Stronger Than I Thought

Chapter Two - Siblings Stick Together

Chad and I stopped on the way home from school to get frozen cappucinoes from The Oceanside Café. So you could understand why my sister was already home, in bed. Crying.

Chad dropped me off and I waved goodbye, but the memory of my father made me put my hand back down immediately.

I turned around to go inside, and that's when I heard the sobs. They were quiet, but I could still hear them. They were there. But I didn't know the reason for them.

I put my frozen cappucino on a coaster and hurried up the stairs, turning into my sister's room. Our rooms pretty much looked the same. Queen-sized beds, same type of TV, posters of bands plastered on almost every inch of our walls, even some on the ceilings... It made sense; it was the room of an average teenager - she was two years younger than me; she was fourteen years old - she was turning fifteen this year.

I knocked lightly on her bedroom door, "Hey, Sarah? Are you crying about Dad?" I asked, opening the door.

"No," she mumbled, still crying, into her pillow. "Something else."

"Well what is it?" I asked, sitting on the edge of her bed, "Come on, you can tell me."

"Well... there are some girls... at school." She said, looking up at me with red-rimmed, puffy, bloodshot eyes.

"And these girls are bullying you?" I gasped. No one ever bullies my little sister - unless they want to get punched in the face... by me.

I didn't get a verbal response to my question, but I got a nod and more tears.

"What are they doing to you? How come you're crying?" I asked, touching her back. I really loved my sister - and I hated to see her cry.

"They told the guy that I like that I have a huge crush on him, so he started calling me Freak Girl - and his friends started along with him. Soon everyone will be calling me Freak Girl," she said sobbing, "And that's not all. Today I told them to leave me alone and they said 'Why? Are you going to go tell your daddy? Oh wait, you don't have one!'"

As she broke into more tears, I fumed, "Holy shit, no they didn't. Please tell me you're lying, or those evil bitches are going to get it."

"I-I'm not lying," said Sarah, sniffling. "I just want them to stop, though."

"What kind of person even says something like that?" I screeched, stading up and pacing around the room.

"People like Olivia Hert, Lilly Print, and Hailey Woot." Sarah pointed out, wiping her eyes with the back of her hands.

"Okay, well you can't let girls like that get to you," I said sternly - I'd had my own run in with bullies at her age, and I hated the fact that they simply existed. They'd made me feel horrible about myself.

"It's not that easy when they tease you so much and repeat the same cruel words over and over again, that you start to believe it yourself," she scowled. Did she really believe anything those girls said? They were nothing; less than dirt if the only way they can feel good about themselves is to make others feel bad.

"Are you the only one they bully?" I asked, curious. Or were they just those girls? The ones that every school had?

"No," she said shaking her head, "They bully Sander, too."

Of course they bully Sander - Alexander Jones - the scrawny, defenseless, chess boy who already has his university plans set - probably on Yale or Harvard, or something of the sort. My sister's best friend.

"Why don't you tell a teacher, Sare?" I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath. It took all of my might not to call the girls' parents.

"No," she shook her head, "I knew that if I told you about them, that you would try to get me to tell. I won't do it."

"Fine," I sighed, "But don't come crying to me when Sander finally tells and you get in trouble for being a bystander - that is, if you don't come clean then, either."

"I won't," she narrowed her eyes, sinking back into her pillow, closing her eyes and falling asleep quickly. Amazing how much crying can wear you out.

I know it's really short - I don't know why, usually I'm okay at writing lengthy chapters. Well better this than some 5 pages thing going on and on about something irrelevant to the story. Right?

Thanks for reading <3