The Archer

02

Chapter 2: JOANNE YOUNG

“Hello, Joanne?” I called my friend from the other line while I untied the string behind my gown. I put the phone down on the vanity table to focus on myself even more.

“Hey, what’s up?” Her sassy voice entered my room. I could also hear dancing music in the background. Even though I wouldn’t ask, I already know she is at the bar. Knowing my best friend, she always goes out for it. Different boyfriends, different places, and different bars.

I gasped after my gown slid down until it laid on the floor. I stared at its beautiful misery before walking over to the cabinet to grab new clothes to wear. “Can you pick me up at our house? I really don’t want to stay here tonight, ” I said. Of course, I will not tell this my parents. I live like this. I love going out with Joanne and her other friends secretly ‘cause my parents won’t let me if I tell them. They would reason that people will loathe them, they just want to protect our family image.

“Okay, give me thirty minutes then!” She laughed before hanging up.

I took the thirty minutes she told me to fix myself. I wore black leather jeans and a black thin-strapped top. I also wore a pair of black ankle boots to match my outfit. I never liked black not until now that I want to step out of it.

One last pull of my ponytail after a text from my friend saying that she is already outside of our house. My eyes looked down at the window to see if I could jump. I tensed when I saw how high it was. Is it even possible to jump down from here wearing black boots?

I turned to Joanne when she shouted. “Oh, c’mon faster, Cher! I have a party I left just to pick you up!” she shouted irritatedly.

I didn’t speak. Instead, I even looked back down again. I gulped. Okay, you can do this, Cher. You would rather jump from here than stay faking your appreciation to the other guest! You can’t take your parents’ sugar-coated insults to just jump!

I put my right foot over the edge of my window, so do my hands to balance my weight. My mouth circled a little, inhaling for myself to breathe air. I was about to jump when the slamming door caught my attention.

I looked at it with tension and horror in my eyes when I saw my mother’s blazing eyes meeting mine. “Silly girl! What are you trying to do after humiliating me in front of that b***h?!” Every word of her stabbed the air serving as a barrier between us.

“Oh, there is your control-freak mother, Cher! You should jump now!” Joanne cheered with a laugh. She is the only person who isn’t afraid of my mother even though she already threatened her multiple times. She is not supportive of my friendship with Joanne.

“I-I…” The thought of my mom torturing me physically and verbally when she catches me here entered my mind, making me jump from the window and not minding how high it is from the ground.

“Madeleine Cher Vaudeville!” she shouted, looking down at me.

I shut my eyes tight as I slightly rubbed my butt. I am lucky that it was the first one who kissed the ground and not my feet wearing boots. I saw the first of rage in Merida’s face when I opened my eyes. Despite my case, I couldn’t still help to give a smile to the woman looking down at her daughter!

“That’s my girl!” Joanne’s energy welcomed me as soon as I stood beside her red brand-new car.

I laughed. “Well, you don’t know how scared I was watching my mother walk towards me!” I beamed. Seriously, if only you saw her face earlier. She looks like she is ready to murder someone by just seeing me trying to escape the party they held.

Merida Vaudeville wasn’t at the window anymore when I glanced at it. I hurried Joanne, afraid that my mother might walk to get me now. Luckily, we succeeded in escaping the house. I could take her insults tomorrow, not just tonight. At least I enjoyed it before being humiliated, right?

“This is new, huh? What happened that made you want to go out tonight?” Joanne looked at me while driving.

I rested my head on the backrest, feeling the blistering wind of the night entering her roofless car. “My mother compared me to Dakota. You know her, right? The girl I once mentioned to you?” I smirked. This might be different from her since she is always the one who asks me to go out. I never asked her, just tonight.

She frowned. “The girl from Harvard University? Wow, how cool it is to see her at your parents' party?”

“It’s not cool at all, Joanne. Besides, she is my godparents’ daughter, so it is not surprising to see her at our house.” Even though my mother is a two-faced b***h when it comes to Dakota’s parents. She literally called her mother a b***h earlier! Call me judgemental or whatsoever but I really don’t like Dakota since the first time I saw her at a charity. I don’t know why but she is just giving me a bad vibe I didn’t want my whole life.

My nose immediately smelled the smoke of cigarettes as soon as we entered an island bar. I don’t know how they got in here but I knew this is a private resort. Clinking ice and wine, dancing people away from the brine, loud music beaming from the sand, I stopped beside a girl to stand. Those were just a few things that welcomed us.

“Hey, guys! I’m back!” Joanne informed them, taking two glasses on the table while holding my hand. She handed me one of the glasses and I gladly accepted it.

I was looking around to see Drew when someone spoke behind me. Drew told me he was coming when I called and told him that I was out with Joanne.

A man with a clean-cut hairstyle stood beside me. “Hey, Cher, ” he greeted.

I smiled after sipping on my tequila. “Hey.” He is not familiar to me, probably one of those boys they just knew days ago. It’s been almost a year since I met them and I already memorized their moves. They bring new people almost every day to the group. Well, I was just new before as well because of Joanne. She was the one who brought me to this path. I can still remember the day she became my friend. Trust me! It was one of the best thrilling things that happened in my life.