Between the Lines

Chapter 2 - Reason For My Insanity

June 8th, 7:25 A.M.

“Come on. It's not going to hurt that bad, I promise. Here, I'll do it for you.”

I shook my head at River. I hated taking off band aids. I figured I could just leave it on until it fell off in the lake. Anything that was less painful than this.

River just chuckled. “Well, you've never been very brave. Actually, you're the only on in this family that has yet to acquire that trait,” he taunted. I knew he was baiting me, just waiting for me to get angry. But instead of anger, all I felt was an overwhelming wave of sadness wash over me. If I couldn't even fit into my own family, where would I?

All of the sudden, I wanted to prove myself. It was just a stupid band aid. I couldn't let him tease me over something so juvenile. “Just do it,” I said in a voice much more confident than I felt.

River clucked his tongue. “Ah, I see. You're going to try and be brave like the rest of us. Good luck with that.” He smiled evilly. Just as I was about to yell at him to stop, River leaned over and tore the band aid off my knee with one swift movement.

At first, I didn't feel anything. Just numbness. And then came the real pain. Terrible, searing pain shot up and down my leg, traveling up my body and paralyzing my torso. Blood poured out of a fresh wound on my leg. The scab that had taken so long to form was gone with the bandage.

The white hot pain blurred my eyes with tears and grasped at my throat, making my breathing become raspy and desperate. Somehow, I found enough air to scream. I screamed and screamed, never running out of air but still feeling the same choking desperation. I yelled for River to try and stem the flow of blood pouring out of the unnatural hole in my knee, but he just sat back and laughed hysterically.

“Please,” I begged, my voice growing hoarse. “I'll die. I'll die if you don't help me.”

River looked at me with mock confusion. “I thought you were going to be brave.” Then he shrugged indifferently. “I guess you don't have it in you.”

“But you promised!”

Someone was shaking me. “You promised!” I screamed in a raspy voice, clutching my knee.

“WAKE UP, EM!” someone shouted. My eyes flew open and I took in my surroundings. I was laying in my hammock with sheets tangled around my body. Sunlight streamed through the dingy attic window and the sounds of morning filled the air. Little particles of dust floated around in a ray of sunlight. I squinted my eyes.

My little sister Willow stood over me, tilting her head quizzically. “I think you were having a bad dream. You were making a lot of crazy noises.”

“Yeah, I figured out that much,” I muttered, pulling the covers back over my head. Willow ripped them off again.

“It's 7:30, Em! You're going to be late if you don't get up,” she yelled, trying to snap me out of my groggy state. “How are you going to take a shower, get dressed, eat breakfast and walk a mile to school in fifteen minutes?”

“Willow,” I croaked. “Get out.”

“Em,” she warned. “If you don't get up, I'm going to dump this orange juice on your head.”

I groaned and rolled over on my side.

“EM!” Willow shoved her cup forward and cold, sticky orange juice splashed all over my face. I shot up out out of my hammock and launched a pillow at her head as she scream-giggled and ran out of the room.

I clenched my fists together. I could have sworn I set my alarm the night before, but, judging by the orange juice all over my face, I hadn't. I shuffled across the room, threw on jeans and a t-shirt, washed my face and headed downstairs for a quick breakfast.