Living Again

Chapter 12

Cassie's POV:

I stared after the guy who just told me that he wanted to be friends. With me of all people.

I was confused. Who was that guy? What was that all about?

Is being friends even possible?

You're a good for nothing bitch. A worthless piece of trash

I remembered what my father had yelled at me this morning.

No, it just wasn't possible. Nothing good ever comes in my life. After all, my life is devoid of any hope. It's a desolate place, full of nothing.

~~~~~~~~~~

The bell rang, getting me out of my thoughts. A lot of students were now hurrying in the hallways. I winced as people bumped into me, pain flaring from my shoulder. Avoiding the other students, I walked to  my next class.

School was over. Everyone was in a hurry to get out of the room as Mr. Simmons likes to ask the person to leave to help him carry his stuff to the faculty room. With a hurt shoulder, I was the last one to left in the room.

"Ms. Adams, could you help me?" he asked, smiling.

Without a word, I walked towards his desk and  he handed me several books and papers. I flinched as the pain in  my shoulder flared up once again like what happened during lunch time.

I followed him out of the room. He was chatting away but I couldn't be bothered to listen. The pain was getting worse by the second. I gritted my teeth, trying to tolerate it.

Just a bit more and it would be over in a minute. If you can't tolerate this, you'd be more useless than you are now, I thought.

"Are you alright?" Mr. Simons asked.

I nodded, afraid that I might scream in pain if I opened my mouth.

"Are you sure? You don't look so good" he asked again.

I nodded once more. He seemed to accept that as he started walking again.

Just a bit more, just a few more steps, I kept thinking as I followed behind. After for what seemed like an eternity, we finally arrived at the faculty room. Mr. Simmons opened the door and he took the things that I was carrying.

"Thank you for your help" I tried to muster a smile but all I could manage was a painful grimace. He looked at me with concern and his eyes zeroed in on my right shoulder. "Is your shoulder hurt?"

"My shoulder's fine" I answered in a clipped tone as I tried to bear the pain.

He loked at me sharply. "I am not blind Ms. Adams. I know a hurt person when I see one, and you, are hurt" He thought for a moment then glanced back at me. "Wait here for a moment"

I stood there, confused. What was happening?

He came back out a few minutes later, with the school nurse, Mrs. Gomez.

"Cassie! What's wrong dear?" she asked.

I stayed silent.

"Her shoulder's hurt" Mr. Simmons answered for me. "I think it's her right shoulder"

"Let's go to the clinic so that I can examine it" she was already walking ahead.

I didn't want to follow her because she will definitely see the bruises that's decorating my body. I'm already a pathetic excuse of a person, I want to at least spare the feeling of being ashamed. However, I had no other choice as Mr. Simmons was looking at me. Reluctantly, I trailed after Mrs. Gomez.

"Alright dear, take off your shirt" Mrs. Gomez ordered as she closed the curtains to give the two of us some privacy.

I didn't move.

She turned around and saw me still fully clothed. "Do you need some help?" she asked kindly.

I looked away. I wasn't used to the way that she was looking at me. It was uncomfortable.

"Come on dear, there's nothing to be ashamed of. We're both girls here" she added, seeing that I was still not moving. She sighed as she finally walked over to me.

I wanted to run away but I had nowhere to go.

She reached for the hem of my shirt and lifted it up gently to avoid jostling my shoulder. I looked away as I backed away from her. She gave another sigh.

"You have to take off your shirt so that I could look at your shoulder" she told me, finally putting a stern look on her face. With no other choice, I tugged at my right sleeve up to my elbows to expose my shoulder. "You're extremely shy, aren't you?"she remarked as she started to examine my shoulder. She clicked her tongue and gently poked my shoulder. I flinched from the pain of it. She tugged my sleeves up when she finished.

"Well, your shoulder is really bruised, but not broken, thank goodness. I advise you to ice it for at least 20 minutes when you get home and try to do some gentle stretching in order for it to heal faster. If the pain is too much you could take some Tylenol or Advil"

I nodded in response, wanting to get away as quickly as possible. I was already drawing the curtains open when she spoke again.

"I was just wondering...how did you hurt your shoulder?"

I tensed at her question. "I...um, well.....I fell" it was a flimsy excuse but it was the best that I could come up with. I ran out of there as fast as I could with a bruised shoulder before she started asking more questions. Mr. Simmons was waiting outside, sitting on a chair. He looked up as he heard me.

"Hey, how's the shoulder?" I ignored him as I fled from the clinic.

I ran as fast as I could, ignoring the pain from my shoulder.

As I finally arrived home, there was only one thing on my mind.

They could never know.

Not even in a million years.