E V E R L Y B L A K E
" YOU LOOK LIKE DEATH" Verena jokes as I walk outside of my dorm room.
"Thanks. I woke up and decided to go with the dead corpses look for today." I respond back sarcastically.
The party was three days ago, and I haven't been able to sleep since. Asher was up playing his music loudly every night since, purposely. I've already complained about it the first night I was here, so he has to be doing it just to get on my nerves, or maybe he's still a little mad about the events that occurred at the party. Either way, I'm barely getting any sleep and I know complaining would just bring him satisfaction to continue it further.
He wants reaction out of me, a reaction that I will not give him. He wants to annoy me, he finds pleasure in it.
As Verena and I begin down the hall, Ashers door open and he walks out in front of us. He closes his door before giving me a glance.
"Lee, you look exhausted. Not sleeping well?" He ask sarcastically, giving me a wink.
"Oh No, I'm sleeping just fine. Don't worry, but thanks for asking. " I reply in my fakest nice voice. If I don't give him a reaction, he won't know he holds any power over me.
Oh and if you're wondering why he called me Lee, it's a nickname. He said that my name wasn't even worth saying and quite frankly took much time and energy to say the whole thing, so he shortened it to "Lee".
Asshole.
_____________•••_____________
It was now later in the afternoon. Asher and I are in my dorm room after deciding to start our project today.
We're sitting on my bed, both doing our own thing. Our grades both matter a lot to us, so despite us disliking each other, we decided to put it behind us to complete this project.
The projects requirements included a paragraph for each place, as well as a handtaken photo. So that meant we would have to visit each place to take a photo and write a summary of it.
I pull a piece of paper out from my binder and title it "The Seven Wonders of California". After skipping a line or two I start to number 1-7 on the margins.
"1: Yosemite National Park
2: Joshua Tree National Park
3: Lake Tahoe
4: The Golden Gate Bridge
5: Balboa Park
6: The Hollywood Sign
7: Santa Monica Pier "
After I finish I smile down at the paper, admiring my handwriting.
My writing was interrupted as Asher snatched the paper up from my binder.
"Hey!" I call out offensively
"What're you doing ?"
"Writing it down.? " I answer, but it comes out more as a question
"Why not just type in the computer?" He ask as a crease forms in the middle of his eyebrows.
"Well we need to make a rough draft before we type the final copy. What, do you not write rough drafts?"
He shakes his head no.
"Of course you don't." I laugh
"Why would I? Especially on a project like this. I wouldn't even need to research or visit these places, I could write it all from the top of my head."
"Well not everyone is from California, and besides we still need to go to take photos." I argue
"That's right. Where are you from? " He ask me, it finally dawns on him that from the time i've been here, my hometown hasn't been discussed.
"I'm from New York."
"Oh, Cool. My parents use to take me and V to New York all the time during Christmas and New Years. I loved it, but you don't seem so enthusiastic about it. Don't you like it or at-least miss it?"
"Don't get me wrong, New York can be great, but it's hard to love or miss it when there's nothing really left there but bad memories."
He nods his head in understanding. I can tell he wanted to dig deeper but fought against it.
_____________•••_____________
We've been working on the paragraph part of our project for a little over an hour. We've been laughing and joking, and it almost seems like we're finally turning a page in this "acquaintanceship" or whatever you'd like to call it.
I was scrolling on the laptop for more information as he got off my bed and stretched. He took a sip of his water bottle sitting on my desk before looking around my room.
His finger ran across my stack of books before picking one up. He looked at me scrunching his eyebrows together before looking back at it.
I watched as he opened the book and removed the picture I had stuck in it as a replacement to a bookmark.
My words got stuck in the back of my throat as he uttered those two words, "Who's he?". His words cut deep like a knife.
Tears prickled my eyes, daring to spill, as I looked at the photo. I chose to ignore his question and return back to my work, in hopes he would just forget about it.
But just my luck, he didn't. "Hello?" He draws out the "o"
I turn my face away from him, I wouldn't let him see me cry.
"Get out".
"Huh?" He questions confusingly
"I said, get your shit and get out." I mutter out bitterly.
I can feel him standing there watching me, trying to study me, deciding on his next move before he finally decided to get his stuff and leave.
As I hear the door close, I get up and lock it. The tears blur my vision and spill down my cheeks as I slide my back down the door until i'm sitting in the floor with my knees to my chest.
Just as I thought this would be a turning point for us, he goes and over steps a boundary.
The boy in the picture was my brother. He's dead now, he killed himself. He was only fourteen; so full of love, and energy, and so much more life to live. There's not a second that I don't close my eyes and see his sweet face. He was my best friend, and it kills me knowing that there was something I could've done to prevent it, but didn't.
Of course Asher didn't know that, but that didn't make it sting any less.
That was only a part of my shitty past in New York.
A part that I'd rather remain buried, but you know what they say;
the past always finds a way of catching up to you.
_____________•••_____________
AUTHORS NOTE
hi angels !
what'd you think of this chapter?
let me know by leaving me a comment, pls !
thanks for reading
i love u endlessly,
- ora <3
YOU ARE READING
Bittersweet
Teen FictionI'll break you in the most beautiful way, and after i'm done with you, you'll finally see why storms are named after people.
