HEALING FROM YOU

CHAPTER 3

“Are you ready yet?”

Aviana’s mom asked from downstairs. Her voice had warning bells in it. And the next call will surely be accompanied by a jug of cold water. Knowing this, Avi groaned, pushing the comforter off her body, and climbed out of the bed grudgingly.

“Is there any chance you will reconsider my option?”

She shouted to her mom while cleaning the bed, as it’s always the first thing she does after getting up. She constantly kept her room spotless and gets annoyed when things are misplaced. On this day she was taking extra time and straightened each and every crease her vulture eyes could find.

“Your option is dumb, dear.”

Margaret, her mother, yelled back. She was a sweet woman, alright. But sometimes she can be strict as a military colonel and today falls into that category.

Avi face palmed herself as she headed to the washroom to do her morning routines. She washed her head thoroughly as different thoughts clouded her mind. Everyone was on edge today and she was no different.

While brushing, she even thought of faking a fever, but knowing her mother, Margaret is going to see straight through her lie. Even if she actually falls sick, everyone would consider it as an act and send her to that hellhole.

Besides, what could go wrong? Stupid question! Everything would go wrong and she could already feel it. Her inner voice was screaming at her to hide somewhere or to run away where no one would find her. But she knows she won't do that. She is too scared to even run away from her own problems. She can neither face it nor avoid it, but just consider it as a part of her life and train her mind that this was normal. Avi's eyes were automatically drawn to her hands. Normal.

She might be a coward to others, a girl who doesn't even talk back. But to herself she is a monster, whom the world would never meet. Avi exhaled and took a bottle, which she hid behind her mirror. The pink pills helped her a lot in controlling the panic attacks. It wasn't prescribed. To have a prescription, one should actually meet the doctor. Since it was a small town, the only psychiatric doctor that it had was your mother's friend. And you are not allowed to leave the town without your parent's permission. Which means you will actually have to tell your family that you have panic attacks and self hurting disorders. When you do that, you will also have to disclose about your chain of mental issues to them. By the end, it will lead to everything that you have been trying to hide since a child. So prescription was not an option. Besides, who needs it when you can get it through dark web. All you had to do was to give a fake address or a community address. For Avi, it was the orphanage she worked as a volunteer.

This day was going to suck just like the rest, if it isn’t; he’s going to make it. The thought of him suddenly made her dizzy, and she felt like pulling her hair out or anything that would make her forget him.

After taking a cold bath again, Avi ransacked her wardrobe for a plain black hoodie and washed jeans. She did not have to search for long as she owned seven pairs of them with little to slight differences. Her family always bought her bright-colored clothes with no sleeves or half sleeves, but she wore none. Black was her thing. It would make her look boring and attract less attention. Avi considered her to be monotonous in every way, and she felt shameful for that. Lectures about how she should dress and to wear anything other than a black hoodie was like a daily dose for her. She covered it saying that she had an obsession for black but everyone knows the real reason. Him.

Avi wasn't allowed to wear anything other than a black hoodie, not that she would prefer anything else. Even so, choosing was totally different from hammering something into you. And she hated it every single time.

Her brother once tried to dress her in a pink frill frock with matching shoes. It was on her 12th birthday and she was both excited and scared. The first half of the day went well, and that even gave her some confidence. But that was the last day anyone forced her to wear something different. Because she came home covered in a gooey green liquid and her dress was torn at several places.

What made the scenario look more than a typical bullying was her hair. It was shaved completely.

She brushed her long brown hair that reached till the small of her back, making it less frizzy and presentable enough. She hasn't brought a scissor next to hair after the incident, and it was paying off. Though the thickness was much less than before, she was satisfied with its length. Her pale face was void of any makeup and she liked it that way, plus it allowed her tears to fall easily with no smudge or black trails on her cheeks. She used to wear eyeliner before but when it got mixed with the tears, her eyes stung and she would have a hard time in the restroom cubicle trying to wipe it off.

Avi then covered the burn on her upper left hand by pushing down the sleeves. She doesn’t particularly remember much from the accident other than the man who held her close, though his face was vague. After all, it’s been 12 years. A lot has changed after that; they bought a new home, her younger sister Charisma was born, her elder brother Aidan got married to Tareen, her second brother left for college and a lot.

Her eyes wandered over the person staring back in the mirror. She wasn’t bad looking, but not gorgeous as well. There was nothing special about the lean girl other than the Penton she had around her slender neck, which she covered effectively by tucking it under the hoodie. It was a gift from her saviour and she has worn it ever since. Avi then stuffed her books into the sling bag and hung it over her shoulder.

She sighed, knowing very well what day today was, and she hoped she hadn’t survived that day 12 years ago, if it was going to end up like this. He could have just let her die. After all, he deserves to live more than her.

Avi's train of thoughts ended once her cell phone vibrated over the bed stand. Seeing the caller's name, she relaxed. At least it was not someone calling to insult her. Lately it has been a habit of some random guys to call her horrible names through phone. It felt as if they were being forced to say it and she knew who exactly was behind it and she had no guts to stop them.

Sliding the red mark, Avi headed towards her window and moved the curtains to the side. There stood a handsome man in the balcony of the other house, all smiling and waving. He was extremely cheery today, which Avi noticed as his defense mechanism when he is nervous.

Benjamin Rutherford was her best friend ever since she moved to her new house and the only reason why she is still alive. He was her neighbor, knight in shining armor, a brother from another mother and a lot. He knows about her entire life and the demerits of being her friend, but despite everything he has stuck to her side like glue, to which she is indebted to him for life. After the incident on her twelfth birthday, Benjamin was so angry that he entered into a physical fight with the devil. Both of them ended up in the hospital with severe injuries and got suspended from the school for a few days.

Avi thought he would never want to be friends with her again, but that was proved wrong when Ben changed his mode from best friend to bodyguard. He would never let her leave his sight, but still the monster found his way to the prey. Four years later, he was still there with her without even complaining once.

“All okay?”

Benjamin aka Ben called out to his friend, who leaned against the window with a scared expression. And he knows what the reason behind it was, but he didn’t dare acknowledge it, because why rub salt in the wound when she is already deeply scarred? He would do anything to see a genuine smile on her face once, but that was impossible considering how certain someone was trying hell bent on ruining her life. Today was a big step for Avi and anything could happen which will not be good. But he was prepared. He will make sure that his best friend gets a normal life where she doesn't have to wear a black hoodie all the time, where she doesn't have to take anti depressants which she thinks she hides well, where she doesn't have to rely on a razor to divert her mental stress.

“Don’t give me that face, Avi. I will be at your doorstep in a minute. Now go, shoo. Otherwise we are going to be late. Again.”

Ben said before giving her a flying kiss and shutting the door to his balcony. If he remained any time longer, he would reconsider his decision and it should not happen. Because this has to stop.

Aviana took a deep breath before heading downstairs, taking two steps at a time. She was hoping to fall down and break a leg or two; it doesn't matter. But when was the last time luck was on her side? Probably never.

Just as she reached the bottom of the stairs, her front door swung open and Ben entered with a sheepish grin, ever the gentle man.

“Can’t you at least knock, Ben?” Avi asked, faking a serious face.

“You know I am always welcome here. Aren’t I aunt?”

He asked taking a seat on the kitchen counter and started munching on an apple. For some reason Ben always called Marg, aunt. When asked his reply was thus, he doesn’t have an aunt and Margaret was perfect for the role. Marg never minded though, in fact Ben was another son to her since Aiden left after marriage. Besides, Marg knew that Ben was the sole reason her daughter was at least attending school. If it wasn't for him, she would have remained in the safety of her room and become worse than she is now. Gratefulness would be a mere emotion she had towards Ben, he was an angel to her.

“You don’t even have to ask that son.”

Marg said as she served three plates of pancakes with maple syrup on the table. Ben usually has breakfast with them and sometimes dinner. His mother is always busy at work and his father left them for another woman. So Ben was more mature than most children at his age. He never had a romantic interest towards her daughter and she could see it in his eyes. He considered Avi as a sister he never had, and Marg was thankful for that. Because what both of them had was pure, and she didn't want it to break just because of their uncontrollable hormones. Besides, Avi was not mentally prepared for such a relationship and would only feel like a burden to her.

Margaret Delaney was a forty-eight-year-old woman with pale skin and lean body, which was inherited by Aviana, and luckily she looked ten years younger than her age. Margaret married David Delaney at the age of nineteen and was together ever since. Their marriage base was purely made up of love and either of them has never tried to crumple it. Even after four children and years of marriage, David and Margaret have never been tired of each other and were a model couple to their kids.

The only bad event that happened in their life was the fire twelve years before. Their daughter’s life had cost the death of a man. If it wasn’t for him, Aviana would have been dead. Though Margaret was happy and thankful for what he did, memory of the little boy who tried to shake his father from sleeping haunted her even till now, and she doubted it will ever fade. She knows today was a reminder for how lucky they were in getting their child back, but she also knows what awaits Avi in the course of the day. Usually she complies with her daughter’s wish to stay at home this day, but she can’t hide forever. She is soon going to be a woman, and she has to tend her own self. How long will Margaret protect her like a mother hen she is?

She has already talked to Benjamin about it, and he promised Marg that he will have his eyes on her. She just hoped everything would be okay by the end of the day.

“Heard that? Now have your food fast. We don’t have time to waste.”

Ben said as he started r****g the pancakes. That brought a smile on Avi’s tensed face. He could always make her smile in the toughest situations.

“You coming for the field trip, right?”

It wasn’t a question, and Avi could sense the actual words he meant to say behind it. She shook her head vigorously and glared at him as to not speak. Avi has already warned Ben not to talk about the trip to her parents. He complied with it in the previous years and would even cancel his trips to be with her. But it was different this time. Avi could sense the growing smirk playing on his lips, which only meant trouble.

“You guys are having a field trip? How come I didn’t know about this Avi?”

Margaret asked, now joining the kids at the counter. She was an excellent actor, Ben thought. They have already discussed about the conversation and decided to leer Avi into signing for the trip. Ben felt bad for tricking his best friend, but he had to do this if he wants her back.

Before giving a stern look to Ben, Avi turned to look at her now angry mother. Ben knew she did not tell the news to her parents and still he was doing it on purpose and she knew why.

“Because it’s not important mom”

Avi said, looking down at her plate while poking the pancakes with a fork, her appetite long gone; all thanks to Ben.

“What makes you think so, Aviana Delaney?”

Oh, oh full name means she is really in trouble and Ben too realized that, so he intervened in the conversation,

“I am sure she forgot Aunt Marg. Besides, it was announced just yesterday.”

Margaret knew it was a lie but played along with it. How can she blame her daughter? If she was in such a situation, she would have done the same thing. Hence she smiled at Avi, who now held a panic expression.

“I guess its fine then. Where is the trip to?"

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