Med Romance

Chapter 1

Akira

"We're very embarrassed, Mrs. Benson. This isn't her. I'll talk to her. Yes, thank you so much. Goodbye."

I look up from the table at mom's livid face. Dad sits beside me, his hand on my knee a comfortable presence whereas the warmth of Alex's body hits my back and I know he's come closer and stood behind my chair. I can easily imagine his glare directed at mom, ready to defend me in front of my parents whereas he'll then later scold me himself. Somehow Alex scolding me is way tolerable than mom scolding me. Mom's words burn like acid on my skin, her words too abrasive, her tone too condescending as if she is ashamed of me.

"Everyone's talking about her. First of all the divorce and now this." She spits and clutches the pearls around her graceful neck. "Drinking in school premises? What the hell's wrong with you?" She tells me as she rounds the table and slams the phone on the table. I don't flinch but dad does and directs a scowl at her.

"She's never done this before, Elore. The news has hit her hard. She needs some time. She's just seventeen." Dad defends and I pass him a grateful glance.

"Just because she hasn't done this before doesn't make it any less horrible, Luke. She got suspended for a week. This is gonna go straight to her record." I inhale a deep breathe to calm the fire raging inside me. Mom has missed mentioning the charity work I'm going to be subjected to. Benson was pissed and wanted to put me in detention for the rest of the term but Headmaster Johnson knows dad from Army school and made sure that all this drama didn't make it out of the office. That's also because of his not-so-secret secret of him fucking a faculty member when he has a wife at home waiting for him.

"I was in an Army school, Lore. It was a strict foundation and I've lived a strict life. You are a lawyer and rules and regulations are the principle of your life. If today our kids are doing something wrong then it's not only their fault but ours too." Aaand I can literally see the start of a fight from a mile away. This would lead to a shouting match and then dad will leave the house with his car keys and won't return for a few hours whereas mom will blame me and then dad will come back after sometime, they'll fuck and then the cycle will begin again. Their moans and groans are still embedded in my brain permanently and now everytime I have to blast my ears with headphones whenever it happens. Give me bleach and I'd also like to clean slate my brain to get rid of the memory.

"I think this is fucking enough. If the environment here is not good for Akira then she'll live with me in my apartment. It's just twenty minutes away and Akira knows how to drive and she can come home and drive to school whenever she wants." Alex voices and mom directs her anger at him. Perfect. Exactly what I want.

"She's not moving out. The divorce papers are being handled and your dad's already moved out. She'll stay with me. Here. I need to keep an eye on her after this incident." She spits the word like it's poison and points a finger at the table to emphasise the here.

"Case is settled then. Akira, your charity work starts tomorrow at 10 in the morning. I'll drive you. Be ready." Alex grabs his keys from the table and with a half-hearted kiss from mom on his cheek and a wave from me and dad, he nods at us and leaves the house.

We sit there until his car drives away, the smooth purr of the engine and the sound of engine like melody to my ears. My hands itch to grab a pen or a paintbrush and I fist them to stop the relentless shaking. The chair scapes as dad stands up and walk around the table to grab a juice carton from the fridge and takes a long gulp from the bottle itself. Both me and mom cringe at the sight like we always do while I clear my throat to grab her attention. Clear blue eyes slash my way and I swallow from the intimidation seeping from her very pores and creating a halo around her.

"What's the Charity work?" I ask.

"It's perfect for you." She smirks at me.

And I don't like that smirk one bit.