STRANGERS

On this hefty Ferris Wheel, Ginger is at the very top, feeling as if she is going to drop. She hates being stuck, she hates the idea of heights, she wishes she wasn’t atop. Too many people, too many sounds. Ginger just wants to get back on the ground.

On the same capsule, Pepper feels trapped, she doesn’t feel ideal. She wishes she was alone and didn't have to feel. All Pepper wants is for the secrets in this friendship to become unsealed.

Words have been said, apologies haven’t been heard. This friendship has become absurd. Some friendships can last, others can fade. It seems as if though this friendship is going to degrade.

"Why do you hate me?" Ginger asks her archenemy, with their relationship undersea. Pepper ignores the question, as she feels she can only speak to a certain degree.

"Why do you yell at me?" Pepper asks her opponent, who doesn't seem to agree. Ginger ignores the question with a look of sarcastic glee.

"I can't stand when you look at me with anger. It is as if I don't know you and you are a stranger," says Ginger, who only wants to get off this horrendous ride.

"I dislike the words that you send my way. It is as if our friendship has been betrayed," says Pepper, while the truth remains denied.

Ginger looks away, seeing all the people low to the ground. She wishes that this argument wasn't profound.

Pepper looks to the bottom of the Ferris Wheel. Feeling as though this argument isn't real.

Ginger and Pepper have been friends for as long as they can remember. But eventually all friendships become dismembered.

"I think our friendship has become broken,” said Ginger, while the tears start to slide.

"There are some things that should remain unspoken," said Pepper, while the friendship has officially died.

The Ferris Wheel begins to rotate once more, and it seems as though no one has won this war. The wheel rotates until Ginger and Pepper say hello to the ground. While their friendship remains unfound. They look at each other, saying their last goodbyes through their despairing eyes. Knowing that this friendship was only built on lies.

Rachel Lane has a strong love for writing poetry and young adult fiction. They found their passion for writing after reading the book Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott and many of Robert Frost's poems. In 2022 Lane self-published a nonfictional poetry piece called Stop Saying Goodbye So Soon on Amazon. Lane has many more stories on their way to the shelves, but let's hope that the shelves aren't too high, because Lane has a mighty fear of heights.