okay, we're gonna get back to zoe. i had to kinda stray away from her because of the other events that needed to take place. the next few chapters will be about zoe, though. yay! enjoy.
Bloodbath
Chapter 23
"Zoe, what are you doing?" Takuya watched as the girl shakily got out of her bed.
"I'm going to find that girl," she said quietly. "I'm going to kill her......."
She collapsed to the floor a moment later. Takuya rushed to her side and picked her up, causing her to blush.
"You're in no position to kick her ass," he joked. "And I see that you remembered how to talk again."
He laid her back down onto her bed, then turned his attention to Courtney. The redhead was standing in the doorway, a pout on her face.
"Courtney, would you mind getting some medicine for Zoe? She feels kinda warm," he told her.
Courtney rolled her eyes. "Fine. Be back in a sec." She paused, then looked at Zoe. "Try not to do anything perverted to him, okay?"
"Oh, knock it off." Takuya shook his head.
Zoe glared at her, her emerald eyes boring into Courtney's. Had she not been so far away, Zoe would've attempted to cut her head off.
Takuya sighed. "Don't listen to her. She's a pain in the ass and treats everyone like this."
The blond suddenly felt exhausted, barely able to move a muscle. "I'm so tired.........."
"Try to get some sleep. You might be getting a fever and we need to keep it down," Takuya said.
Just as she drifted into sleep, she could feel him softly kiss her on the forehead.
"Goodnight," she heard him say.
Within seconds she was asleep, only there were no dreams waiting for her. Only nightmares, the ones that had never left her mind. Memories can be the worst kind of nightmares of all.....
Ten years ago
Eight year-old Zoe laid in her bed, her head sore. Outside the door she could hear people talking. She knew that they were talking about her, of course.
"She has a fever again. This has been getting more and more frequent with her."
"I noticed how she's different from the other kids. After all, it's not typical to see someone with horns."
"I think the horns scare the other children. None of them seem to like her........."
Zoe sighed, pulling the window up. She had been in the orphanage for as long as she could remember, yet things never seemed to get better. People were always teasing her and calling her cruel things behind her back. None of the adults that ran the orphanage seemed to care. They simply ignored her daily torments, trying their best to avoid the girl.
The blond climbed out of the window, grateful that her room was on the first floor. She walked away from the orphange, her steps slow and painful. After a few minutes she came to a path near the woods. She visited the area quite often, as it was her only escape from this hell. No one else ventured this path, to her relief.
Zoe continued down the path, eventually coming to an opening near a small pond. She collapsed to the ground with a thud, a tiny plume of dirt billowing around her. Weakened from her fever, she simply lay there, struggling to catch her breath. Sweat trickled down her brow, dampening her blond locks.
As she panted, she felt something wet run along her cheek. Her eyes opened and she came face to face with a brown and white puppy.
Zoe tiredly sat up, a tiny smile on her face. "Hello, there."
The little dog licked hand, nuzzling up against her.
"You shouldn't worry about me," she said, her voice cracking. "It's not like I'm lonely or anything........"
The puppy tilted its head, then jumped into her arms.
"I can't believe that you would actually want to be around me....." She hugged it and began to cry.
The next day, Zoe showed up to one of her classes. The orphanage provided their own teachers so that the children would not have to be sent to a school district, making it much easier to keep track of them.
As Zoe waited in the room by herself, three boys walked in. One of them was Isamu. He had jet-black hair and brown eyes, and was also the self-proclaimed 'leader' of the group. His two friends were Ryoma and Yoshimi.
"Hey, Horns. How's it going?" Isamu taunted.
Zoe looked down, refusing to say anything. She stood and began to walk away.
"Not going to talk, huh?" The boy sauntered over, pulling out a small carton of milk.
He ripped the carton open and poured it all over her backpack, soaking its contents. A moment later he shoved Zoe to the ground.
"What? Are you too good to say anything? You're such a freak!"
Ryoma and Yoshimi joined him and began to snicker at her.
"I heard that you were abandoned as a baby somewhere in the bushes. And no wonder, having horns like that," Isamu said with a laugh.
Zoe attempted to get up, only to be shoved back down. The boys continued to laugh at her, curling their fingers over their heads to imitate her horns.
"Weirdo!"
Just then a girl with light brown hair and a purple dress entered the room. Realizing what was going on, she called out into the hallway.
"Mrs. Matthews! Isamu is bullying again!"
"Tattletale," Isamu shouted as he and his friends ran out of the room.
"I'm sorry about those guys. They can be such jerks," the girl said. She walked over to the sink and began to wet a paper towel.
Zoe sighed. "It's alright. You get used to it after awhile.........."
The girl came over to her and began to dab at her soaked backpack. "By the way, I'm Akane. You know, if you ever want to talk about anything let me know. I know how it is to be alone. I promise that if you do tell me anything, I won't mention it to the others. I'm not like them."
Zoe gave her a weak smile. "Thanks."
Later that night, Zoe snuck out of her room once again. She walked back to the path, where the puppy still waited for her.
"Hey, there. I brought you some food and water. It's not much, but it should be enough until I can get you more."
She took out a small bowl and poured water into it. A moment later she took out her leftover lunch, which consisted of a piece of chicken, a roll, and a cookie.
As the dog ate, she looked up into the sky. "You know, if it wasn't for you, I don't know if I would be able to take it anymore. You're my only friend."
She gathered the dog into her arms and stared at him. "Never go to the place that I live. If you do, you'll probably get bullied, too........If I was stronger, I would be able to protect you."
Over the next few days she and Akane become closer. Zoe welcomed the girl's company, as she was still depressed from usually being alone.
About a week after she found the dog, she decided to tell Akane about him.
"Oh, you have a dog? That is soooo cool," Akane said. "Can I see him?"
"Sure. Just don't tell anyone about him," Zoe told her. "Promise me."
Akane nodded. "I promise."
With that, Zoe led her to the path, where the dog was happily awaiting her arrival. The girls fed the dog Zoe's leftover lunch, along with half of Akane's sandwich.
"Does he have a name?" Akane asked.
Zoe shook her head. "No, not yet. I haven't been able to think of a good one."
"I'm sure It'll come to you," the girl said.
Later that night, she returned to her room, quickly falling asleep. In her slumber she had a peculiar dream. She was sitting on the ground, naked, the surrounding area completely black. She was stretching her arms to the sky, and four vectors rose up.....
The next morning she woke up, a strange feeling over her. "It feels like there's something moving around inside me."
Shaking her head, she heaved herself out of bed. What she saw next sent a shiver down her spine. There were dirty handprints covering the ceiling, the walls, and even the floor. How did those get there, she asked herself. Did the other children pull a prank on her? Confused, she quickly dressed and rushed out of the room.
and so that wraps up part of zoe's childhood. more is to come so stay tuned and let me know what you think of this chapter see yaz
