The Fall of a Jewel

Chapter Thirteen

A/N: I apologize in advance

When Dad came home, I didn't see much of him, only a small glimpse when I went to the bathroom. No one bothered me, leaving me to my own devices and allowing me to be in my room. Mom had to call me down for dinner, though.

I went down, my light footsteps making no noise on the steps as I trudged down. Once I smelled spaghetti, I groaned, knowing that dinner was going to be a fight, since Nora hated spaghetti.

"So, um, Jewel," Mom asked halfway through dinner, making me look up, "Are you ready to tell us where you went yesterday?"

I clenched my fists, but sighed, knowing I'd have to tell the two of them at some point. "I heard you two talking about your parents," I said, gesturing towards her, "so I did some research,"

"And...?" Dad asked, rolling his hand to try and get me to keep going.

"And I wanted to see my Aunt's grave," I snapped, getting up and putting my empty plate into the sink.

Mom and Dad gasped, confusing Nora, who was attempting to hide her spaghetti in her hair. "So, that's where you got that old hat!" Dad yelled, standing up. Mom merely sat there, her face blank and her eyes scared.

"Yeah, you know, I just wanted to learn a little bit about Mom's side of the family," I muttered, walking towards the stairs. I ran up towards my room and quietly closed my door. The guilt and hatred began to grow inside of me, so I got out the razor again. I only did it once, sliding the small, but sharp blade across my wrist, making dark, crimson blood seep out of my pale arm.

"Blood is really warm," I remarked to myself as I sat there, staring at it. It was really pretty, but in a horrible and terrifying way.

I didn't get much sleep that night, maybe one or two hours max, but I barely felt any kind of fatigue. Sitting at my desk, I watched the street below, waiting for Annabelle to come over real quick before school. She didn't come this time either.

In fact, I spent the whole day just staring out the window and watching the world. I watched my Uncles Garroth and Laurence go to work, my neighbor, Mrs. Adeline, water her flower garden, and a few stray dogs run around, happily chasing one another. My mind was completely blank all day.

When Mom and Nora came home, they brought Annabelle with them, just like every Thursday. She quickly made her way up to my room and opened the door, stopping when she saw me sitting and staring out the window with a blank face.

"You okay, Jewel?" she asked, coming over and placing a hand on my shoulder.

I jumped slightly and looked up at her, having zoned out watching a fly on the outside of the window. "Yeah," I mumbled, "I'm fine,"

"Are you sure?" she asked, sitting down on the bed, "You've been acting a little strange lately,"

"I'm sure," I sighed, turning backwards in my chair. I crossed my arms on the back of it and laid my head down, my exhaustion suddenly catching up to me.

Annabelle took one look at me and saw something was wrong. "Have you been sleeping?" she asked, leaning forward and inspecting my face. I had seen it in the reflection on the window earlier, I had huge, dark bags under my eyes.

"Can't," I mumbled, gently swatting her hand away.

She sat back down and looked me over. "Do you wanna talk about it?" she asked, tilting her head to get a good look at my whole face.

I shoved it further into my arms, silently glaring at nothing. "No," I grunted, trying to end the conversation.

"Keeping it in isn't good for you," she tried, reaching out to take one of my hands.

As soon as I felt her warm fingertips, I yanked my arm away, throwing the whole chair back a couple of inches. "Don't wanna," I mumbled out, jerking my head, so I didn't have to look at her. My ears flattened against her head and my tail cured in, making me look small.

Annabelle got bigger. Her ears puffed out and so did her tail, making her look even fuzzier. I looked back at her for a split second when I heard her grunt, and I saw her brown eyes flicker to red for a moment.

"I don't wanna start crying," I mumbled, angrily furrowing my brows and looking away again. Something in my gut told me this wasn't gonna end well.

"Crying is good for you," she cooed, keeping her distance this time.

"I don't care!" I yelled, my vision becoming blurry with clear tears. I was beginning to break.

"Well, I do!" she yelled back, standing up. Her eyes were red, now, scaring me slightly, but I masked it with anger.

"Why?" I screamed, standing abruptly, sending my chair toppling sideways, "Why would you care for someone like me?"

"Because we've known each other since we were infants!" Annabelle yelled back, large, red tears streaming down her face.

"Just because we've known each other for so long doesn't mean you have to care about what I'm feeling," I muttered, not meeting her gaze.

"Well, too bad!" she screamed, "Because I do!"

"Well, I don't need anyone to take care of me or care about me at all!" I yelled back, getting closer to her and jabbing a finger into her chest.

"So, you're saying you don't wanna be my friend?" Annabelle yelled, her anger and fear making her whole face turn pink.

I'll always regret my next words. "Yes!"