Chapter 2: Bullied by him

Maya’s POV

“What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice low and stern.

It was him, the same man from my dream.

“She…” Tiffany pointed at me, her chest heaving as tears streamed down her face. “She cut my hair. She bullied me.”

“What? That’s not…” I started, but before I could finish, a hard, metal-like hand connected with my cheek, sending me crashing to the floor. The sharp sting spread across my face, leaving my body trembling from the impact.

“How dare you!” he roared, his fists clenched tightly as he loomed over me like a storm cloud.

“She ruined my hair!” Tiffany’s wail cut through the air, her voice full of false anguish.

The man grabbed me by the scruff of my neck, slamming me against the wall. My breath caught as his hand circled around my throat. His forest-green eyes burned with an otherworldly intensity that froze me in terror.

“Let… let go,” I whispered, choking on the words.

“You have no right,” he thundered. “No one has the right to lay a finger on her!”

“Hold her tight, Rylan!” Tiffany shrieked, scrambling to her feet and grabbing the scissors. Black dots swam in my vision as I struggled to hold Rylan’s piercing gaze.

“Don’t… don’t use that on me,” I cried, thrashing against his iron grip.

“How dare you touch my hair!” Tiffany screamed, hacking away at my long locks. Each snip of the scissors echoed in my ears, triggering a fresh wave of tears.

“Next time, don’t do to others what you wouldn’t want done to you,” Rylan said coldly, releasing me. I crumpled to the floor, frantically gathering the cut strands of my hair with trembling hands.

“Argh, Mom!” I sobbed, the strands slipping through my trembling hands.

***

The door slammed shut behind me as I entered the living room. My mom was on the phone, pacing back and forth. I knew she was trying to call him again, even though the line had been unreachable for months.

“Oh my God!” she gasped when she saw me. “What’s this? What kind of haircut is this?” She rushed over, throwing her phone onto the couch.

“Isn’t it obvious I was bullied?” I snapped, flinging my backpack onto the floor.

“What? What did you do to make them act like this? Why would they do such a thing?” She inspected the jagged ends of my hair.

“Why do you always assume I did something wrong?” I shot back, tears blurring my vision. “I told you I didn’t want to go to that college, or any college. Look at what they did to my hair! It took me years to grow it this long, and now it’s gone. It’ll take another ten years to grow it back. What did I ever do to deserve this?”

“Come here, baby,” she said softly, pulling me into her arms. “I’m sorry you had to go through this on your first day. Don’t worry, okay? I’ll give you a nice cut, and we’ll try some hair growth remedies.”

I stepped back, disappointed by her response. “I wasn’t expecting that from you, Mom. I’m disappointed. I thought you’d call your professor friend to punish them, give them terrible grades, or even make them repeat a year.”

“But you know it doesn’t work that way, sweetheart,” she replied, her voice calm. “It’s just hair. It will grow back. Punishing them like that would be excessive.”

“Fine! I’m not going back to that campus!” I yelled, grabbing my backpack and storming to my room.

I couldn’t face campus the next day. The humiliation was unbearable. Even after my mom worked her magic, transforming my hair into a chic bob, all I saw in the mirror was a pale, ugly girl. She looked nothing like the beautiful young woman who had left for college the day before. I felt like I had lost my identity, and the horrifying thought gripped me like a shroud.

“Maybe a change of identity is all you need to bring those villains to justice,” I tried to convince myself. But the anger within me only grew. If only he hadn’t shown up. If only he hadn’t held me down and let Tiffany destroy my hair. If only he…

“Argh!” I screamed, throwing the hairdryer in my hand at the mirror. The glass shattered, and I sank to the floor, sobbing. It wasn’t just the hair. It was his reaction. He didn’t even listen to me before believing her lies and pouncing on me.

The ringing of my phone snapped me out of my thoughts. I reached for it, wiping my tears as I answered.

“Yeah?”

“Meet me at the bar now,” a familiar voice growled on the other end.

“For what? Did you find something?” I asked, a glimmer of hope in my voice.

“I think I know someone who can help us,” he replied.

“You’re not even sure. Fine, wait for me,” I said, hanging up. I splashed water on my face, grabbed my bag, and rushed out of the house.

When I arrived at the bar, I stopped at the entrance, scanning the room. Neon lights illuminated the dimly lit space. Laughter, chatter, and the clinking of glasses filled the air, mingling with a faint haze of smoke.

“Over here,” he called out, waving to me from a corner booth. A bottle of whiskey sat on the table in front of him.

I approached, but my steps faltered as I realized he wasn’t alone. Sitting across from him was a man in a black tuxedo, staring directly at me. Fear crept into my chest as recognition dawned on me. I stumbled back, clutching my bag.

Without thinking, I spun on my heels, ready to flee.

“Not so fast!” a sinister voice growled behind me. A large hand clamped down on my shoulder, nearly making me cry out in fear.

“Are you Maya Salvador?” The man stepped into view, his dark eyes boring into mine. My breath caught in my throat as I gasped.