Redeeming Qualities

~ Chapter 2 ~

Alright, Taylor, let's try this again. No more yelling or insulting your rapist ex boyfriend's sex game. No more hiding in bathrooms, and no more running out of classrooms in a super dramatic fashion.

As I walk to school, I prepare myself for what I'm getting ready to do. I have finally accepted to myself that no, this isn't normal. It's not normal that a girl gets raped and then has to sit in a classroom next to her rapist. It's not normal that I have to pretend that everything is the same, when really it's not.

I'm going to request to my school counselor that I switch out of his class. I will tell her that him and I have problems that would distract ourselves and the rest of the class.

If I get my way, I won't have to step foot in a classroom with him ever fucking again.

I get to the school, and it feels like people are more aware of me than they were yesterday. Did I really make that big of a scene? I don't dare look up at anyone. As curious as I am about what people have heard, I am not going to initiate any conversation.

I stop at my locker, and start to sort through things to get ready for my classes. I try to remember the speech I prepared for my counselor in hopes to divert my attention from everyone's glares. When I finally get my act together, I close my locker only to come face to face with a fuming Sarah. She slams me against my locker.

"Take the fucking video down, bitch." She says in my face, a fistful of my t shirt. Video? What video? I don't use social media, much less am I capable of posting a video anywhere.

"What video? The one of you picking your nose? No sorry, I'm keeping that one up forever-" She shoves me against the locker again. She doesn't like my sense of humor, apparently.

"Now is not the time for your stupid jokes, Taylor!" She yells in my face. Wait, did she just fucking say my jokes are stupid? Wow, this bitch really outdid herself this time. She presses closer to my face. If this were any other scenario, I'd think she were about to kiss me. "Listen, I don't know what kind of infatuation you have, but don't screw up June and Tyler's relationship just because you're jealous. You already caused enough trouble in our group, do you have to go and post that disgusting video to top it off? Are you really trying to remind us how much of a cunt you are, as if we'd forget so soon?" I think it was just then when I finally realized that she was serious. I put both hands up in surrender.

"You're talking to the wrong person. I don't know what kind of video there is of Tyler, or why you think I'd post it." She steps back off of me, and looks at me suspiciously.

"Of Tyler? Wait so you really don't know how we could possibly assume the video was put up by you? Are you that stupid?" I haven't even seen this video, but I am getting a sinking feeling deep in the core of my body. My mind goes back to yesterday, at Tyler's threat when I called him out in first period. Fuck.

Tyler did something because I spoke up to him. He posted some sort of video, and now Sarah is pissed at me, and probably the rest of the population is too. I shove myself away from Sarah, and start bolting towards my first period class.

Fuck the counselor for now. I need to figure out what the hell is going on. I am so filled with adrenaline that I don't even realize that I'm about to do the same thing that got me into this mess in the first place.

I slam open the door to my classroom, and the door hits the wall with a bang.

"Tyler, what the fuck did you do?!" I all but scream at him, and kick his desk. My teacher stands up as if she's going to say something. Tyler gives me a smirk.

"I didn't do anything, you crazy bitch." He says, smugly at me. I pick up a chemistry textbook and throw it at his head.

"You think you're fucking invincible, don't you?! You think you won't be called out on your shit one day?! You're a disgusting fucking creature, Tyler, and one day you'll get every fucking thing that's coming to you, do you hear me?!" He chuckles at my scene.