******
I wake up sore. My head is pounding. The tears from last night dry on my face. I only got 4 hours of sleep and I don't want to go to school. It's only 5:30, it's way too early for this. At least he knows not to hit me on my face, it makes covering up bruises easier. I get in the shower turning the water up all the way.
I can't live like this much longer. I can't risk spiraling. Again, But maybe it wouldn't be so bad. I get out of the shower and examine my bruises in the mirror.
"You good for nothing shit!" the monster says as his fists rain down on me. I cower in the corner of the room and cry. Crying; that was one of my mistakes. He takes pleasure in seeing me cry. As he walked away he gave one more blow. I think I heard a rib crack.
I come out of my memories from last night and nearly throw-up. I listen at the bathroom door for any movement or noise to tell if he is out there or awake yet. When I don't hear anything I open the door and run to my room, wincing as pain shoots through my body.
When I make it into my room I close and lock my door. My room is my only safe place. He wasn't always abusive, when my mother wanted to get a divorce from him it was simply because she wasn't happy. So she got a divorce from him and left. I don't know exactly where she is. Last I heard from him, she was on the west coast, on the complete other side of the country from us.
He blames me for the divorce. Says that I made them grow apart. So he hits me, breaks my bones. But I never get the chance to fully heal.
I've learned how to take care of myself. I've had to raise myself. Today at school will be horrible though, especially if Dominique and her evil friends bother me.
It's only a few weeks into the school year and I already hate it. But it's better than summer when I'm constantly at home getting hurt.
I start to dry my hair off and go to my closet to pick out some clothes. I decide on some black jeans, a red shirt, my converse, and my denim jacket. I part my hair and brush it out. I put on a bit of mascara, grab my backpack, and listen at my door for my 'father'.
I don't hear anything so I quickly make my way down the stairs and out the front door, not bothering to even look in the kitchen for food. There's never any food. I only eat at school, and school food isn't the best. Some days I don't eat at all.
As I think about how I may not be eating today, like most days, I make the 20 minute walk to Echo Wood High. My second hell.
***
It's 7:30. I have 30 minutes before my first class and I'm already at school. I don't know what to do so I sit down on a bench outside and read the book assigned to us for English. It's terribly boring. I put in my earbuds and listen to my calming playlist.
As I'm sitting reading this book, I'm trying to also distract myself from my father. I am silently praying that nothing happens tonight. I don't know how much longer I can take it. He didn't even drink last night.
I'm about to fall asleep due to how boring this book is and because I didn't get much sleep last night, when I think I hear someone call my name. But that can't be right, I don't really have any friends. There are a few people I'll talk to in class but, other than that...
Suddenly someone rips out my earbuds. I flinch and hope that it's not Dominique. When I look up my mouth turns up into a huge smile. It's Marie. My best friend. I do have a few friends.
"What's up girl?" She says dragging out the girl. I smile at the way she has greeted me ever since I moved here about a year ago. Marie is way prettier than me. She has dark wavy hair that goes down to her mid back and gorgeous bright green eyes the color of polished jade. Her skin is pale like mine, but it suits her. She is only a little bit taller than me at about 5'5, where I'm about 5'2 with about shoulder length light brown almost blonde hair, blue/grey dull eyes and bruises. Everywhere.
"Not much just trying to get through the boring English book." I reply a look of disgust on my face.
"It is so totally boring isn't it? I wish we could choose our own books to read and write a report on but nooo Mrs. Douglas just absolutely CAN'T have that!" She says sharply. I laugh at how angry she is at Mrs. Douglas, but I think everyone who has Mrs. Douglas hates her. I know I do.
"Oh hey did ya hear that there's a kid who got suspended coming back soon?" I ask.
"Yeah I did hear about that! He actually got suspended right before you got here. I can't believe he got back into the school actually." She states
"Why? What'd he do?" She looks at me as if thinking about whether or not to tell me.
"No one knows this, but he got suspended for selling drugs in and out of school. He ran with a bad group of people." She says with sadness lining her voice.
"Well, how do you know this if no one else does?" I check the time and its now 7:55. Classes start in 5 minutes. Before she can say anything I say,
"Um, Marie classes start in 5 minutes can we walk and talk? I don't want to be late." I say and give her a pleading look considering her class is across the school from mine.
"But then I'll be late!" She says raising her voice at me. I flinch back on instinct and she notices, as worry and sadness cross her face.
"Hey, I was joking. We can walk and talk. It's okay." She says, her voice calm and gentle. She doesn't know about the abuse and probably never will. She knows about my parents being divorced and she thinks I flinch because they used to fight. She doesn't know how wrong she is.
As we are walking towards my first class, French, we are talking about the social studies test and how we should've studied more. Then I remember what we were talking about before.
"Gosh, I wish I had studied more I am going to fail this test today! And I have it first! I ju-" She was blabbering, so I cut her off and blurt out,
"How did you know what he got suspended for if no one else does?" She looks at me and stops us and brings us to the side of the hallway. She stands there and doesn't say anything as if searching for the answer in the stank school air around us.
Finally she says "He's my step-brother."
******
Hey! I hope you liked the first chapter!
Thank you so much for reading and have a wonderful day!
Please vote, comment, and message me if you want to talk or have a question about the story!
xoxo-J
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The Hidden Truth
Romance"He takes pleasure in seeing me cry. As he walked away he gave one more blow. I think I heard a rib crack." - Eden Holland. 16 years old, a junior at Echo Wood Highschool. Her parents are divorced. Her mother left her with her abusive father Whe...
