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If anyone knew Vinnie, they knew how hard she tried to stay positive and strong despite the less than pleasant circumstances that she and her friends were in.
And she succeeded…most of the time.
But other days, she just felt like she couldn't do it anymore. Couldn't do anything more.
And apparently, today was one of those days.
She woke up feeling down, but she tried to mask it for the sake of her two best friends. They needed her to be the fighter of the group, didn't they?
At least, that was how she was viewing things.
And she didn't have time to just sit and try and work through her funk.
First, she had her usual morning walk to take. Then she wanted to go out on a heist and see if there was anything she and her friends could acquire.
Is there even a point though…? she found herself thinking. It's so rare that we ever find anything. I doubt we'll find anything this time.
Then she paused and shook her head. She couldn't be thinking like this.
No, don't think like that, she scolded herself. Your friends need you.
She continued on her walk, fighting against herself all the way.
She took these walks to get a moment alone and to try and relax, but it just wasn't working for her today.
She hoped that the heist would at least prove fruitful.
…It did not, in fact, prove fruitful.
No matter how much the trio tried to search for some food, money, anything, they kept coming up short.
After an hour or so was spent on searching and there were no results, Vinnie suddenly began to feel an all too familiar sensation of frustration which often led to something she didn't like to show anyone.
She just stood there for a minute, trying to fight it back. She couldn't let her friends see her like this. She just couldn't. She had to be the strong one at all times.
If she couldn't do that, then what good even was she to them?
They didn't need someone who couldn't even protect them right with them. They should just leave her somewhere and walk away.
She was so deep in her thoughts that she didn't even hear the concerned voices of her friends when they first began to speak to her.
“-nie. Vinnie?” Skipp asked, looking at her.
“Are you okay?” Stone was also gazing at her.
She looked from one boy to the next before turning on her heel and beginning to sprint away as fast as she could. Their concern had only made her want to break down even more, and the last thing she wanted was for them to see it.
“Vinnie!” Stone called after her.
“Wait!” Skipp exclaimed.
But she didn't wait. She didn't even turn back to look at them. She just wanted to hide somewhere and never try anything again. Giving up had never felt so tempting.
She dashed past the alleyway she and the boys made their home in and hid behind the side of a brick building.
Once there, she sank to her knees and the feelings she had spent all day trying to fight and hide finally crashed down on her like a tidal wave.
She hid her face in her knees, hugged her knees, and finally let the tears come. The tears that she had been attempting with all her might to hold back all day. No, even longer than all day. Every time they failed at something was more like it.
Why did everything have to suck?
Why couldn't she and her friends have had a successful heist for once?
Why couldn't she just be the one who stayed strong no matter what?
Why was she even still trying?
What was the point?
What was the point of anything?
Meanwhile, Skipp and Stone were still sprinting through the streets and frantically calling out their friend's name.
“Vinnie, where are you?!” Skipp yelled.
“Vinnie?!” Stone called.
They paused and looked at each other.
“Did you happen to see what direction she ran in?” Stone asked.
Skipp shook his head sadly. “I didn't. Hopefully she just headed back to the alleyway.”
“Well…we can at least start by checking there.”
Skipp nodded in agreement.
The two of them made a beeline for the alleyway they called home, both hoping that Vinnie had just decided to hide out there.
…She turned out to not be hiding out there.
Skipp and Stone exchanged a worried glance.
“Where could she have gone…?” Stone muttered.
“Hopefully not far,” Skipp replied, sounding just as scared.
“Let's keep looking.”
“Yeah.”
Despite how out of breath they were beginning to feel, the boys continued to scour every street and corner in search of their best friend.
Then once they reached a brick building a little ways away from the alleyway, they paused and listened.
They heard…something.
Skipp and Stone glanced at each other, then peeked at the corner.
There sat Vinnie.
Looking more hopeless and torn down than either of the boys had ever seen her.
They had never felt so relieved and worried at the same time.
“Vinnie…?” Skipp spoke softly.
Vinnie jumped, then looked up to see the worst possible scenario happening.
Her friends had found her.
And they had seen her breaking down.
This was exactly what she had always tried to avoid.
Vinnie quickly averted her gaze. “G-go away…”
“No,” Stone replied firmly but kindly.
Vinnie curled in on herself even more.
“Vin, we're not going to leave you while you're like this,” Skipp announced.
“I didn't want you to see me like this though…” Vinnie’s voice was muffled.
“Why?” Skipp asked.
Vinnie sighed and peeked up at her friends who still stubbornly hadn't left. “Because…I'm supposed to be the strong one. You know that.”
“We've always told you that you don't have to be. Not all the time,” Stone reminded her.
“Well, if I can't do that…then who am I?”
“Our friend,” Skipp and Stone replied in unison.
Vinnie just fell silent, trying to believe those words. Trying to believe that her friends were telling the truth. Trying to believe them when they said she didn't always have to be the strong one.
Skipp and Stone sat on either side of Vinnie, both of them looking at her.
Vinnie hid her face in her knees, still not wanting either of her friends to see her like this.
But of course they already had.
Skipp and Stone each put an arm around their friend.
Vinnie cautiously raised her eyes and glanced at them.
Their expressions held nothing but understanding and worry.
“Like we've told you before, you don't always have to be the strong one,” Skipp said.
“...I guess in theory I know that, but it's just hard to stop thinking that way,” Vinnie admitted.
“That's why we're here. To keep reminding you,” Stone spoke up.
Vinnie smiled the slightest bit. “...Thanks, guys.”
They both returned the smile, keeping their arms around her.
“Anytime, Vin,” they both replied.
The three of them sat there for another few long moments, all lost in their own thoughts.
For what felt like the millionth time (and it probably was), Vinnie felt so thankful to have such good friends. Ones that cared enough to come find her when she was missing, ones that comforted her when she was feeling down, ones that didn't expect her to always be the strong one.
Even if she struggled with those thoughts, it meant the world to know that her friends didn't view things the way she did.