Hello Readers! I'm just gonna start off by saying if you read this story without reading the first one, NOTHING will make sense! It is a sequel to "Fake Smiles and Cut Wrists" and you can find it on my profile. So there's some information you'll nee...
Trigger Warning: Slight description of sexual assault Stay safe
Chandler's POV
Things are so easy to go unnoticed when they aren't directly in front of you. If you say the right things and act the right way, you're perfectly happy.
Nothing is going on.
But how can anything be going on other than the pain you bring on yourself?
You let it get this far. This is your fault. Don't cry about it, man up. Don't be weak. It's not on anyone else but you anyway. You cried all the time when it first started happening.
You cried pretty much every day in freshman year. Stop being such a baby and grow the hell up.
But it hurts.
And no one sees. No one notices.
No one notices that all of your nightmares are all coming true and there's nothing you can do about it.
But they notice when you've sold some pills. And they notice when you're being a dick. And they notice when you've gotten into a fight and they notice that you're failing a few classes.
But what they don't notice?
He's done it twice since he's been out of jail.
And I can't tell anyone.
It's not like before where they just knew. If I told my dad or Andy they'd fix it but I can't do that because then he'll hurt my mom, or Laura or Payton.
I can't let them get hurt. I don't want them to feel like I do. I would kill myself before I ever let that happen.
Plus he took pictures. He has pictures of me. I can't tell anyone. But I want it to stop, how do I make it stop?
And how do I keep lying? What do I tell people? I'm running out of stories. But if I told them the truth would they even believe me? I can't tell them about K...no. I can't say his name.
I look at my phone, I've got a missed call from Zay from an hour ago. I sigh as I push myself off of the bed I've been laying on all night.
When I call him back he tells me that they're at the library and have been for the last hour. I forgot I told them I'd go with them.
Getting dressed hurt, and they shouldn't see me like this. But I really need a distraction, and I guess my parents came home and went back to sleep because I haven't seen them yet.
I limp out into the living room.
I see my dad sitting on the couch and I panic. What do I tell him?
"Chandler? You uh...you okay?" He asked, walking over to me. I roll my eyes.
"Dad I'm fine." I said. He looks uneasy. "You sure?" He says.
It's weird that he hasn't asked what happened like everyone else probably will.
I scoff. "Not like you haven't done worse." I shake my head and walk out the door. I know he's trying to be better, but that doesn't change the past.
I grab the bike that Zay gave me from the shed. I ignore the pain that sitting on it brings as I pedal to the library.
Third Person POV
When Chandler gets to the library, his friends immediately notice the bruises and cuts.
"Chandler be honest, was it your dad?" Autumn asked. Chandler sighed. Of course they'd think that, it's the only thing that makes sense.
"No, it wasn't. I'm okay, can we just do this stupid homework? If I fail it'll make a whole lot of people more disappointed than they already are so..." Chandler quickly changes the subject.
They all hesitantly agree to just work on their homework.
After a while they were all done with their homework and were just sitting around and talking, getting shushed by the librarian every now and then.
Laura was fed up with the happy-go-lucky conversation that was taking place.
"Okay how long until someone acknowledges the fact that Chandler literally walked in here looking half dead?" She asked, visibly annoyed.
"When don't I look half dead?" Chandler joked. Then he got serious. "How long until we acknowledge the fact that you keep getting notifications by a bunch of cliche' cyber bullies?" He asked.
Laura sighed. "Okay, why don't I tell all of you all about how everyone online is saying that I slept with the entire basketball team? Oh yeah, I know. Because everyone already knows about that. Whereas no one knows who beat you bloody or why. So, your turn." She said sarcastically.
Chandler glared hard at her. "Actually, no one knows why Haleigh ever started that rumor. So maybe talk about that?" He asked.
"Okay, enough. Clearly you both have stuff going on that neither of you wanna talk about so just drop it. And for the love of Jesus stop hating each other. It just doesn't feel right." Zay sighed.
Chandler found it a lot easier to act angry than to act happy, because in truth he was angry. He was angry and hurt that no one noticed how badly he was hurting. They noticed the bruises but they don't notice how he feels.
Not that he can blame them entirely. He's the one burying his feelings.
"I don't hate him, and I don't know why he hates me." Laura said.
I don't hate anyone.
"I hate everyone." Chandler lied angrily. Zay rolled his eyes. "I'm going home." He said, grabbing his stuff and leaving. (Me too Zay. Me too.)
Third Person POV {The next day}
When Andy picked up Chandler from his parents' house, he noticed the small cuts and bruises, although so small they looked more like hickeys, that littered his arms and face.
"Chandler what happened?" He asked before Chandler was even in the car all the way. Chandler just sighed and shook his head.
"Your dad? If it was him you tell me now and you'll never come back here." Andy seethed.
"It wasn't dad, I promise. Just a guy at the dollar store. I rode my bike down there and some punk tried to say it was his bike and that I stole it." Chandler lied with ease.
Andy was skeptical, but didn't question it. All he could do was pray that Chandler was telling the truth.
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