Chapter 7

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IT HAS BEEN officially two weeks since my mother had last texted or called. The only life status I have of her is on Instagram where she contently and constantly posts photos of her new 'family'.

I choose to ignore that as much as possible but with the kind heart, I do have I like the photos for her because if anything I still love my mother even though I question if she does the same.

The school had been on locked grounds for two weeks deeming nobody in or out of the place and we were all to have class in one classroom only with teacher rotation. When I say I had died I legitimately died choking on water. If it weren't for Owen smacking my back I would have possibly perished.

Aaron chose to stay away from me too believe it or not. The only glances we have been in class or when the other tries to glare. I usually walk past him and he does the same.

From my sources- as in Owen and Reuben the two have let me know that Aaron does nothing but talk shit about me. I would have returned the favor but my energy was as low as Trump's dignity.

So I sulked and sulked but I've gotten close with my friends. Except for Jordan who still tries but I really didn't want to get along right now. Especially with the stalker who keeps texting me perpetually.

I feel like I'm Liam Neeson in non-stop.

I tap my phone open to go through the recent texts he/she had sent me. They creeped the living hell out of me.

It would be a shame if the school tape was leaked, Bryce. - Anonymous.

I saw you in the cafeteria with that pretty skirt of yours. Might want to be careful when you place your juul in your front pocket. - Anonymous.

Funny how the vandalism act is present and yet you still somehow got expelled previously by it. - Anonymous.

From that day on I kept my guard on sticking to only a few people. I had no inkling on who would have history on me and for reasons I know it couldn't be Jordan. As much as I hate him I know him.

Madison and Sersha are safe as well so is Reuben because the least he does is send me poetry recommendations on messages.

Owen couldn't be it either for all he really sends is twerking cows or memes that make me roll my eyes or laugh out loud.

But who was it then?

Aaron Mercer?

Emery Sinclair?

Both of them?

I do not know.

I held my bag strap tighter as I walk to my classroom. The same classroom I'd been going to for two weeks.

I was assigned to sit next to Harry who was very nice, to be frank. He was the type of person who'd give out sharpened pencils excitedly and never get them returned.

I smiled at him sliding into my chair. Madison was right behind me chewing her gum. She smiled leaning forward. "I heard Mr. Smith got sacked for smoking with sixth graders in the storage room."

"No way!" I gasped spinning on my chair. "The Smith who gave us an hour-long fucking lecture on quitting smoking and drinking alcohol. The one with the corny walrus mustache?"

She nodded. "The very same. What did I tell you there's a rebel in us all. Plus he's sixty single and goes to the Maldives on his own and posts pictures that nobody comments or likes. The guy was bound to do something exciting." I screw my nose in sympathy for him. He was a good soul just a very depressed one. I remember staring at his YouTube recommendations which were all filled with songs to make your soul happy, how to lose weight while sleeping and how to make a woman happy.

"Damn," I muttered in astonishment. I turned around as the teacher strutted in all authority and shit with his slacks and briefcase. I heightens my eyebrows as I and Harry exchanged surprised looks at the new fella.

"We'll do I need to give an invitation? Good morning," He gritted.

We all dulled our good morning as ever in an uneven chorus as he opened his briefcase and uncapped a marker. I was shocked that he didn't use one of those digital boards or projections.

"Today we will be talking about what is Multivariate Calculus. Any guesses on what's it about?" Nobody. Literally, nobody raised their hands.

And then Owen shot his arm up with a glee look.

The teacher scanned the chair numbers and then matched them with the attendance list. He scratched his chin nodding. "Yes, Mr. Hayes?"

"Can I go to the bathroom?"

I rolled my lips in to hide a smile as the teacher turned livid. He gritted his jaw scouring the class. "No. Now back to the topic-"

"I really need to go Sir. But if you want I can hold it in but I'm not sure-"

"Just go Mr. Hayes!" The teacher exasperated. Owen bowed and ran out tripping over the step and flying out the door. The look on the teacher's face could kill.

"This is going to be a very long lesson." Harry sighed slumping in his seat. I nodded tapping my pen under the surface of the desk eyeing the clock.

...

Art was a very serene subject to me. I enjoyed sitting down and painting but the only problem was I was crappy at drawing.

As I glanced between my shitty scenery and Sersha's picture of a girl painted in different shades I felt like ripping myself. Her's was so symmetrical whereas my trees looked like broccoli.

I got up and scrunched the paper tossing it towards the bin from my seat. I sucked at art. And I knew Mrs. Tella knew that too but she still smiled at me and told me to keep painting.

"I can't do this." I slammed my head on the table.

"That was the third painting you chucked Bryce. And it was actually pretty." Sersha assured me moving away from her painting.

I grumped squishing my face on the table.

"I loved your painting Bryce." Owen beamed. He had tissue wrapped around his neck to save his shirt from paint but his hair and face were already streaked. "Do you like mine?" He held up his masterpiece and it took every ounce in me not to laugh out loud.

It was a fish.

A fish with two large legs and puckered lips.

"It's beautiful Owen. I adore it." He grinned at me and went back to painting. I looked over my shoulder to take a peek at what Reuben was painting. "Fuck you can paint better than me too." I sighed looking at the white dove he painted.

His lips turned upwards as he cleaned his paintbrush and replaced the white paint. "Thank you." I frowned looking around at everyone's brilliant art.

"I heard screwed faces could become permanent on your face," Aaron said from where he was sitting in front of me. I huffed and locked my legs around the chair.

"Evidently you'd know from experience." I smiled at him unfazed.

He flipped me off. Emery brushed his shoulder leaning down so she could look at his painting. "You know what they say if you don't have a good face then at least say good things." She sang towards me. Aaron snickered at that.

I rolled my eyes. Ever since Emery found out I'd let the boys stay she's been a total bitch towards me. She even went as far as to stop buying groceries leaving me to run out at 11 pm to gather both our supplies.

"Wrong universe you're in Barbie." Madison sneered. "Plastic bitches are capable of only saying plastic shit."

A chorus of 'ooohs' waved across the table as Emery flipped her hair back embarrassed skidding her chair closer to Aaron's.

"Ignore Emery," Sersha whispered to me. "She's just jealous that your everything more than her." I smiled warmly at Sersha before cupping my jaw and daydreaming.

I really wanted to live on a volcano when I was eight. I thought if it ever exploded I would make it to the moon. I watched a lot of dumb animations when I was younger.

Tom and Jerry was my supremacy and nobody can tell me otherwise.

"Bryce come now I'm sure you can come up with a wonderful art piece." Mrs. Tella encourages me. I blew out my lips.

"Ms. Tella I can't-"

"Mrs. Tella Bryce. For the fifth time, I'm married." She exclaimed.

"Right. I suck at art. I'm not artistic in any form or soul. The only color I wear is black."

She fixed her thick-rimmed glasses. "Black's not a color it's a shade Bryce."

I give her a dead-ass look. I was the epitome of disaster.

"You know what Bryce? I think you should visit Ms. Clarissa. She teaches music and I think you'd be wonderful at that." I furrow my brows together at her.

"I don't play instruments," I said plainly. I never did. The last time I played the piano was like a year ago and even then I'd stopped with all the fucking stress being thrown at me.

"I play the violin quite well," Reuben says out of the blue. "I think you'd do good with music Bryce."

"Debatable," Aaron muttered from in front of me.

"You can play the piano, Bryce. I've heard you play it. You're brilliant." Jordan smiles at me with blue paint smudged on his cheek.

"I used to play the piano Jordan." I exhale lacing my fingers in front of me. "And then I stopped."

"Well then take this as your sign to get back at it Bryce. This is Welton Academy a place for second chances." Mrs. Tella reminded me. I quirked my lips and nodded telling her I'd check Ms. Clarissa out. I wasn't lying though. Maybe I would get back at it.

After Art was over we all crowded in the dining hall for food. Owen had saved me a chocolate trifle which I thanked him for immensely while Sersha had scoured us a table.

I noted two boys coming towards the table but Madison ran like a cheetah flinging her torso all over the table. "Mine! Back off!" I watched with a chuckle as the two boys ran off probably traumatized.

Taking a seat next to Sersha I dug into dessert first.

"You know I wonder how you can tell if a fish is a girl or boy?" Owen asked chewing loudly.

I swallow thinking about it. " I know how to check every other animal but a fish, to be honest. I mean what about insects. Are they all the same?"

Owen's eyebrows shot at me. "What the fuck? Of course! The theory of insects taking over the world would make so much sense now." He exclaimed to himself.

"How exquisite." Reuben laughed. "But I honestly think if there's one thing that should swallow the world it should be peace."

I snort at that waving my chocolate coated spoon. "You are a saint Reuben but the world is cruel. It likes to bitch back."

"And then us bitches bitch back," Madison added forking chicken into her mouth.

Jordan hummed in agreement. "The worlds a bitch and the people another." He spat Reuben who flipped him off and corrected the phrase.

If there was anyone who was more of a nerd for Shakespeare it would be Reuben Harlow.

"I just took a DNA test turns out I'm a hundred percent that bitch..." Owen starts singing obnoxiously much to my dismay.

"Fucking stop." Madison hisses throwing a piece of lettuce at him. Owen picks it off his face and eats it. I scrunch my nose in disgust. "You really are fucking Donkey from Shrek."

"Rude," Owen calls out. "But true."

I smile looking around the place. My eyes lock on Emery and Aaron's side where they were alone chatting and on their phones. I looked away not bothered with them. Honestly, they deserved each other.

"You know nobody found out about our incident," Jordan whispered to us.

"Thank god," Sersha whispers back. "I was so scared the whole night."

Reuben shrugged at us. "We really didn't do much shit other than the Shakespeare portrait." He gave me a pointed glare to which I shrugged innocently.

"It was fun," I said. "The best hiccup we've done in a while... say what were you guys doing other than spray painting?" I asked the boys narrowing my eyes at them.

Owen scratched his head lost. "We- oh nothing! Pfft, we were just I'm-"

"Don't even think of fucking lying." Madison extended her index at them accusingly.

Jordan swallowed under my stare. "We were looking at the turtles in Mr. Harrison's room."

I gave him a bored look. "His turtles died the first day of school because he tripped on the oxygen tank and left them there."

His lips formed an 'O'.

"Well?" Sersha pushed.

"Nothing just spray painting as you and Aaron were doing some drugs that is all," Reuben confessed adjusting his AirPods.

I looked at him perplexed. Since when did Aaron do drugs? I glanced at Aaron and thought. He never once was high in front of me. Was that what he did when he skipped PE? But then he came back to the next class perfectly fine. Maybe he did it at night. "He does drugs?"

"Yeah," Reuben said causally.

"Mhm, all the fucking good stuff. Molly, Xanax, marijuana, and shit." Owen exploded and then slapped a hand on his mouth with widened eyes. Jordan slapped him hard on the back.

"What the fuck man?" He shouted at Owen.

"Shit. I'm sorry. HEY AARON I'M SORRY! I LOVE YOU MATE!" Owen yelled at a pissy Aaron who flipped him off as usual.

My hands become clammy as I exchanged a look with Madison and Sersha. I didn't know Aaron went that far. I knew he smoked shit like me but... I don't why but it made me feel a little sad. Was he running from something like me or was it for the sake of it?

"Let's keep this between us shall we ladies?" Reuben asked as we all nodded. I muted out as they all talked my eyes only on Aaron who was laughing at something Emery said. He seemed fine. But it could be a mask like mine. Yet there was life in his eyes.

Then what was he running from?


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