Barely There

Chapter 13 - Heavy Loneliness

Dragging one foot in front of the other, she staggered towards the building. The darkness of the day burned her sensitive skin and she yearned to hide in the light of the shade. Salty remnants of rivers scarred her colorless skin and the swollen circles under her eyes made her look like she had avoided sleep for years. The wind picked at her normally soft, cocoa hair and let go of the disheveled and tangled mess beneath the smooth surface. The bright rays of light disappeared as she reached the end of the crowded street. The girl sighed gratefully as the looming tower engulfed her in its void. 

The security guard tipped his navy hat towards Leda and dropped his jaw in surprise at her state. 

"Uh... Hi Miss Leda. How are you doing today?"

"I'm okay," she mumbled out politely, flashing a forced smile to appear truthful. 

Everything around her blurred into nothingness as the memories of the previous week haunted her exhausted mind. Somber spirits moved across the lobby and she blended into the crowd, walking  unnoticed by the once hateful gazes. 

Clink.

Clink.

Clink.

She walked freely under the chains, her heels rough against her heels.

Minutes later, she found herself seated at the clean desk. The blonde girl across the exhausted brunette gasped as her mouth opened at the sight. 

"Leda you look like shit."

"Wow thanks, Amelia. I didn't notice."

Scoffing, Leda turned on the computer and typed mechanically as the clock struck eight. The slim digits of her hands danced across the keyboard, numbers and letters appearing on the bright screen. As the sound of typing increased, the previously dull pain in her head intensified and she groaned before standing up and moving towards the women's restroom.

Her sore feet stepped into white restroom, a cold draft blowing through the vents and chilling her skin. The sound of typing faded. With her hands gripping the marble sink, Leda sighed. The dreary girl turned on the faucet and splashed cold water against her hot face, blinking the water out of her eyes. 

The restroom door opened.

"Hey babe."

"What the-"

Jumping from her hunched position against the sink, Leda craned her neck towards the voice and felt her blood run cold as she took in the figure. 

"Oh my god, no please."

"What's wrong baby?"

"Daniel I have told you several times to not call me that."

His dark eyes trailed her body in a leering manner and she felt her own powerlessness before channelling some meager strength to her skin. 

"Leave."

"Leda don't be like that."

"Why can't you fucking get it through your thick skull? I don't like you. Stop being a perverted little prick and learn to fucking respect women when they tell you to back off. You're a joke Daniel. Just leave."

A sneer took over his stubbled face, his body straightening out into a defensive form before he began to move towards her. His cigarette stained hand grabbed her waist as his calloused skin stroked her cheek. The man's poisonous voice spoke out and disgust welled up in her throat as he regarded her with unwelcome affection.

"Come here Leda. Tell me what's wrong. I'm sure I can make it all better."

The wall of self-control crumbled to pieces as anger coursed through her skin. Her hand balled into a tight fist, her knuckles turning white as her hand swung towards his hooked noise. A large cracking sound of bone echoed through the empty restroom and she flinched before she let the anger take over again. His hands left her waist and flew to the bruised and bleeding surface of his nose.

"WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU? YOU CRAZY BITCH!"

"DANIEL I WARNED YOU NOT TO TOUCH ME."

They turned their heads towards the sound of the door slamming against the wooden walls. Amelia stood in the doorway, her eyes wide and disproportionate against her soft face. 

"What is going on here?"

"Leda just attacked me!" his whiny voice ignited the red flame beneath her skin and she fought with herself to remain intact. 

"Don't you dare. Daniel you basically sexually assaulted me in the bathroom so I punched you in defense."

"I would never do that Amelia. You know me!" 

The blonde's jewel green eyes sympathized with the false innocence painted intricately across the man's face. Amelia looked past Daniel to Leda's silently raging figure. 

"Leda, you might have just overreacted you know? You've been so on edge today but it's okay I'm sure Danny will forgive you. Right Danny? It was just a silly mistake."

Leda's frown deepened as she felt the betrayal twisting her guts from the inside. 

"Yeah Leda don't worry about-" the smirk slowly left his smug face as he noticed her shift. 

"Don't you dare fucking tell me I'm overreacting."

"Leda! I'm trying to help you!"

"I don't want or need your help."

"Whatever Daniel let's go."

Amelia glared at the brunette as she hooked her arm through the man's; dragging him out of the bathroom as he kept his hand on the swollen mountain on his face. 

At the shutting of the door, Leda began to step backwards until her back collided against the wall. She let herself crumple to the ground under the weight of the morning and past week. A chill breeze blew through the vent, the eerie howls bouncing off the thick walls. She shivered as she felt her eyes start to water. 

The tears began to fall, one after the other. Her eyes stung with the familiar salty water and she felt her nose begin to run. 

"Please no more," she whimpered.

In a world where anger signaled strength while crying showed weakness, she had crafted a mask of anger for them. But the mask couldn't hold up much longer and as the hot tears fell down her cheeks, she could feel the glue start to wash away and the mask started to slip down.

The events and expressions of the people around her began to flash through her messy mind. Grayson's anger. Caleb's disappointment. Amelia's annoyed state. She fought with herself on the ground as she continued to cry silently. Until her eyes were dried and her skin raw. 

A cold shadow of doom and hopelessness glared at her balled-up body. The shadow started to crawl towards the cowering girl, before seeping into her soul. The darkness spread, ripping away the oxygen in her lungs, contaminating her blood with black. She struggled to breathe and let go. She sobbed, wailing into her sleeve, straining to remain quiet, 

As she sat on the grimy, cold tiles of the bathroom, she wept. The reason murky beneath the flood of depression. But she wept nonetheless.

The mist in her head cleared a little.

She was utterly alone.