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Chapter 17 (iii)
“You didn’t tell me another one of your little friends was stopping by,” Mom said, oblivious to the devil she’d allowed into our home. Perhaps she knew, perhaps that sort was attracted by others of a similar nature, and she knew by some sixth sense that Erin was there to ruin my evening.
“I won’t be long, Mrs. Deneiro. Kai, can we talk for a sec?”
No.
“…sure.”
I led her back to my room, the walk filled with frantic efforts to uncover what the girl had planned. Even more pressing was how she managed to get my address. Jonie was a resourceful girl who’d helped Jayden in the endeavour, but I doubted she shared any particular affinity for the girl that would provoke the same degree of helpfulness.
“Good luck tonight,” I said, closing the door behind us. As was always the case, someone would need to be civil, and it would never be her.
Erin wrinkled her nose as she too
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The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 17 (iv)
I remained quiet, too consumed by my own feelings of inadequacy to begin to process the fact she’d referred to me with a term of endearment absent external provocation. “Jayden will be here any minute; why’re you just sitting around?”“I can’t go to the dance…” I sniffed once, willing the tears back into their glands with minimal success. To have her see me crying was unlikely to improve my evening and, while I doubted she could make it worse, she had the ability to come dangerously close.“Are you out of your mind?” she asked, crossing the room to join me by my bed. “I’ve already got the camera out—that dress was $85.”I turned to her, my eyes clouding over so that it became difficult to see the rising agitation in her eyes. “Look at me, Mom.” I wiped at my nose. Against my better judgment and the survival instincts I’d gained throughout the years, I broke dow
The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 17 (v)
The commotion didn’t go unnoticed. The volume of the music did little to mask my protests, and soon I’d gained the attention of everyone present.It was enough to shut me up.My legs were set the run the moment they put me down. If I was fast enough, I could make it to the parking lot before they caught me. It would require a great deal of force from me, but I didn’t suppose it would be impossible with the level of adrenaline that now coursed through me.I took a careful step back, wanting to distance myself from the eyes that never looked away. Waves of anxiety crashed into me, reducing my frame as my shoulders began to fold inward. I took another step back but felt three hands gently pushing me forward. I turned to find the three with encouraging smiles plastered across their faces, further insistence that I go on.“Take a deep breath if you have to, but you’re not leaving,” Jonie said. Her tone was matter of fact in
The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 18 (i)
I leaned onto the counter, trying to steady myself. It was the first mistake. The movement caught my eye in the mirror’s reflection, forcing them up to take in the sight that was me.They’d done a crude job of cutting my hair, tufts both long and short sticking out at odd ends in asymmetrical patterns. Some places went down to the scalp while others retained a few inches. The look complemented the bruises now once again on display in a manner most macabre. They weren’t alone; new bruises had risen in the places the hands of those girls once were.I stared on in a daze, allowing myself to be transfixed by the girl who stood before me now. This was the second mistake. She was a stark contrast to the girl who’d managed to woo me with her beauty moments earlier.A rage I hadn’t felt since I was seven filled me. Self-loathing and disgust swelled inside me; they fuelled the ferality that forced its way in. She was staring at me; pathetic,
The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 18 (ii)
"Seth, what the hell do you think you're doing?!"Sydney and Jonie hurried into the room, Sydney leading the charge. It shouldn’t have surprised me that she’d come looking for me. I couldn’t say how long I’d been gone, but it was long enough to give anyone the impression I wouldn’t be going back.“Get away from her,” Jonie said.Seth pried his eyes away from me to look at the pair of girls who’d already begun to think the worst. He shook his head. “Calm down. I know this looks bad—I’ll even admit that my intentions weren’t exactly innocent when I came looking for her, bu
The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 18 (iii)
"Come on Kai." Jayden took me by my good hand and led me past the boy who’d only been trying to ensure I was okay. He didn’t care about the affront he’d levied, nor did he see the need to portray himself in a more charismatic light as president. Jayden was of a more singular mind. In that moment, I was the one and only concern that plagued him and his every instinct insisted he make me safe.Jayden brought me to the board room, closing the door behind us. He hoisted me onto the meeting table, setting himself before me. His expression was resolute and there was purpose in his eyes. “Who did this to you?”“It doesn’t matter.”
The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 18 (iv)
“As for my mother,” I said, giving a half-hearted one-shouldered shrug, “I guess…if I were a better kid, she wouldn’t have to do the things she did.” There was a formula to gaining her love and approval, but I’d searched my entire life for it with little success.I needed to be better; I just…didn’t know how.“Stop it.”“Stop what?”“I don’t ever want to hear you rationalise other people’s abuse again. No one deserves to have the shit kicked out of them for
The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 18 (v)
The monotonous humming of the blow dryer replaced the silence for a time as Jonie got me and my dress dry.None of us spoke, understanding that the girl had fallen into a zone of focus that transcended time and space. She was off in her own world working her magic with the makeup as deftly as she’d worked through my hair.Satisfied, she took a step back to look at me. “Get up; the nurse is over in the gym.”I was anxious to get back.The night had taken so many twists and turns since I’d first arrived at the school. It was strange
The Girl with the Masks and The Student Body President Chapter 19 (i)
I went home a winner.Mom didn’t care that I’d gone home with my hand wrapped in bandages. She didn’t care enough to know what happened to my hair beyond a polite question for the sake of keeping up appearances with the friends who’d followed me home. It was the crown on my head that captured her attention and she jumped at the opportunity to take more photos with me and my friends before they had to head home.Anything to make it all more convincing.Before the night was over, she would plaster my photos all over the family chat they had. In the morning, she would head to the mall to have a few printed for my grandmo
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