Chapter Two
1176 Words
Chapter Two
I walked into class trying to pull myself together and hide my anger. Liam had done something gross earlier that morning and then decided to add more torture in the hallway. The Liam I know will definitely find a way to do more before the day ends.
It's actually frustrating. I've tried reporting to my mom a couple of times but to no avail. She wouldn't let me finish before pulling out her pity cards and emotional blackmail. She would claim this is God giving her a second chance and that I want to ruin it for her.
How about my own life?
Liam doesn't get any less annoying, but I stopped reporting to my mom. It was basically useless. And do you know the worst part? She takes his side. That's the most shocking part. It makes me sick. Literally.
I walked toward my seat. Chloe was already at hers, the one right beside mine. She had her notebook open and a pen in her hand, her face locked onto the page like she was sitting an exam.
I sat down. That's when she looked up.
"Good morning, Aiden," she said with a smile.
She had this calm, soothing voice that went perfectly with her innocent face and her sharp brain. All of it fit her petite frame just right.
"Hope you're good," I said, waiting for her response.
"I didn't sleep well last night. I was up reading." She said it happily. To anyone else that would sound like a complaint.
I reached into my bag and handed her the chocolate bars.
She took them with her usual enthusiasm. She always loved them. It was obvious she looked forward to it every time.
Chloe and I are very close, but people tend to think otherwise. Most of our classmates are convinced it's a relationship and not a friendship the way we claim. I've never seen Chloe that way, and honestly I think the feeling is mutual.
………
It was closing time. Everyone was heading home,most in groups of friends, some with their partners.
I ran into Liam again. I genuinely don't believe this guy studies. He's probably at this school to play hockey and flirt with girls. He was with Dan and Sam as always. At this point they might as well share a bathroom.
But this time they had company. He was with one of his girlfriends or whatever label applied to them. She was blonde, pretty like a model, with long straight legs and long hair. She smiled at me. I don't know why it disgusted me as much as it did, but my expression shifted for a split second before I caught it.
"Hey, stepbro!"
"Meet my girl. Isn't she beautiful?" He bit the corner of his lower lip when he said it.
"Do you even have a girlfriend?" Dan asked in a mocking tone.
They all burst out laughing.
"Maybe he likes it the other way," Liam added, still laughing.
"Are you gay?" Dan asked.
That statement officially added Dan to my list, right after Liam.
"He must like it the other way around. Let's go, Liam." The blonde girl said it with her hands clasped around Liam's arm.
I stood there watching them mock me. It's not like I couldn't defend myself … I used to. But I noticed it only made things worse, so I stopped.
I walked past them and headed out. I'd just stepped out of the school building when I heard someone call my name. It was Chloe. Turns out she had heard the whole exchange with my stepbrother. She gave me the same advice she always did.
"Stand up for yourself. He's just a bully who thinks he's better than everyone else."
She might be the only person in the entire school who doesn't like Liam. She hated his arrogance, the way he bullied people, and worst of all, the way he used girls.
We walked together for a few minutes before her mother's car pulled up in front of us. She looked exactly like her mother , her mother being so young made them look more like identical twin sisters. She opened the car door and swung herself in. She waved at me as the car began to move.
I waited for her to leave before heading home myself. The driver my stepfather assigned to me and Liam was already there waiting a few minutes before closing time. I turned and headed to the car, opened the back door and got in. He started the engine and drove off. Of course we went without Liam , he never agreed to go straight home after school. He always had after-school shenanigans.
Inside the car, my mind drifted back to that morning, the embarrassing moment in the hallway, and the one that had just happened minutes ago. I finally decided, somehow, that I needed to put an end to this. I didn't know how yet, but I would figure it out.
The car came to a halt in front of the house. I stepped out and went straight to my mom's room, but she wasn't there. Before this so-called marriage she always had time for me. I used to look forward to her food after school. But a lot has changed , she has a big job now, thanks to my stepfather. All these sudden changes are really affecting me, but I don't think she notices. She keeps saying it's all for my happiness, and none of this makes me happy at all.
I stood in her room for a few minutes. My eyes landed on a picture of the two of us from our old house,taken on the day of my junior year graduation. I was so happy. She was so proud. Everything was perfect.
But not anymore.
I was about to leave my mother's room when voices drifted in from down the hallway. I froze in place.
The door was slightly open. I knew I shouldn't listen.But I couldn't stop myself.
"You can't keep hiding this forever," my mother said.
There was a long silence.
Then my stepfather sighed.
"I know."
"No, you don't know," she replied, her voice shaky. "Every day that passes makes it harder."
"He isn't ready."
"When will he be ready?"
Another pause.
I edged closer but trying to keep myself steady.
My heart was pounding so loudly I was afraid they'd hear it.
"What happens when he finds out from someone else?" my mother asked.
"He won't."
"You can't promise that."
"I've protected him this long." My stepdad explained
"Protected him?" she snapped. "Or lied to him?"
The room fell silent.
I gripped the wall.
What were they talking about?
"I did what I thought was best," my stepfather finally said.
"And if he hates us for it?"
"He won't."
"You don't know Aiden the way I do."
My name??
My stomach dropped.
They were talking about me!.
"He deserves the truth," my mother whispered.
My stepfather let out a tired breath.
"The truth destroys everything."
- Writer
