D A M A G E D • HS

10

It was weirdly easy to just let some shit I had swarming in my head out. Did I tell her my deepest darkest thoughts? Fuck no, but I told her more than I've told anyone else in my entire life.

I, for some reason had this feeling I wasn't going to be judged or chastised for what I was saying, which is confusing because Arlo is nothing but judgmental to me. Still, just like I felt, she didn't do anything but listen and relate.

It was weird, too weird if you ask me.

Arlo wasn't even being that mean today. Sure she was saying her normal snarky comments, but overall they were nothing so fucked up that it triggered pain.

She answered my questions without complaining too much, she didn't scream at me, she even shared her food with me.

Yes, Arlo is a bad person, she's a fucking bitch, but I can tell, deep down inside the pit of darkness, she's has some positive qualities, maybe.

Arlo, is someone my mind can't fathom or understand, but I feel I'm not meant to understand, it's like I'm just meant to go with the flow and let shit happen.

I hear the front door to Felix's house close. I turn my head towards the entrance of the living room and my eyes widen slightly.

A blonde and a dark brunette walk in. I recognize them, they're the two girls I've seen around Arlo. I'm not sure what they're names are, but I do know they are on the cheer team.

"Alli, Nini, hi babes." Jane jumps up from her spot on the couch to greet the two girls.

They both look rather somber, they're trying to fake it with a smile, but I've been doing that for so long, that I know a real versus a fake one. The happiness doesn't reach their eyes.

Eyes are the only things that will always reveal the truth.

"Hi." The blonde one pats Jane on the back. If I'm not mistaken I'm pretty sure she's Alli and the brunette is Nini.

"I'm so glad you guys could make it, I was worried you were actually going to ditch us." Jane beams with a bright smile. I find it very condescending that she's saying those words with such enthusiasm, when she's low-key dissing them.

Nini gives her a tight lipped smile. "Yeah, our plans fell through."

Jane nods and ushers the two girls over towards us to sit on one of the couches. They end up sitting on the couch directly in front of me.

My theory of them not actually being happy is confirmed when getting a closer look at them. They both have tear stains under their eyes. Their eyes themselves are tainted red, and their cheeks are flushed.

Alli immediately reaches for the bottle of vodka and pours her and Nini a shot. They each throw back the shot and pour another.

Nini lifts her right arm in the air and I notice a big scrape that looks fresh. Apparently I'm not the only one because Jane gasps out loud catching all of our attention.

"Oh my god, Nini what happened to your elbow?" She leans over from her spot on the couch right next to them and assesses her scrape.

Nini tries to pull away with a sad look on her face and brushes it off, but Jane won't let up her hold. "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

"That doesn't look like nothing." Carson, a guy on my team, comments.

The scrape looks bad. It appears they tried to clean it off, but from what I can tell by the dried blood stains it was bleeding a lot. The scrape itself covers the entirety of her elbow.