The Ugly Bet

Chapter 12 - Hidden

Lyz

The next day was an exhausting day. Sure, the projects we submitted were not that hard to do but I'm a perfectionist. Even if I usually finish my projects on the last minute, I make sure mine would stand out. I wouldn't get straight A+ if I didn't have this attitude. It's past three and my vacant period every Thursday so here I was, sitting on the metal cabinet in the rooftop of the admin building. This is only the second tallest building in our school but the view is just as great. I kept strumming my guitar to the notes of the music that's playing in my phone.

Well, I couldn't tell you
Why she felt that way
She felt it every day

I sang from my heart, like I'm the girl in the song. Well, I actually am, so why not?

And I couldn't help her
I just watched her make
The same mistakes again
What's wrong, what's wrong now?
Too many, too many problems
Don't know where she belongs
Where she belongs

I remembered what happened yesterday. I went to Baltimore to see my doctor. There  the biggest hospital in the state and the best doctors are. After the usual check up, there's nothing new Doc Robert said to me, the do's and dont's. Oh, there's an additional, that it is a good thing that I change my wardrobe every six months, my beddings at least every week, and that I'm compatible with my new inhaler. I was about to leave the doctor's office when a very familiar voice which I never thought I would hear there stopped me.

Greg...

She wants to go home
But nobody's home
That's where she lies
Broken inside
With no place to go
No place to go
To dry her eyes
Broken inside

He learned about my secret. He said he didn't mean it but he learned from his Uncle Rob's secretary that he has an appointment with the late Cameron Dale's daughter. He was curious who Ashley's cousin is so he took a peek. And there I was, sitting infront of his Uncle, discussing about my recent confinement. From there, I had to tell him about it. There's no way to deny it anyway. He insisted that he would give me a drive back to my house so I let Marietta drive home already. We had dinner and then he brought me to the park.

"Why do you hide your identity from everyone?"

I gave him a fake smile. "I don't like bragging about myself, telling everyone that like 'hey, I'm the freaking daughter of Cameron Dale, effing kiss my ass'.... No, I'm not like that. I care less about being popular." We were eating buritos while sitting on a bench under a big tree.

"I mean, we should at least know about it. Hell! We just let the owner of the school to be bullied. That's absurd! It... it was so rude.." he was totally upset. I grinned at him.

"Don't worry, you're not in the list of my bullies. You're relieved." I joked.

"But seriously, how can your cousin act that way?"

"She doesn't bully me. She also stops her friends when they try to pick on me. That's fine already."

"But to give them a reason to play with your...." I frowned at him like I don't understand what he's talking about and he trailed off, realizing that he's saying something I don't know. He shook his head and changed his words, still with the same emotion, "Just keeping the truth that could save you from those bad students isn't good enough for a cousin." He talked of Ashley with disgust.

If Greg only knew how I felt....

Open your eyes
And look outside
Find the reasons why
You've been rejected
And now you can't find
What you've left behind
Be strong, be strong now
Too many, too many problems
Don't know where she belongs
Where she belongs