CHAPTER FIVE: Is Life Really Worth It?
1551 Words
After thirty minutes of studying, Angel closes her computer and rises from her chair. She stares at the mirror in front of her and takes off her glasses; she rubs her sore eyes and puts the glasses on again. The door jams open and Angel turns to her cousin who has a nagging attitude.
Hey!
Liza yells holding a white t-shirt in her hands.
Why does this say Sawyer?
Angel turns to her immediately and grabs the shirt. She sees the encryption of Sawyer on it and she opens her mouth in awe.
So this was the problem!
It was bodily written at the back of the t-shirt and that is probably why she didn't notice.
It is the shirt that she changed into when she was at the PESTs lodge because of the aghast state of her own.
Everyone saw it!
Sawyer must have seen it too and he didn't tell her!
Wait, are you dating him? Liza asks as she folds her hand.
What? Angels says with an arch in her brow.
"I thought so too." Why would he date someone like you? Liza says with a smirk.
Angel rolls her eyes and says.
You are doing the dishes today.
What! Liza screams.
Angel jams the door behind her and leaves for the kitchen. She pours herself a glass of water and gurgles it down as she squeezes her face.
How come she didn't realise it?
What is everyone in school thinking now? Sawyer was behind her the whole time and he didn't even say a word about it, he kept quiet intentionally.
Now, everyone will begin to spread their own rumours about her. Angel grunts in misery as steps out of the house, she begins to head over to a store where she normally has dinner.
As she is entering into the store, a customer is leaving.
As per the usual arrangement that takes place since she started living under her Aunt's care. Because Angel feels that her aunt has done too much for her, she works part time and doesn't take from anything from her Aunt's house.
After the passing of her parents, there was no relative or family acquaintance that wanted the responsibility of taking her in. Everyone expected her mother's sister to do so.
Angel was and is still grateful about her aunt's decision to let her move in with her. Although the perspective she had about them has malformed after she moved, but it wasn't so tough to make her move out.
For example, when her parents were alive, her aunt acted different towards her, even her cousin was way politer with her. They could almost be mistaken for sisters, but after moving in with them. She didn't find that love anymore, her aunt barely said any word towards her, and her cousin became cunning and very uncouth with her.
It took her a while to understand that she was the problem. And it hurt her.
So since then, she has decided to rule her own life. There is no parent to give her counsel or influence her about any decisions; she is her own boss, sadly. Although, one of the best things her parent left was enough funds in an account that was supposed to sustain her in college.
Now, Angel is in high school but she is still working her ass off to pay her future college fees. She's fanatical about her studies because she's hoping for scholarships too. If a scholarship can save her, she would have sufficient to move out of her aunt's house too.
Angel enters into the store ready to purchase some groceries for the next week, she walks to the poultry section where she picks eggs, and she places it into the grocery basket before taking a stroll to the diary section where she takes cartons of milk.
The sound of the door and group murmurs at the entrance of the store shifts Angel's attention as she packs her hair away from her face. She takes a moment to take a second glance at the person she thinks it is and she remembers them to be from her school.
Her heart drops when she remembers the boy in front to be one of Eric's minions. Angel's heart beat continues to accelerate as she turns her face away even when they had caught her presence already.
The minion she recognizes walks towards her and she cowers back in fear. He stands in front of her and smiles cunningly.
You must be Angel, aren't you?
Angel swallows and tries to walk away before another minion blocks her way.
Why are you trying to walk away while I'm still talking, you didn't even answer question?
"Get away from me." Angel says as she tries to push her way through. She instinctively searches the store and there is not a sole inside, how come?
"Someone outside wants to talk with you." You better come with me and behave like a good girl unless I'll spoil your little face. Understand?
Angel nods as one of the minions grabs the grocery basket from her and pushes her while they exit the store. Once they get outside, they persist to push her, she tries to find someone who can save her but it's like human beings have gone out of subsistence in the moment she needs them the most.
She follows them until they stop in front of car where Eric ultimately comes out from. Angel moves back, but someone pushes her again. She falls on her knee in trepidation and Eric deafeningly chuckles.
He squats on the ground and tries to touch her face but Angel screams pushing his hands away instantly.
Eric grabs her face and forces her to look at him.
Why didn't you reply me?
I asked you something in class and yet you chose to ignore me, huh? Eric says as he lets go of her face.
"You are pretty."
Angel tries to stand on her feet but he drags her back with her feet against the ground.
Why are you doing this!? Angel screams bitterly.
"Let's just say that someone asked me to." Eric says.
Is it Tess? Angel says as tears stream from her eyes
"Hmm, what a good guess you got there." You are right.
"You see she asked me to humiliate you publicly and of course, I won't risk doing that in school, I'm not trying to get myself expelled or something." Eric laughs along with his underlings.
So what do you want to do to me? Angel asks.
I don't know yet. "Let's see what you got there." Eric says collecting the grocery basket from the hands of his friends.
"Hmm, eggs." He picks it up and stones it at her with force.
It slams against Angel's forehead and she screams.
"Here, each of you takes one." Let's descend on her at the same time. Eric says elatedly to his friends, about six of them pick an egg.
Are we ready? Eric asks as he chuckles.
One.
Two.
Go!
Together, they pitch an egg at Angel as she sits on the ground covering her face and crying her eyes out. They all laugh hysterically at the condition they are putting her in. Eric, once again being overly excited brings out the carton of milk and begins to pour it on her.
"Here, take a video." He says giving his phone to one of his friends.
No! Angel says as she stands and tries to take the phone from him.
Eric uses the carton to hit her face and shoves her back to the ground.
"Record." Eric says as she empties the rest of the milk on her and gets it on video.
Eric yanks her hair and Angel screams again fighting him bitterly.
"Say you are sorry and we'll let you go." He says and chuckles unapologetically.
"Come on, say you're sorry." Eric undertones in her ear.
Angel doesn't answer.
Eric chuckles behind her ear. He yanks her hair harder before his speaks again.
"Say sorry... "His voice turns severe and grim.
"Unless, we will do something far worse to you, Pretty Angel."
Angel releases tears from her eyes when she hears the threat, she cries in pain as she tries to speak.
Sorry. She says in her loudest voice at this moment.
"I didn't hear you Angel." Eric whispers behind her ear again.
"I said I'm sorry." She says again and he lets go of her hair.
"Let's beat it boys." Eric says as he stands and dusts his hands.
They all enter disperse and enter into the vehicles they came in. Angel remains on the spot in complete drench and utter shame; she slowly stands from the ground and begins to walk home.
It feels like she should end her life right here and right now, but she doesn't find any moving vehicle that she can leap in front of. This is how it has been for her, the one friend she made in Crestville High has turned into her adversary and now, she can't seem to move forward.
"Only if there was a way."
"A way where she could become a part of something, something that would shield her, something that would accept her and go against the world for her."
- Writer
