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, but?—”

“We really need a place to stay, Felix.” Riley flashes him her famous sad eyes, accompanied by that pouty bottom lip. Man, she’s really laying it on thick, huh?

“I don’t know, Riles. He mentioned something about using it for storage…” Felix’s brow furrows as he thinks it over.

“Please? Can you just ask him?” Riley pleads, her hands coming together as if she were praying. “We could work for him in the pizza shop. We just need a place to stay while we save up some money and get ourselves together. Please, Felix, will you ask him? We won’t be a bother.”

Felix lets out a nervous laugh, clearly caving under the weight of her plea. “Anything for my favorite girls.”

Riley grabs onto the door frame with a wide grin, her excitement contagious. “Thank you!”

She turns to me, throwing her arm around my shoulder once more. “Maybe we won’t have to live on the streets after all, Will.”

I offer her a warm smile, one she accepts as my quiet approval. It’s definitely not the perfect solution, but it’s a start—my clever girl.

“Now, why did you come to see us, Felix?”

His entire demeanor shifts in an instant, from shy to downright nervous. He stammers, rubbing his palm along his jeans. “Oh, th-that, right. The reason I, uh, originally c-came here…”

Riley and I exchange a weary glance, noticing the change in his behavior. “What’s the matter, dude?” she asks with a light laugh, though there’s an edge to her tone.

“N-nothing. I was just gonna see if the two of you would, y’know…”

Riley clicks her tongue and rolls her eyes. Her nonexistent patience is wearing thin. “Spit it out, Felix!”

He anxiously taps his fingers on the steering wheel, lips thinning. He exhales a deep breath. “There’s a gathering tonight. Me and the Dungeons & Dragons guys—we’re throwing a little party. And I was wondering if…”

Riley flexes her bicep, pulling my head closer to hers. “Jesus, why was that so hard to ask, dude?”

Felix squirms in his seat, avoiding eye contact. “I don’t know. Sorry for being weird.” He turns to face us, trying to gauge our reactions. “There will be booze. Lots and lots of it. And I wasn’t sure if you both would still want to hang out with me now that school is over.”

Riley scoffs. “Of course we still want to hang out with you, weirdo. Plus, I think we could use a drink after this shitty day.” She lifts her free hand, gently guiding my chin with her fingers to meet her eyes. “What do you say, pretty girl? Wanna go have some fun?”

I nibble on my bottom lip, and I can’t miss how Riley’s gaze lingers on the movement, her breath hitching ever so slightly. Her eyes glaze over as she lets out a sharp inhale, a subtle shift in the air between us.

I start to nod, but as I do, I can feel Riley’s attention shift back to the situation at hand. For a split second, I can’t help but wonder what her full lips would feel like against mine. I’ve thought about it—dreamt about it. There have been days when the fantasy wouldn’t so easily dissipate.

But she’s my foster sister. My other half. We simply cannot cross that line. It would destroy everything.

She glances at Felix, breaking the moment of charged tension before I get too lost in my thoughts. “You heard her. We’re in.”

Felix flashes us a smile, but it doesn’t reach his eyes. “Cool. I’ll pick you up later. Say, eight?”

Riley grabs her skateboard and bends down to strap it to her bag. “Sounds good. We’ll meet out here.”

Felix nods, rolls up the window, and speeds off, leaving us standing there with buzzing excitement and slight confusion.