Chapter Text
In a quiet corner of a bustling park in Pikesville, a young girl with dark blue hair in a white dress sat alone on a swing, her feet dangling above the ground. She watched with longing as a group of kids dashed around a nearby tennis court, their laughter echoing through the air. They chased after bouncing balls, their carefree energy a sharp contrast to her stillness. She sighed, her thoughts drifting to her strict family—rules that kept her tethered, unable to join the fun, to be just another kid playing with friends. All she wanted was that simple freedom, to run and laugh like them.
Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t see the tennis ball flying toward her until it smacked her head, snapping her back to reality. She winced and said “ouch” while rubbing the spot. As she looks around the park to see who did this a slender kid of her age approached, her fiery red hair catching the sunlight and her freckle-dusted cheeks flushed from running. “Sorry about that,” she said, her voice sheepish but warm. “My sister Powder is a little reckless with her swing.” She glanced back at the court where a small girl with short and light blue hair waved awkwardly with a racket in hand.
The redhead lingered, her gaze settling on the girl on the swing with a hint of concern. “Um, I haven’t seen you around before. Did you just move here to Pikesville?” she asked after a moment.
The girl on the swing nodded. “Yeah, me and my family are from Coldspring. We moved here because of my mother’s work. She had to switch from the Coldspring police department to Pikesville’s—something about a lack of officers or whatever.” Her voice carried a quiet weight as she glanced down.
The redhead’s eyes lit up with awe. “Wow, your mom’s a police officer? Damn, that sounds so cool! I bet she shows you how to catch bad guys and fight crime and stuff!”
The girl on the swing gave a small, bittersweet smile, her eyes drifting to the tennis court. “In a way, yeah. She taught me how to shoot a rifle and all about gun safety. But she’s so strict to me ,She doesn’t let me play games with friends because she says it’ll distract me from studying, that it’ll mess up my schoolwork. She’s always say I need good grades for the University of Baltimore, then the police academy to keep up our family tradition of being cops—blah, blah, blah.” Her tone grew heavy with frustration, jealousy flickering as she watched the kids play. “ listen ,I’m only a 13 years old kid ,a kid like that aren’t supposed to live a stressful life like I do now, I just want to be like you and your friends—to play games together to have fun like an any other normal kids, to be carefree.”
The redhead blinked, then grimaced playfully. “Yikes, did your mom just casually plan out your whole future without your consent? That sounds tiring as hell. But you know what? You can play with us from time to time. We usually have free running practice sessions here around this time. You can come see if you want—”
A skinny boy with black hair from the tennis court shouted from afar to cut her off. “Are you two gonna chitchat till Christmas, or are you gonna pick up that damn tennis ball and go for a rematch?”
The redhead rolled her eyes, glancing back at him. “I’m coming!” she yelled at him then turned to the girl on the swing, who handed her the tennis ball with a faint smile. Before jogging off, the redhead paused. “By the way, I totally forgot to introduce myself. I’m Violet. What’s your name?”
“Caitlyn,” the girl replied, glancing at the watch on her wrist. “You can just call me Cait. I actually have to go too—before my lazy teacher notices I’m missing and calls my mom. Then I’d be in serious trouble.” She slid off the swing, dusting her hands.
Violet grinned. “See ya around, Cait!” she called as she dashed back to the court, leaving Caitlyn with the smallest spark of hope flickering in her chest—maybe freedom wasn’t so far off after all.