Female Novel
Chapter 21
I somehow managed to get through an entire shift without once running into the twins.
I finally emerged from the bathroom after pulling myself together and was pleased to find the twins hadalready left. My pitiful joy was short lived when Cameron handed me a note.
“They wanted me to give this to you.” Cameron frowned, “They didn’t hurt you did they?”
“No.” I shook my head. That was all the answers I was willing to give.
“Good.” Cameron nodded, “Just making sure. Men who hit women are scum.”
“Agreed.” I nodded.
“Here.” Cameron grunted, “Take my phone number in case you need anything.”
After getting over the initial shock of Cameron being nice to me, I looked down at the note in my hands.I waited until Cameron walked away to read the messy scrawl on the paper.
‘Quit avoiding us, Aurora. We need to talk. Alec & Kade’
Of course the simple note had my heart thundering in my chest. Not a chance in h**l would I risk talkingto them. I took Grace’s threat seriously, and come this Friday I would be out of town for good. No moreconfusing twins, no more threatening and psychotic girls. While my life had not been pleasant, I’venever been assaulted at that magnitude before. Sure, Frank couldn’t keep his hands to himself but witha well placed kick to the b***s he’d leave me alone. I never had someone viciously a****k me the wayGrace did, and it definitely left a lasting impression. Everytime I caught a glance at my swollen face, Iremembered her words. Her demand was simple, stay away from the twins. As much as my heartpleaded for me to go to them, I wasn’t that stupid. After the damage Grace did on my face, I couldn’timagine what else she’d do. I fully believed she’d have no problem ending my life. She probably
wouldn’t even get caught for my m****r. I’d just rot in the ground, and soon enough the twins wouldforget about me.
That’s what I repeated in my head, the one thought that kept me from seeking the twins out. I was justthe new girl, something fun and shiny to play with. They wanted me because they already had everyother girl in town. I was a challenge, plain and simple. Their infatuation would wear off, and I’d finally befree.
Tori drove me home that afternoon. The car ride was awkwardly silent, but I didn’t mind. As always, thesilence couldn’t last forever.
“The twins were asking for you today.” Tori mumbled, noticing my discomfort.
I shook my head, “I don’t want to talk to them anymore.”novelbin
“I can tell.” Tori grimaced, “Did something happen with them?”
“No.” I shook my head, “I’m just not interested in them anymore.”
“Doesn’t seem that way.” Tori pointed out, and I debated on ignoring her comment.
“Doesn’t matter.” I shrugged, “I’m just something shiny and new to them. The sooner they leave mealone, the better.”
The minute I walked through the door, Melissa approached me.
“Are we really doing this again?” I huffed. I was not in the mood for another attempt at a heart to heart.
“I think we need to.” Melissa frowned, her eyes lingering distastefully on my face.
“Oh, you think we need to?” I scoffed, “You had three years to try and do this. You’re too late.”
“Aurora, don’t be like this.” Melissa snapped, letting out a tired sigh. “I know I’ve fucked up, okay?”
“Really?” I pursed my lips, “That’s good you came to that conclusion all on your own, congrats.”
I retreated up the stairs and into my bedroom before she could say another word. It pissed me off to noend that she magically decided to give a s**t about me. Three whole years she had practically ignoredme, and now she wanted to play the concerned mother card. I was determined to get back into mynormal routine. It’ll be easier to leave in the middle of the night if she continued to pretend I didn’t exist.
I hopped in the shower, letting the warm water run down my swollen face. The water stung my bustedlip and made my bruised eye throb, but it released a lot of the tension I had been feeling. Sleep hadquickly become my bestfriend, protecting me from my intrusive thoughts. It was easier to forget theworld around you existed when you simply went to sleep. A peaceful break from the turmoil and dramathat life brought.
I woke sometime in the middle of the day, the sunlight streaming through my c******s cast hues of goldaround the room. There was something peaceful about staying home from school. Everyone was eitherworking or in class, making me feel blissfully alone.
Deciding to do something new today, I pulled myself from bed and got dressed. I had yet to simplyexplore, and taking a walk through the woods seemed like a good idea.
Our town in California didn’t really have a forest. The town was close to the desert, making it dry andoverflowing with dirt. There wasn’t much green in our old town. Everything was so..open, in California.All of the tree’s made Georgia feel much more crowded. While it felt crowded, it also made me feel asthough I could hide easier. This thought was comforting, as I really didn’t want to be seen anymore. Notby the twins, and not by Grace. I simply wanted to remain invisible to everyone, possibly even Tori.Having no friends would make it easier to leave, to know no one was angry at me for my decision.
I walked from my bedroom and out the back door, not once stopping to look for Frank. It was almostfunny how having your life threatened seemed to take away other fears. I was no longer afraid ofFrank, just afraid of getting stuck in this town. I was afraid of having my plans foiled. Frank couldn’t hurtme more than Grace had, as I could easily defend myself against him.
I walked down the steps and directly into the woods that surrounded most of the houses in theneighborhood. I was far from that little town in the middle of the woods, making me feel calm andsecure. The last thing I wanted was to stumble into the little town Tori, and the twins lived in.
My fingers grazed the back pocket of my jeans, itching to touch the note the twin’s had left me at therestaurant. I stuck it in my back pocket, my intention was to throw it away as soon as I committed thehastily scrawled words to memory.
I walked in a straight line through the woods, committing each tree and bush to memory. Icontemplated where I would go this Friday. Should I go to a city? Somewhere with lots of tree’s? Ormaybe in the mountains.
It would be much harder to find me if I ran to a city, but I didn’t enjoy living in cities. I had never lived inthe mountains before, the thought sounded tempting. Unfortunately, my sense of survival won out. Idecided my best bet would be a crowded city, but now I would have to figure out which city. New Yorkwas too expensive and overrated. Plus, New York was simply too close to Georgia. Denver, COpopped into my head. Mountains and a city.
I sat against a huge oak tree in this small clearing, a bottle of water lying on my lap. A withered booksat in my hands. I wasn’t sure what the title was, nor did I really care. I read the words greedily, adesperate attempt to escape the world I lived in.
The sound of snapping branches ripped me from my thoughts.