Milo

III

The weekend consisted of Milo texting me and us flirting, relaying his messages to Janice, and me being completely in love with him. The next Monday was the most excited for a Monday I have ever been. Milo and I usually stood at the lockers before class and chatted, but he wasn't there that morning. I wandered around the school, asking people if they have seen him. I saw the janitor's closet while walking through a hall, and I would have just walked past it if I hadn't noticed that the door was cracked, just barely.

The door is always supposed to be locked.

I slowly opened it, it seemed to be the only door in the school that didn't squeak.

I wish I never noticed the door was cracked.

Inside was Milo, but there was another boy inside too. The football team's quarterback, Josh Glenn, had his left arm around Milo's back and the other hand in his hair.

Josh was kissing my boyfriend.

Not only that, but Milo seemed to be returning the favor.

I inhaled in disbelief, just loud enough for them to hear me. Milo's eyes went wide and he pried Josh off of him. "Wait, Gabby! I can explain!"

Tears poured from my eyes as I dropped my backpack on the floor, backing away. Milo tried to grab my arm but I dodged him, bolting out of the closet and down the hall. He abandoned his backpack too and followed after me, shouting, "Gabby! Please, please, I can explain!"

I didn't care. He didn't deserve a response. Not after that. I sprinted down the hall and out the front doors with Milo not far behind me. I didn't know where I was running, but I had to get away. I was blinded by betrayal and heartbreak, but most importantly, I was blinded by my tears. My vision was blurry and so were my thoughts as I ran across the street. I didn't see the silver honda as it sped down the road, perpendicular to my path. All I remember is that it happened quickly, it happened painfully, and it happened with a lot of blood. My thoughts were foggy as I lost consciousness, slipping away from myself.

The next thing I knew, I, or more so my consciousness, was walking around the scene. I saw myself. I was laying on the pavement, body bent in cruel angles and ruby blood pooled around my head like a macabre halo. A middle aged lady rushed out of her dented car, panicking, toward my lifeless body. I felt her walk right through me. The woman kneeled next to my crumpled figure and dialed 911, running bony hands through her greying hair. I saw Milo sprinting at full speed toward the teacher standing outside the school entrance. And I crouched, just like the woman who indirectly killed me, over myself.

I remember thinking that I wasn't nearly as overweight as I thought I was.

I didn't have nearly as much acne as I thought.

I actually looked quite beautiful, peaceful even, laying face up on the road, vermillion ambulance lights reflecting off of my cracked glasses.

And then I returned to myself.

✂