Invidia

TWENTY-THREE

"Sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is just say no," Cameron's mom had said the same words to him that Madison just had.

"What if I can't?" Cameron asked. He was fourteen at the time, and he'd had an old friend confide in him. "What if I don't have a choice?"

Christy put her hand on Cameron's hair, gently stroking it. "You always have a choice."

Now, Cameron had realized that wasn't always true. He'd been into life or death situations, and sometimes, he had to live when he would've gladly chosen death. That's such a sad thought for a seventeen year old, Cameron thought with a bitter taste in his mouth.

"What exactly am I saying no to?" Cameron dragged himself back to the present. He'd gotten too caught up in the memory that he'd already forgotten.

"If you're going to try and bust out or not," Madison said.

He glanced down at his arm. They'd taken most of the gauze off. The regular nurse that checks on him informed him that it was healing well, but he'd need to continue