Untoward

Mending Bonds

"AHHHHH!!!! OH MY GOD!"

A terror-stricken, wide-eyed David shrieked and backed away as a tarantula spider emerged from his locker, its hirsute, writhing legs skittering across the metallic surface. He fell to the ground and frantically scooted away. A chilling sensation crawled up his spine as he watched two more spiders scuttle menacingly out of his textbooks, making their way out of the locker.

He screamed when their feet touched the floor. A shudder coursed through his veins, as they scampered forward.

"HELP!", he cried, shaking and rapidly breathing. "GET THAT THING AWAY FROM ME!!!"

All the students passing through the hallway stopped and turned towards him. No one dared enough to come to his rescue. Many were repulsed at the sight of the writhing creatures. 

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god...", he muttered, as the spiders came nearer and nearer. He was dripping with cold sweat, panic welling up within him, and his heart pounding in his chest.

Several girls screamed and jumped as the spiders came near their feet.

From a corner, a raven-haired, violet-eyed girl chuckled and clicked a photo of him. She opened the glass jar which had dead crickets in it. Catching the smell of the crickets, the arachnids crawled away from the locker and into the glass jar. Vanessa clasped the lid shut.

David shut his eyes and heaved a sigh of relief as the spiders went out of his sight, though his heart continued to race. He glanced at his locker, the locker which once held his belongings, now held his nightmares.

A few people gathered around David. Many chortled, and some whispered amongst themselves. David overheard some of them. 

"Did you see the look on his face? He looked like a hunted animal!"

"No cap! I've never seen him look so scared. Turns out the perfect David Dixon isn't that perfect after all"

David was taken aback. Hearing that sentence made him feel like someone had punched him right in his gut. The words echoed in his mind over and over again. 

'David Dixon isn't that perfect after all'

A few boys helped him to get back on his feet.

David's face turned scarlet with shame. His eyebrows creased, looking at the laughing students. He felt his stomach tightening, as a lump formed in his throat. Feeling a mix of anger and shame, he stormed away furiously, glaring at the laughing students.

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In his usual uniform, Travis walked into the coffee shop to perform his shift. He approached Petal. "Petal, I owe you an apology. I made some updates to the official website without asking either of you guys... I'm sorry. There were some incidents and um... I just..."

"It's alright, Travis.", chuntered Petal, monotonously.

Travis paused for a moment. Her voice was lacking her usual enthusiasm. This was odd. Especially in the early hours of the day when she used to be exuberant and indefatigable. He wondered if something was wrong. 

 "Uh, and Liam's on holiday and he got really mad at me yesterday when he got to find out. So I changed it back to the original version. You're okay with that, right?"

"Mhm", she responded, her expression dispassionately impassive.

Travis was concerned. "Petal... is everything okay?"

Petal glared at him. "No. Things have escalated much too far and it's about time they get fixed."
She exhaled sharply. "You know what? You gotta know the truth. Since you two aren't gonna fucking communicate, somebody has to intervene. Fuck that promise. I don't care if Alis kills me after this, I just can't stand and watch her world burn."