Author's Note: Dedicated to my beautiful Kristina; the most perfect soul to exist in all of the multiverses. I izzy and love you so infinitely much, my angel. (Insert millions of heart emojis)
Chapter Four
"Oh, hey," the familiar husky voice greeted. "Aren't ya the kid who was tryna get out that math class too?"
Lorna gulped uncomfortably. "I wasn't tryna get out of class on purpose."
The older girl chuckled and took a puff of the cigarette that sat between her fingers. She shrugged her shoulders. "Sure, kid, neither was I."
"We're not s'posed to smoke in school, ya know?" Her thick Brooklynn accent informed; she focused her eyes down on the floor. Mentally counting each dot that made up the tile.
Nicky rolled her eyes while blowing out smoke. She kept the cigarette in her hands and chuckled once more. "Yeah? I'da never thought. Ya wanna try one?"
She shook her head profusely. Her mother would be so disappointed in her if she ever put one of those things anywhere near her mouth. "Those are bad for ya. My mom told me to stay away from those." An uncomfortable knot sat in the bottom of her stomach. She hoped the redhead teen wasn't about to pick on her like the other girl in the hallway had.
The redhead watched her with intrigued eyes. She finished smoking and threw the cigarette into the small trash bin that hung on the side of the stall. "What're you doing in here during class?"
"Going to the bathroom like what this room is made for. Besides class didn't start yet, it's only 7:45."
Nicky squinted her eyes and looked down at the watch on her wrist. The watch confirmed the time and she chuckled. "Wow, it's early. Time flies when ya spend the night in the girl's bathroom," she said, finally getting up from her position on the floor. Her eyes looked Lorna over while she made her way out of the stall.
"You slept here all night? Why?" The petite brunette inquired; an eyebrow arched curiously over her eyes. She kept her head pointed down, letting her eyes focus on her shoes. The shoes she remembered shopping for with her mother over the summer while she was in a slight remission from the cancer. One of the last times she ever went to a store with her mother. The last time she ever wore a pair of shoes that were once held in her mother's hands. She swallowed thickly, trying to ignore the emotions that brewed inside.
"Eh, ya know—I rather spend the night in the big empty and dark school than have to go home and deal with Marka." Her eyes intensely focused on the shorter teen. She could easily see that she was mentally fighting something. But she knew it wasn't her place to point that out. Instead, she reached into her pocket to grab a piece of gum. "Want a piece?"
Lorna shrugged but subconsciously held out her hand. "Who's Marka? Does she go here too?"
With a chuckle, Nicky took out another slice of gum and handed it over to the smaller girl. She shook her head and ran a hand through her thick, messy waves. "Nah, Marka's my mother. More like roommate."
Hearing the word mother felt like a knife was being stuck into her heart. She tried not to let it bother her, but she didn't have the energy to fight the emotions any longer. It hurt deeply to hear others talk about their mothers now that her own wasn't there with her anymore. She sucked in a deep breath and exhaled slowly.
"Everything okay there, kid?" Nicky asked, her demeanor slightly softer than usual. She could tell something was bothering the shorter girl and was intrigued to find out what that might just be.
The question was muffled by Lorna's thought-filled mind. She shifted her position in an uncomfortable manner. It was getting harder to breathe, she felt suffocated. She quickly pushed herself towards the door and out of the room. Her mind wouldn't stop going; she kept hearing a voice whispering cancer on repeat in her head. And when she shut her eyes all she could she see was her mother's glass eyes staring back at her.
"Here," a familiar light Russian accent was the first thing Lorna was greeted with when she opened her eyes. "Sip this water and take these pills. It's just a couple Advil's."
Lorna cautiously took the water and green capsules. She swallowed the pills with a few sips of water before focusing her eyes up on the school's nurse. Her eyebrows arched over slightly puzzled brown orbs. Had she passed out again? The thought alone was enough cause for embarrassment. She already had one classmate picking fun on her over it; she didn't want the entire school to label her as the fainter.
Mrs. Reznikov took the empty cup and tossed it in the trash. She brought in Lorna's chart, looking it over with intent eyes. Her glasses sat on the tip of her nose, giving her just enough sight to be able to read the documents in her hands. "What did the doctor say when ya were taken to the ER last time? No concussion, correct?"
The brunette shook her head rapidly, still trying to make sense of what just happened. She looked around the room and noticed Nicky was sat on one of the chairs near the entrance into Nurse Reznikov's office. Seeing her only strengthened the embarrassment she felt. She bowed her head, focusing her eyes on the pattern of her pants. How could she let this happen again? She didn't understand what was going on with herself lately.
"Hmm, okay. Did they say there was any medical reason for your passing out? Do you have some kind of medical condition we should know about?"
Nicky sat quietly in her chair, her big brown orbs watching the petite brunette carefully. She should have acted sooner, she thought. Maybe she could have stopped her from another fainting episode if she acted on her worry. She shook her head, though; the two of them were barely acquaintances let alone friends, she had no business meddling into Lorna's life so suddenly.
"No," the short brunette muttered. She refused to lift her head. Irritated at her behavior. Angry that she let this happen once again. "Why am I in here again?"
Nurse Reznikov slid her glasses off and placed the paperwork back in the filing cabinet by her desk. She walked back out to where the two students were and sat back in her previous chair. "Nicky helped you down here, you seemed to have had another fainting episode. Are you sure the doctor didn't diagnose you with anything that might explain this?"
Lorna shook her head again, feeling herself tense up in frustration. "No, and don't make me go back to any doctors or hospitals again. They're not good people."
"Doctors are there to help you, I can assure. But I don't plan to send you to the hospital today. Sounds like ya just need to rest and maybe drink fluids to stay hydrated. Your blood pressure and temperature are all fine so I'm not too concerned. Do you want me to call your parents to see if they can come get you?"
Do you want me to call your parents? Parents? Parents? The inquiry echoed loudly through her head. It hurt Lorna's temples to have that continuously replaying in her mind. "No, I'm fine. I can stay and go back to class. I'm fine. Everything's fine." She spoke quietly, trying to convince herself that everything was fine. But everything was far from fine. Her mother was dead, and her dad looked at her as though she was his human punching bag these days.
The middle-aged nurse let a sigh and nodded her head. She grabbed a blanket from a cabinet in her small office, bringing it over to place carefully over Lorna's petite frame. "Why don't you try and nap first? I'll write you a slip to excuse you from your first class. You look like you haven't slept well in weeks, honey."
She walked in the direction of her office, looking over at Nicky with a compassionate expression on her face. "I'll write you a slip as well, Nicky, but only for your first class. You can stay here, but I'm putting you to work. Fair?"
The redhead nodded agreeably with a genuine smile on her face. "Fair enough," she responded. Her eyes moved to stare at Lorna; something about the younger girl intrigued her. She longed to figure out the puzzle of what was Lorna Morello.
When she entered the house that evening, she could already feel the tensity in the air. She threw her bookbag down, slipped out of her sneakers, and made her way into the kitchen. What she walked into immediately caused fear to rise within her body. She felt her breath catch in her throat; she swallowed uncomfortably, trying not to be heard or seen as she tiptoed passed her father and sister's yelling match.