Her frozen fingers touched the flame trying to feel alive. She could feel the warmth but it was a cold heat, as if the candle was rejecting her. Her arms turned red because of the cold, her short sleeved shirt not giving her enough warmth. The winter air grabbed  at her arms, causing her pain, but she didn't mind. She knew she should put her jacket on, it was winter in Connecticut, but that would be giving up. Up here, in this tree she felt safe. She looked at the candle, surrounded by hardening wax . She placed her fingers gently on the warm green wax. This candle was a reminder of her life inside that house, a life she would have to return to eventually. As a child, she had gotten this candle. She spent all she had on it. The beautiful crystal box  had caught her eye. Five whole nickels  had brought her that candle. She gave it to her mother for Mother's Day. Her mother had managed a smile and put it on a shelf. "It's very pretty, honey! I will put it right here." Since then that candle had never been moved, never been lighted, sitting dusty on a cluttered shelf that no one could see. Later on, her parents got divorced. By now the candle was colder than the air and the darkness was complete. The snow on the ground made the night lighter and less satisfying than it had been before the first snowfall. She liked the darkness because she felt safe in it. From the glances of her friends who liked the girl she used to be. From the boys who could never figure out who she was. From her guidance counselor  whose endless worried looks never made her feel any better. No one was outside at this time of night. She was alone in the world, just how she liked _ Just as she was about to lean back against the branch, she heard a sound. She heard footsteps breaking the ice in the snow, heading toward her. He was making his way toward the white fence at the edge of the building, right against the road. Normally she would have ignored this person and stayed on her branch faraway from human contact, but this figure had something with him. He trudged  toward the white fence carrying a case. The figure reached the fence, opened the case and took out a shiny object. She took her eyes off this figure only long enough to climb down the tree to get a better view of him. She reached the bottom and saw that the person had turned to face the street, sitting on the white fence that she and her friends once sat on. She stepped carefully on the ice, making her way toward him. And then a beautiful sound of music came from the shiny object. She stopped and listened to it. She started walking towards the guy again. Just as she was about to step onto the snow banks, she slipped on the ice crashing to the ground. The figure turned around in surprise and a sudden recognition fell upon them both. The girl was hiding in the tree at deep night to   _  .
keep herself from the cold wait for the boy to come want to be left alone seek safety from any hurt