Sweet Like Cinnamon

Pt 6

"Where were you yesterday?" Alyssa asked Mikaela as we were walking in the halls.
"I had a migraine, but I'm all hunky dory now," she chuckled.
I laughed at her term for being okay and so did Alyssa.
"I thought you were at the hospital," Garrett said slyly.
Mikaela stopped in her tracks and looked up at Garrett. She studied him him silently. How did he know she was at the hospital? Maybe they really know each other.
"I'll catch up with you guys," she said referring to Alyssa and I.
Alyssa grabbed my hand and dragged me along to a turn behind the lockers.
"I'm going to listen," I said, "You go ahead."
"Whatever," she scoffed and walked off.
I pressed my back against the wall and tried to listen to what they were saying.
"You're Damon, right," she said frantically, "Eren's brother?"
There's that Eren again and Garrett isn't his real name? Why didn't he tell me.
"Yeah, and?" he replied.
"You remember me? It's me, Mikaela. I'm Eren's lov-,"
"Yeah I fucking remember you. You fucking killed Eren. I can't believe you didn't die. It should have been you not him."
What the hell? I opened up to Mikaela and she didn't do the same to me. We made a promise and she didn't keep it. This world is fucked. Everyone sucks.
"No," Mikaela said weakly, "I-I didn't do it. I didn't mean for him to die. I wanted to go with him. I didn't want to be alive either!"
"Bullshit," Garrett snapped, "You were found on top of him, breathing and you had to get those plates. It should have been you on the bottom."
"No, Damon,"she paused, "Don't hate me because you didn't understand Eren and I did. That's it right? You're just mad because I was his everything and not you."
I heard a slam against the locker. Mikaela yelped in pain. Should I intervene, or listen some more?
"Shut the fuck up!" he sneered.
"No, you shut the fuck up! I have to live with this guilt.You were the only family he had left and you didn't fucking get that! I needed you when he died. You were all I had left. You just-" she breathed, "left without saying a word."
"Don't think I don't know that! I couldn't look at you because all I saw was him. I couldn't bare it."
"He'd hate you for leaving me," she said quietly.
"Fuck you," he spat and another slam was heard.
Something came over me; that sense of protection I felt before. I hastily turned the corner and went over to where Mikaela and Garrett were. They both looked at me in shock. Garrett had both of his hands on the collar of Mikael's sweater. His hands were clenched hard, starting to turn read. Mikaela's head was slung backwards, tears escaping her frantic eyes and panting hard
"What the fuck Garrett," I paused, "Or should I say, Damon."
"Eli," he said as released Mikaela, "It's not what it looks like."
"Why ar-," I was cut off by Mikaela pulling on my arm.
"Just forget it," she said, "Let's go."
I looked back and saw Garrett bend his head forward with shame. My chest felt heavy for him. I had no idea he was hurting and I never bothered to ask. Maybe, I'm the asshole and everyone around me is okay. What have I been doing? I've been selfish and only cared about myself.
"I'm sorry," Mikaela said softly as we made our way to her car.
She unlocked the door for me and I got into the passenger seat.
"Yeah," I said kind of bluntly, "What the hell was that about?"
She didn't say anything and just drove. We were in the car for a while, driving on side roads that I have no idea where they lead to. The scenery blurred together, making the outside seem like a painting.
After some time, the car pulled into a forest type place. I was able to hear water crash against rocks. The air felt diaphanous, almost in a surreal way. The emerald green grass was matte under the shade of the very grand oak tree.
We came to the edge of a cliff and stopped. Mikaela looked down comfortably, but with a straight face. Her blonde hair blew in the light wind, making her look enchanting. The coolness of the waves below made me feel frigid.
"It was a cliff like this," she said, looking off into the distance, "This is like the cliff Eren and I decided to jump down."
"Mika-"
"Just shut up and listen," she threatened, "Eren and I met when we were 9. He moved into the house down the street because his parents died in a car accident. He was too young to understand why him and his brother were being left alone for long periods of time in that house. His uncle was the only one left to care for him and Damon. He assaulted and molested multiple times for money since his uncle needed it."
I gasped at that. So Eren was also going through the same thing I was. I looked at her with a sorry look of understandment.
"I went to his house to meet him and he was so happy to see someone that couldn't hurt him for the first time. I have never seen anyone so happy. He was my everything, my life. He made me forget my loneliness, he made me forget everything. I was more than in love, but sadly, you can't say everyone... I wasn't enough for him. I couldn't do anything about his home life and that he only saw himself as a toy no matter how many times I denied it. We planned a suicide."
She chuckled darkly, like she's still in denial about everything. I had no idea she was hurting, just like Garrett. Man, I am a shitty person. I'm too wrapped in my own world to notice the pain of others.
"I was 15 at the time. Almost 3 years ago, there was a chance I wouldn't be standing her right now. It was a cool day like the on today, at a cliff like the one we're standing on. We bother grabbed each other and jumped," she paused, staring at the ground, "It was like slow motion. I remember regret yanking on me. I didn't want to end it right now and somehow, he saw it. He turned us around so when we impacted the ground, I would be okay and I was okay. The entire right side of my body from the collarbone down was shattered. I had to get those stupid plates, so now I'm considered handicapped."
I didn't say anything; I had nothing to say. My heart ached for Mikaela.
"I decided the move away from everything, to start a new life so I came here and met you," she said and started to walk towards me. She wrapped her small arms around me and buried her face into my chest, "I feel like I got a second chance to love someone. So please, don't leave me like Eren did."
I felt a weight lift off my shoulders. Mikaela was able to make me regret everything. Forget my loneliness, my struggles, my sadness, him. She made me happy and I don't want to lose the feeling I'm feeling right now.
"It's okay," I mumbled, pressing her head closer to my heart, "I won't leave you."
I felt her smile.
All of a sudden, her phone buzzed. An unknown number texted with several images. I started shaking, unable to control my erratic breathing. I stepped back from Mikaela as she scrolled through the images with a puzzled look. The images contained pictures of me; pants down, shirt up, bruised and beaten sexually and physically.
Different men were in many of the pictures, happy with the pleasure they got out of me. The only person who has these are... Alyssa. She was the one fucking person I told about this and this is the shit she does. How terrible.
I covered my face with my hands in shame. What is Mikaela going to say?
"Eli... you've been through this too... just like Eren," she looked up at me with sorrowful eyes.
I nodded slowly. I down and saw Mikaela immediately erase the pictures and number.
"This is absurd," she said, "Who did this?"
"Alyssa is the only one I told about this," I croaked, "I don't know why she did this."
She placed a hand on my shoulder and said, "I'll fight her."
"Are you serious?" I deadpanned. I mean, I wasn't against it, but she needs to think rationally.
"Yeah, I've always wanted to be in a fist fight anyways."
We went back to the car and made our way the school. My breathes and leg wouldn't stop shaking from the feeling that something bad is about to happen.
"You're going to make me nervous if you keep doing that," she teased.
We saw Alyssa standing outside the school gate, on her phone. We pulled up to the curb and parked. I got out of the car Alyssa immediately smiled, but it faltered after she saw Mikaela.
"Hi Eli," she said innocently.
I glared at her, a sense of courage building within me, "How fucking dare you send those pictures of me at my most vulnerable to Mikaela."
"Listen I-."
"No, you don't get to say a word," I sneered, "That was my secret that only you know because I trusted you. It wasn't your place to share it with Mikaela. Any emotion I had with you, is nothing."
"Eli, no! I never meant to hurt you... I was just jealous that you opened up to Mikaela more than you have with me. Couldn't you notice I had feelings for you?" she frantically spat out.
"Are you fucking kidding me? You're nothing but an insensitive bitch with no respect for anyone but yourself. I never want to talk, see or hear from you again. You betrayed me. You know I hate myself in those pictures, " I spat back.
I started shaking; blood boiling inside of me. Mikaela must have noticed because she gently tugged on my hand to pull me away from Alyssa. I Put my hand up to my eyes to block the tears gently cascading down my cheeks.
"Shhh," she coaxed, rubbing her thumb over the back of my hand, "It's okay. What you can't help doesn't define who you are a person."
"I finally stood up for myself," I measly chuckled.
She looked up at me with those bright green eyes me and smiled, "Yeah, you did."