Cruel beauty

One

Alyssa

After the accident my parents set up vertical learning with the school so I didn’t have to deal when anyone outside the family and a few close friends that’s why today really sucked. After almost 2 months my parents also decided it was time for me to rejoin normal functioning life like going to school. This was the worst idea ever but they wouldn’t listen to me so I was getting myself dressed and my best friend Dora was sitting with me for the final touches to give me a ride to the dreaded halls of Fairfield academy a upper middle class prep school that housed all my sisters friends and stories I don’t know how I’m going to make it today. Dora was so excited to have me back telling me school sucked without me there and that she was going to be my blocker if anyone got to close or made me uncomfortable, I couldn’t help but laugh Dora was a petite 5’ nothing 100 lbs on a heavy day but less any other day but she was willing to stand against the student body of this school to make sure I had a good day and that’s why she’s my best friend. We pulled into the school and no one noticed me so this was a promising start to the day. Maybe I could do this maybe I was strong enough to face the day in a crowded school. Dora helped me make it to my locker while she acted as a buffer people I have never seen or spoken to trying to talk to me it was weird and I didn’t much care for it, and the questions like will I take my sisters spot on cheer what the hell is wrong with these people. For starters I have never been into cheer so what made them think I would put on that outfit and start mid year being someone I was not. But there’s a flip side to that maybe it would bring me closer to my sister in some way like keeping her memories alive. There was a prick and sting in my eyes I can’t cry here so I forced those thoughts away and moved on not acknowledging this question. Once I had my locker open I stuck my head inside ironically I felt the small space was the only place I could breath with all these people around. So I stood with my head in the locker like a weirdo trying to stave off my panic attack and get my breath back to normal. God I wasn’t ready for today.

Reed

Today was Al going to be rough for Alyssa I know this I watched from the corner of the hall to make sure no one would bother her. When one of the football players approached her about cheer my hands fisted buckles turning white. They knew nothing about this girl she was the polar opposite of her sister and where I was friendly with both I tended to talk more with Cassie since we were the same age. She always use to tease me catching me watching Alyssa. If saying I had best friends Cassie would have been one of 2 and she was the only one who seem to pick up on my forever long infatuation with Alyssa, more then a few times she suggested I cross that line to make it a thing and try to date her sister but I just couldn’t. Alyssa was everything good in this world where I was bad she never skipped school, never snuck out at night, even when she went to parties she didn’t drink. The girl was a damn angle and I was the devil. My accolades were different for instance I did skip class often, I hooked up with a different girl every few days never dated anyone seriously and beat the s**t out of whoever needed it based on my own personal code. She was light I was dark and Cassie knew all of this I never could figure out why she though I should Pursue Alyssa, I had never out right admitted to my infatuation with her sister but it’s like she knew and I was pretty sure Alyssa was to smart and good to ever look at me as more then the neighbor who was always in trouble. But right now as she has her head in a locker I knew she was fighting a panic attack Cassie had told me she got those when she was overwhelmed and if that ass wipe had made her that freaked I was going to beat his ass. Apparently I had zoned out long enough in my little group at the end of the hall my buddy/ best friend Cal nudged me, this made me look over the girl that was trying to rub on my arm was not even close to comparing to the girl that held my attention at the other end of the hall.

Cal, Cassie and I we’re tight, like best friends all of us it may not have looked it on the outside with Cassie being a popular cheerleader and us the bad boy outcast but we’re just worked we did stuff together every damn day almost and she was forever at my house, my parents asked if I was dating her once I laughed so hard I had tears in my eyes and when I told her that she hit my arm and also fell out laughing. She was the best and I’m pretty sure her and cal had a hook up thing going but I never brought it up and neither did they. We were all just cool. Being nudged again out of my thought by the girl on my are are Stacie was her name we had hooked up a couple times but she had not right to my attention if I didn’t want to give it so I removed her from my are and walked away. Cal being the peacemaker he was mumbled something to her to calms her s**t down when she was all pissed I’d blown her off. He caught up to me half down the hall headed straight for Alyssa she still had her head in her locker but now there was a child standing next to her, a girl shouldn’t even be in this school she’s got to be in middle school it who is she and why is she holding Alyssa’s arm. Cal saw where I was headed and immediately had my back he know about Alyssa from Cassie and felt just as protective of her in his mind that is if anyone even looked at her wrong it set me off but that’s because my feeling were deeper than his. The little girl looked up scared out of her mind when I was standing so. Lose to Alyssa granted she didn’t know I was friends with Alyssa kinda sis me we grew up next to each other or maybe how close I was to Cassie because she didn’t know me at all and I sure didn’t know her. So when she opened her mouth and nothing but attitude and sass was shoved at me my eyes went wide before the glare took my face. Who did this pocket size girl think she was talking to cal grabbed my arm just as Alyssa whipped herself out of her locker to look at me. She gripped her shirt over her chest with wide eyes and looked like she would pass the f**k out. Without thinking I grabbed her in my arms and squeezed her in a hug rubbing her back with my thumb this did a couple things it shut the mouth of the girl as well as gave me a moment to whisper into Alyssa’s ear “ breath you ok I got you” I had no f*****g clue what I was doing or why I was doing it I just couldn’t let her collapse in the hall after I spoke she stiffened but started to slowly relax and breath again, this allowed air to flow back into my lungs as well.