Toys & Braids

Maria slumped over the edge of her stiff bed, letting her long brown braids fall on either side of her face, almost touching to floor. Actually, the cool floor seemed more welcoming than the standard-issue bed. So, Maria let the rest of her body follow the braids onto the ground.

The crack that was emitted from her lower back was both painful and relieving. Yet another justification of her need for a real bed.

Turning to her side, she looked at the collection of items accumulated over her 15 years of life. Choosing a magic eight ball from the bunch, she extended her arm trying to reach it. 

Unsuccessful due to the shortness of her limbs, Maria took an exasperated breath before using her leg and foot to kick the ball out from under the most uncomfortable of beds. 

In the process of the violent kick, several other precious items were flung from their hiding place, and the braided girl hurriedly reorganized them. A peculiar fountain pen which scribbled out green ink, a key chain of a university she had once visited, and a paper fan made for her by an old friend. 

The eight ball stayed close to her chest and she willed it for a sign. 

She had gotten the toy ball from an arcade around the age of seven. Not by winning it of course, but a boy she met had given it to her after he already won two identical ones. 

She remembered that moment fondly but quickly realized that the boy probably did not remember it at all. 

Maria internality critiqued herself for putting the memory in her own head. As if she wasn’t already aching both mentally and physically.

Trying to redirected her train of thought, she vigorously shook the eight ball and squeezed her eyes shut tight. She felt around the ball for the mysterious little window that was to decided her fate. 

Eyes still closed, she shook once more for good measure and opened her eyes, one at a time. Right then left.

Ask again later

The toy's indecisiveness frustrated the girl to no end. Her face felt red hot and without another thought, she found herself hurling it across the small room, where it shattered against the concrete wall.

The poorly made arcade prize cracked at the seam, and the purple liquid it once contained coated the wall and ground.

Upset and unwilling to clean her mess, Maria took to her favorite pass time, braiding her hair.

She took down the longs braids that were already perfect and began to retie them. She did so several times, too many to count.

After a period of time unknown to her, she was forced to stop, as one of the rubber bands used to hold the ends of her braids together broke. 

She completed the styling session by accumulating all of the brown hair together into one, slightly thicker braid. Although it was perfect, it was limp, any life it could have had, drained away by the obsessive manipulation.

Looking under the bed once again at her collection to cure her insanity, Maria pulled out a drawstring bag, about the size of a sock.

Inside this bag was a shiny silver coin that Maria believed could solve her problem.

She gripped the coin tightly. Remembering the time she had seen men playing gambling games in the park, she blew on her closed hands. She didn’t quite understand why, but it seemed to please the men, so she added it just in case.

In her head, she determined an outcome that she would follow for each side of the object. If the side facing up was the one with the old-looking house without walls, she would stay exactly where she was. If the other side, with the bearded man, was facing upward, she would go outside.

She tried to flick the coin into the air, but on its way back down to her hands, she missed and it bounced off her leg. It began rolling towards the door.

Crawling after it on hands and knees, her frail body wasn’t fast enough to catch it. It smoothly slid under the door where it didn’t quite reach the floor.

Maria slammed her fist against the cool ground, angry at her incoordination. She had let yet another chance for the universe to decide her fate slip under a door.

Come to think of it, maybe this in itself was the supernatural forces of the world telling her to stay where she was. Or maybe not.

Maybe it took the coin and eight ball away from her because she was not meant to ask for guidance, but meant to obey the rules set in place for her. On the other hand, the coin had rolled in the exact direction that she was wondering about in the first place.

Just as she was about to search under the board-like bed for a final omen, a knock at the door echoed through the almost empty room.

She hesitated, but a small voice stopped her thoughts.

“Hello,” it said.

Maria tried to answer but having not spoken in who knows how long, only a distressed squeak came out.

The door began to open tentatively and Maria dove under the bed with her belongings.

“Sorry if I scared you, but can’t you hear what going on outside?”

Maria had not heard until that very moment. As the door opened a cacophony of sound erupted from the hallways. It was a sensory overload, but calming at the same time. It reminded her of the arcade. 

Another girl around her age emerged from behind the great door. Two long braids at either side of her face. Only they were blond.

“You can stay here if you want, but I'm leaving with the others,” said this new girl.

Maria contemplated the same dilemma she had been thinking about since she could remember. 

Was this it?

The sign she needed to leave.

Putting her faith in the universe one last time, she stood and started to follow the other girl towards to door and out of the room that held her.

Before leaving it forever, she turned back, wanting to see if her eight ball was salvageable. 

On the floor amongst the purple liquid sat the worded triangle she had spent hours staring at before. This time it said something unique. 

She had known every response the magic ball could give, and its new response tore her heart apart as she jogged back the other girl, grabbed her hand, and they left through the door together.

Run