Truth Out Of Darkness
Chapter 20
The following morning in the halls of Salem High.
Belle stood in front of her locker yawning.
"Well, this is a first! Belle 'I'm a morning person' Black yawning? Say it isn't so!" her good friend Mimi cracked while coming up to her. She had just come from cleaning toilets in the bathrooms. It was part of her punishment for putting nude photos of Chloe on the Internet.
"Hey Meems. I didn't get much sleep last night." Belle said tiredly.
"Oh,... Hey Shawn!" Mimi motioned to Shawn who was coming up the hallway.
"Morning Mimi,... Gooood morning, beautiful." He gave Belle several kisses on the lips.
"MMMM, Now it is." said Belle, smiling.
"Oh! I almost forgot! What happened at Tuscany last night? It's all over school that Brady and Phillip got in a fist fight over Chloe." Mime said excitedly.
"What! I can't believe it's gotten out already!" Belle said, shocked.
"What do you expect? Welcome to Salem High." Shawn replied, cynically.
"Well, you can't expect something this big not to spread, especially since Phillip's sporting a black eye." Mimi said. "So, I guess it is true, then?" she asked.
"Well, kind of ." Belle said hesitantly. She didn't like to spread gossip, especially about her friends. "Yes, they fought and yes, it was over Chloe, but it's more complicated than that." she said. "I can't go into the details."
"Aaaah.... So, where is Chloe? I haven't seen her yet today and she's like Miss Perfect Attendance." Mimi rolled her eyes.
"She won't be in today. She isn't feeling well." Shawn tersely replied.
Mimi noticed that Belle and Shawn both seemed tense suddenly, and an awkward silence followed. "Well, I'm going to try and get a few more toilets in before 1st period. Try not to be too envious, okay?" She quipped and headed off.
"Bye Meems!" Belle called after her. "Should we try to do anything about these rumors?"
"What's the point? It's all going to come out anyway when the Wesleys' press charges." Shawn said.
"Do you think they will?" Belle asked concerned.
"Well, yeah. You know how the Wesleys are. Phillip has hurt Chloe too many times for them to just forget." he explained. "And this time, he didn't just call her names, or go out with another girl. He put her in the hospital with serious injuries."
"I know. I STILL can't believe he did that to her. All last night, these two conflicting thoughts kept running through my mind. On the one hand, it's Phillip, a guy we've known all our lives; who's sweet, funny, sensitive. But then I picture Chloe from last night, bruised and battered and I'm supposed to believe Phillip did it? It just doesn't make sense." Belle said.
"Phillip hasn't been making sense lately. I mean most of the time he seems normal, he's coming to terms with not being with Chloe. He's sad, yes, but otherwise he's moving on. Then there are periods where he just loses control. Take Lexie's party for example. Just earlier that day we were talking at Dot.Com and he had resigned himself to the fact that he and Chloe were over. But then just a few hours later, he loses it and crashes the party, almost getting arrested in the process." Shawn countered.
"Yeah, he was way scary at the party." she agreed.
"And that's not the only time. The whole reason they broke up in the first place is because Phillip lost control at the Last Blast and accused Chloe of selling her body." Shawn said. He'd never really thought about it before, but Phillip suddenly seemed to have a long history of violent explosions of temper.
Belle nodded slowly. "And several times since then, he's blown up at her only to wind up apologizing. Are you beginning to see a pattern forming?" she asked.
"Unfortunately, yeah. I think this has been building for a long time now."
"Um, Shawn..... I want you to know that I understand if you still want to be friends with Phillip. I mean, I'm not going to have anything to do with him, even though I do still care about him. It's just... I know that you and he are good friends and you are related and..."
"Belle," he interrupted. "We WERE good friends. That all changed last night. Phillip beat up someone I care very deeply for. I mean, it's taking every ounce of self control I have not to put some serious hurt on him. Believe me, being friends with him after what he did is out of the question." Shawn said with conviction.
Belle appeared relieved. "Good. I didn't really know how you'd feel about him."
"Well you are right about one thing. We are related, and I owe it to my "uncle" to try to help him. I guess we need to have one last talk - when I'm calm - let him know that we care about him, but we aren't his friends anymore. You know, urge him to get help, while he still can." Shawn said.
"Are you calm now?" she asked nervously.
"What?"
Belle motioned behind Shawn. He turned and saw Phillip coming toward them. He was a mess with a giant nasty bruise over his swollen eye. He had a sorry demeanor. He was beyond pathetic.
Phillip spied Belle and Shawn talking together and slowly approached them. I'm crazy for doing this but I have to know how Chloe is.
"Hi," he said cautiously with his shoulders drooped and head lowered. "I know you hate me right now, but believe me it's no more than I hate myself. I just have to know...How, how is she?"
Shawn's eyes blazed hot fire, and he clenched his fists. Belle lay a restraing hand on his shoulder. He angrily bit out, "She has a major concussion and a broken jaw, not to mention some lovely bruises."
Phillip paled and he closed his eyes. He gripped a nearby locker for support. I did that to her. I can't believe I hurt my Chloe! He slowly turned to leave, when Shawn grabbed his arm and spun him back around.
"I just want to know one thing... Why?" Shawn asked with barely controlled rage.
Phillip looked at them mournfully. "I don't know why. I was heartbroken when Chloe told me that we were over, that there was no chance of us getting back together, even though I kind of knew it was over for a while. It hurt like hell but I was accepting it. But it was seeing them together, watching them dance, watching them kiss. You know it, They've been together for a while haven't they?" Phillip's eyes took on a hard crazed look and he once again felt like he was losing it.
Belle noticed it and stared him right in the eyes. "Listen to me Phillip and understand this. Yes, Chloe and Brady like each other and they have for a while. But they didn't know it, okay? All those times they said they were just friends, they were telling the truth. Chloe has never once betrayed you even though you continually accuse her of it. My brother didnt steal Chloe from you - you lost her because you're such a....DICK!" she said hotly, ending on the only word she could think of to describe him.
Belle's outburst had drawn curious stares from the surrounding students. Immediately, gossip flared up and burned down tne hall. {What is going on? Belle never cusses. She and Shawn look pissed. Is there going to be a fight? I thought they were friends.}
Shawn had taken a menacing step towards Phillip. He hadn't liked the crazed fury on his face and decided to give him a warning. "Listen up Phillip." His voice deadly quiet. "You and Chloe are over. You lost her. If you even try to get near her, I'll finish what Brady started." And with that declaration, Shawn slammed his fist into the locker in front of Phillip - missing his face by an inch. There was a loud CLANG and the locker face was dented. Shawn then stormed off with Belle in tow, leaving behind plenty of fodder for Salem High's gossip mill.
Chapter 20
The following morning in the halls of Salem High.
Belle stood in front of her locker yawning.
"Well, this is a first! Belle 'I'm a morning person' Black yawning? Say it isn't so!" her good friend Mimi cracked while coming up to her. She had just come from cleaning toilets in the bathrooms. It was part of her punishment for putting nude photos of Chloe on the Internet.
"Hey Meems. I didn't get much sleep last night." Belle said tiredly.
"Oh,... Hey Shawn!" Mimi motioned to Shawn who was coming up the hallway.
"Morning Mimi,... Gooood morning, beautiful." He gave Belle several kisses on the lips.
"MMMM, Now it is." said Belle, smiling.
"Oh! I almost forgot! What happened at Tuscany last night? It's all over school that Brady and Phillip got in a fist fight over Chloe." Mime said excitedly.
"What! I can't believe it's gotten out already!" Belle said, shocked.
"What do you expect? Welcome to Salem High." Shawn replied, cynically.
"Well, you can't expect something this big not to spread, especially since Phillip's sporting a black eye." Mimi said. "So, I guess it is true, then?" she asked.
"Well, kind of ." Belle said hesitantly. She didn't like to spread gossip, especially about her friends. "Yes, they fought and yes, it was over Chloe, but it's more complicated than that." she said. "I can't go into the details."
"Aaaah.... So, where is Chloe? I haven't seen her yet today and she's like Miss Perfect Attendance." Mimi rolled her eyes.
"She won't be in today. She isn't feeling well." Shawn tersely replied.
Mimi noticed that Belle and Shawn both seemed tense suddenly, and an awkward silence followed. "Well, I'm going to try and get a few more toilets in before 1st period. Try not to be too envious, okay?" She quipped and headed off.
"Bye Meems!" Belle called after her. "Should we try to do anything about these rumors?"
"What's the point? It's all going to come out anyway when the Wesleys' press charges." Shawn said.
"Do you think they will?" Belle asked concerned.
"Well, yeah. You know how the Wesleys are. Phillip has hurt Chloe too many times for them to just forget." he explained. "And this time, he didn't just call her names, or go out with another girl. He put her in the hospital with serious injuries."
"I know. I STILL can't believe he did that to her. All last night, these two conflicting thoughts kept running through my mind. On the one hand, it's Phillip, a guy we've known all our lives; who's sweet, funny, sensitive. But then I picture Chloe from last night, bruised and battered and I'm supposed to believe Phillip did it? It just doesn't make sense." Belle said.
"Phillip hasn't been making sense lately. I mean most of the time he seems normal, he's coming to terms with not being with Chloe. He's sad, yes, but otherwise he's moving on. Then there are periods where he just loses control. Take Lexie's party for example. Just earlier that day we were talking at Dot.Com and he had resigned himself to the fact that he and Chloe were over. But then just a few hours later, he loses it and crashes the party, almost getting arrested in the process." Shawn countered.
"Yeah, he was way scary at the party." she agreed.
"And that's not the only time. The whole reason they broke up in the first place is because Phillip lost control at the Last Blast and accused Chloe of selling her body." Shawn said. He'd never really thought about it before, but Phillip suddenly seemed to have a long history of violent explosions of temper.
Belle nodded slowly. "And several times since then, he's blown up at her only to wind up apologizing. Are you beginning to see a pattern forming?" she asked.
"Unfortunately, yeah. I think this has been building for a long time now."
"Um, Shawn..... I want you to know that I understand if you still want to be friends with Phillip. I mean, I'm not going to have anything to do with him, even though I do still care about him. It's just... I know that you and he are good friends and you are related and..."
"Belle," he interrupted. "We WERE good friends. That all changed last night. Phillip beat up someone I care very deeply for. I mean, it's taking every ounce of self control I have not to put some serious hurt on him. Believe me, being friends with him after what he did is out of the question." Shawn said with conviction.
Belle appeared relieved. "Good. I didn't really know how you'd feel about him."
"Well you are right about one thing. We are related, and I owe it to my "uncle" to try to help him. I guess we need to have one last talk - when I'm calm - let him know that we care about him, but we aren't his friends anymore. You know, urge him to get help, while he still can." Shawn said.
"Are you calm now?" she asked nervously.
"What?"
Belle motioned behind Shawn. He turned and saw Phillip coming toward them. He was a mess with a giant nasty bruise over his swollen eye. He had a sorry demeanor. He was beyond pathetic.
Phillip spied Belle and Shawn talking together and slowly approached them. I'm crazy for doing this but I have to know how Chloe is.
"Hi," he said cautiously with his shoulders drooped and head lowered. "I know you hate me right now, but believe me it's no more than I hate myself. I just have to know...How, how is she?"
Shawn's eyes blazed hot fire, and he clenched his fists. Belle lay a restraing hand on his shoulder. He angrily bit out, "She has a major concussion and a broken jaw, not to mention some lovely bruises."
Phillip paled and he closed his eyes. He gripped a nearby locker for support. I did that to her. I can't believe I hurt my Chloe! He slowly turned to leave, when Shawn grabbed his arm and spun him back around.
"I just want to know one thing... Why?" Shawn asked with barely controlled rage.
Phillip looked at them mournfully. "I don't know why. I was heartbroken when Chloe told me that we were over, that there was no chance of us getting back together, even though I kind of knew it was over for a while. It hurt like hell but I was accepting it. But it was seeing them together, watching them dance, watching them kiss. You know it, They've been together for a while haven't they?" Phillip's eyes took on a hard crazed look and he once again felt like he was losing it.
Belle noticed it and stared him right in the eyes. "Listen to me Phillip and understand this. Yes, Chloe and Brady like each other and they have for a while. But they didn't know it, okay? All those times they said they were just friends, they were telling the truth. Chloe has never once betrayed you even though you continually accuse her of it. My brother didnt steal Chloe from you - you lost her because you're such a....DICK!" she said hotly, ending on the only word she could think of to describe him.
Belle's outburst had drawn curious stares from the surrounding students. Immediately, gossip flared up and burned down tne hall. {What is going on? Belle never cusses. She and Shawn look pissed. Is there going to be a fight? I thought they were friends.}
Shawn had taken a menacing step towards Phillip. He hadn't liked the crazed fury on his face and decided to give him a warning. "Listen up Phillip." His voice deadly quiet. "You and Chloe are over. You lost her. If you even try to get near her, I'll finish what Brady started." And with that declaration, Shawn slammed his fist into the locker in front of Phillip - missing his face by an inch. There was a loud CLANG and the locker face was dented. Shawn then stormed off with Belle in tow, leaving behind plenty of fodder for Salem High's gossip mill.