ROTBFTD : Broken & Beautiful

20

Jack pov

The familiar scent of stale coffee and old textbooks hit me as I stepped through the school doors. It hadn't been that long since I'd last walked these halls, but it felt like a lifetime. I was back for Fae, my childhood friend. The first thing that struck me was the eerie silence, broken only by the muffled sounds of hushed whispers and the occasional burst of laughter from a phone screen.

The hallway was a sea of faces glued to their devices, their expressions a mixture of concern and morbid fascination. I didn't know what was going on, but it felt heavy, like a cloud hanging over the entire school. I pushed through the crowd, searching for Fae.

She sat in our usual spot, her normally bright eyes dull, her lips pressed into a thin line. She didn't even look up as I took the seat beside her. The only sound was the scratching of her pencil against paper, a stark contrast to the chaos outside.

Across the room, I saw Melissa, the once popular cheerleader, now a shadow of her former self. She wore a gray hoodie that swallowed her small frame, her face drawn and pale. The power dynamic, so familiar in high school, felt twisted, like a broken mirror reflecting a shattered reality.

Then, Mrs. Snow, our kindly history teacher, walked into the room, her usual cheerful demeanor replaced by a somber seriousness. 'Today,' she said, her voice trembling slightly, 'it's with a heavy heart that I tell you that Elsa Arendelle, one of our own, has been hospitalized. She is in a coma, and we ask for your prayers and support for her recovery.'

The news hit me like a punch to the gut. Elsa, the quiet girl with a talent for art, the one who always wore a smile, was in a coma. It was impossible to imagine such a vibrant spirit reduced to a lifeless body. I glanced at Fae, but she remained stoic, her face an unreadable mask.

The classroom speaker suddenly crackled to life, the Principal's voice filling the room. 'This is an announcement,' he said, his tone clipped and formal. 'I would like to call Melissa Williams to my office.'

Melissa's face blanched, her eyes wide with terror. She stood up, her legs trembling, and walked out of the room. A shiver ran down my spine. Whatever was happening, Melissa was at the center of it.

After class, I couldn't shake the feeling of unease. I had to know what was going on. I snuck to the principal's office, my ears pressed against the closed door.

The words that met me were like a slap in the face.

'This is something I have never expected, your daughter made a terrible reputation for our school. The video she had on her phone, the one of that student, it went viral on TikTok and Instagram. Elsa took her own life after this video went viral. Now she's in the hospital.'

I heard the desperate sobs of a woman, presumably Melissa's mother. 'Please, give her a chance, it was a mistake, she's just a child.'

The principal's voice was cold and unforgiving. 'We are not going to accept this. Mrs. Williams, we cannot take this risk. This is our school policy, and it cannot be disobeyed. Please sign this.'

The sound of the pen signing the document echoed in the silence. I recoiled, my heart pounding in my chest. It was all too much.

I ran out of the room, my mind reeling. I saw Melissa and her mother leaving the office, their faces etched with despair.

I ran away from the office, the weight of the truth crushing me. My eyes met Fae's, and for a moment, I saw a glint of something cruel in her eyes, a flicker of triumph that made my blood run cold.

She approached Melissa, who stood there, a broken figure, her face etched with despair.

"Why?" Melissa's voice was a ragged whisper, laced with raw emotion. "Why did you leak that video?"

I leaned forward, my heart pounding in my ears. Melissa, her eyes blazing with anger, grabbed Fae's collar. "Because of you, my life is ruined. Tell me why!"

Fae's face twisted in fury, her eyes brimming with evil grin. 'Because you deserved it,' she said, her voice witch tone. 'Because you've been playing with people's lives for too long.'

The scene before me was a horrifying tableau of betrayal, anger, and despair. The whispers and the secret information, the unseen threads that had woven this tapestry of tragedy, were finally coming to light. As I watched, I knew that the innocent face of Fae I had known was gone, replaced by something dark and dangerous. The school, once a sanctuary of youth and laughter, now held a chilling secret, one that would forever haunt me.