Fallen

Chapter 3 "Fish"

I was up before dawn—could you blame me? A horrific night, to say the least, I tried desperately to make sense of it. Then it hit me—Mr. Ouija! Was that his presence, pressing into my chest to the point of bursting? Was this my curse? Or, was this all just anxiety caused by the stresses of Madison?

The sun was rising, disintegrating the endless shadows responsible for my sleep deprivation.

Get a grip Lydia—another day in Madison Paradise awaits.

Since it was still early, I cleaned my room for the first time since the summer break. I'm sure my parents were tripping out. Who could blame them—there's nothing like having an addict in the house? But I wasn't on drugs! I was too smart for that stuff, and I kept far from the users at school. Although Wood didn't have a drug scene, I noticed there were small pockets of users at Madison; it was infectious!

But if I kept having sleepless nights, I may consider joining those groups after all—I hope not. I need my sleep.

Smack!

"Wake up!" shouted a voice compiled on top of the force, shaking me from my stupor. "No sleeping in the cafeteria—fish!"

"Jesus—Tabs!" I snapped.

Still a little a groggy, I brushed away thin strands of dirty blonde straws, stifling my vision. My hair wasn't disheveled. I conditioned it as usual during my shower this morning. I may not have had the most vibrant blonde tresses like the rest of the cheerleaders, but I made up for it with zing. Yes! I literally smelled like a bushel of exotic roses in the morning.

"You remember Cameron, don't you, sis?" said Tabitha.

"Hey!" I smiled, standing up and giving him a bear hug.

Over a year since I've seen Cameron. We were all friends back in Wood, but he was a year older than us. Leave it to education to unite old friends again.

Although only a sophomore, Cameron had charisma—no doubt pointers Tabitha picked up from Wood. On top of that charismatic personality, Cameron had style!

"O—M—G! Those Joe's jeans are so hot!" yelped Tabitha, caressing Cameron's thighs and butt as she continued, "Let me guess—Macy's for the YSL t-shirt?"

"No—child. New York over the summer break," said Cameron, smirking with that sleek grin of his.

That's another reason why I got along with him—New York, go figure.

Although I didn't quite understand the red Mohawk, everything else Cameron wore was spotless. I especially liked his cute little nose piercing and lipstick or lips gloss. Anyways, it was better than my plain chap stick. My parents detested me wearing make-up until college even though over half of the girls at Madison did.

—So sick!

Anyways, back to my bestie, Cameron. He wasn't big in stature which allowed him to get away with such provocative attire. And, with a figure like that who could blame him. I know my parents wouldn't let me out of the house with jeans that tight. Apparently, Tabitha's parents were more lenient because she had on something similar—as if those two went shopping together.

"Ooooh—child, look at those bags. Baby girl, you definitely not getting enough sleep!" exclaimed Cameron.

"I'm fine," I said.

"No, you're not!"

"Seriously—I am!" I snapped.

"Don't you raise your voice at me, honey-child!" snapped Cameron with more sass and authority.