Hidden In Plain Sight

Bloodshed

 'There are the decisions you make, and then there are the decisions made for you.' 

'You're going to be late if you keep this up.' I said, blowing lightly on the bowl of Kraft Dinner. 'You can't do this anymore.' My mother nodded silently from the kitchen table. I sighed. 'Are you even listening to what I'm saying.'

My mother continued to gaze out the window, nodding slowly. 'That's great, Honey. I'm glad.'

I threw my head back and groaned. I chucked a bag of peeled oranges onto the placemat in front of her and stormed off upstairs to my bedroom, but stopped halfway. The door beside mine was closed and abandoned. I stood there silently for a moment before shaking myself out of it and continuing to get ready for my first day of grade 10. I tried to distract myself by cleaning up my room for the first time in forever, but the room beside mine still haunted the back of my mind. Everytime I'm convinced I've forgotten about it and gotten over it, it proves my wrong time and time again. Dad was right. I was addicted.

I knew I shouldn't have, but part of me begged for it. The part of me that couldn't let go. I looked at myself in the mirror.

I wasn't in my room anymore. I was in a forest, surrounded by fallen trees and pounding rain. Almost as quickly as I had came here, I had become soaked.

'Hero? Hero!' a voice called.

I flinched. I hadn't heard that name for a long time. A boy jumped over the fallen logs and ran past me, not realizing that I was observing. He was a tall boy with piercing grey eyes and messy red hair. It was then that noticed that the red wasn't his hair. The boy's head was bleeding severely. Years ago, I would've rushed over to try and help the boy. Now, I just continued to watch on, not really caring about the bleeding boy with the piercing grey eyes.

The boy grasped his stomach and hissed. His white shirt was slowly turning red. I was beginning to become curious. What happened to you? I shook my head. No, what's going to happen to you?

Suddenly a nearby bush behind us started to move. The boy hadn't seemed to see it because of his state of panic. I narrowed my eyes. I didn't like the sudden pounding and clenching of my lungs and heart. I was starting to get nervous. Then, out of the bushes, came a young girl. A blonde girl with curly short hair and a black and red scarf tied tightly around her neck. She was wearing the same school uniform that I had tried on the day before. The school uniform for Haven High. What alarmed me most wasn't the blood stained knife in her right hand, but the look in her dark black eyes. They looked dangerous. For once in a very long time, I wanted to warn the boy who still hadn't noticed the young girl approaching him, but I knew it was impossible. Even if I screamed, shouted or cried, the boy would never know. In this world, I was invisible.

Finally, as the girl was less than a foot away from the boy, he noticed her presence. His eyes widened and for a second he looked scared before his features relaxed. He opened his arms and the girl ran into them. Warning signs went off in my head. The girl looked familiar, as if I had seen her before.

'I've been looking for you.' the boy whispered into the girl's neck.

The girl nodded. 'I'm sorry that I have caused you any trouble.'

Part of me started to think that maybe the two were lovers, or maybe they were friends. Maybe the boy wouldn't get more hurt then he already was, though it was strange that the girl didn't seem to care.

Then, expelling all thoughts of relief, the girl directed the blade to the boy's back, letting it graze him. Instead of flinching or freaking out like I had assumed he would, the boy started to laugh.

'Go on.' he reassured. 'I'm used to the pain by now.'

The girl hesitated no longer and plunged the blade into the boy. Blood splattered onto the ground behind them and all over the girl, but she paid no mind. Tears started to stream down her face and all of a sudden, I recognized why the girl had looked so familiar. She was the girl in the mirror.

I clenched my eyes shut and collapsed to the ground, burying my head in my arms. Even after all this time, I still wasn't used to seeing death. It was silent for what seemed like hours. I didn't look up, scared to see the river of blood form and taint the grass. Without warning, there was a knock on my door and I discovered I was back on my bed. I furrowed my eyebrows together. Mom wouldn't get up from her spot at the table even if her life depended on it.

'Helana?' I heard Dad's voice calls from the other side of the door. 'Are you alright, Kiddo?'

I let out a sigh of relief and went to open the door. Dad had grey eyes, blonde hair and a charming personality that made it easy for him to make friends. I was glad that we were related sometimes. He walked around me room, inspecting the mess. I had books, writing tools and old drug containers littered around my bedroom floor. Dad did not look impressed.

'You look like a mess.' Dad stated. He grabbed both of my shoulders and steered me over to my bedroom mirror. I could feel a headache coming on. 'You've been crying again, haven't you?'

I shrugged, not really wanting to admit it even though it was definitely obvious. For a while, we stood there, silent. I glared at the mirror and the girl who was reflected back.

My blonde, short curly hair.

The black and red scarf tied tightly around my neck.

My pitch black eyes.