My Words Are Law

Troubles Arise (7)

"Oh... My hands slipped. You can just pick them up, though..? Right? Go on..." Melinda's taunting words struck a chord in Amaryllis, but she remained calm. Several phones sprang out in the open, the cameras capturing the show coldly like the machines that they are. Amaryllis stood still for a while, thinking some of the people swarming around them probably know the truth of the whole story, but one crowd is perhaps afraid of Melinda, the others – too invested in the drama to stop it, even disregarding the verity of the whole ordeal. Finally, the last group could just be passersby, who couldn't care less about the spectacle and are only worried about the blockage on their path.

Amaryllis smiled. A sweet smile that hid a feeling of weltschmerz. She was reminded once again of how humans can be heartless beings despite having a heart... She bent down and started gathering the bills. She could hear snickers, criticisms of how she only made an issue to get money from an innocent victim, and a few gasps and words of pity, but they all sounded like a passing wind to her. In and out with the other.

After she was done, she stood up and faced Melinda's derisive countenance. Melinda laughed at her. "I can't believe you really picked them up. Are you so blinded by money that you'd even set aside your pride?" Suddenly, all the people who pitied her vanished, and everyone just started to mock her altogether.

"That's right." Amaryllis' admission momentarily shocked everyone. Whispers floated about her, but she couldn't care less about their opinions.

"What..? You're not even denying? You sure are disgusting to the core." Melinda's lips scornfully sneered at her.

How ironic that the two of them are facing like this... Amaryllis thought in amusement, recalling the past.

She opened her mouth to respond when she caught a bright color sticking out among the crowd. Chryses. He was looking at the money in her hand, and ever so slightly, she saw his lips lift in amusement while wearing a matching scornful expression to boot. Her blood ran cold. In that passing second, he looked just like one of the multitudes of people in the crowd she thought of. A bystander satiating his need for entertainment, the person who takes pleasure in watching others suffer... Taking it even further, Amaryllis boldly added, the person who takes amusement in the ignorance of others as he continues to play with his victim in the palm of his hands—the manipulator.

She eventually shifted her attention back to Melinda, and she laughed, feeling like a fool for being happy whenever he treated her like a friend. During the dark days when she felt like a ghost in front of her classmates, he was the only one who treated her like a person. His existence comforted her exceedingly as much as she denied it, but it turns out it was a twisted play where the devil wore a mask to hide his hideous face.

"Huh? Have you suddenly become crazy?" Melinda looked at her oddly, Amaryllis had to stop laughing.

As soon as she calmed down, a frosty look layered her face. She walked closer to Melinda, who stood her ground and didn't move from her spot. "That's right. I have no pride." What is that even? She'd long forgotten what pride was.

"How shameless..-"

Amaryllis gave her a cold smile as she cut her off, walking even closer to the woman before responding, "Yes... When you're in front of your parents' funeral, and all you have is a measly amount of money in one of your scrawny little hands while your other arm is holding onto a crying baby, what do you need pride for?"

Melinda cocked a brow at the petite woman. "What the hell are you-"

Once again, Amaryllis cut her off, not interested in whatever insult Melinda was going to utter this time. "While you stand there with an empty stomach, trying to hold on for just a little bit more, feeding yourself with the rain that falls on your parents' coffin because you can't afford to cut expenses for the baby's sake, what do you need pride for?" Amaryllis' eyes burned as she stared at Melinda, who was beginning to lose her momentum.

"Tell me, Melinda Stewart... Should I have killed myself to preserve my pride and leave my baby brother alone..? Are you going to say at least I died with my pride intact..? Should I not have begged for coins in the streets when my relatives refused to spend a dime on me and my poor brother..? It's a pity you only learned shamelessness and arrogance from what your parents did."

Amaryllis backed away from the woman who stared at her, speechless. Melinda looked like she had realized something as her face turned white as sheet.

"Since I don't have pride. I'll be shamelessly taking back the exact amount of money I spent to make a reservation for nothing. As for the excess," Amaryllis talked loudly now as she turned towards Harrison, who couldn't meet her in the eye. "I'll donate it to Harrison, who's short on money but can apparently still afford to go to the internet cafe." She crossed the distance between them, grabbed his hand, and shoved the extra bills in his hand. Since she's shameless, she might as well exercise her new-found title and conduct all kinds of shameless behavior.

But it still couldn't last long, as expected.

She stepped back and gulped when she felt the adrenaline start to lose its effect. Her brave facade was beginning to fall, so she quickly pushed past the people and headed to the nearest restroom, leaving a crowd of confused students. Nobody heard her dramatic speech because she leveled the volume of her voice so that Melinda was the only one who could hear it. They were all wondering what she said to make Melinda so speechless. Thankfully, they didn't follow after her to ask about it.

Her hands were beginning to shake as she tried to take deep breaths. The entrance to the restroom finally appeared in her view, and she sighed in relief. She was ten steps away when someone called her name. Fudgecake... She paused and took one deep breath to prepare herself before turning around to face the person.

"Taylor... Fancy meeting you here," She muttered as if she didn't see him sneering at her in the crowd earlier. She'd much rather act like an unsuspecting victim in front of the demon and, later on, slowly erase her presence in front of him until his interest diminishes... She can't afford to provoke Chryses Taylor. Or else something even more terrible will befall her. She's not certain whether her accusations are true, but so far, his behavior alone is a serious red flag. She doesn't want to associate with him and risk her safety to vouch for his already suspicious kindness.

"Yeah. I witnessed what happened earlier and..." He paused as he stared at her face. She was trying to keep it blank, but did he notice her anxiousness after all..? "I couldn't help but notice that you missed a bill, so I picked it up and ran after you."

"Huh..?" Amaryllis didn't expect him to admit that he was there, yet didn't do anything."Oh... I see." But she didn't see.

He came running after her to give her a bill she missed?  

"Here." He smiled as he handed her the money, but she didn't make a move to reach for it. Her eyes briefly glanced behind him and saw Melinda appear at the end of the hallway. Their gazes inevitably locked, and Melinda's calm mask cracked, showing a face heavily distorted with rage. Amaryllis suddenly had an epiphany as she stared back up at his expectant face that merged with the amused smile he was sporting while watching her in the crowd moments before. It was as if... It was as if he's using the people around him as weapons... Exploiting their feelings to make them move the way he wants them to, later on watching them all self-destruct in mad satisfaction.

"No..." She rasped as she licked her dry lips. "Please take it as payment for the snacks that you've been offering me for a while now." She smiled at him and before he could respond, she escaped into the restroom.

Chryses Taylor might just be a crazy, psychotic scum... And she'd rather not stay too long to find out about it.

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A/N: Opinions..? What do you think of Chryses Taylor *cough*-insert- the story*cough* so far?

Thank you for voting! v(￣∇￣)