Change and Secrets

Chapter 7

The same night Saphira stood in front of the full-length mirror in the bathroom and pulled her long-sleeve shirt down. She had exchanged the bandages around her stomach and arms, it had been a lot of blood.

Her gaze fell on her calves, where she could make out a bruise. The blue and purple were more intensive than the one on her tight. Those on her stomach didn't look better either.

She grabbed her towel, dried her hair, and ran her fingers through her hair before she left the bathroom.
Kayla laid on her bed, wearing an oversize-shirt for bed. In front of her was a notebook, in which she was writing and crossing.

Saphira threw her towel on her bed and went to her desk to open her laptop and start writing.
Fifteen minutes into writing, she couldn't stand hearing Kayla's frustration and grabbed her headphones. However, Kayla then started to run around the room and that was kind of even worse. It made her uneasy.

It wasn't like she expected Kayla to hit her out of nowhere, but she got beaten up for three years, she became careful and Kayla running around made her uneasy. Pulling out her headphones, she turned around.

"Can you stop that, you're scaring me?", she asked her, Kayla stopped in the middle of the room and stared at her confused.
"It scares you? Why?", she asked back.
"It's just like that. Why are you running around?" Saphira didn't really want to explain to her, that she was being beaten up daily and that simple things made her scared sometimes. Yeah, she didn't want to explain that she was slightly traumatized and she couldn't explain it.

"Okay. I'm trying to find out who could have drawn the painting." Kayla sat back on her bed.
"I wrote down everyone's name of our class this morning and went through who could have drawn it, but I don't have anyone's name, so I'm expanding my range."

"Sounds like a plan. Good luck", she wished Kayla, knowing she wouldn't find that person so quickly.
"Thanks. You wanna help me?", she offered, but Saphira shook her head.
"The only thing I could tell you is that it was neither a Pure or Halfblood. I don't even know most of the people."
"True. I just can't think of anyone who could be that good." Thank you.

"Maybe it's your brother?", she put for option.
"Never. He would proudly state it. Also, I saw his pictures. His flower looks like someone throwing up", Kayla told her, and Saphira grimaced disguised as she imagined the picture.
"Okay, maybe it's not him."
"Jup. He's worse than your brothers", she confirmed and they laughed.

"Maybe it's you and you putting up an act to hide it", Saphira joked and turned around to her laptop to go on writing. She wanted to finish the chapter before going to bed and that could still take some time.
"Never. I can't draw that good", Kayla denied and stepped next to her, looking at the screen.

"I saw your drawings of the clothes. They are pretty good and you got some talent for fashion designing", she told her, not taking her fingers from the keyboard and looking to Kayla for a second.

"Thanks, but I use a stencil for the body. It's just a hobby so no big effort." It didn't look like just a hobby. "I like creating clothes, but my parents don't like it, so it will only stay a hobby."
It wasn't Saphira's business, but unlike Saphira, Kayla could hope for a future and she should do what she likes.

"You should talk with your parents if you love it that much. You have talent, you could really become famous or something", Saphira told her.
"Yeah. Whatever. What are you doing?"
"Writing", she answered short.
"I see. What are you writing? Doesn't look like homework."

"A story. That's my hobby." And my way to express my feelings. It was the only possibility for her to speak about what was happening, how it affected her, how it hurt her, how hopeless she felt.
"You seem to be good", Kayla said, reading a few lines.
"Yeah. My parents say that too." She kept the information that she won a few competitions to herself.