weak | choni

27: "She Told Me To"

Cheryl picked at her nails anxiously, sitting against the wall in rehearsals and watching the other girls crowd around the water fountain. She bit her lip as they all began to walk over.

"Oh my god," Valarie's eyes widened. Cheryl whipped her head around when she saw the figure standing in the doorway. Shit.

"What happened to you?" Veronica tilted her head to the side and walked over to Toni. The girl's face was bruised. Cheryl subtly glanced down at her own knuckles, which were the same shade of dark purple as Toni's skin.

Toni furrowed her eyebrows, avoiding her mate's eyes and walking over to the corner to kick off her shoes.

"I don't know," she rolled her eyes. "Why don't you ask Cheryl?"

All eyes were immediately directed to the small girl sitting on the floor. Cheryl held her breath and looked up slowly.

"That's what happened last night?" Valarie raised her eyebrows. Cheryl bit her lip nervously and slowly stood up.

"She told me to," Cheryl mumbled, grabbing her bag and slipping past her cheer mates before they could stop her. She jogged down the hallway, not caring that she was supposed to be present during rehearsals. She couldn't handle being in the same room as Toni.

Minutes later, she found herself through a maze of hallways, pushing open a large metal door and coming face to face with the roof of the building.

She walked slowly to the side, feeling the gentle breeze whipping through her hair. The tips of her shoes lined up with the edge of the roof, and she looked down slowly. The same dizzy sensation washed over her as she looked down at the streets below.

Cars whizzed past underneath her, completely unaware of the girl above them. Taking a deep breath, Cheryl sat down and let her feet dangle off the ledge.

Anyone else would be utterly terrified sitting on the edge of a ten story building. Cheryl didn't understand why she wasn't. She had nothing to be afraid of. If she fell, it didn't matter to her.

Meanwhile, Toni tossed her backpack onto the ground and sighed. Veronica, Josie, and Valarie all exchanged glances, growing increasingly concerned for their two other cheer mates. Whatever was going on between them was slowly driving a wedge between the group.

"You told her to?" Veronica spoke first, eyeing Toni cautiously. The brown haired girl nodded, not saying anything.

"Why?" Josie stepped forward and grabbed Josie's arm to keep her from avoiding the question. Their eyes met and the brown-skinned girl studied the discoloration on Toni's face.

"She needs to realize," Toni pulled away from Josie and walked over to the mirrors, fixing her hair absentmindedly. "Taking all her anger out on other people isn't gonna do shit for her."

"But letting her punch you isn't gonna help you out, either," Valarie joked, trying to lighten the mood. Toni didn't take it as a joke. She whipped her head around, raising an eyebrow.

"Well it's too late now, isn't it?" Toni snapped, storming out of the room without another word.

"I didn't—," Valarie started, but Josie held up a finger to hush her. The three girls grew quiet.

"Hey, are you busy?"

They all raised their eyebrows, tiptoeing over to the door and pressing their ears to the wall. Toni sat on the other side, holding her phone against her ear.

"No, I just..." she paused for a moment. "I need a place to stay."

Josie, Valarie, and Veronica all let their jaws drop to the floor. The immediately knew who she was talking too.