Drive Me Crazy

Chapter 5: Speak

Ending of previous chapter:

I closed the book as a single tear rolled down my face. I trusted Damien with my deepest secret. I remember the look on his face when he first read that page. I remember the hospital trip after he broke his hand by punching one of the 2 by 4's that held the fort up. I also remember that he didn't even notice his hand was bleeding because his attention was focused on hugging me and making sure I was okay.

We were so close.

He was such a genuine friend.

What happened?

_______________________________ Chapter 5: Speak
_______________________________

I woke up to my alarm clock and its infuriating chirping. I flapped my arm to the top of the clock, pushing the "off" button more aggressively than intentioned.

Last night, after reading my old diary, I couldn't help but cry. I simply went to bed. Yesterday was a hard day and it was my first day back from the hospital.

Today is the day I go back to school.

I hate that I only get one day to recuperate.

I let out a groan and sat up, my eyes still closed. I rubbed my eyes in attempt to rub the tired away, and opened them to discover that the tiredness was, in fact, still there.

As my feet touched the floor, a shiver slithered through my spine, the coldness harsh against my bare feet. Sluggishly walking to the bathroom, I avoided looking at myself in the body mirror, I already knew I'd look like a mess.

I turned on the bathroom faucet and cupped my hands under the stream of water, lifting them in a swift movement, I let the water splash to my face, sending a shock of adrenaline through my veins, waking me up as much as possible.

I left the water going, grabbed my toothbrush, squirted what little toothpaste was left in the tube onto the tough bristles, and brushed my teeth, scrubbing hard to make sure every bit of filth was cleaned.

I lazily looked at the water, so tired that I didn't even want to spit out the minty toothpaste. I swallowed it instead, and wiped off the remains with a washcloth.

Slob. I thought to myself.

After turning the water off, I went back to my room and raided my closet.

I could either put on a cute dress, or jeans and a t-shirt. The second option is more like my style, but then again, the dress would be easier to slip on and be done with.

I grabbed the dress, stripped out of my pj's and threw it on.

Socks.

Shoes.

Ready.

"Alex! I'm leaving!" I yelled up the stairs as I walked by.

I heard an exhausted grunt of acknowledgement, letting me know that he heard me, grabbed the keys, and walked out the door.

•••

Sitting in my car, parked in front of the school, I looked at the clock with distaste. 5 minutes. Couldn't I just not go? Mom's out of town anyways and Alex wouldn't really notice, let alone care. He'd probably even cover for me.

I let out a sigh and turned the car off, submitting to the fact that I already drove all the way here, and it would be stupid to waste all that gas for nothing.