Voiceless

Chapter Ten

"Vera, can you get me the flour? No, no, no!!! That's sugar- you're spilling it! Vera!"

I scramble frantically to catch the bag of sugar before it tumbles onto the marble floor. Grabbing the side of the perilously tipping bag, I sigh in relief. It seems I didn't inherit the baking gene from my grandmother; I'm a hot mess in the kitchen.

"Thank goodness! I just washed this floor. Now, why don't you just go read or something, hmm?" Grandmother pleads with her eyes. 

Okay, fine. If you need any help, just shout.

"Yes, yes, of course. Now move along!" Grandmother ushers me out of the kitchen before I can blink. She doesn't like anyone to interfere with her in the kitchen, especially not someone as clumsy as me. So I never take it personally when she forces me out.

Normally I'd read on a day like this, but I'd read every book in the house at least seven times. So instead I hop onto Grandmother's old dinosaur computer and surf the Internet, learning random facts along the way. Eventually I make it to a social media site, and as I move the mouse to click the "Home" button I start to feel nauseous.

At the top of the page I am informed that Lydia Vascelli has just updated her status. I expect to see something along the lines of, "Hey, going to McDonald's! I know nobody in the world really cares, but I'm so bored that I'm writing whatever comes to mind!" Instead, I see something that drops my heart into my stomach.

omg vera williamson attacked me after school today. i was just at my locker and she punched me in the stomach. i had to go to the hospital and everything!

And underneath it were a hundred and forty-seven comments.

thats terrible are you okay?!

get better lydia :(

thats not right she should be suspended.

yeah she should

wait whos vera williamson

I start to panic. By tomorrow morning, I will be a target on everyone's hit list. At least I used to be ignored; now I could be assaulted. Why should I even be in this drama, anyway? I think. And then I remember what it felt like to take a stand, to make her realize that I'm not a bug to be squished underneath her pink heels.

And I decide not to back down. I will never be that inferior person again. Instead, I resolve not to go down without a fight. 

I take a deep breath and begin to type.

Gee, Lydia, I didn't know they had Wifi in the "hospital."

I smile. I have the power of speech in the virtual world, at least. Within a minute, however, my comment is answered.

what do you know about hospitals anyway

I feel laughter bubble up to my lips, and I barely suppress it. What did I know about hospitals? Me? My hands type, ignoring Lydia's question. Some other people were typing in their responses, too, but my focus was on her alone. 

And if you did go to a hospital because I "attacked" you, why aren't I suspended? 

I can almost hear her fake fingernails tapping desperately against the keyboard, trying to regain control of the situation. Then her response pops up.

i am suffering so much here and its ur fault and youll be suspended cause im in so much pain

Suffering? Suffering? She knows nothing of the word.

We'll see about that.

I log off.

***

I never thought I'd be one of those girls who gets into drama. It's so pointless, and I always said I'd just turn the other cheek. At least, old Vera did. Now, I will not only get involved with this drama, I will annihilate it. 

But I feel like I don't have time for all of this nonsense. I should be focused on retrieving the memory of the accident, and stopping the other ones from invading my mind unbidden. 

So when Grandmother calls me down to help her plate cookies, I'm thrilled to have the distraction. And I work diligently, only burning myself twice. It's a miracle.

That night I fall asleep with a smile on my face. I can't wait to see the look on her face when I walk into that school every day for the rest of the year, proving her little lie to be wrong. She can control the students, the social flow, and maybe even the teachers, but she can't control me.