Learning To Love - Ruby Rose -

**part six**

I woke up.

I opened my eyes slowly. Shooting pain flowed through my head as I did so and I heard someone shouting my name...Juliana.

"For fuck sakes Alison, get up you have school today. You need to stop doing dumb shit before you get yourself killed!" Juliana said to me through gritted teeth, clearly annoyed at me.

"You wouldn't give a damn if I did die, it would be like a weight lifted off your chest." I muttered but she didn't hear me thankfully. My voice was gritty and my throat was dry as a bone. I don't remember anything from the night before and I definitely don't remember falling asleep.

All I remember is cold.

Lots of cold.

I reach towards my bedside table and reached for my phone but it wasn't where I always leave it. Now that I think about it, I don't remember putting my phone there either.

Juliana pulled a black cardboard pack out from her pocket and a lighter. How long has she been smoking for?

"Juliana, not inside, please." I said with a cough as she lit her cigarette.

"Since when can you tell me what to do? You're my daughter, aren't you?" She said and with the cancer stick still in her mouth she lounged at me grabbing my throat, pinning me to the uncomfortable mattress, if even you could call it that.

"Get your filthy hands off me, you bitch!" I yelled attempting to push Juliana off me but I had all of my energy drained.

"Who are you to call me a bitch?" She shouted, threatening my volume. She took one hand off me only to lift her cigarette away from her lips and brought it down on the back of my hand. I screamed out in pain when I felt it start burning through my flesh which quickly put it out.

And with that Juliana left the room.

I ran to my wardrobe and threw on a black Fall Out Boy t-shirt, black jeans and the grey jumper that Ruby lent me yesterday.

I chucked the jeans that Ruby also lent me into my school bag, grabbed a fiver and tossed my backpack over my shoulders. I ran out of my house so that my mum couldn't catch up with me and I ran for the bus which I almost missed.

I took a seat next to Ruby who I spotted near the back of the bus. She looked fine until she laid eyes upon me. Her expression changed to worried as I sat down.

"You look like shit." She stated. "No offence."

"You say that as if the 'no offence' makes it a compliment." I giggled softly, but something felt off.

"So, I think I saw you last night near the pond." She said.

And then it all came flooding back to me. All the memories of last night. Everything.

Before I could control myself I felt a wet tear fall down my cheek.

"Wow, babe what's wrong?" She asked worriedly.

I wiped away the salty tear from the side of my face with the palm of my hand and Ruby suddenly grabbed my wrist and pulled my hand closer to inspect it. Shit.

"Who did this to you?" She asked.

"My mum." Was all I managed to choke out before I collapsed in a pit of tears.

This happened.

~le author