This is Where my Demons Lie

Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Leave me the hell alone
Reverie Lark
"You can't go to school high," Tammie said, frowning at me.
"Then I won't go," I rolled my eyes and glared when I saw her holding my pack of joints.
"You have to go," Tammie ordered. "It's the first day of senior year."
"So?" I leaned against the wall, an unimpressed eyebrow raised.
"You're going," Tammie said before walking away and leaving my cigarettes behind.
"Fuck you," I growled under my breath, shoving the pack in my black hoodie pocket.
  My white blond hair fell around my face, hiding my pointed ice blue eyes and permanent scowl. Dark shadows adorned the bottom of my eyes and freckles danced across my dark skin.
"If you actually tried, you might not be such a freak," Marie sneered, folding her arms. She was going into her freshman year.
"I don't need or want your stupid advice," I hissed. "Piss off."
"Hey, Rev, how'd you feel about breaking in this glove?" Jonathan suggested casually.
"No," I grabbed my messenger bag and walked out of my prison. My hell. The place I dreaded to go back to.
  Jonathan didn't have any sons, so he kept begging me to play catch with him. He said, and I quote, "You already seem like a boy, so why not?"
  Life sucks. Easy lesson to learn in the Lark house. Oh, and it's full of disappointments. And to Tammie and Jonathan, that disappointment is me. Marie's broken in her own glove with Jonathan. She's the perfect child. A people pleaser and suck up, in my opinion. I'm probably a broken condom baby, at most. A mistake, something that wasn't even meant to happen. Wouldn't be surprising.
"Hi, c-can I sit here," a fair boy with red hair and brown eyes asked nervously. The bus had made another stop and he must've been one of the people at this spot.
"Why would you want to sit next to the school freak," I said in a cold tone, subtly glaring at him through my curtain of hair.
"Y-you're not a freak," he protested, standing awkwardly.
"Sure," I laughed fakely and pointed to a surprisingly empty seat next to Marie. "Go sit there, she's an angel."
  The boy nodded and left. I sighed and leaned against the window. Nobody sat with me, and it wasn't a surprise. I mean, I'm me. I wouldn't want to sit next to or look at me too. So I can't blame people for leaving.
  The school came into sight. Two stories and made of brick. My second hell. I stepped off the bus and dragged myself to the torture building. Students yelled at me, calling me a freak as usual. It was the truth.
"What," I said plainly when the same kid from before stepped in front of me. "Do you want."
"Um, I'm Nathan," he stuck his hand out. A few people were silent. I stared at him in shock.
"Why are you saying this to me, of all people," I hissed, disgusted. "I already know I'm a freak and a waste of space, there's no need to try and play with me."
"What are you -"
"It's fun toying with people's emotions, I know. But it isn't going to work on me. So don't even think for a second that you can trick me into thinking I'm acceptable. Piss off, kid," I snarled, storming pass him and to my locker.
  I pushed my bag into the locker aggressively before walking to the back exit. Anybody could see me. Including staff. But nobody wanted to waste their time on a looser like myself.
  I sat down, back against brick, and lit a joint. After taking a breath, and seeing the smoke rings, I felt a little more relaxed. Smoking wasn't good, I know. But I can't handle the world when I'm sober. If I'm high? Everything fits into place.
  On too loud days, I would draw or drink, even. Drinking wasn't something I did often. It never tasted good, I just needed to feel like I was letting go and the burning taste of the liquor sliding down my throat. It was what kept me sane.
  People suck, I thought, taking another blow. Smoke filled the air around me.
"You shouldn't be out here," it was that Nathan kid again. I internally groaned before facing him. He was a little taller than I thought, but not by much.
"And neither should you. Nobody cares if I'm out here. But people do care about you," I said, tilting my face up and blowing a puff of smoke in his face. He coughed.
"Smoking is bad for your lungs. You could die from this, y'know," Nathan leaned against the wall. I shrugged.
"It doesn't matter if I die. If I'm lucky, I'll be leaving this hellhole soon," I replied, pulling the joint out of my mouth. "Want a hit?"
  To my surprise, he gave a meek nod. "So you do smoke."
"No," he disagreed. "Just wanted to see what was so good about it. And the answer to my question is no, it's disgusting."
"Mkay," I rolled my eyes, taking the cigarette back. Surprisingly, I decided not to light a fifth cigar and instead sat on the grass.
"What's your name?" Nathan asked, sitting next to me. I sighed.
"You just don't stop asking questions, huh?" I noted. " If it makes you shut up, it's Reverie Lark. My name doesn't matter though."
"You're a Lark," he seemed astonished.
"Yeah. It's just so absurd cause I'm nothing like my perfect family, right? Not good at anything other than being a freak. The disgrace of the family, the broken condom baby. Yeah, that's who I am," I growled, glaring at him challengingly.
"No, no, that's not what I meant," Nathan tried to reassure me.
"You don't have to be here," I said quietly.
"What?"
"You don't have to be here. Reputation is the only thing that matters here and if you stay here, you're a looser. So if you're smart, leave me alone," I warned him, standing.
"But-"
"Just leave me the hell alone."