Inferno

Being pushed out of your comfort zone can be a lot overwhelming. That is exactly how it is for me right now. I thought I had closed this chapter in my life, but here I am, about to face it once again. Why now? Why ever? I have had to deal with my father's death, but my mum losing her job to this critical recession which had hit the state was like a space shift for me. Confused, Sad and most of all broke! We had to move back to the city I once detested or still detest, as I haven't sorted out my grudges yet. It's been years, I know, but my heart still pounds every time I remember or have a nightmare, and being homeschooled for several years had put social anxiety in me. I had been bullied half of my life and had resorted to homeschooling after several pleas to my mum and was grateful when she had to move because of her job. She doesn't know about it; not even Tump, my older sister, but, Beanie, my only confidant. I looked at him curled up in my bed beside me; he looked too peaceful for someone who just had a change of environment. Beanie had somewhat been a great help, as he was the only one I could tell my real feelings to and not put on a facade. I stroked his back gently, and he woke up, staring at me with those cute eyes which screamed of hunger. He sure knew how to bring me out of my solitude. " You hungry, right? " He tilted his mouth, and I knew what the answer it was. I took the bag of dog food farther from my bed; the remnant was of limited quantity. I poured the rest on to his plate, signaling to him to come and eat. Beanie was such a precious dog to me. You thought, Beanie was my boyfriend. Oh, Jokes on you! Being socially awkward is one thing and loving solitude is another. I am both, as I was fully capable of not leaving my room for months. Mom has been the one doing the grocery shopping and chores, while at our house. Former house now. I stroked Beanie's back as he munched on his food. " I have to get you some food or else you have to starve tomorrow. " The door opened and Mum was standing in its opening staring at me. " You forgot how to knock, Mum? What part of privacy do you not understand?" " Oh, sorry" she closed the door and knocked. What's she doing? Is this supposed to be sarcastic or what? I scoffed at her action and muffled a " Come in" , which she didn't wait to hear. Jeez! She sure knows how to make me angry, " I have to stop by the pet food store" " Do you still know your way around? " she asked in concern. " Yeah, Probably" I walked to the door, but she blocked me instead, held me by my shoulders, her eyes fighting back tears, tears that were inevitable. I felt it too, the feeling that all was shattered, but, we were still hanging by the thread of hope. " Don't worry baby, this is all a phase. We'll bounce back. We surely will, this too shall pass. " I robbed my face of the shimmers of tears that were building up in my ears, as I cleaned them off with the hem of my sweater. Looked at her and nodded positively while making my way to leave the room. " Don't stay out for too long, it's pretty late. Besides, what do you want for dinner? " she blurted out, making me stop in my tracks. I glanced at the clock, 10:30pm. Shit! Like I had a choice. " Make anything available Mom" I screamed, dashing out of the room in seconds. I found myself in a neighborhood, one that looked like a complete ghetto. The streetlight that was blinking its way through instead of giving a complete ray, the graffiti on the walls, the stench of w**d and waste. Lost, I was. I had stepped into the wrong neighborhood and had to get myself out of it. Seeing a group of what I would call boys, as their physique says. I covered my head with my hoodie and tried to walk as silently as I could, among them. Success was about to be achieved when I heard a voice call unto me. " Hey there, stop" , but I continued to walk on, then two of them appeared in front of me. while I heard footsteps approaching me from the back, then I found myself in the middle. I started fidgeting. This scene feels familiar. I was about to get bullied, and Christ knew what they were about to do. I felt my hoodie come off my head. " It's a red hair " one laughed. " I heard red hairs are quite interesting, aren't they" another whispered in my ear. This time, I had my head bent and was already shaking until I heard a more muscular voice. " Leave her alone" A masked tall guy dressed in black pants and a black jacket appeared in front of me, covering my already exposed head with my hoodie. " How many times do I have to remind you guys, no women and children! " he said, smacking each of them at God knows where, then he came back to face me. He seemed like the boss, judging by the way he treated them. At least, someone has a principle which he follows. " You okay? " No one, I repeat; no one had asked me that in a long time, and I felt as though it was mind-soothing. He took me by my hand and dragged me along. " You shouldn't be wandering at night. " For once, hearing someone scold me did not sting me. He released my hand, walked towards a motorcycle and started to kick-start it. " Do you need a ride? " He waited for my answer. " I can.. " " You can find your way? Isn't that what you wanted to say? You do know where you are right? " He scoffed at me. Why was he getting worked up now? He sounds like someone who's gonna have anger issues. " No, yes, thank you I was trying to get my dog's food" I struggled to say and hopped on with him. " I know of a place" he said, and drove off. I held on to his waist as tight as I could, for fear of falling off. Who on earth drives a motorcycle without a helmet? I tightened my grip around his waist and the wind blew stronger, exposing my head once again. In no time, he stopped at a pet food store and, I alighted, trying to balance my two feet, which felt like noodles. " Thank you " I tried to arrange my disheveled hair as I walked along. " Is this your first time on a bike? " he asked sarcastically, and I nodded in the affirmative, as I disappeared into the store. A few seconds later, he entered, walked past me, and started to have a talk with the front desk person, who also looked like the owner of the store. " Heyyy, Rob" he said, grinning from ear to ear. " Hi, Cart" Cart? What could they be discussing? Could this be a trap? Like what happens in horror movies. I dragged myself along to the counter and placed my order. " It's for my dog" I answered the man who stood on the other side, looking confused when I mentioned my dog's favorite food. " We don't have that here, but you should try this" he took out a small packet and dumped it in front of me. " Your dog will love this one" he added. I stared at the unknown packet, checking out its expiry date and its contents. " Rob doesn't sell expired products, and your dog will surely love that just like he said" Cart commented. Was it that obvious that I was checking out the expiry date? I was making sure, the owner wasn't trying to make me buy an unwanted product. I so much value Beanie. I bought a packet and we left the store. " I can give you a ride home, if you want" " I am fine" " I don't know what you're thinking in that head of yours, but trust me, you don't want to decline my offer " Why does that sound like a plea and a threat at the same time? ...... " This is your place? " he asked. " Yeah" " I could come visit some time " he laughed, and I kept mute. I knew this was going to happen and that was why I told him to drop me off at a random house, not too far from mine. He should come visiting only to meet different faces, he hasn't met before. " Sure" I chuckled, trying to hide my laughter. " I know this isn't your home, but I won't pry. Do well to stop roaming late at night. Ijots(Idiots) you met earlier are in many places," he said and zoomed off. How did he know that I showed him the wrong side? Could he really see through me? I was relieved, he left me alone and didn't try to teach me some lessons, but then I had a deja vu and stopped walking. What? Ijots? There was only one person who I know called Idiots as Ijots. And that was my arch enemy, Zac Carter. Then it began to dawn on me, the owner of the pet store had called him Cart, a short name for Carter. I had just met Zac, my childhood bully.