Ultraviolence

Chapter Seven

"No one ever fell in love gracefully"

...

My phone buzzed on my desk as I was typing my essay for AP English. I typed the rest of my paragraph and then checked it, deciding it was time for a break. School should've been the one thing on my mind right now, but it wasn't. It was what Noah told me earlier in the library before school started. Ever since then I had avoided Harry as best as possible, without being rude. Speaking of Harry, I picked up my cell phone and read the text from him.

"Everything okay?" It read.

"No. Everything isn't okay. You're a player who hurt someone so bad that she decided to end her own life and I almost fell into your trap. I don't want anything to do with you anymore and now I understand why Noah was trying to keep me away from you ever since the first day." I typed, but then deleted it all, not wanting to start too much drama.

"Yep" I said instead.

"It didn't seem like it today." Harry instantly replied.

"Everything's fine. I'm just really stressed about that essay." I lied.

"Oh okay. Well I'll let you go. See you tomorrow, love." He responded.

I sat on my bed, lost in thought. Does Harry really think that I wouldn't eventually find out what he's done? I just can't stop thinking of how thankful I am for Noah. I can't go back there again. Especially here, in Jonas. We can't move again just because of my insanity. We just can't.

I quickly erased the thoughts from my mind and ran down stairs to get some water from the kitchen. I was startled by a woman with long, dark brown curls sitting on our living room couch. It was my sister, Alison.

"Alison?" I asked.

"Spencer!" She acclaimed as she got up from the couch and walked towards me, spreading her arms for a hug. I haven't seen her in five months.

"When did you get here?" I questioned.

"I arrived in Jonas about an hour ago, but I've only been here for five minutes. I didn't hear you, so I thought no one was home." Alison replied.

"How long are you gonna be home?" I asked, pulling out of her hug.

"I'm heading back Sunday, just making a weekend trip. I had to see the new house!" She halfway shouted. Alison attended the New York University School of Law. Which was about a four-and-a-half hour drive from here. She must have left class early.

Alison was the perfect child. She had perfect grades. She never did anything wrong. She was athletic. She only dated the country-club boys whose parents owned some big company. She always did everything she could to please our parents. Every time I did something good, she had to top it. She was a model child. She was well-liked. She had a lot of friends. She wasn't crazy...

"So where's my room?" She eagerly asked.

I led her upstairs, to the first room on the left, her bedroom. My mother insisted that we unpacked her room first, so everything was neatly put away in her quiet little bedroom. Ugh.

"It looks just the same." Alison said, seeming disappointed. It really did look the same as it did back at our house in Maine. Same bedding, same curtains, same layout. Her's was the only room we didn't change the look of.

"Yeah it does." I said.

"When will Mom and Dad be home?" She questioned as she set her bag down beside her bed.

"I don't know. But I can call them and let them know you're here." I offerred.

"Call them, but don't tell them I'm here. I want to surprise them."