The Text

Chapter 14

"Where the he** have you been?!!? As soon as that stupid bell rings, you're supposed to come straight home!!!" My mother yelled, causing me to flinch.

Not even a second after I came into the house, my dad kicked me in the stomach. I fell on my knees to the hard cold floor. After I caught my breath, I took a seat on our couch. That's where I am now, being yelled at by my parents who I believe are the devil in disguise.

"T-The busses were running l-late so they held all of the students after school for around t-two hours." I replied, stuttering out of fear.

My dad is being more quiet than usual which scares the he** out of me.

"You lying piece of sh**!! Why would the busses be running late?!?"

"Something about an annual mechanical check up. I-It's required by the state." I answered my demanding father, breathing deeper and deeper from the way he's watching my every move.

"If I find out you're lying, you can say goodbye to school and any freedom you have." My mom promised, inching closer to me.

"Oh no. She doesn't get away that easy. You're gonna be punished like you've never been punished before. For now, go to your gosh dang room and think about everything you're fixing to lose!!!!!" The evil human being standing in front of me shouted, spitting in my face.

I just followed his orders like always and headed to my room. I knew it was gonna be bad, but not this bad. He has never been this way before. He always had a punishment ready on the spot; he didn't need time to think of something so horrific that he sent me to my room. Terrified is an understatement for what I'm feeling right now. Not knowing what to do or how long I was gonna be stuck in here, I took out my phone and text the only person I knew would get my mind off of things.

To: My Bestie! :D

'What are you up to? Is Grayson over there?'

A few minutes later, she replied.

'Yeah. We're planning his freakin' date. :'('

'What do you have so far?'

'I suggested taking her out to eat at a fancy restaurant and then go a little ways out of town to look up at the stars on a blanket.'

'Sounds great. What does he think of the idea?'

'He likes it, but he wants something a little more extravagant. He says that this girl deserves more than that. I know I should be happy for him, I-I just can't help but to hate him and the girl.'

I laughed at this. Only if she knew she was the girl she hated.

'Just be happy you're spending time together. If you can't date, maybe you can just be close friends. Don't be too pissed at him.'

'I know. Hey I've gotta go. Grayson wants to brainstorm some more ideas. I'll talk you later. Love you! ;) XOXO'

Well that distraction didn't last long, but I'm thankful for it. I'll do anything to get my mind off of the possibilities swirling around in my head. I heard a loud slam and then footsteps started slowly approaching my bedroom door. I quickly hid my phone and pretended to be studying, throwing papers and a few books on my bed. Soon, a soft knock sounded in my room. When I opened the door, what I saw shocked me beyond belief.

"Chloe....Your dad is.....He's planning on doing something horrible to you. You need to prepare yourself for the worst. I'm gonna try to prevent him from going too crazy, but I won't be able to hold him back very long."

I was too shocked to reply. My mom was in tears, warning me about my dad. It has to be something bad if she's in this state. She hates me just as much as him but I guess she has a bigger heart than I originally thought. After a couple of seconds, she cleared her throat and left, leaving me frozen in my spot, contemplating on whether I should try and talk to her or not. Seeing that it would be a bad idea, I decided against it, saving myself from anymore confusion. I closed my door and crashed onto my cozy bed. To pass some time, I took out my notebook and began writing. This go around, I wrote about what I wish my life was. The main character, Farah, was popular at school but not to the point of being hated by everyone. She was dating the guy of her dreams, had the best parents anyone could ever ask for, she had amazing clothes that made her feel confident, and she had all the freedom she wanted. Of course it was a short story, ten pages at the most, so towards the end of the story, she and her boyfriend moved their relationship up to the next level. He asked her to marry him. Farah was a senior in high school so they were gonna wait until after she graduates college to get married. Their rings are a symbol of the strong, unconditional love they share. They were the happiest couple you'd ever have the pleasure of meeting. It will never happen to me which is why I wrote about it. I can only live my dreams in the stories I write. That's the only way I'll be able to see what my life could've been like. The life I crave, the life I dream of, the life I have always hoped of having lives in my stories, the only place it'll ever be. Hiding my notebook, I snuck out of my room to see if my dad was back. Luckily, he wasn't and my mom seems to be gone too. I walked into the kitchen and noticed a bowl of soup on the cabinet. There was a note under it. Picking it up, I read the neat cursive writing.