I don't know why, but it took me longer than expected to get this chapter out. You're probably going to hate me, but I want to start another story. I'm not gonna stop writing this one or put it on hiatus! I just want to write this other story because this movie inspired me. It's definitely going to be about a shooting, but I'm unsure of if I want to have it in the school or on a boat (I feel like writing something on a boat for some reason). Anyway, review this chapter and tell me what you think of it and tell me if it should be a school shooting for this new story I'm working on or if it should be a shooting on a boat. With the boat, you can't escape the shooting like you can at a school. And before I forget, I know the past two chapters have been with Tori at Sherwood, but the next chapter will be the last one at Sherwood, then she'll be in Hollywood Arts in Chapter 4. If I take this story episode by episode, it'll definitely be a longer story. Should I do that? If I don't, I'm thinking this might be six or seven chapters long. Leave that in your answer in a review as well, please.
With all that being said, I hope you enjoy this!
-Skye
"Chapter 2 – Bad Blood"
"You just don't get it do you? I'm not stuck here with you; you're stuck in here with me."
–Escape the Fate
School was cancelled for the rest of the week. Everyone was so torn over JP's death. I made sure I showed neither content nor sadness; I tried to act normal like everyone else did so to not draw attention to myself.
JP's death struck Coach Carson and the teachers the most surprisingly. They loved football more than anything.
Mirabella, she really played the part of the devoted girlfriend. She was full of teary eyes and she refused to do her school work when we came back to school the following Monday (not like she did her work anyway).
If you ask me, Mira didn't care for JP too much. She just needed to keep up appearances. Everyone wanted her to be the dedicated, cheerleader girlfriend who—even in sadness and mourning—constantly kept up her dominating image while allowing for tears every now and then.
Everyone expected Mira to attack me since I was the last person that saw him alive.
When we return to school Monday, Mira pushes me into my locker and holds my face against its ridges holding my hair tightly in her fist. I flinch initially from the pain and I see people starting to gather around, getting their cell phones ready.
"Who the hell do you think you are?" Mira spits. "It's bad enough Jason's dead. But then I find out you were the last person he was with?" She pulls my head back and slams it into the locker again. I let out a small scream of pain and I hear the shutters of cell phone cameras. Sharp pain shoots throughout my head and I clench my eyes shut tightly.
"What were you doing with him?" Mira shouts loudly. I don't respond and Mira slams my head into the locker again. I let out another scream and the pain increases tenfold. "Answer me you little bitch," she screams.
"Cool it," a student warns. "Mr. Wisely's coming!"
Mira pulls away from me and stands at least two feet away from me as I straighten myself up. I push my long brown hair behind one of my ears to get it out of my face. Hopefully I won't have any bruises yet.
"Break it up," Mr. Wisely demands as he pushes through the throng of students. They all move out of his way, giving him a clear path to me at my locker in the center of the crowd. The chemistry teacher, roughly three inches taller than me with buzz cut black hair and colorblind brown eyes, looks at me expectantly. "Ms. Vega?" he questions softly with his arms crossed. I open my mouth to answer her when a different voice speaks.
"She tripped against the locker," Dawn lies, stepping in front of Mira. "I was just trying to help her up when everyone came around, thinking we were starting a fight. A few of the students were yelling, trying to rally us up for a fight."
Mr. Wisely looks at me, smelling a rat. "Is that true Ms. Vega?" he inquires. He knows Mira has a habit of picking on me and Dawn has a habit of covering for her, so he naturally doesn't trust either of them.
I wordlessly nod my head, making sure I don't get my ass in trouble any more than I already am by saying something I shouldn't.
Mr. Wisely eyes me for a moment longer before he turns around to face the crowd. "Everyone, get to class," he demands in a loud voice. The students scramble away, gossiping about what just happened. Mr. Wisely gives one more look to me, Dawn, and Mira before heading off to his classroom to prepare for the day.
Mira shoves me slightly once he's out of sight and I turn around to face her. "Wisely saved you right now," she starts, "But you're in for a world of Hell, you little skank." She grabbed me roughly by my face. "He would never cheat on me," she claims, "So I know you tried to seduce him like the little tramp you are." She lets go of my face and pushes me against the locker again. "This isn't over," she spits.
Was she really serious? Jason Harper was a manwhore, to put it nicely. He'd slept with over half the cheerleading squad—including Dawn—and was trying to sleep with the other half. He more than likely would have succeeded if he hadn't tried to kiss me.
As Mira walks away, I flip her off with an angered sneer. Dawn's long black hair with the white tips starts to turn with her head and I recompose myself. When she looks at me with her bright blue eyes, I feel sadness in them. 'I'm sorry,' she mouths to me. She quickly turns away and walks faster as Mira picks up her speed.
Maybe Dawn won't push me over the edge.
~*We'll cut out your eyes*~
When I was nine and Trina was eleven, my mother took me to the mall with my older sister on my birthday. I wanted to go to Create a Cow because my dad used to take me there every birthday and he was going to be out of town for the next few weeks on some kind of training, but Trina wanted to go to the Pear Store so she could get her first cell phone. And because Trina was older and I seemed 'normal,' Trina got what she wanted. I had to sit in the Pear Store for at least an hour while my mom and Trina waited in line to get her a little phone.
After that hour, I decided to I wanted my stuffed cow so I snuck out of the store and dashed away. I spent an hour running around the store, picking out clothes for my little Nina Nellore doll.
My mom noticed I was gone and Trina said she started freaking out. She looked all over the store calling for me and when she couldn't, she pulled Trina out of the Pear Store before she got her phone and they searched all over the mall for me. They finally found me in Create a Cow after the lady in the store used her little PA system to tell the whole mall that a lost little girl was in Create a Cow who couldn't pay for her cow and my mom was furious. But when I started crying, she calmed down a little and actually bought me cow doll (but Trina didn't get her phone).
I wish I could cry now so my mom would get me out of this mess I was in.
~*We'll cut out your eyes*~
Mirabella's little threat didn't scare me, but when she didn't 'attack' me again after school, I was a little worried. Mira isn't the type to plan something, so she's probably getting help with whatever she's doing.
The next morning I'm awoken by Trina loudly hacking something up in the sink. She does this every morning; I don't know why it woke me this morning though. Maybe it's a sign that everything's going to hell today…
Then there's a knock on my door.
"Open up Bitch Tits!" Anora yells through my door. I groan loudly and get up. I slide my slippers on and trudge to my door. As soon as I place my hand on the knob, Nora bursts through my room and knocks me down on my ass. "Too slow!" she shouts with a wide smile. I groan again and lie flat on my back.
"It's too early," I whine. Nora rolls her eyes and makes her way to my closet. Sometimes I think she's better friends with my closet than she is with me; she spends more time going through my stuff than actually spending time with me.
She disappears into my closet for a few moments and emerges with a red baby doll midriff and bell-bottom blue jeans. "Find some cute sandals—preferably wedges—and put this on," she orders as she tosses my clothes on top of me. I clench my eyes shut and I put my arm over them. "Why?" I groan.
"Word on the street is Queen Mira's gonna take you down today," Nora informs me. "You gotta look your best when you show her up, Bitch Tits." I shout in pain as she throws my shoes, probably my sandals, at me. I hunch over in pain on the floor and clench my stomach, ruffling my clothes up a bit in the process.
"Can you please stop calling me that?" I plead as I get up, taking my clothes with me. I hear Trina hacking up something else in the bathroom and I groan loudly. Nora laughs and makes a disgusted face. "Is someone dying in there?" she jokes.
I groan again. "It's Trina's morning ritual," I tell her. "Now turn around so I can get dressed." Anora jumps and turns around, her long black ponytail with the blonde and blonde streaks in it swishes as she turns. "So what are you gonna do about Mean Miss Mira?" she questions as she fiddles with the hem of her baggy gray zip-up hoodie. Nora's got this thing where, as the week progresses, she starts to dress like a normal girl. For instance, Monday she starts out with her hair put up in a beanie wearing the baggiest clothes she can find. Today she's wearing skinny jeans; tomorrow she'll wear a girly top over new skinny jeans; Thursday she'll be wearing some girly shoes, probably some baby doll flats; and Friday, she'll have her hair down and maybe some curls. She says it's part of some non-conformist thing and I think that's pretty cool. I'd never do it, though.
"Probably nothing," I lie. "I'll just deal with whatever she tries to dish out; I can handle it." Nora groans in annoyance and turns around as I pull my shirt down. "Are you shitting me?" she questions loudly. I shh her loudly, reminding her that my parents can hear her.
"Are you shitting me?" she repeats in a hissing whisper. "You've got to do something! You can't just let Mira wail on you or do whatever she has in store for you; you have to fight back!" I sigh loudly and fall on my bed. "You know I'm not a fighter like you, Nor," I remind her. She rolls her eyes and pushes me off the bed. "You better start then!" she exclaims.
I sigh loudly and get up. "I'll handle it," I tell her. "I just handle things differently than you do. But don't worry, I'll handle it." Nora playfully shoves me. "You better, Bitch Tits," she says. "'Cuz if I find out you let Mira shit on you, I'll beat your ass."
I scoff with a chuckle. "You're so ladylike, Nor," I say sarcastically. She laughs and I grab my bag as we exit my room.
~*We'll cut out your eyes*~
I drive Anora to school because she skated to my house and we arrive fifteen minutes later. We make our way into the school and I can feel eyes on me as I make my way to my locker. Those eyes are boring into the back and sides of my skull, watching me like hungry vultures and waiting to strike. Those eyes threaten to rip me apart, to devour me if I don't kill them first…
Word's getting around that I'm in for a run-in with Mira.
"She's gonna get you," one girl whispers behind me. "You're gonna die, Vega," another girl whispers. "Better run while you can, Tori," a boy tells me. Those are some of the whispers I hear as I walk, but I ignore the rest of them.
As I make my way to Pre-Calculus, I feel those eyes staring at me again. They're staring into my soul, trying to pick me apart limb by limb until there's nothing left of me.
I won't let them do it.
I take my seat and I keep my head down as everyone files in. I can't meet their eyes. I decide to doodle in one of my notebooks until class starts.
"Alright class," Ms. Williams starts after the rustling and locker slamming of the other students settles down. I look up to at all the students, but I particularly look for one bleach blonde cheerleader who's nowhere in sight.
Mirabella Clemente doesn't come to her first period Pre-Calculus class. With the other classes that I have with her, she's nowhere to be found. I don't see her as we transfer classes, and I don't see her at lunch.
Around two-fifteen, I'm waiting for the end of study hall so I can hurry up and get home. I have a feeling Mira's actually at school and I don't want to stick around to see if my feeling is true.
Study Hall is probably my least favorite class of the day. On the bright side, this is one of the only classes that I don't have with Mira. I do, however, share this class with Harry. Anora has Spanish III this period and Olivia, my highly destructive little cousin, is only a sophomore; sophomores don't get a study hall. So I'm stuck in my study hall, all alone, with Harry who won't even notice me.
Sometimes I wish he didn't try to keep up appearances…
I sit in my study hall doodling again to pass the time. Drawing is my way of escaping the world around me, even if I'm not that good at it (which I'm not). Sometimes I draw myself as a princess, a beautiful, normal princess. Sometimes I draw Nora too, but she's in pretty dresses because I wanna know what she'd look like in a dress. Most of my drawings are of Harry though. I feel sad when I draw him; I normally draw him with me in front of people we know and we look so…happy. He doesn't think anything of what people have to say about him.
That's what I get for making friends with a senior boy.
A balled up piece of paper lands on my drawing, distracting me from my half-Grecian David Boreanaz…I mean, Harry. My name is written on the balled up paper and I slowly open it, trying not to be as loud as I do so.
Mira wants you to meet her in the back of the school when Study Hall is over. I'm sorry Tori. – Dawn
I turn around to see Dawn looking at me with depressed eyes before returning to her book. I turn around and give a loud sigh before going back to my drawing.
~*We'll cut out your eyes*~
I grudgingly make my way to the back of the school and I see Mira standing there with her arms crossed in front of a large throng of students. Before, they were whispering, but they stop once they see me coming. All falls deathly quiet and the only sounds are my feet crunching leaves and the wind blowing across my face and hair.
"Thought you wouldn't show," Mira states as I stand ten feet away from her. I shrug lightly. "Let's get this over with," I say solemnly. I'm prepared to fight if I have to, and I'm prepared to kill her when I get her alone.
Mira slowly walks up to me, getting in my face. "I don't know who you think you are," she spits, "But I'm gonna teach you a well-deserved lesson." She pushes me roughly, but I don't fall. I push her back then she pushes me again. We continue like that for a few moments longer before people start to get bored and walk away. Neither of us wants to throw the first punch, because we know that one punch will get one of us in even more trouble if we get caught.
Finally, she gets tired of this whole cat-and-mouse game and she launches her right hook into my nose. I don't let the punch stun me and I quickly punch her back. I won't be weak.
Our punches turn into scratches and hair pulling and lots of angered screaming as we draw blood. There's a blur of white lights as people take pictures around us. Mira and I continue to attack each other as they flash pictures, but we don't care about them. We're going to finish doing what we started. But it looks like I'm going to be the one finishing this when the time comes.
"Ms. Clemente and Ms. Vega," Principal Sutton shouts adamantly. Mira and I stop where we are and the surrounding students haul ass to get away from the scene.
"Both of you, in my office, now."
Mira and I hastily make our way back into the school to Principal Sutton's office.
~*We'll cut out your eyes*~
"You see what you did, you stupid bitch?" Mira questions as we sit in Principal Sutton's office, waiting for her. She said she had to go deal with some other students before she talked with us. "I'm not the one who started the fight," I point out as I stare at the wall with my arms crossed. Mira laughs sardonically then glares pointedly at me. "You started this mess when you were with my boyfriend!" she claims as she digs her nails into the arm of her chair.
My own nails dig into my arms. I seriously don't have the patience for her bullshit right now. "Why don't you shut your damn mouth for once in your life?" I spit venomously. I turn to face her with hatred in my eyes. "You and I both know you didn't give a damn about JP; you're only messing with me because that's what people want you to do."
Mira laughs again, tossing her bleached blonde hair over her shoulders. "You don't get it do you?" she questions. "Why do you think I've made it my mission to torment you since you started coming to Sherwood?" I don't answer her; I honestly don't care.
"The moment you came here as a freshman," she continues. "I could see it in Jason's eyes that he had a crush on you. I knew all about how unfaithful he was—hell, I even knew he slept with Dawn of all people—but all of those were just lust. But you, you Tori Vega, he saw something more in you. Then I find out he died while he was with you? I just won't have it! That's why I hate you."
I roll my eyes. "Boys come and go," I tell her. "It's not like I wanted him anyway."
Then Mira lunges for me.
She knocks me out of my chair and we roll across the floor pulling at each other's hair and sending painful blows to the other. I roll on top of her and I grab her by her face. Her hands scratch at mine, trying to make me let go of her. I pull my head back slowly then bring it down on her forehead. She screams in pain and her grip on my hands lightens.
That small moment is all that I need.
My teeth attack her lips and I bite down hard, allowing her soul to pass through my body. Mira screams in agony as her life billows into my mouth, and I feel the utter euphoria of the new spirit inside me. Part of me half expected her soul to taste rotten or something, but it tastes just the same as JP's and Stevie's did.
She lets out one final scream as her body goes limp and I pull myself away from her. The phantom cut on her bottom lip pleases me; they'll never know she was attacked.
I stand up and take in a deep breath. Showtime.
I press my back against the door and let out a bloodcurdling scream. My hand fumbles for the doorknob as I continue to scream. After a few seconds, I rip the door open and stumble outside.
"Somebody, help her!"
Students and teachers alike come rushing out of their classrooms to see what the hell's going on. Ms. Smith, my US History teacher, is the first to reach me. She looks past me into Principal Sutton's office to see Mira lying dead on the red carpeted floor. Her hand clasps against her mouth as she screams and backs away from the sight.
I scuttle away from the office and I see Anora filing out of the science room (she wanted to get some extra help from Mr. Wisely while she waited for me to get out of the office). I rush to her and cling to her, resting my head on her shoulder and sobbing loudly into it.
Principal Sutton comes rushing up a few minutes later and she screams as well. Once she regains her composure, she advises everyone there (which is probably twenty people) to remain at the school until the paramedics arrive. She dials 911, states her emergency, and we hear the sirens of an ambulance ten minutes later. Every one of us huddles together, looking on in shock as they load Mira's corpse onto the gurney and wheel her away.
I can't help but smile inwardly, knowing that I'd caused all of this.