I stalk down the street, alone. Alone is all I have known. My parents are gone, I have no friends. My life is empty. There is nothing left for me. I have resorted to living on the street, scrounging around for food. Some nights I go hungry. Others, I have a feast on the leftovers my betters have thrown away.

Living in the streets isn't easy. You have to fight for food with other scavengers like myself. The candidates range from other human beings to stray animals. Everyone needs something to defend yourself with. I have a small pocket knife that I keep inside my boot. The pocket knife is a rarity.

I quickly stop in my tracks as I hear footsteps behind me. I bend down to act as if I'm lacing up my boot, but instead, I slide out the knife. It's rusted blade looks as if it could break any second, but parts of it are still sharp.

I straighten quickly and pivot, coming face to chest with a guy. He grabs the fabric of my hoodie and lifts me up until I'm staring him in the eye. His eyes are a muddy brown and he smells like rotten fish.

"Let me go..." I growl at him.

"Do you got anything of value, you filthy tramp?" he questions me.

I glare at him and spit in his face. He growls in his throat and slams me against a conveniently placed wall. I cringe at the pain and kick him in the groin. He drops me to the ground and I punch him in the jaw. He spits out a tooth and grabs for my leg. I flick open the knife and swipe at his hand, creating a shallow cut. He hisses in pain and cradles his hand. I close up the knife and take off running down the street.

I take many twists and turns to try to put as much distance between me and that guy as possible. I finally stop by the homeless shelter. I walk in, feeling exhausted.

"Hey, Sam! Get any goodies?" a man named Tom asks me.

"Other than a giant bruise on my back, no you old coot," I reply with venom in my voice.

He rolls his eyes and focuses on the door, waiting for the next person to walk through the door so he can rob them in their sleep. I travel through the homeless center until I make my way to my corner. I gently sit down, being careful not to agitate my back.

I reach behind me and up my shirt and tenderly touch the skin that was slammed against the wall. I gasp in pain as I feel a small cut. I pull my hand out and stare at it in shock. Blood covers my fingertips. I bite my lip and glance around for something to clean it with. I finally spot the small first aide pack I assembled from things I traded for.

I take an alcohol wipe and clean the wound the best I can. I put a bandaid on it that has Hello Kitty all over it. I lean my head against the wall and take in the coolness. I just lay there until I hear footsteps walk my way.

"Half of a blueberry muffin says that you can't beat Stephen in an arm wrestle," a thirteen year old girl tells me with a devilish smirk on her face.

I glare at her and ask, "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm Maggie. I just got here today and I already have a huge stash of stuff," she boasts.

I scoff and say, "They always feel sorry for the kids. Get over yourself."

"Are you going to arm wrestle Stephen or not?" she asks me, impatiently.

"One," I spit, "I don't know who the hell Stephen is. Two, get the fuck out of my corner or you'll find yourself on the ground."

She glares at me and says, "Fine by me of you don't want to lose."

I stiffen, my blood boiling.

"There's no way in hell I'd lose...now, if you don't mind , I'm trying to get some sleep," I growl.

She rolls her eyes at me and takes out a whole, homemade blueberry muffin. I lick my lips at the offering and my stomach growls, reminding me how I couldn't find anything to eat.

"If you can beat my brother, Stephen, in an arm wrestle, I'll give you the whole muffin, okay?" Maggie tells me.

I sigh, my hunger getting the best of me. I nod and stand, looking around for someone who looks like her brother. She motions for me to follow her out of the homeless shelter and out onto the streets. We walk for about half an hour before we stop in an alley.

"Hey, Stephen! I got that little bitch who made you lose a tooth," she calls into the darkness.

My eyes widen and I go to turn, but I'm grabbed around the waist.

"Where do you think your going? I still owe you for knocking out my tooth," the man from earlier growls.

I whimper in fright and I wait for the blow. He draws back his fist and throws it forward, catching me in the stomach. I crumple up in a heap on the ground and take blow after blow. He kicks me repeatedly in my side, causing me to be winded. Tears stream down my cheeks, but I can't fight back. He's too strong.

He stands me up and gives me a good punch in the jaw, knocking out a couple teeth. I groan in pain, and he drops me to the ground. I reach for my knife in my boot, but Stephen slams his foot onto my wrist, breaking it. I scream in pain and lay there. He spits on me before taking off into the darkness of the night. Maggie cackles and throws the muffin at me.

"I feel kind of sorry for you, so I'll let you have this. It'll be a miracle of you can even eat it!" she says.

I shakily raise up my hand that's not in pain and flip her off. She laughs again and returns it.

"Oh, and just to let you know, that corner's now mine. Stay away from it unless you want another beating from my brother," she tells me with a smirk.

I use the rest of my strength to get out, "You need your brother to back you up when most of us have no one. Like I said earlier, get over yourself because no one gives a shit. We all fend for ourselves..."

She rolls her eyes and walks away. I glance at the muffin on the ground. No way can I eat that. Looks like I'm going to bed hungry tonight. Not that surprising, really when your a homeless orphan in a small suburban area of New York.

I awaken to unknown surroundings. I'm on a cot in a living room. I try to move, but pain instantly pierces my whole body. I gasp and I hear footsteps run towards me. A man comes into my view. He has golden brown hair and hazel eyes. He's very tan and I can see his muscles underneath his clothing.

"Who the hell are you? Why am I here?!" I ask him.

"Don't worry...I found you in the alley next to my house. You were pretty beat up..." he tells me.

I glare at him and say, "Who said I wanted your help? I'm doing just fine on my own."

He ignores me as he gently lifts up my right arm. He gently removes some type of gauze from it. I glance at my wrist and my eyes widen in shock. It's all purple and blue.

"Don't worry about your wrist...it's just a sprain even though it looks bad," he tells me.

I glare at him again.

"What?" he asks me.

"I'm leaving," I tell him.

He looks at me like I'm crazy and he stops rewrapping my wrist.

"If you leave, there's barely any chance that your wounds will heal properly!" he exclaims.

"Why do you care?! I'm just a homeless orphan that no one cares about. Why do you care about me?" I ask him, my voice rising.

He glares back at me, sensing that I don't want to be helped. A squeak can be heard as he opens what looks to be the front door. A warm breeze blows in and makes my dirty blonde hair dance. It's inviting, the warmth. It's home to me.

I stand up, anxious to return to the streets, looking for my next meal. A sudden pain in my side makes me crumple into a ball on the floor. Already, the pain is affecting me greatly. I want to get outside, but this new person's hand is outstretched in front of me.

"Do you want my help or not?" he asks me.

I shake my head and stand up. Grabbing my side, I trot towards the door. Nothing can stop me from reaching the shelter. The shelter is all I've ever known. The darker side to this thing we call life is all I've ever known.

Finally, I reach the outside. The sun beats down on me, making me feel alive. I sit on the sidewalk and take deep breaths, being careful to not cry and let the world know how much pain I'm really in. This goes on for at least an hour before the sting subsides.

I start towards the shelter. People stare at me. They stare at my injuries. Some even turn to hide their laughter. Of course, they've never even tasted my side of life. The side where you have to strive to get even a few crumbs.

I start to sprint. The shelter comes into view in minutes, making me feel better. Then I realize what's waiting for me. The little bitch who makes her brother do all the work for her. That brat has probably ruined my reputation by now. She took my corner. She took my supplies. She took my pride.

I walk through the entrance to the shelter. All eyes turn to me except a certain person in the back. I make sure to slam the door behind me to emphasize how much I'm pissed. I stalk through the giant room until I reach her.

I grab her by the throat and slam her against the wall. The edge of my vision has turned red with anger. I bring back my fist, wanting to hurt the girl in front of me. I want her to feel all the suffering I've felt for the last five years. I throw my fist forward. I hear a crack. The sound didn't come from the girl. It didn't come from my own fist. It came from the wall.

I stare in shock at the crack in the wall my fist just created. I moved my fist at the last minute, causing the wall to take the blow, not Maggie. I bring my fist back to my side.

"You don't know anything about what most of us here have gone through. I've had no one since I was your age. Your the lucky one. You have someone. You have it easy," I whisper.

I can feel warm, wet trails of water running down my face. Moments later, I'm on the ground in front of the girl. I broke in front of everyone. My walls have been broken. All by a thirteen year old girl.

As I sit there in a fetal position, I can feel a hand on my shoulder. I don't bother looking up. I feel perfectly fine with ignoring everyone.

"I just thought I'd tell you happy birthday, Sam. I'm sorry...I'm real sorry about you getting hurt. Here, I have something for you," Tom says to me.

I glance up at the weathered old man. He gives me a gentle smile and hands me a bottle of aspirin. I look at the bottle, but say nothing. He must understand that I need to be alone.

I can hear him walk away. I look up at Maggie. She has a shocked expression on her face and her bottom lip is shaking in fear.

Standing up, I glance around me. Everyone is looking at us. They're amazed that I finally broke. I strengthen my grip on the aspirin.

"What the hell are you all looking at?! Keep your damn nose out of my fucking business!" I yell at them.

I walk out of the shelter and into the day. The sun is going down, telling me that I was out in that man's house for a good portion of the day. So many thoughts race through my head. So many until I think, what is there to live for? You can end it all right now. You can use the pills...

The thought echoes in my mind. What do I have to live for? Everything has been taken from me. Granted, it wasn't much, but it was all I had and it meant the world to me.

I keep walking, not looking back. I can feel the darkness swallowing me, but I don't care. I have nothing to care about. The darkness feels nice. It's slowly draining my will to live. It's welcoming me.

I find myself kneeling by the river. I open the bottle hastily. I scoop water in my mouth from the river and empty the whole bottle into my mouth and swallow.

I lay down on the bank of the river and whisper, "Goodbye cruel world."

I close my eyes and the darkness consumes me. I wonder what the afterlife is like?