Demi Lovato
Book 1: It Was A Mistake, But I Am Unbroken Now
Book 2: Here We Go Again When Two Worlds Collide
Book 3: Love is Loud Enough to Stop Hate
Chapter 7: The Middle
Something
It's better than nothing
I just need a little
I just need a little cause I
Don't wanna be nowhere
I was too ashamed to tell my parents about the party when I got home. I went straight to my room and laid on my bed. An hour. It took less than an hour for me to go from popular to loser. Bethany and Melanie spread the word to the party that I’m secretly friends with Kayla and I was trying to bring them down. I really thought Dylan’s plan would work, but I guess we needed more than two people. I wonder what happened to Dylan. A few minutes later, I received a text from Dylan:
We tried our hardest, but we were betrayed by our third. I’m leaving. I can’t take the bullying and watching Kayla get hurt anymore. Goodbye Maria and thank you.
I changed into my pajamas and laid back in bed. Dylan’s actually leaving. He talked about how much he cares about Kayla, but he’s just a coward too. He’s leaving with only a few days left of school. I tossed and turned for an hour, but still couldn’t sleep. Is Dylan really telling the truth? Did Anastasia betray us? She’s been my best friend since I moved here. I want to believe she wouldn’t do this to me, but the look on her face at the party stood out to me. It wasn’t the look of the Anastasia I knew. That’s not my best friend Anastasia. Tears streamed down my face and I cried myself to sleep for the first time in years.
I didn’t want to go to school the next day. I walked to school so I didn’t have to explain to my parents why Dylan or Bethany weren’t around. Kayla got to school at the same time I did, but I couldn’t even look at her. Now I’m just like her. It’s not any different. Months from now I’ll look just like her. I walked into the building and Bethany was by my locker.
“What do you want?” I asked her.
She smirked, “I told you I would ruin you. You’ve lost your friends, your boyfriend, and your popularity.”
“I don’t care.”
“Then be prepared!”
Bethany pushed passed me and shoved me into the row of lockers. This is my life now. I opened my locker and threw my backpack in. I grabbed my books and Zane walked up to me before I could close it. Anastasia was right behind him like I predicted.
“You’re sick. You and Dylan are just a couple of disgusting losers like Kayla. You’re better off dead.”
Before I could think, Zane was grabbing my head and pushing it into the corner of my locker. They all walked away laughing as I screamed in pain. I reached my hands up to my head trying to stop the bleeding. I swear I heard Zane yelling at Anastasia in the background. I picked up my books, closed my locker, and walked to the nurse’s office. The cut was so deep she sent me to the hospital and called my parents. I was in the emergency room getting stitched when they came in.
“Maria?! Maria, what happened?”
“I’m fine,” I mumbled.
“I thought this place was good,” Mom said.
“We need to leave again,” dad said.
“No,” I told them. “I want to stay.”
“What about the bullies?” mom asked.
“I can’t let them win and just give up. I need to stick through it. I made a promise to myself.”
“I’m proud of you,” dad said, “Running away is not the way to handle your problems.”
“I’m sorry if I scared you.”
“Let’s go home,” mom said.
“Now? I have school.”
“We talked to the school,” mom said, “You’ve already taken your exams and you’re done for the semester.”
“Can I be on break now?” I asked.
Dad smiled, “Yeah. You’re on break.”
“Good,” I smiled back.
My parents helped me get back home and they left me home alone while they went grocery shopping. I got a box from the garage and brought it to my room. It’s time to get rid of everything that reminds me of Bethany by throwing those clothes away. I went to my closet and started throwing all my fashionable clothes in the box. So much adrenaline started running through me that the anger continued building up in me and I threw the clothes across the room. That’s what made my guest so surprising.
“Maria?”
I quickly turned around to the window and saw Anastasia climbing in.
“What do you want?” I snapped.
“I know you’re angry, but –“
“No buts,” I shouted, “It’s over!”
“Calm down,” she said, “I came to say I’m sorry.”
“Can’t you see how wrong this bullying is?” I asked.
She nodded, “I do. It’s horrible. I’ve been arguing with Zane all day to get him to stop.”
“This is why you’re my best friend,” I said, “You understand me so much!”
“I love you,” she told me, “You’re the best friend I have ever had besides my brother.”
“So you have to understand what I’m saying!” I said.
“I do,” she said, “I really do, but I can’t leave my brother. I’m so sorry you’re being bullied. I’ll always be here for you, but my brother is all I have left.”
“But he’s wrong,” I said.
“I know, but I can’t stop him. I’ll have nowhere to go.”
“She’s dying,” I said. “I can see it. Haven’t you noticed how skinny she is?! She’s gonna die if we don’t do something!”
“No she won’t,” Anastasia argued. “She’s strong. I can see it. It may not seem like it now, but she is. You’ll see.”
“You’re pathetic,” I snapped. “You’re just scared. You’re scared of standing up to your brother. You aren’t even your own person.”
“Yes I am!” she yelled.
“With me you are!” I corrected her. “But out there, in school, you’re the bully. You may not bully me, but you don’t stop it either. You just stand there and watch. A real friend would stand up for me.”
I walked over towards the window and directed her to leave.
“Maria please!” she shouted. “I’m sorry! I wish I could, but—“
“No more excuses,” I told her, “The only one stopping you… is you. One day you won’t have a choice. One day you will be forced to make a decision and you’ll understand what I’m saying now.”
“What about our friendship?” she asked.
“Until then…” I said, “We don’t have one.”
“Please?” Anastasia begged. “There has to be something I can do!”
“There’s not,” I snapped. “Our friendship is done! I’m going to spend my summer vacation having fun and getting over all this high school bullshit! When I come back next year, you won’t even recognize me. Don’t come near me and don’t ever try to talk to me. Now leave.”
THE END CHAPTER 7!!!
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Love is Loud Enough to Stop Hate - Demi Lovato Spin-off Story - Book 3
FanfictionI used to be popular, but we all know that. They started bullying Kayla, but I refused. It didn't look like it bothered her, but I saw it in her eyes. It hurt her more than anyone will ever know. No one else noticed, but I did. I saw her clothes sta...
