"Hold on." I said, holding up my finger and looked up at Scooter. "Dude, it's Lauren."
"Go ahead, take it." He playfully sighed and I smiled at him, walking down the hall where no one was.
"Hey Shawty." I answered, smiling down at my shoes.
"Justin?" She asked softly, and suddenly I heard her hiccuping for air, the shakiness in her voice becoming clearer to me now. "You're not busy are you? I'm not interupting?"
"Not at all." I said, walking further down the hall. "What's wrong?"
"You were right. All this stuff about my sister. It's everywhere. I log in online, and suddenly I'm getting crap about it, I walk into a store, and there is a magazine about how I 'Didn't care about her.' I know I shouldn't let it bother me, but it's everywhere. I've tried to ignore it, and it's in my face all the time. I didn't know it was going to be like this."
"Have you told anybody why you've met your sister Laur?" I asked, trying to talk softly. "Do they know what happened?"
"No, but that shouldn't matter. Am I really that bad of a person?"
"No you're not, but you need to tell them what happened, or it's going to look like you didn't care."
"Next thing they'll be saying is 'Another Sob Story For Lauren McCain,' or 'Fragile Lauren Beaten As Child.' Something completely stupid."
"See, but don't you hear yourself? It's stupid. You know what really happened, just like your sister does."
"Now I'm scared to tell people what happened. What are they going to think of me? Maybe I am just pathetic and fragile. Let's face it - I am. I'm crying now about things people said to me and I don't even know them. I barely even know my own damn sister and I'm going to be 18 years old! Of course I'm a bad person, why did it take me so long? Why did I wait till I was famous? And why does it always seem to be my fault?!"
"Lauren," I said, my eyebrows knitting together at the sound of her crying. "Listen to me. You are not a bad person, this isn't your fault, and you're not pathetic and fragile. You senstive, caring, and finally did something for yourself for once. I know people make it out to be your fault, but this wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for your father."
"A lot of things wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for him."
"I know, but you have so much to be thankful for. Now you do know your sister, and that's something nobody is going to be able to take away. I'm sorry Lauren. I know you're scared about what people are going to say, but remember all the good that can come out of it?"
"Yes." She said, a small sniffle following afterwards. "I do, but I haven't seen it yet."
"Tell them. It's going to be hard, but don't you know how much easier it's going to be? You can't spend your whole life thinking about what people think about you. Yes - with your music, or what's the point? But the way you are - what happened in your life is why you are you. I know what people say hurts, but are you listening to me?"
"Yes, I'm listening."
"You've been hurt, there are tons of girls and guys who look up to you already. I look up to you. I've been through a lot, but your situation is completely different. I want you to smile, I want you to have fun, and I want you to realize how beautiful you are. You're strong, brave, and you have a lot of heart. So many people love you, and I'm not just saying that because I'm one of them, I mean it. Without me people loved you, focus on that. I know how easy it is to focus on the negative, trust me baby, there is so much more positive stuff to look at. Please don't cry."
YOU ARE READING
