A Soul Left Unsullied

Chapter 12: Bully

The trial had gone well, if you disregarded the now crying and broken man, whose traumas we had all seen.

Lilith had tried frightening him into getting help, in typical demon fashion. She had threatened that he would lead a miserable life, full of nightmarish moments, if he didn't accept help from someone. Which wasn't against the rules but was still not a great move.

Aunt Lisa and I had tried sharing our experiences with therapy and how immensely it had helped us become better, saner people. Ultimately, the one that sealed the deal was his wife.

She had slowly described to him all the trauma she saw, how heartbroken she was that he had endured it all and how desesperately she wanted to help him.

I think hearing his wife's compassion for him, her crying for what he had endured it and how desesperately she wanted to know every part of him, helped free him.

Whilst his wife talked to him, caressing his hair, with Lilith and I slightly coaching her, a tear rolled down his cheek. Before long, his lips were free as he muttered to his wife "please, help me."

Then the whole room disappeared and we found ourselves in darkness yet again with a letter congratulating us on our victory. This time around though we got not lunch. We barely had enough time for Amir to somewhat collect himself.

I hadn't noticed Lilith doing anything nefarious, but given how smart she was, she would probably not do anything in public like this.

The second trial letter had arrived and this time around, it contained some information about what awaited us.

It read : "Welcome to your second trial, it is now time to confront one's cruel younger self. Godspeed!"

As soon as we read it, Maryam gasped and started shaking her head. When Amir tried hugging her to get her to calm down, she avoided him and started running around looking for a way to get out, in vain.

I was startled by the sight, Maryam who seemed like the calmer, healthier one of the couple was now trying to litteraly outrun her past.

What had she done that was so terrible she couldn't confront it?

Amir turned to us as he could sense the questions on our mind "This is one of her most private shames, one she has burried so deep within herself. When soemone brings it up, she goes hysterical, alterning between saying she did it to survive and that they're lying since she'd never do something of the sort."

"But what is it exactly ? We need to know to help her." I say as I watch his wife running around like a headless chicken in this dark void.

"She's never really told me but I saw someone trying to confront her about it after we had our surgery. Apparently, she bullied people that were rumored to be queer or men that looked a little bit effeminate. She would spread rumors about them, spit on them, beat them up. Or at least, that's what the person confronting her said. When Maryam heard this, she got so agitated, she started pulling her hijab and her hair out in the middle of the street."

That felt like a punch in the gut, Maryam was a bully. I had been bullied in school, about a lot of things, one of them being that I liked girls. Nobody very hit me, but I remembered the rumors, the isolation. Girls never wanting to be my friend or being in the same bathroom with me, as if I was a predator that would pounce on them at the first chance.

These were horrible memories for me that I was very upset were brought to the surface. As it brought back the pain of being in an all girl catholic school and everything else that happened there.

I felt sick, how could I ever help a bully? I wasn't fit for this, I couldn't do it. It felt like the trials were exploiting my pain rather than the pain of the contestants.