My Candid Cyclamen - DC

Chapter 2

tws:
blood, implied abuse

The dull ring of the bell signalling the start of class tore Aurora from her trance like state. She glanced back down at the petal in her palm, her hands still shaking. After a moment of hesitation, she let it flutter into the trash can. Jade is probably worrying about me by now, I'm always in class before her. Aurora gathered her things from where they'd been discarded onto the tile, and made her way to class.

It felt like everyone was looking at her, like they all knew what had just happened in the bathroom. She lowered her gaze to the floor, only looking up when she stopped in front of the classroom she was supposed to be in. Her hand gripped the handle for a moment, before gently pushing down on it and pulling the door open.

"You're late, Aurora," the teacher stated in a monotone voice.

"I know, it won't happen again," she promised, taking her seat next to Jade. The teacher continued her lecture, and Jade turned to Aurora.

"What happened? You kind of hurried off, is everything alright?" her concern was etched into her words, matching her worried expression.

"Yeah, I wasn't feeling very well, I'm fine now though," Aurora reassured, giving Jade a soft smile. She hoped it was convincing, truthfully, she was still confused and shaken-up. Jade could tell there was more to it, after all she had been Aurora's best friend for as long as she could remember, she could tell Aurora wasn't telling her the full story. Regardless, she opted not to pursue it, assuming Aurora would come to her to talk about it in due time. She had been a little off since Nick entered the picture, though Jade chalked it up to having to adjust to sharing her attention with him.

Lunch time rolled around, and Aurora and Jade found their usual place, however this time Nick joined them. Aurora shot him a disapproving glare, to which Jade nudged her under the table.

"So how has your first day been?" Nick asked, breaking the thick silence.

"Fine." Aurora said coldly.

"Aurora do you really have to be so mean to Nick? You're my best friend, and I want you and him to get along, I don't understand why you hate him!" Jade said, her hands hitting the table with a sharp noise. Aurora flinched slightly, easily noticed by the other girl.

"It's okay Jade, I get it, you're her best friend, it's only right for her to be cautious of me," Nick interjected. Aurora didn't like how nice he was being, how could she justify being rude to him if he was nothing but kind to her.

Aurora's gaze shifted to her hands as she fidgeted, why did it seem that everything was different this year? Now Nick was here, she was coughing up these petals, and Jade was getting upset with her, it was all too much at once. She didn't realize how much it affected her until Jade put a hand on hers.

"Please, don't cry, I'm sorry for yelling at you. I should have talked to you first." she said softly. Aurora was quiet, she was used to quick flashes of anger being directed at her, but never from Jade. Jade had always been the one to comfort her when her mother had lashed out, but now it was Jade that was yelling.

"It's okay, Jade, I shouldn't have been doing that to Nick, I should be happy that he's making you happy," Aurora's voice was shaking almost unnoticeably. Why couldn't she be happy for them? Nick was an amazing, kind person, who was treating Jade how she deserved, so why was it that it made Aurora feel so... angry? Sad? She didn't know how to describe it.

As if it was waiting for the perfect time to strike, Aurora felt the tight, choking feeling she'd felt this morning. How was she supposed to get out of it this time? If she just left again, Jade might question it. But it would be even worse if she just started coughing up flower petals on the spot. Time was running out to figure out her excuse, so despite her hesitence she abruptly stood up and ran from the lunchroom.

She didn't make it far before she had to lean against the wall, unable to delay the coughing any further. A metallic taste filled her mouth as blood came up, and soon after, two blood soaked flower petals. Aurora sank to the floor, simply staring at the blood on her hands. It didn't make sense, why was she coughing these up? What did it mean? A quick glance at the clock showed it was almost time for her next class, she reluctantly stood, gathering her composure and dragging herself to the nearest bathroom to wash the blood from her face and hands. This is gonna be a fun year.