Treat Me Gently

Chapter Two

I sat in my car as I stared at the depressingly faded brick wall of my school. It was now the sixth week of my senior year, and I already lost the energy to keep attending my classes.

First period was already almost over and I wasn't sure if I was ready to walk into school just yet, so I pulled out a box of cigarettes from my glove compartment, rolling down the window and pulling one out to bring it to my lips, lighting it up.

I inhaled every dark emotion laying heavy in my heart, worry, frustration, sadness, anger, grief, and exhaled them into a cloud of smoke escaping through the crack of my car window. Sure, they would come back eventually, but for now, they were bearable.

I groaned as I heard the bell ring indicating it was time for next class. I don't know that I can keep doing this.

I let out a heavy sigh and wished I could keep smoking, but I knew if I continued to skip any classes, my parents would get a call from the school, and the last thing they needed was another problem to worry about.

So I opened up my backpack, reaching for the yellow bottle of pills I kept to help me get through the day. I swiftly opened the bottle, dropping a single tab of Xanax into the palm of my hand.

A sip of water to wash it down, and I was ready to walk through the hallways of Navarro High.

I got out of the car and slammed my door closed. I didn't care if the windows shattered and left cuts on my hands, at least then I would have an excuse to not have to walk into the building anymore.

I slowly made my way over to the entrance of the school, and with a deep breath, opened the door to walk inside.

It was loud, as usual. The sounds of uninteresting conversation, laughter, dramatic gasps, unzipping of backpacks, and slammed lockers echoed through the air.

I tried not to get caught in the middle of the crowd, but I was forced to cut through the overly filled hallway to get to my locker that was sitting at the end.

When I finally got to it, I was stopped from putting in my combination when I heard a deep voice trying to grab my attention.

"Miss Ortiz."

I turned around to face Mr. Greene, the assistant principal of the school.

"My office please," I turned back to face my locker so I could roll my eyes. Office again.

I signed and followed Mr. Greene back to the front of the school where his office was. I already knew why I was in trouble, but I didn't really care, why do I need to care about anything I'm doing when I don't even know if I'll make it to the end of the school year.

As we walked past the Secretary's desk, I noticed outside of Mr. Greene's office was a guy on his phone, sitting in one of the chairs Mr. Greene kept outside of his door. He was probably waiting for him to get back.

"Mr. Mendez, just wait here and I will get you a note for class." Mr. Greene instructed as he unlocked the door to his office.

As I walked past the guy, he looked up at me from his phone and eyed me curiously. He was probably wondering why I looked like I haven't slept in 3 nights, maybe because I haven't. I felt like I recognized him, but I didn't look at him long enough to figure it out.

I gave him a blank look and followed Mr. Greene into his office, not bothering to close the door all the way behind me.

"I'm sure you already know why I brought you here." Was the first thing he said as I sat down in one of the seats in front of his desk.

"I guess so," was the only response I could come up with.

He let out a sigh at my words, "Ingrid, I know you've been going through a lot, I understand that, but is this really how you want to start off your last year of high school?"