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The Pains of Fire
Nancy Downs sat in the back of her 5th period history class aimlessly doodling her composition notebook. Although Sister Agnes had called her name twice for attendance, she just sat there perfecting the Pentagrams she started yesterday.
Screw this class.
"Downs, Nancy," the plump nun repeated. She frowned then placed her wrinkled hands on her hips.
A few of the students snickered and shot furtive glances at the dark-haired girl, who buried her head in her notebook.
"Look at her," Laura Lizzie whispered, as she and her friends erupted into fits of giggles.
Nancy, who could feel the bleach blonde bitch barbie and her peons staring at her, turned around and shot the group a deathly glare, causing them to quickly turn away.
'That's right.' Nancy's pen bled through the composition paper. 'Turn away like the scared little bitches you are.'
She shook her head in disgust. Plastic pieces of shit like Laura Lizzie and her army of skanks made her skin crawl. In fact, 95% of this school's population made her skin crawl.
"Ms. Downs." The stern voice of Sister Agnes rang out.
"What," Nancy hissed. Couldn't the fat bitch see she was already here? Or was she blind too?
"I'd truly appreciate it, if you'd answered me when I am speaking to you!" The nun huffed.
Nancy rolled her eyes. "And I'd really appreciate it, if you dropped dead," she muttered under her breath.
The nun turned around swiftly. "I'm sorry, what was that Ms. Downs?" She crossed her arms and pursed her thin, salmon colored lips.
Nancy suppressed a grin. "Nothing Sister."
Sister Agnes shot Nancy another pointed look then returned to her attendance sheet.
"What did I tell you," someone a few rows behind Nancy whispered.
"I know," a second voice responded.
Nancy tensed. She immediately recognized the second voice as Chris Hooker's. She almost forgot they shared every freakin' class together.
"What were you thinking," his puny friend Mitt Rogers asked.
"I wasn't," Chris replied.
"Gentleman!" Sister Agnes barked causing a few students to jump. "I hate to interrupt your little social gathering, but we are in the middle of class!"
Nancy snorted. Seeing the old bat riled up never ceased to amuse her.
"Sorry Sister." Chris bowed his head apologetically.
"Yeah, we'll conduct our little social gatherings in the beginning of class from now on." Mitt, the-oh-so-not-funny-man, joked.
A few of the students giggled.
"Very funny, Mr. Rogers." Sister Agnes set her jaw. "Now... back to the attendance... Evans, Daniel..."
Nancy let out a low groan. Lirio the magic shop owner once told her, "If you concentrate hard on one thing, Manon will hear you." But she had concentrated for over a year now. She was growing tired of waiting for Manon to answer her prayers. Simple selfless prayers that involved her mother getting sober and finally getting her shit together. Whether it meant divorcing Ray, getting a job, and coming to one parent-teacher conference - Nancy needed a parent who actually gave a damn about her well-being.
Nancy sighed. As hopeless as it seemed, she could not give up praying for her life to get better. Not yet.
Chapter 2
The loud ringing from the sixth period bell woke Nancy from her routine 5th period nap.
Sister Agnes cleared her throat, as students gathered up their belongings. "Alright, your homework is on page 121. I expect you to read and answer all of the questions in complete sentences."
"Great." Nancy rolled her eyes. The hag would have to give them homework when she and her two friends Bonnie and Rochelle were chanting tonight. Wasn't this just the cherry on top of a shitty week?
The second bell rang, when Nancy filed out into the packed hallway.
"Yo Downs!" Mitt called out from across the hall.
She whirled around and saw the little shrimp with Trey Matthews and Chris, who were beaming at her.
"What!" She snarled.
"I heard you're a back door kind of gal. Is it true?" All three of the jock squad broke out into raucous laughter, causing a few students to glance in their direction.
It took a moment for Nancy to register what he said. "What," she shrieked, causing the boys to breakout into hysterics.
The boys exchanged smug looks, then Mitt cleared his throat. "N-nothing, Downs, just run along to class, okay," he nodded his head.
She shot them a seething look. "Pigs," she spat then turned on her heel and marched to her locker.
"Bye, bye, Nancy," Mitt's jeering voice echoed across the hall.
"See ya later, Back Door," Trey bellowed.
Nancy clenched her fists, fighting back tears.
"Hey, Nancy," Bonnie Daniels said in her egg-shell thin voice.
"Hey," Nancy grunted, not bothering to look up, as she spun the dial on her locker.
"Are you... okay," Bonnie asked.
"Okay?" Was it that obvious she felt like shit? "Y-yeah, I'm okay. Why wouldn't I be okay?" Nancy regretted the slight crack in her voice.
"Well..." Bonnie trailed off.
"What?" Nancy finally turned around and faced her. "What's wrong?" She noticed the sullen look on her friend's face.
Bonnie shook her head. "I-"
"It's Chris," Rochelle Zimmerman cut-in, sidling next to Bonnie. "He's been going around the whole school saying that you..." She trailed off this time.
"What? That I what?" Nancy pressed.
The two girls exchanged mournful looks then Rochelle spoke up.
"That... you two... you know... and you were," she lowered her voice, "the worst girl he's ever slept with."
"He also said you were a slut," Bonnie added in a voice that was barely audible than a whisper.
Nancy slammed her locker with such force, the adjacent lockers shook. That lying sack of shit!
"Uh, Nancy." Rochelle tentatively placed a hand on her friend's shaking shoulder. "I think we should get going now, or else we're gonna be late for class."
'WHO CARES,' Nancy wanted to shout, but instead focused her attention across the hall.
Chris was grinning at her, as if she were the most amusing thing in the world.
Every part of her wanted to go over there and punch him in the face, but she couldn't. She wouldn't. She refused to let him get to her. When she felt a single tear drip onto her pale skin, she quickly wiped it off then smirked back at him.
The sly grin on his face immediately dropped, which made her feel slightly better.
In a matter of time, she wouldn't have to worry about brainless football dicks like Chris spreading rumors about her. She would have Manon on her side, and he would make everything in her shitty life halfway decent - as if it ever was.
With that, she shot Chris her signature Cheshire Cat grin, then sauntered off to Biology with Bonnie and Rochelle.
'Oh, yes,' she thought to herself, 'she would have the last laugh.'