If These Walls Could Talk
Chapter 6/?
A 7th Heaven Fan Fic by Lucky Star and Jordan
I didn't see Victoria for the rest of the day, so I assumed her mother had taken her home. After school I tried calling again but it was the same old thing. No answer.
I was surprised to see her the next day but she acted like nothing had happened. Except that she wasn't acting like Victoria. Whenever she looked at me her eyes didn't meet mine, and everything she said was brief, and she made some excuse to leave. For the rest of the week I kept trying to tell myself it was just because she'd been sick and wasn't feeling up to par yet, but something kept nagging at me. There was something wrong. I just couldn't figure out what.
* * *
Friday morning and I was having the same trouble with my locker that I always did. I felt the frustration rising inside and I knew it was more than the locker. I'd been so pissy all week my family was starting to notice. Now I kicked the locker and glanced down the hallway towards Victoria's. She was there; surely she'd heard me cursing, seen me fighting with it. In fact as I looked at her she glanced at me, but only collected her books and started off in the opposite direction.
"Victoria! Wait. We need to talk." I ran after her.
She pushed her hair from her face. "Oh uh...Simon, it's almost time for class."
Victoria has always been into school, but even on her best days she was never this hung up on it. "I know. But I can't get my locker open. You can always get that lock. Do you mind?"
She hesitated and I almost thought she was going to say no before she turned and headed back to my locker. "Combination?" I told her, just as I had the day last week when she opened it for me. Last week. It seemed like a year ago.
"There. See you."
I found myself staring blankly at an open locker, then the back of my best friend's head as she walked away.
* * *
I looked for her as soon as I walked into the cafeteria at lunch and saw her alone at a table in the corner. I don't know why I almost felt nervous on my way over there, but I attempted to hide it as I plopped down across from her. "Is this seat taken?"
Victoria looked up from the book she was reading. "No."
"Good. Mind if I sit?"
"Sure."
She went back to her book, leaving me to notice the curtness of her voice, and the fact that her lunch, while spread out before her, remained untouched. "What's wrong, Victoria?"
"Nothing. I'm just trying to get some reading done for English."
"I don't believe that," I shook my head.
She held up To Kill A Mockingbird. "See? Required reading. You should be reading it too."
I rolled my eyes. "I mean I don't believe that's what's going on. Something's wrong. I can tell."
"Nothing's wrong," she said, shrugging. "I picked the worst time to get sick. I missed two tests, did you know that? It's not easy trying to catch up."
I didn't really know what to say to that. "I guess."
"So. I'm going to read, okay?"
"Okay. I'm going to try to find something edible in this slop."
But my appetite was as nonexistent as hers. She ignored me but I watched her, noticing how her eyes moved way too fast over the words to really be reading them, and she turned the pages too quickly. When the bell rang she jumped and slammed the book shut.
"Victoria?" I reached across the table and closed my fingers around her arm. She winced and pulled away with a small grimace of pain.
"What, Simon?"
"Nothing. You'll be late for class. I'll see you later."
"Yeah. Bye."
I watched her as she gathered her things and threw away her lunch, then practically ran from the cafeteria. I had barely touched her arm and yet she reacted as though I'd hurt her. I sat there for so long that the second bell rang and I was late for class. I didn't care.
* * *
After school I made it outside just in time to see Victoria getting into her mother's car. I still couldn't get over how strange everything was, how screwed up. I drove around for awhile trying to clear my head, trying to figure things out, but nothing made sense. Was I overreacting or reading too much into things? After all, it was only the flu. Right?
Finally I couldn't stand it anymore. Before I knew it I was walking up her sidewalk and ringing the doorbell. I expected her mother to answer like before, but after so much time passed that I was about to give up, the door opened and Victoria peeked out. "Simon?"
"Hi."
"Um, I'm studying. Could I maybe call you later or something?" Her eyes were dull like lead, and she held her right arm funny against her body. I stifled the surge of alarm that raced through my body.
"Maybe I could help you study."
"No, it's okay. I know you have your own homework and stuff."
" I really don't mind," I said, stepping inside.
"Simon, please. It's okay really."
"No it's not okay. You're my bet friend, Victoria, and you've been avoiding me like the plague."
That got her. She blinked. "I just...I didn't want you to get what I had."
Right then I noticed a small bloom of red forming on her sleeve. I almost made a sound but something told me to keep calm, that if I panicked she would panic. I swallowed and forced my voice to remain normal. "Don't breath too close to me and I'm sure I'll be fine. You can't be contagious anymore anyway."
"Yeah um...Simon, I don't feel very well. I was getting ready to take a nap when you rang the doorbell so um...I'll call you, okay?"
"Your arm is bleeding," I said matter-of-factly. "Did you hurt yourself."
She looked down and her mouth dropped open. "Um...I...no..." Color stained her cheeks.
"What happened? You're bleeding, Victoria. Take your sweater off. It looks serious."
"No, it's not." She backed up a couple of steps. "I'm okay."
"You are not!" I didn't mean for my voice to rise, but it shot out of me and hit her like an arrow to the chest. She gasped and stared at me with wide eyes for just a second before she burst into tears. I guided her to the sofa and stroked her hair. "What happened, Victoria?"
She only cried.
"Did you fall?"
She shook her head.
"Bump into something?"
"No, Simon." She took a deep shuddering breath and moved away from me. "I did it."
"Did it? What did you do?"
"I cut myself." Her voice was small.
"You...you cut yourself?"
She nodded without looking at me, completely miserable. My mind flashed back to the brief discussion about cutting we'd had in health class a few weeks ago. Something about some people cut themselves to release pain somehow, but I hadn't understood at all and we hadn't talked about it long, so I'd forgotten about it. Victoria hung her head, tears sliding down her cheeks.
"Tory, what's going on?" I whispered.
She flinched at her childhood nickname. "Simon, I can't tell you. Please...go away. Please. Leave."
"You know I can't do that. You're hurt. You're upset. I'm not leaving you alone."
"I'm not hurt. It's just a little cut."
"Little cuts don't bleed like this." The red bloom was growing wider.
"Simon..." she groaned.
"First thing you need to do is clean yourself up."
"I will." She got to her feet.
"I'll stay right here."
For a moment she seemed to teeter, poised like a bird about to take flight. And she did. Before I could react she was running up the stairs, and by the time I followed her, calling her name, the slam of her bedroom door echoed throughout the house.
~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~
Please R/R, it makes us happy! Thanks!
Chapter 6/?
A 7th Heaven Fan Fic by Lucky Star and Jordan
I didn't see Victoria for the rest of the day, so I assumed her mother had taken her home. After school I tried calling again but it was the same old thing. No answer.
I was surprised to see her the next day but she acted like nothing had happened. Except that she wasn't acting like Victoria. Whenever she looked at me her eyes didn't meet mine, and everything she said was brief, and she made some excuse to leave. For the rest of the week I kept trying to tell myself it was just because she'd been sick and wasn't feeling up to par yet, but something kept nagging at me. There was something wrong. I just couldn't figure out what.
* * *
Friday morning and I was having the same trouble with my locker that I always did. I felt the frustration rising inside and I knew it was more than the locker. I'd been so pissy all week my family was starting to notice. Now I kicked the locker and glanced down the hallway towards Victoria's. She was there; surely she'd heard me cursing, seen me fighting with it. In fact as I looked at her she glanced at me, but only collected her books and started off in the opposite direction.
"Victoria! Wait. We need to talk." I ran after her.
She pushed her hair from her face. "Oh uh...Simon, it's almost time for class."
Victoria has always been into school, but even on her best days she was never this hung up on it. "I know. But I can't get my locker open. You can always get that lock. Do you mind?"
She hesitated and I almost thought she was going to say no before she turned and headed back to my locker. "Combination?" I told her, just as I had the day last week when she opened it for me. Last week. It seemed like a year ago.
"There. See you."
I found myself staring blankly at an open locker, then the back of my best friend's head as she walked away.
* * *
I looked for her as soon as I walked into the cafeteria at lunch and saw her alone at a table in the corner. I don't know why I almost felt nervous on my way over there, but I attempted to hide it as I plopped down across from her. "Is this seat taken?"
Victoria looked up from the book she was reading. "No."
"Good. Mind if I sit?"
"Sure."
She went back to her book, leaving me to notice the curtness of her voice, and the fact that her lunch, while spread out before her, remained untouched. "What's wrong, Victoria?"
"Nothing. I'm just trying to get some reading done for English."
"I don't believe that," I shook my head.
She held up To Kill A Mockingbird. "See? Required reading. You should be reading it too."
I rolled my eyes. "I mean I don't believe that's what's going on. Something's wrong. I can tell."
"Nothing's wrong," she said, shrugging. "I picked the worst time to get sick. I missed two tests, did you know that? It's not easy trying to catch up."
I didn't really know what to say to that. "I guess."
"So. I'm going to read, okay?"
"Okay. I'm going to try to find something edible in this slop."
But my appetite was as nonexistent as hers. She ignored me but I watched her, noticing how her eyes moved way too fast over the words to really be reading them, and she turned the pages too quickly. When the bell rang she jumped and slammed the book shut.
"Victoria?" I reached across the table and closed my fingers around her arm. She winced and pulled away with a small grimace of pain.
"What, Simon?"
"Nothing. You'll be late for class. I'll see you later."
"Yeah. Bye."
I watched her as she gathered her things and threw away her lunch, then practically ran from the cafeteria. I had barely touched her arm and yet she reacted as though I'd hurt her. I sat there for so long that the second bell rang and I was late for class. I didn't care.
* * *
After school I made it outside just in time to see Victoria getting into her mother's car. I still couldn't get over how strange everything was, how screwed up. I drove around for awhile trying to clear my head, trying to figure things out, but nothing made sense. Was I overreacting or reading too much into things? After all, it was only the flu. Right?
Finally I couldn't stand it anymore. Before I knew it I was walking up her sidewalk and ringing the doorbell. I expected her mother to answer like before, but after so much time passed that I was about to give up, the door opened and Victoria peeked out. "Simon?"
"Hi."
"Um, I'm studying. Could I maybe call you later or something?" Her eyes were dull like lead, and she held her right arm funny against her body. I stifled the surge of alarm that raced through my body.
"Maybe I could help you study."
"No, it's okay. I know you have your own homework and stuff."
" I really don't mind," I said, stepping inside.
"Simon, please. It's okay really."
"No it's not okay. You're my bet friend, Victoria, and you've been avoiding me like the plague."
That got her. She blinked. "I just...I didn't want you to get what I had."
Right then I noticed a small bloom of red forming on her sleeve. I almost made a sound but something told me to keep calm, that if I panicked she would panic. I swallowed and forced my voice to remain normal. "Don't breath too close to me and I'm sure I'll be fine. You can't be contagious anymore anyway."
"Yeah um...Simon, I don't feel very well. I was getting ready to take a nap when you rang the doorbell so um...I'll call you, okay?"
"Your arm is bleeding," I said matter-of-factly. "Did you hurt yourself."
She looked down and her mouth dropped open. "Um...I...no..." Color stained her cheeks.
"What happened? You're bleeding, Victoria. Take your sweater off. It looks serious."
"No, it's not." She backed up a couple of steps. "I'm okay."
"You are not!" I didn't mean for my voice to rise, but it shot out of me and hit her like an arrow to the chest. She gasped and stared at me with wide eyes for just a second before she burst into tears. I guided her to the sofa and stroked her hair. "What happened, Victoria?"
She only cried.
"Did you fall?"
She shook her head.
"Bump into something?"
"No, Simon." She took a deep shuddering breath and moved away from me. "I did it."
"Did it? What did you do?"
"I cut myself." Her voice was small.
"You...you cut yourself?"
She nodded without looking at me, completely miserable. My mind flashed back to the brief discussion about cutting we'd had in health class a few weeks ago. Something about some people cut themselves to release pain somehow, but I hadn't understood at all and we hadn't talked about it long, so I'd forgotten about it. Victoria hung her head, tears sliding down her cheeks.
"Tory, what's going on?" I whispered.
She flinched at her childhood nickname. "Simon, I can't tell you. Please...go away. Please. Leave."
"You know I can't do that. You're hurt. You're upset. I'm not leaving you alone."
"I'm not hurt. It's just a little cut."
"Little cuts don't bleed like this." The red bloom was growing wider.
"Simon..." she groaned.
"First thing you need to do is clean yourself up."
"I will." She got to her feet.
"I'll stay right here."
For a moment she seemed to teeter, poised like a bird about to take flight. And she did. Before I could react she was running up the stairs, and by the time I followed her, calling her name, the slam of her bedroom door echoed throughout the house.
~*~*~*~*~*~**~*~*~*~
Please R/R, it makes us happy! Thanks!