Redwood High 2

Chapter 17

Spring break was vastly approaching and that meant all the stress to overwhelming schoolwork. My backpack was currently stuffed with assignments, 2 textbooks, and 3 journals because my teachers suddenly wanted a notebook check on the same day. 'A' Days were the days where I had lots of work to do. 'B' days was more of my laid back days, with electives and both English and math class. Damn 'A' Days.

I walked to my locker and stuffed everything into it. I started to get some back pain and that was something I didn't want to deal with.

"RILEY ERUPTED HER VOLCANO!" Shouted Carol running out of Mrs. Fowler's science classroom. Carol ran up to me and grabbed me by the shoulders.

"Riley erupted her volcano and there's a mess everywhere!" She grabbed me by my wrist and dragged me to the classroom. Only it wasn't a classroom anymore, it was a war zone. Some type of liquid ooze thing was splashed on the walls and the ceiling. It varied in different shades of red, orange and yellow. Riley was ducking behind the teacher's desk with Mrs. Fowler.

"What happened?" I asked.

Riley stood up and cleared her throat. "I was making a model and it somehow erupted. I didn't apply any of the formula to make it erupt, especially not this much."

"So what happened then? Your volcano was tampered with?" Carol walked over the spilled mess on the floor to get closer to the volcano. She poked the volcano and quickly walked away when bubbles began to form at the tip.

Riley shook her head. "I don't want to be quick to start putting the blame on someone else. This could've easily been an error that I myself made." Mrs. Fowler got up and went inside the storage room to get some cleaning supplies.

"Knock, knock," someone said by the door. We looked towards it only to see the most vile and disgusting thing to ever walk on this planet. Marie Song. Behind her was her usual posse that followed her everywhere like little lab rats. She was also the one who beat me in the sophomore class president election. She had on a pair of insanely white Adidas with other top brand clothing. She screamed money.

She tsk'd as she walked inside the classroom, not getting any of the volcano remains on her shoes.

"Looks like someone had an accidental spill that ruined their project." Her posse entered the classroom and took a quick look around. It was the Kpop fan girls.

"Whoever has to clean this will be here for a while," one of them said, taking out a Kleenex from her purse.

"Listen here Asian devil, I will grab your chopsticks and stick them where the sun don't shine if you tampered with my sister's volcano," snarled Carol.

The bell rang signaling lunch ending. Marie laughed and turned to walk out.

"Oh Grace," she said before leaving. I looked at her.

"You would've been a great class president and could've won too... if you had a better appearance." She walked away, her Kpop fan girls following suit. I looked down at what I was wearing: a black T-shirt with a white light sweater with dark jeans and boots.

"Was that supposed to be insulting?" I asked.

***

Marie Song might've been a Grade A bitch but that didn't stop me from continuing to be myself. I dealt with many Marie Songs' back at home and my mother always gave me advice.

"Ignore them," she told me one day after I came home crying because Janet said hand me down clothing are for orphans. First grade was a horrible time for me. "A school year is not going to define who you are. Those people are not going to matter to you once you get older and leave to follow your dreams. Never forget who you are."

I was currently sitting in my Spanish 1 class, Senora Cortez already starting with today's lessons. I wasn't going to be bullied by Marie Song. I wasn't going to let her get to me. I've been through too much to let her influence me. I was not going to stand for bullying. In that moment, while learning how to sing the Spanish alphabet, I made a decision. I was going to do me and not have any one alter my decision making process.

"You still haven't talked to your aunt," the little devil voice whispered in my head. God damn it.

As the week went by, I struggled to talk to my aunt. I don't know why it was so hard. The again, it wasn't an easy topic to talk about really. It was Friday morning and I was walking towards my 5th period when someone stopped me cold.

"Ok listen, I don't know what I ever did to you, but you've been avoiding me and I noticed at first but I just shook it off because it's your life, but now I just want to know why. I think as a person I get a valid reason why you turn the other way when you see me."

I didn't want to turn around, but that was childish. I didn't want to bear her any news; she doesn't deserve that from me. So how do I lie myself out of this one?

I turned around, my gaze meeting Giselle's. She did not bear any resemblance to me. Her skin was darker than mine and her hair matched the dark glossy look from my aunt. I wanted to scream and jam my head underneath a bus. We did not deserve this. How is that when I move to California I suddenly have the family I never imagined? How is it that Giselle goes to the same school I did after moving across the country, out of all the places in the world? Life's a pain in the ass.

"I uh..." I didn't know what to say. Giselle has done absolutely nothing to me so there's no plausible reason to why I have been ignoring her, besides the truth. The bell rang, meaning class started but neither one of us moved. The halls cleared as everyone went to their classes and there was no administration in sight. It was just the two of us, something I didn't want to happen.

"You're not going to say anything? Just tell me if it was something I did, please. I don't like the feeling of knowing I might've been hurtful towards someone else."

I really wanted to punch a locker. She didn't deserve this. I didn't deserve this. It was the fault of our messed up family.

"It's nothing you did, trust me. Your existence is not really your fault."

She scoffed. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"No wait no that came out wrong. I didn't mean anything by it I just-"

"I know I'm adopted, if that's what you're getting at. But I don't see how any of that information is any of your business though." She knew she was adopted, huh. I wonder if she knew anything about where she came from.

"Giselle, trust me nothing is your fault. It's me and all the messed up crap that I had to deal with."

"I'm sorry you went through whatever it is you're talking about, but I still don't have a clue why you've been ignoring me. I've messaged you plenty of times."

"My phone has been acting up-"

"Cut it out. I want a straight answer. I know if you're lying so tell me the truth. What's so wrong with the truth?" She shouted.

"Everything! Everything is wrong with the truth! Every single detail of it all is fucked up! You want to know? Your biological parents-" I stopped myself.

"My- my what?" she breathed. I was angry. But not at her. I shook my head and walked away.

"Grace!" She yelled. But I wasn't going to look back. I was going straight to the source. I walked out the front office, ignoring the ladies at the front desk calling for me. I walked home. 25 minutes of walking and I finally made it home. My aunt's car was in the driveway. Good. I walked in the front door and slammed it. She was in the kitchen, making something in a silver pot. When the door slammed she looked over at the front door.

"Grace? What are you doing home so early?" I ignored her and walked to my room. I found the folder Sebastian and Riley had underneath a pile of old school assignments. I walked back down the stairs and threw the file on the kitchen island. I slid it across for her to read it.

"Open it and explain. Explain everything. I want the truth." I felt the blood pounding in my head. She grabbed the folder and opened it. After a few moments she gasped, slapping her hand over her mouth. She looked up at me, tears building up in her eyes.

I looked straight in her eyes. "Explain how you had the audacity to sleep with my dad while he was with my mom."