Rising Star: Book 3 of The Orion Series

Starting To Get Complicated

**CONTENT AND TRIGGER WARNING** Depiction of emotional trauma and severe depression. Depiction of escalation of bullying.

Here is a toll

My forgiven soul

Take pictures of it

Here while I sit

Black Polaroid

My life is a void

Grew up in an illusion

Getting this delusion

Realized it's an intrusion

Of real reality

You sit in your chair

Like some Buddhist heir

Give me your best shot

Twist me your best plot

Send me all your best demons

I'll send you all my best seasons

The world was a world

Inside of my head

And all of that was

Just inside of my bed

As I laid there, dead

The lies that we spoke

And the lies that you took

I've had enough

No more dreams

And no more lies

These are all things

I've come to despise

Unable to feel

Unable to heal

I think what I need

I need what is real

--The song There's A Reason Dreams Are Numbered, lyrics by Orion Bauwens

The rest of the year goes relatively normally. Orion is still a goof off, with multiple detentions from Ms. Ketter under his belt. I attempt to not get into trouble, although it's hard with Orion. I can tell Ben is sometimes annoyed by his antics, but he's always too nice to say anything. Plus the three of us have quickly become best friends and are pretty much inseparable.

Stacy is single. I still refuse to tell Orion. If he can bug me with his pranks and horseplay, I'm allowed to get under his skin, too. She doesn't come around much on account of the school year, but whenever Stacy does pop by and Orion is around, it's comedic gold.

Stacy obviously likes him, too. They're both too shy to do anything about it. So there's a lot of small chit chat, a lot of blushing on both parties, and a lot of awkward flirting. I've never seen this side of Stacy and I gotta say, it's hilarious. I almost feel bad for them.

Almost.

Occasionally Orion comes to school with a busted lip, bruised cheek, or black eye. It's rare, but when it happens it raises my eyebrows (Ben's, too). Every time Orion refuses to divulge proper information, so after the third time he shows up to school like that we just stop asking.

It's not until the middle of the school year that something happens which really makes me question what's going on with Orion. It's a Wednesday night--I don't think I'll ever forget that fact. It was late, around nine o'clock. I was in my pajamas already, about to go to bed.