A/N: Thanks for your reviews! To show my gratitude, here is chapter 7: Blood.

Tuesday morning

"Good morning, honey. We're out of eggs so you're going to have to have cereal for breakfast," my mom says as I enter the kitchen.

"Okay. I'll make it," I say as I open the fridge to grab a carton of milk. After making a bowl of cereal, I sit at the table and stir the Frosted Flakes around with my spoon. I haven't had an appetite lately.

"Kim, why did you put the cereal box in the fridge and the milk in the cupboard?" my dad questions.

"I did that? Oops," I mutter.

"You're not thinking straight, Kim. It might be a good idea for you to stay home from school today," my mom says.

"Mom, I can go to school. I'm fine, I just didn't get much sleep last night because I was studying."

My mom sets a plate full of fresh fruit in front of me at the table, along with a smoothie. I pick at the food with my fork while she says, "I didn't know you have a test today. What class is it in?"

"Um, math."

My mom frowns and says, "I thought your math test was yesterday?"

"Did I say math? I meant chemistry."

My mom takes her seat next to me and folds her arms on the table. "What are you hiding, Kim? You know you can tell us anything. Something has been keeping you up at night, and it's not your schoolwork." Damn it! She knows me too well.

I bite a piece of honeydew melon off my fork just so she doesn't bother me for not eating enough. "Okay. The truth is… I've been staying up late at night binge watching Netflix."

My mom sighs and says, "Kim, I can tell there's something bothering you. I'm only asking because I want to help."

I stand up and grab my backpack. "I'm fine. I'll tell you if I need help, but right now, I'm fine. I can go to school."

"Kim, hello? Earth to Kim. Mrs. Proctor asked you a question." Someone is snapping in my face.

"Hmm? What?" I ask as I rub the drowsiness from my heavy eyelids. My response is met by a roomful of laughter. Milton is next to me. And other people in desks… oh god, I totally zoned out in class! Jack is in the back of the classroom. He looks concerned, confused… Nevermind, now he looks like he hates me again. I turn back to the front and the teacher is staring at me.

"Kim, do you need to go home? If you're not feeling well, you should go to the nurse."

"No, I'm fine!" Wow, that came out loud and harsh. I tone it down a bit when I add, "I'm fine. I'm sorry about that."

"If you're fine, then not paying attention was disrespectful. Detention on Friday after school." I'm too tired to care, so I just nod.

I manage to stay awake in class, but I can't function. While everyone is busy taking notes on Mrs. Proctor's lesson, I'm struggling to keep my head up and my eyes open.

"Kim, are you sure you're okay? You were out of it in math and you were zoning out just now," Milton says. We're in the cafeteria eating lunch, although I'm not eating. Apparently I fell asleep with my eyes open again.

"I'm fine. Just tired. I think I might go to the bathroom and splash some cold water on my face," I tell them, grabbing my backpack and standing up.

"You might want to go to the nurse. You could rest there until you feel better," Eddie suggests.

"Nah. Bye, guys." I walk to the bathroom, which is luckily empty, and wet my face with cold water. While my eyes are closed, I hear someone come in.

"Oh, look who it is. I heard you fell asleep in class. I feel so bad for you. That's embarrassing," she says. Ugh, it's Lindsay.

I stay bent over the sink while I reply, "You know what's embarrassing? The fact that you think I care."

"No, what's embarrassing is the fact that you think you have a chance with Jack."

I rip off a paper towel from the dispenser and pat my face dry. "Who's Jack again? You mean the guy you saw me with one single time a week ago?"

"I've seen you talking to him in the halls, too. He never seems like he wants to talk to you."

"Oh, like the way I don't want to talk to you?" I retort. She sneers at me and rolls her eyes.

"Look, bitch. Jack doesn't like you, and he never will, so give up on him," she growls.

I raise my eyebrows and scoff. "Are you talking to me or yourself? It sounds like you're the one who's into Jack."

While applying lipgloss, she says, "Every girl likes Jack. Since you're new here, I'm just trying to help you out. You shouldn't waste your time on him. He may be hot, but he's an asshole."

I scoff. "Thanks for your advice, but you're wrong. I'm not trying to date Jack, or hook up with him like you and every other girl at this school."

"Are you a lesbian?" she asks. Is she serious?

"It doesn't matter what I am. Straight or not, I'm not trying to get with Jack or any other guy or girl in this school. I have my friends and family, and that's all I need."

Lindsay sneers at me and says in a fake nice voice, "Are you sure that's all you need? You don't want to borrow some concealer to hide those dark circles under your eyes? Or how about a hairbrush? That messy bun is not a good look on you. You could also use a change of clothes. Yoga pants and a hoodie? You look like a mom."

I roll my eyes and laugh. "It's actually funny how shallow you are. I wish my life was easy enough that my biggest concern was looking cute at school."

Lindsay furrows her eyebrows at me and says, "What the hell is wrong with you? Are you, like, mentally ill?"

I chuckle and as I leave the bathroom I reply, "Mind your own business. I get that you don't have a life, so you want to know about mine, but there are plenty of other girls who would be happy to share their drama with you."

Friday

The past few days have been hell. I've never been so tired in my life. Practice at the dojo has been impossible for me to keep up with, and my parents are getting worried. I wish they didn't know me so well that they can tell something is seriously wrong with me. I don't even know what's wrong with me. All I know is that I'd kill just to get ten minutes of sleep.

When the final bell rings, my relief only lasts about a minute, at which point I remember I have detention after school. I find the slip in my backpack and unfold it. Detention is in room 104. Luckily, it's right down the hall.

I'm walking down the hallway, but at the same time, I'm not. I feel like a hologram, like I'm just a brain living inside a stranger's body. Where am I? I've been walking for a while now, I think. Where am I going? Room 104. Oh, it's right here. When I walk into the classroom, the only person in here is coach Funderburk. He's in charge of detention? Great.

I sign in on the clipboard and take a seat in the very back corner, resting my head on the desk. While I rest my eyes, I hear a few more people come in. I finally look up to observe my surroundings after someone takes the seat right in front of mine.

It's Brody, the guy I punched. He's turned around in his seat to face me, but I ignore him. Jack is in here too; I wonder what he did. Sitting behind him is Lindsay, who is leaning forward and trying to talk to him. Mr. Funderburk stands up and says, "Detention starts now. I'm going to watch a sports program in the teacher's lounge. I want you all to stay here in miserable silence, and if you're not doing that when I get back, you'll get another detention." He walks out of the classroom and shuts the door behind him.

I'm about to rest my head on my arms again, but I notice that my sleeves are covered in blood. What the hell? I jump out of my seat and stand up, and when I look down, my clothes are also stained bright red. It's not my own blood, because I can't find a wound and I'm not in pain. "Oh god. Oh my god." Everyone is just staring at me. They don't seem to care that much; they're just looking at me like I'm an alien. "What is going on? Why isn't anybody worried?" Did I zone out and kill someone or something?

Jack stands up and starts walking towards me, revealing his blood-stained white T-shirt. He never wears white, or at least not in public. Oh my god, Kim, the color of his shirt is not what you should be worried about right now! Blood is gushing from his side. "Oh my god. Jack, you're bleeding. You have to go to a hospital, you have to—"

"Kim, I'm fine," Jack says, stepping away from me.

"No, you need to get help, you're going to die!" I yell, tears streaming down my cheeks.

"Don't worry about me. Go now, run, and don't look back," he orders.

"What? Why—"

"Listen to me! If you don't leave right now, both of us will die," Jack says, his voice breaking. "Go, run as fast as you can, and don't look back!"

For some reason, I listen to him and run out of the classroom, down the hall, out of the school, until my legs feel like jelly and I start to see black spots. Suddenly, everything is black.

A/N: Boy, that escalated quickly. What the frick frack is going on? The more reviews, the sooner I'll update.