After the Shooting

Chapter 11

       I knock on the brown wooden door of Scarlett's house. It's nothing to really write home about. It's a relatively small home but it's still livable as a family of four like Scarlett has. It has four bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, dining room, and living room. Their house is decorated very relaxed and country. It's very rustic and although it's nice, it's so typical for Scarlett.
       Scarlett's brother, Zach, opens the door. He gives me a bit of a glare. I don't know why. Zach, Scarlett, and I have always been pretty close. I used to see him as a brother. I haven't seen him recently because he's been away at college. It's his last year there so I don't know. He has dirty blonde hair, facial hair, and acne covered skin. He's a little bit on the heavier side but it's predominately muscle. He's a relatively tall boy standing at around 6'0.
      "What do you want?" Zach asks.
      "Nice to see you too, Zach." I sigh.
      Zach looks me up and down really quick.
     "Scarlett was right, you have changed." He says.
     Changed? How have I changed?
     "What do you mean?" I ask.
     He opens the door and lets me in.
     "Scarlett's in her room." He says.
     "Thanks, I guess." I shrug.
      That was weird. I know Zach and Scarlett are super close but what was that about? What does she mean I've changed? Before I open her bedroom door, I knock. Although I practically lived here in my childhood, I still don't feel comfortable just walking in. Scarlett opens the door and looks surprised when she sees me. However, it's not in a good way. She lets me in and I walk in the room to see Ethan, Lucy, and Minda.
      "So, not to be rude or anything but, what are you doing here?" Asks Scarlett.
     I want to say the truth but I don't know if she'll get mad at Ethan or not.
"I invited her." Ethan says.
"Why?" Asks Scarlett.
"She's our friend and I wanted to hang out with her. Is that okay with you?" Ethan asks.
I can't help but smile. Ethan stood up for me.
"Of course it's okay,' smiles Scarlett,' sorry if I seem like a bitch."
"You don't seem like a bitch,' I assure her,' anyway, what are you guys doing?"
Ethan throws a control at my chest and gestures for me to sit next to him.
"Call of Duty,' he smirks,' you in?"
"Hell yeah." I smirk, grabbing my seat next to him.
I feel the vibe of the room get intense the whole time. Not because of the game but because of me. I can feel Scarlett and Lucy's eyes on me the whole time as I play next to Ethan.
"This game is great. I love how you can do whatever you want with guns." Says Scarlett.
I roll my eyes. Of course Scarlett would be the person to bring up guns during a video game.
"Is there a problem, Naomi?" Asks Lucy.
All eyes in the room are on me right now. But good thing I know what to say.
"Actually, there is. Look, I'm just sick of how guns are in this country." I sigh.
"I thought we were done talking about this." Sighs Scarlett.
     "Well, we're not. These guns are killing people. That's my issue here. I don't want to start shit right now but that's just where I stand. Hey, I get where you're coming from about wanting guns for hunting but no one's using an assault rifle to hunt some game and you should know that better than anyone. But I lost my brother at the hands of a gunman to an assault riffle. I almost lost my sister the same way. I just want you to see that." I explain.
     Scarlett gets up.
     "Where are you going?" I ask.
     She has her head down and her fist clenched.
    "You've changed, Naomi." She sighs.
    "Oh my God, you sound just like Zach right now! How have I even changed? Because I'm not the quite coward who would cower in the corner? Because I stand up for what I believe in now? Because I don't just follow you like a sheep?" I ask.
    "Naomi, what happened?" She asks.
"Look what you did." Nags Lucy.
    She then leaves. Lucy follows her out. Dear God, I ruined tonight.
     "I'm going to just go." My voice cracks.
     "Naomi, wait!" Exclaims Minda.
     I turn around and face my friends.
     "Yeah?" I ask.
     "You shouldn't feel bad." She says.
     "Oh yeah? And why is that?" I sigh.
     "Scarlett's the one who changed, not you." She says.
     "That's what I've been trying to say." I gasp.
     "Well, not how you think..." winces Minda.
     "What do you mean?" I ask.
      "Remember how you asked Scarlett why she hated Kayleigh so much?" Asks Minda.
I nod my head.
"She didn't like Kayleigh because of your brother. She absolutely despised your brother. She hated how he was always talking about Black Lives Matter. Then, she got mad because he was with Kayleigh. She hates interracial couples. She would always tell me that they'd burn in hell for doing that and how he's a typical black guy, never wanting to be with another n-word like Naomi." Explains Minda.
That's when I remember something. Scarlett is incredibly fake.
"I'm just remembering this now but she also was racist toward you, Minda. She would always make fun of how you smelled like curry and was just another typical Indian. She would always make fun of your culture and your parents accents." I explain.
Realizing this, we both come to an agreement.
"How did we let this fake ass bitch do this to us?" I chuckle.
"Now, although we don't agree with her racism, we still have to accept it." Sighs Minda.
     "Why should we though?" I ask.
     "Well, what are we going to do?" Sighs Minda.
"A pact,' I smile,' a POC pact."
She gives me a high five and we hug.
"I like that idea." Agrees Minda.
"Now that we're shit talking Scarlett, I have a confession." Sighs Ethan.
"What is it?" Asks Minda.
"She's sent me nudes before." Sighs Ethan.
     "Did you keep them?" We ask.
     "No! Believe me, never!" Exclaims Ethan.
"So, what do we do now?" Sighs Minda.
"Clearly, she's someone who doesn't deserve our time so let's not give it to her." I propose.
"I like that idea." Smiles Ethan.
"Me too." Agrees Minda.