Under The Mask

Chapter 8

Door open. Bag down. Door closed. Throw phone onto the pillow. Jump on bed. Breathe into the pillow. As much as I may have enjoyed my performance I’m sure that nobody else liked it. Why would anybody want to listen to me sing anyway? I bet they were all judging me on how bad I was and how much better they are. Why can I never think anything good? I might have sounded good… no, I never sound good; nobody would’ve wanted me to do another song so I need to stop fooling myself. I just won’t sing again, I guess playing piano will do.

I look across to the other side of my room noticing that the piano is open, keys exposed to the outside world. I stand up rubbing the corners of my eyes and make my way over, finding a piece of paper on top of it. The paper reads;

“Gone to the shops, will be back soon. Mum x”

Well, home alone I guess. I didn’t even check to see if anybody else was in the house – oh well. I’m sure she wouldn’t have heard me come back home anyway. I look out of the window and see the sun sneaking behind two houses on the opposite side of the street. It’s only 3:45 and the sun is already almost down. Nights are getting darker, quicker nowadays.

Behind me, I hear my phone buzz and the familiar ringtone begin to chime. I pick up m phone from the pillow and look at the new text. From an unknown number, it says, “We’ll be there in 5 minutes, look out for us!” I don’t even know who would be coming to see me, or why they would want to, but I look out my window to look for anybody familiar walking down the street.

To my astonishment, I notice Louis and Harry walking very closely together along the path, both of them looking into each house probably looking for me. I sigh, knowing that they’ll want me to go somewhere with them. I grab a jacket from the hanger on the back of my door and head outside into my front garden, locking the door behind me tightly and sitting on one of the benches.

“I take it that text was from you?” I ask as the two walk past my front gate.

“There you are. That was awkward looking into all the houses.

I laugh under my breath and stand up, smiling at both of them. “So, what are you doing here?” I question.

“I told you at dinner we’d come see you and we’ll take you on a little tour of Donny… well, around here anyway.” Louis smiles which brightens his whole face up, if not the dusky street around him also. I notice Harry quickly glance at Louis, his eyes quickly reverting straight back to me.

“Um, okay then. So-sounds fun!” A stutter? Seriously? What the hell do I even have to be nervous about? I’m going for a walk, with two friends, or at least I hope they’re friends. What if they don’t consider me as a friend? What if they walk off and just start talking about me and how stupid I am, how annoying I am. Ugh, I really need to stop this. I’m not annoying, or at least I don’t think I am, I mean, I’m too quiet to be annoying. Probably just been there is annoying enough, just me, standing there, looking at people.

“Okay, let’s go.” Harry says.

I take my phone out of my pocket and text my mum, telling her that I’d be home later on and that I’m going out with a couple of friends. She’ll probably think that I’ve been kidnapped or something – I haven’t done anything like this in a very long time. I’ll get home and she’ll be all over me asking me how it was, who my friends are, how many people I met, what I did, where I went… the list just goes on and on. I best enjoy this whilst it lasts.

“Have you been into town yet?” Louis asks after I slip my phone back into my pocket. We start walking along the path away from college to an area where I haven’t been yet.

“Yeah, I went yesterday.” Images flood back into my mind of yesterday, the way that Liam found me and just pushed me straight up against that wall, kissing me as if he was hungry for attention, for some sort of love that he hadn’t had in a long time. He was angry though, I could see it in his face. The way he shouted at me and forced himself on me. The way he wouldn’t let me go, he wouldn’t let me move and only left me shell-shocked.