As she walked the same path as before back home, Holly continued to think about what happened. It replayed over and over in her head. Once again, she turned the corner onto West Street, this time more cautiously, and saw the man leaning on the wall in the distance. She walked down the street, trying not to seem nervous. He noticed her coming along, watching her. As she approached, he stood in front of her once again, looking less threatening than the last time. "Look kid, I feel like shit for what I did... I figured you'd walk along here again, so I just wanted to apologise." She looked into his eyes, trying to tell whether he was being sincere or not. "It's... It's okay. It really shook me up, but I've been meaning to talk to you." She moved closer to him, looking into his eyes. "I want you... To teach me." He looked confused, and slightly irritated. "Teach you? Teach you what, how to be homeless?" He shook his head, sitting down on the curb and taking his hat off, running his fingers through his hair. She sat down next to him, taking her school bag off and looking at him. "I want you to teach me how you live. You seem so free, so unrestricted; you can do what you want, when you want. No rules." He sighed, putting his hat back on, smirking slightly. "Yeah, I guess I do. I don't live like other people, at least not like the majority." He paused for a moment, looking at the ground. "But how can I teach you? I don't even know your name." She looked at him, smiling happily at the fact he was even considering teaching her. "My name is Holly." She said, looking at him. "I'm Bodhi." He said, smiling at her. She looked at her shoes, slightly nervous. "I don't know... What happened to me that night, but it woke me up. The more I replay it in my head, the more it gives me a rush, makes me feel alive." He looked at her, puzzled. She looked back at him, nervously. "So… Do you ... Still have my money?" She asked, fearing the worst from his reaction. He sighed quietly, taking a battered cigarette packet from his pocket. "Nope. It went on these and some food." He opened the packet, taking out a worn silver Zippo lighter and a cigarette, lighting it. She watched him intriguingly, watching how his process. He noticed her staring, holding the packet out and saying, "You want one? I didn't know posh kids smoked." She looked at the packet, then back to him. "I've never..." He took one out of the packet, handing it to her. "Here, put this in your mouth." She hesitated for a minute but took it, placing it in her mouth. He leaned over to her, looking her in the eyes as he lit the cigarette. "Now breathe in, really inhaling, and breathe out when you need to." She followed his instructions, breathing in and coughing loudly, blowing smoke out. He laughed, looking at her. "You alright?". She nodded, coughing. "Right, so I'm gonna teach you how to smoke and swear. Repeat after me." She looked at him, trying a smaller draw of her cigarette but still coughing. "I fucking love fags." He said, grinning. She looked unimpressed, trying to take another draw. "You don't need to do it so fast. Take your time and it'll be easier." She looked at the flames curiously, the orange tip glowing and spouting a small trail of grey smoke. "My life is so boring. I just want to be like a normal teenager. I want to go to parties, have fun, do what I want." He looked at her, raising his eyebrows. "Wait, you're telling me you've never been to a party before?" She shook her head, looking embarrassed when he tried to hold back his laughter. They sat in silence for a moment or two, staring at the road, before she looked up again. She looked at him, longingly. He looked confused, noticing her staring. "What, have I got somethi-" Holly threw herself at him, trying to kiss him. Bodhi moved back, standing up. "Woah woah, what the fuck?". She stood up, looking embarrassed. "Sorry... It's just, I've never kissed someone before... And I..."
"Well shit, that's not the way of going about it... You could have at least asked me." He looked slightly annoyed, but Holly stood up, stepping closer to him anyway. Bodhi sighed, looking at her. "Really? Is this shit really happening?" He thought about it for a moment, sighing, then held her face and kissed her.
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