"Sorry."

Jess just smiled in response, as she continued to help Breeze forward. She was beginning to tire herself; at least, she felt herself tiring. It looked like they would have to stop and rest before they made it to that nice and warm place, wherever it was.

She would have to make do.

"We should sit down for a bit."

"Good idea." There, near the statue of George Washington on a horse. The blonde-haired girl helped her friend over to an empty spot on the stone bench, and set her gently down. Then she pulled her a little closer to herself... hopefully, this would provide a measure of warmth, for now, while she recovered her strength.

She still needed to figure out where to go, though. Maybe later. She could not let her friend down.

Breeze looked up at the statue: a guy with a weird hat riding a horse. Why do so many people in statues ride horses all the time? she pondered, Didn't they ever hear about cars? She would have lent this subject more thought, had she not noticed the bench.

And what a magnificent bench it was. To Breeze, it was one of the most wonderful things for miles around: her legs finally had the chance to relax! Such relief! Jess's embrace made her feel that much more comfortable. And warm.

She didn't want to get back up...

The girl yawned as she moved her head onto Jess's shoulder, where she soon let herself fall asleep.

Jess eased her friend closer to herself, shifting a bit to make it a bit more comfortable. There was only so much that a little girl could do to warm a fellow little girl... but she was trying, at least. Now that Breeze was asleep, though, the blonde girl was alone in her thoughts.

She could not stay like this forever. Eventually she would tire, was already tiring. They needed to find the nice and warm place. Then Breeze could have a proper place to sleep. It would be nice. Not like...

Not like what?

Jess shook her head. No. She did not want to think on that. It was not important. Her friend was what was important. Once she found the place for her friend, she would be able to visit her all the time and

so alone

they would have such fun together! Actually, maybe they could stay like this. Maybe if she tried very hard, they could stay like this forever. They could make lots and lots of friends together. Maybe once Breeze woke up, she would share this with her. She would wait

a dream

for as long as it took. She would not go away. She would not abandon her friend

like she had been abandoned

in her hour of need.

Jess squeezed her eyes shut. That vague feeling was building again. She did not want to think of it. She just wanted to stay here with her friend. The two of them, alone, together.

Alone.

Time passed. The little blonde girl kept the little redheaded girl company, the latter nestling in the former's arms. Around them, there was the occasional passer-by, and a few scattered huddles under newspapers, old clothing, rags - the homeless of New York. None paid the two girls any heed... besides, most were already asleep, and would likely be asleep for a while longer.

Jess's eyes were still closed. She was still tired, and it seemed to her that she was getting more tired. But she wasn't going to sleep. Strange. Didn't people go to sleep when they closed their eyes? Well, it didn't matter... she didn't particulary want to go to sleep. She was, rather, chasing her own tail in her mind.

How was she going to find that nice and warm place for Breeze?

She could always ask around, of course... but she didn't want to move from this spot. The homeless near her probably did not know, otherwise they wouldn't be sleeping here. How did she know they were homeless anyway? For all she knew they could be just camping. Well, that was not important either. She just needed to think of a nice and warm place. Probably a place with a fire. Or maybe a heater. Where did one find a heater?

She was a little cold.

That was odd. She hadn't felt cold until now. Had the temperature dropped that much? Oh no, she had to get her friend to a warmer pla-

Where was this? Wait. Was she dreaming already? She had closed her eyes after all. Maybe she fell asleep without noticing. Then she just needed to wake up.

Wake up.

Wake up.

A policeman made his way across the square, then glanced towards the bench. His eyes took in the visage of a young redheaded girl, sleeping soundly on the bench. Alone.

"What's a young girl like her doing out here at this time of night?" Muttering to himself, the officer made his way towards the girl.

---

Ceiling. Dark ceiling. Where was she? Oh. Right. She was in her bed, at the home. She was feeling cold because the blanket had fallen off, or was pulled off.

The dark-haired girl pulled her arms about herself. She had a dream again. This dream was different from the other dreams. In this dream, somehow, somewhere, she had made a friend. Her name... what was her name? Breeze. Breeze was her friend.

Her imaginary friend.

Jessica closed her eyes. It was all just a dream... why must she keep dreaming of such things? In the end, reality was a harsh mistress. Nothing ever changed. Nothing.

“Hey, kid.”

Breeze opened her eyes to find a strong, uniformed man kneeling in front of her. Jess was gone, nowhere to be found. What's happening? She tried to get her bearings.

“I'm Officer Vasquez. What's your name?”

Officer? Like a police officer? ...Oh no! The police found me! The girl was sure that the policeman was here to take her to jail. She was a murderer, after all. Policemen take murderers to jail. That's how it works. Breeze was sitting upright now, regarding the officer with obvious terror. She didn't want to go to jail.

“Hey, don't worry,” he said, “I'm a police officer. I'm not gonna hurt you.” The girl didn't believe him. She needed to get away. “Where are your parents?” No response. Same terrified look. Vasquez reached out to tap her on the shoulder –

“No!” she shouted. Boom! A shockwave tore through the air, knocking the policeman off of his feet and into the Geroge Washington statue, setting off several car alarms and cracking a few windows.

The officer's right arm absorbed most of the impact from his collision with the statue. Crack. Grunt. He hit the ground with a thud.

The two looked at each other, each person's expression looking just as shocked. Vasquez was cradling his bad arm in the other. Windows became illuminated by interior lights, those inside wanting to find out what all of the excitement outside was for. Breeze stopped staring at the policeman and bolted.