Social Media Detox.........ΦΦΦΦ

SIX

OASIS

Rome sat down staring at the floor as his Dad raved and his mum cried. He was a big disappointment now. His fake perfect life had been discovered.
How?... That, he was yet to discover...
“you've ruined us! Our name.”his mother spoke up first. Her tears hadn't stopped even with the way his Dad was rubbing her shoulders. “why Rome? Just why??”
Honestly, he had no answer to that... So instead, he continued to stare at the floor.
“I can't believe our son drinks and smokes Hosea. Rome drinks, smokes and forces unwilling girls to sleep with him.” his mom cried out again and her words drew his head up.
Sleeping with unwilling girls?
His Dad stared at him with hard eyes full of disgust.
“we went through your things...”he started and then walked over to a bag placed on a stool. “Now I see why you value your privacy.”he spat out and unleashed what was inside the bag. “Pack of cigarettes, porn disks, syringes...where is that son that we raised so well?”
Rome had just one answer to that and he said it. “That son never existed to begin with...”
“Shut up! Just shut up you ungrateful child.”his mother screamed and he flinched a bit but didn't back down.
“No.”
“No?”his parents repeated
“No.”he said again and would have received another slap if his Dad hadn't stopped her.
“Did you just...did you just refuse us... Me?”
“yes mom, and I'll do it a thousand times more. You both have been nothing but monitoring spirits in my life. You have acted nothing like parents to me in the emotional aspect. All you both wanted from me was to be the perfect first son who walked in the Lord ways. Did you ever ask if I was doing great internally?”He shot at them. They fell silent but it wasn't for too long as his mom recovered from the shock and replied harshly.
“We didn't ask uh? Just because we didn't ask about your emotional life did not mean that you should go around ruining the Christian image that we worked our ass to build. Heck... You... You even raped a girl. An innocent girl.”
“I don't know what your talking about.”he deadpanned and the next thing he knew, a phone was on his laps.
“The hell you don't!”his Dad growled. “I'll be damned if the parents of that girl doesn't file a report.”
Rome picked the phone up and stared at the headline.

LOCAL HIGHSCHOOL STAR PUPIL IS NOT WHO WE THINK HE IS?

Following the heading was a brief false tale and then...pictures.

Pictures he hadn't realized had been taken. Someone had been monitoring his movements and he had not even realized that...

“Nothing to say? Are you spell bound now that you've seen how your dirty linen has been spread out for the whole world to see?”his mom sneered. Her tears had stopped and she looked worse than hell.

Rome looked up from the phone screen. He felt nothing...not even remorse. Only guilt for the girl he had supposedly raped. An occurrence he couldn't even remember.
“Aren't parents supposed to comfort their kid at this particular point?”he asked quietly and his Dad scoffed.
“You want us to show support after being a disgrace to us?”he asked but didn't wait for his reply. “We'll show you support alright. You'll be going to Seattle before this week runs out.”he dropped and Rome stood up in shock.
“what?!”

SEATTLE

It all sounded bizarre to Fleur.
Her cousin had also been involved in something like a scandal too?
“I can tell what you're thinking and to be honest I wouldn't call it a scandal Fleur.” Scarlett said breaking into her thoughts.
“Oh...how could you tell?”she asked and Scarlett smiled.
“well... You had this look on your face and your  eyebrows were creased in thought.”
Presently, they were in the room that had been set up for her and Scarlett was helping with arranging her things.
“so..your parents are like—cool with it?”
“Literally yes... Emotionally, no.”she sighed then faced Fleur. “I admit that I made a mistake and it's affecting quite the number it shouldn't affect but I can't undo my mistake.”
Fleur bit her lower lip thoughtfully and stared at the clothes on her lap.“Do you know why you did it?”she asked quietly.
“No.”Scarlett stared her cousin. “Do you know why you did it?”she directed the question back and Fleur nodded.
“I believe I was just trying to get back at my parents. I felt so pissed at them and felt really lonely and then, I thought I felt loved by him at a point in time.”
Scarlett  pursed her lips. “well, get ready to feel more lonely cos I have no friends. The ones I had all left once the crises came and you're kinda popular in my school.”she said in a light tone trying to lighten up the mood. Fleur grinned.
“I don't care about what they think of me. I have you anyway—My super cousin.”
“super cousin?”
“yeah. Going through all that—Shit of school and still going through it...without breaking down is—incredible. I'm glad I have you.”