The plastic bag crinkled in Theresa’s hand as she walked down the street towards the high school. The moon was still up but the sun was rising in the east, causing the street lights to flicker on and off as they tried to figure out if it was still dark or not. The girl walked confidently, trying to stave off any fear she had with walking by herself in the middle of the city before dawn. There were too many things that could go wrong for a girl her age and she knew that.

Her steps began to come faster when the school came into view and the excitement of a shower filled her body. She hadn’t had an actual shower for close to a week now and she was nervous the other kids would be able to smell her. A month ago she had been thrown out of her home by her mother. Theresa had something happen to her that was unexplainable and her mother, being a woman of great spirituality, was certain that her daughter had been taken over by a demon. Ever since that night, Theresa had been living in the streets or in the local shelter, trying to survive and remain calm as her whole world seemed to fall apart around her.

The steps to the school came into view and the girl raced up them to the double doors. She pulled on them and just as promised, they were unlocked. Theresa sped through the halls and stopped by the office of her history teacher, who was at her desk staring at a computer monitor.

“Oh, Theresa,” Mrs. Sanchez said looking up from the screen, “You made it. Follow me and we’ll get you that shower.”

Theresa nodded with a slight smile and followed behind the woman who was her savior. Earlier in the week Mrs. Sanchez had noticed that Theresa’s hair was more tangled that usual and had cautiously asked if the girl was okay. Having spent the last three weeks by herself, with no one caring how she was, Theresa had broken down and explained how she had gotten kicked out of her home. Mrs. Sanchez had wrapped her arms around the girl’s shoulders in a hug, making her uncomfortable but slightly loved. After that they came to an agreement to meet once or twice a week before school so that Theresa could take a shower in the girls locker room and to have breakfast together. Today was the first day of their agreement and Theresa felt an overwhelming gratitude towards the older woman in front of her.

The halls were dark, only lit by the emergency lights here and there and by the rising sun. It made Theresa feel like she was getting away with something, being in the school before hours. They turned the corner and walked into the gymnasium where their footsteps echoed and bounced off the walls. Mrs. Sanchez led the way to the locker room door and unlocked it, turning on the lights and handing Theresa a towel from a rack.

“I’d say you have a good thirty minutes before anyone gets here. Plus I made a frittata for breakfast that I don’t want you eating cold, so I’d make it closer to a fifteen minute shower if you can.”

“That I can do. Thank you again Mrs. Sanchez.” Theresa said walking past the teacher and setting her trash bag of clothes on a bench.

“If you need anything, I’ll be in my classroom waiting for you.” Mrs. Sanchez said with a wink. She turned and left the locker room, her footsteps echoing through the gym once more.

Theresa quickly undressed and stepped into one of the showers. The water felt wonderful on her skin as the dirt and grime of the street washed away. She felt herself relaxing causing the four tentacles wrapped tightly around her midsection to unfurl and dangle at her sides. Carefully, Theresa washed the tentacles one by one, feeling the sting of the shampoo as it cleaned the cuts and new skin that had grown.

Feeling clean, the girl dressed in an oversized sweater, to hide her secret and walked out of the locker room. When the tentacles had first appeared on her back, Theresa had thought she had bad acne. However, the small bumps continued to grow until they were full length with suction cups and everything. Theresa had been horrified by the growths and had shown her mother, who’s first course of action was to pray over the girl. When that didn’t make the tentacles go away, things got more drastic. Pulling out a butcher’s knife, the woman who had birthed and raised Theresa, tried to hack the tentacles off. Theresa had felt every cut and blow from the knife as it came down on her multiple times until the remains of her growths were lying on the floor and she was bleeding freely. They had wrapped her back in bandages and Theresa was given painkillers that made her sleep the pain away. When she woke up, the girl found that the tentacles had healed over and had started to regrow. This is when her mother had thrown her out. There was a demon in her child and she didn’t know how to exorcise it so the streets could do it for her.

Theresa found that she like her tentacles after a couple of weeks with them. They kept her warm at night and offered protection when she got into a fight with some of the other street kids. They didn’t feel bad or awkward but felt wholly a part of her. The girl walked back to Mrs. Sanchez’s classroom where the frittata was waiting for her on a plate and she eagerly gobbled it up, unashamed of getting seconds. The teacher sat at her desk unphased by the speed at which the girl ate.

“Are you safe at night?” Mrs. Sanchez asked a look of worry on her face.

“Yes.” Theresa said between mouthfuls. “I stay at the shelter most nights and if I’m not there, I stay in a hidden nook I found.”

“Well that’s better than nothing I suppose.” The teacher said with a slight frown. By this time the lights in the school were turning on as teachers began to show up for work. The P.A. system let off a slight buzz as the vice principal turned it on and voiced an announcement for the teachers and a few kids showed up, either looking for a teacher or looking to get out of their homes.

“Is it too much to ask why you got kicked out of your home?” Mrs. Sanchez probed gently, “I don’t want you to tell me if it’s too much.”

“It’s something I’d rather keep a secret.” Theresa said growing self conscious of the things wrapped around her full belly. “Thank you for your kindness though. I don’t want you to think I don’t appreciate what you’ve done for me today.”

“You’re very welcome Theresa. How does Thursday sound for another early morning?”

“Sounds good to me.” The girl said with a smile as she stood to leave the room. “I’m gonna go get ready for Algebra. I think I may have forgotten some homework. Thank you.”

“Anytime.” Mrs. Sanchez said watching the girl walk out the door with a worried look.

Theresa walked to her locker and quickly put in the combination. She opened the door and grabbed her math book when a piece of folded paper fell to the ground in front of her. Crouching to pick it up, the girl tried to recall ever putting it in her locker. Gently opening the paper Theresa froze and felt fear grip her throat. The note read:

“They know where you are and they know your secret. A girl with tentacles can’t hide forever. We can help. Call this number and we’ll be there.”

On the bottom of the note was a phone number but Theresa could barely see through the tears that filled her eyes. This was the last thing she wanted. Scared and not sure what to do, the girl ran from her locker with tears streaming down her face. She couldn’t breathe or think. She turned corners and barely saw the students coming into the building looking at her funny or the boy she ran into who she was pretty sure was blind.

Everyone blurred past until her lungs screamed and she was outside. The bells were ringing in the school building and she knew she was going to be late for first period but it hardly seemed to matter. Someone somewhere knew her secret and that made her unsafe. Theresa turned and headed back into the school, set on figuring out what to do as the day progressed, plus she would be safe in a big group of people. She walked up the stairs holding herself around the waist, feeling the tentacles gripping her body as they pulsed with her blood. The girl found her way to her first period and sat staring out the window, sure that someone was staring back.