Walking to school wasn’t terrible. Yes, Holmes Chapel is not necessarily the nicest city but gorgeous to say the least. As I walk down the familiar sidewalk, I admire the beauty of the changing color, and enjoy the crunching of leaves under my feet. I hum along to the music I have playing through my ear buds and don’t even notice the bicyclist behind me until..
I’m pushed to the ground yet somehow land on top of the bicyclist next to his bike.

“sorry, Carrie, you okay?” He says. Harry?

“Carrie?” I ask not even used to hearing him say my name.

“Of course, Harry and Carrie forever, right?” He says with a smile and stands up offering me his hand. “Walking to school?”

I nod and put my iPhone in my bag and walk in rhythm with Harry as he walks beside his bike. “Sorry, I didn’t see or hear you coming.” I blush.

“Don’t mention it-“

“Harry, baby.” Jules flings herself at Harry and kisses him. He pushes her off and turns toward me, which causes me to look the opposite direction pretending I wasn’t here. “Sorry, I already gave money to a homeless person this morning, get lost.” Jules sang along with her sidekick Gina, who I hadn’t noticed was there.

“See you around.” Harry mumbled only loud enough that I’m sure I was the only person who heard.

And he continued walking with Jules, Gina, and William.

As painless as my encounter with Jules was this morning, it was just making me dread the school day even more. Not all my meetings with her have always been a “hi-hello” and even less were painless.

I walk into the school doors and am overwhelmed by the sea of faces. Some new and some old, but all are the same. They all see me, but don’t see me. Some smile, some turn the other way, while some laugh and absent minding-ly stare.

I make my way into room 104 belonging to Mr. Hansen. Mr. Hansen was our Guidance Counselor whose job was to make sure that we seniors chose the right path on where to go from here. Even though it was 9 months away, he wanted to waste no time from now to graduation to start planning our lives.

Being a Guidance Counselor, Mr. Hanson was an understandably busy guy, he had 500 students to take care of and made sure were making good decisions and trying their absolute hardest. I walk in and sigh as I take a seat next to Erika. Erika and I were similar, but also seemingly polar opposites. She wasn’t one who hung out with Harry or Jules, but she did have a considerable amount of friends and still maintained good grades. It wasn’t until mid-Junior year that Erika and I had started talking to one another, but I enjoyed her company at the least. She was someone who I could sit at lunch with everyday walk to and from class with, yet she didn’t expect me to tell her every smidge of gossip I may or may not know of.

She smiles at me as I sit, but it quickly fades as Jules walks in with Gina, William, and of course, Harry closely behind. They took the table behind us and carried on with their original conversation.

“Her headband is crooked, her blouse is sloppy, and her skirt is rolled up the wrong way. Not to mention her un-even knee high socks.” I heard Jules say, which caused an eruption of laughter from Gina and some chuckles from William, but nothing from Harry. He just stood there and watched as always.


--Harry’s POV:

Things hadn’t always been this way, Carrie hadn’t always gotten scared when she saw me coming and never made a beeline the opposite way when we would meet in the halls, but things had changed, and it was too late now to take it back.

*Flashback*

It was sixth grade year, Gina and William had just moved here. Twins from London, who could convince anyone to do anything; I had been trying to juggle a friendship with Carrie, and avoid Jules as often as I could. Carrie was making that impossible, swearing that Jules had always been the reason for her bruises.

“Harry,” She had told me, “She’s your girlfriend, I’m your older sister’s best friend’s little sister. We’re not friends we never have been friends and we never can be friends. As long as you’re dating Jules, I can’t even talk to you.”

“Yes you can. I can talk to both of you, why can’t you try to get along?”

“I’m not sure why, but I don’t have a liking for the girl who beats me up, publicly humiliates me, tears me down with every sentence that leaves her mouth, and then lies about it to you.” She said with tears, honestly, she was just being dramatic.

“You’re lying.” I had said.

“Am I?” She said lifting her shirt to her bellybutton where there was bruise, after bruise, after bruise, after bruise. I could see it now; her arms had them too, not to mention the one on her jaw. She crossed the street to her house and that made me angry, angry enough to forget all she had said. I befriended William and Gina and went along with their innocent fun, but not all of it was innocent.*


I remember Caroline used to have long blonde hair, but now it was only shoulder length at most, of course I remember why she had to cut it. I remember seeing her cry as Gina pulled and yanked it, while William held her down so she couldn’t run away, which she couldn’t have anyways because they had just finished kicking her in the stomach and legs over and over. They held her while Jules took a scissors and cut a chunk of her hair right off her long, golden locks.

Looking around the classroom today, I could see plenty for scars from cuts and bruises on my class mates arms and legs that they had done. One of my classmates included my one best friend who after this morning I realized has maybe been my least biggest fan after all.

Notes

Second chaptaaaaaaa! :)

*Rate/Comment/subscribe* For more and more updates:)


-Tristen