Outcast

9 -Realization

*mentions of real bad stuff*

I meet with Bella on the sidewalk for school the next day.

"Hey Bell!" I say using another nickname.

"Uh, Hey," She says looking at her feet.

She keeps walking while I run up beside her to catch up.

"You wanna go to the cafe after school today?" I ask excitedly.

"I don't know, maybe," she mumbles.

Huh. Usually I'm not the chipper one here.

"You okay?" I ask.

"Uh, yeah. Why wouldn't I be?" Bella says quietly.

"Well you're not talking very much like you usually do, and you always wanna go to the cafe," I state.

Bella stays quiet. I look at her face.

That's more bruises than yesterday.

"Bella are you okay?" I ask again.

"I just said I was," she says getting annoyed.

"I don't believe you. Why do you have all these bruises?" I ask.

Bella stops walking and becomes dead silent. It wouldn't be hard to hear a fly buzzing around your ear from the silence.

"What bruises?" She asks.

"These," I say pointing to her face.

Her straight, orange hair parts from the front of her face. I look even closer and I see makeup.

"Why do you have makeup only on specific spots of your face?" I ask nervously.

"I don't know what you're talking about. But we need to get to school," Bella says, walking again.

"Okay. But if anything's going on, you can trust me," I say.

We walk in silence until we get to our lockers.

———

"You! Go get the dodgeballs! And hurry up this time!" The gym teacher yells at me.

It wouldn't kill you to learn my name.

I speed-walk with her keys in my hand to the usual supply closet. I look back to see Bella standing in line, looking down like she was this morning. I turn back and open the door.

Should probably prop the door open like Daniel said.

I take a plastic orange cone and place it between the two wooden doors.

"Glad to see you here again."

I quickly turn around to, unsurprising, see Daniel.

"Nobody's glad to see me," I say turning back around.

"I guess I'm the first," he says.

"Why are you here?" I ask him.

"Needed to get a few footballs. We're having PE outside today," He says.

"Well that must be fine," I say sarcastically.

"Heh, yep. What're you looking for," He asks.

"The usual dodgeballs."

He walks up and reaches into a pile of clutter. I turn around and keep looking, but when I turn back, his hand is holding the bag.

"How did you know it was there?" I ask.