The day of the meeting regarding the graduation of the seniors has finally come and the school become even more crowded with students along with their parents. Everyone are heading to the auditorium while I on the other hand is just sitting in the classroom as I watch my classmates leave the room one by one. I shouldn't have attended if this is going to happen.
A light knock on the door caught my attention and it's the principal, no surprise there. "The meeting is about to start. Why don't we go together in the auditorium?" she offered. Today she's wearing a bright red blouse, white slacks and heels. Her long black hair tied in her usual neat bun. The bright colors only enhanced her creamy white skin that it's almost too blinding to look at.
"I'm not going." I replied, looking back outside the window, my chin resting on the palm of my hand.
"Is it because you just don't want to or is it the fact that your guardian wasn't able to make it?"
"A little bit of both," I admitted with a sigh.
"Please attend the meeting even if you don't want to."
I glanced at her pleading face and gave it a thought for a while before I finally stood up and made my way towards her. She smiled widely and opened her mouth but I quickly raised my index finger in front to shut her up. "No! I don't want to hear it and I'm not doing this because of you," I'm only agreeing to attend this stupid meeting because I know this woman won't stop nagging me if I keep on refusing.
"Okay, okay. I get it" she said, raising both her hands in surrender. "Let's go then," she added.
We were only walking a few steps to the auditorium when we suddenly heard someone's voice. "I hope I'm not late," a voice said and we both turn around to look at the owner of the voice.
To my surprise it was "assistant manager?" I asked in disbelief. Wearing a black t-shirt tucked in a khaki jeans paired with heels. She looked at me with those cold gray eyes. She's the last person I expected to be here. "I thought manager is the one who going to attend the meeting?"
"Canna never said she's the one who is going to attend your meeting and are you still going to keep calling me that even outside of work?" she said crossing her arms around her chest. I did nothing but just purse my lips. Like I can just simply call her Cielle. "I'll be the proxy of this girl's guardian," she turned to the principal, her hard expression remained unchanging.
"Very well," the principal smiled which assistant manager didn't even payed any attention.
The three of us made our way to the auditorium. The tension I felt when the principal talked to manager is almost the same as now. I know assistant manager has always been a cold person but with the principal it feels like she's even colder. All of them appears to be ganging up on the principal. Somehow, I don't like their hostility towards the principal who did nothing but understand me. I'm not defending her or anything. It's just that the longer I'm with her, the more I notice how genuine she is. Though in all honesty she's still a long way from earning my trust.
The meeting began and ended with me not paying much attention or even listening. I'm not that interested since it all concerns everything regarding the graduation which I consider pretty trivial. The only thing that matters to me is graduating, anything else beyond that is not worth my attention. Assistant manager who is sitting beside me wearing a bored look the same as I do made me a bit relieved. I'd catch boys and even girls steal glances at assistant manager who didn't seemed to be bothered by the extra attention. She sure is popular which is quite understandable since she's the only one among the parents who looked stunning and eye-catching considering her youthful age that outshines the parents here in the auditorium. Some would even glare at me for simply sitting beside assistant manager. Them reacting this way is a given, what more if the manager was the one who attended the meeting. I don't want to imagine what might happen if she were here right now instead of assistant manager. That would be quite disastrous.
"Well that was an unproductive meeting," assistant manager admitted as we walked in the hallway. "The twins were so eager to come along but Canna told them to wait in the car since it'll be troublesome if they join as well."
"Wait, so you're saying they're outside waiting?"
She gave me a side eye followed with a light nod, "Exactly. Not that they would want to be left behind in the first place."
"Then what about the bistro?"
"The bistro won't go bankrupt just by closing it a couple of hours. That's according to what Canna said," Figures. That's just like what the manager would say. She's too carefree to consider these things as a serious matter. "I figured your school is still as insufferable as before," she added giving a sharp look at some of my classmates who were glaring at me.
"Unfortunately. Not like this place is going to change or anything," I sighed, annoyed by there never-ending torments.
The moment we were outside the building, the principal appeared. She always pops out of nowhere. It's kinda uncomfortable and weird if I'm being honest.
She looked at assistant manager first before settling her attention to me. "Could I talk to you for a bit?" she asked politely.
I glanced at assistant manager who understood my message right away. "We'll be outside. Don't make the twins wait too long since I don't want to listen to all their whining," she said then left without sparing the principal even a single glance. Still cold as ever.
"What is it?" I asked turning my attention to the principal.
"I would just like to ask for your number."
"So this is where it's going. I thought you're already married," I actually intended to say that as a form of joke but it somehow came out different to the principal.
"It's not what you think," she denied, acting defensive all of the sudden.
I frowned somehow pissed and offended by how she overreacted from the intended joke. "I know. You didn't exactly need to be that defensive," I retorted steely.
As if sensing the sudden change of the atmosphere, the principal slowly regain her composure, "I'm sorry. The reason why I want to ask for your number is so I could update you with the additional information regarding the graduation ceremony. It would be a lot better if I have your guardian's number so I could talk directly to them," she explained.
"I don't have a phone and neither do my parents. The empty contact details written in every student's information sheet should have been enough for you to know that none of my family owns a single phone," I replied, apparently still pissed up to this point. "If that's all you want to talk about then I'm leaving since it obvious that we're done here now," I didn't wait for her to reply as I took my leave.
Surprisingly my mood somehow lightened a bit when the twins gave me a bear hug before pulling me inside the car where manager is waiting in the driver's seat with assistant manager sitting beside her in the passenger seat.
"Since the bistro is already closed why don't we have some fun and have the whole place for ourselves?" the manager declared grinning widely. The twins cheered while assistant manager just shook her head with a tiny smile on her lips.
I think I would much likely want to get used to this. I've been denying it for quite some time but seeing them now, I feel I can slowly open myself up to them and this time I think I can do that willingly. Not right away obviously but I'm sure I'll be able to...eventually.
"What do you think Raven?" I whispered which they probably wouldn't hear with the twins cheering non-stop along with manager. My body slightly warmed up making me smile mentally, grateful and relieved at the same time that Raven isn't entirely against the idea I have in mind.
Looking at the people with me in the car felt like I'm once again in the presence of a family's warmth. Something I only felt back when mom and sister were still alive. And now with Raven who never left my side, I'm starting to experience those feelings again with these people.
Someday when I've become stronger, when I can learn to trust again, when I'm no longer scared of letting people in my life anymore. I hope I can call them my family and I hope they'll still be there to meet me halfway through with open arms.
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DISTRESS
Ficción GeneralDawn is a senior student who lives with her abusive father. Her mother and sister died when she was young protecting Dawn from abuse. She was traumatize by the loss of her mother and sister causing her to create Raven as a way to cope with the traum...
