Somewhere You Can't Hide (American Horror Story)

Chapter 9

After Tate caught me looking, the rest of the walk to school was filled with awkward glances and insufferable silence. The hot L.A. sun was starting to penetrate through my layers, leaving a sheen on fine sweat on my skin. I peaked to Tate again through my hair to find him walking along with his sweater sleeves pulled up to his elbows. His toned arms were on display and I could see the fine white scars in the inside of his wrists, and the angry looking red cuts. 

There so many lining his wrists. I tried to count them, but they were crossed over each other; not lined in a specific pattern. But I could distinguish the deep, fat scar on the very end of his wrist over a vein. Tate had tried to commit suicide.

The thought mad my gut turn and my throat close up. I couldn't imagine life without Tate, even after just meeting him. 

"I did it after my dad left."

His voice cut into my thoughts and I tore my eyes away from his wrists to meet his eyes. Tate's deep brown eyes looked sad and distant as he gazed into mine. His face was stony, and I regretted looking so intently at his cuts and scars. I inadvertently brought up the past, and I felt like a big jerk.

Great Violet. That's the way to get someone to like you.

"I'm sorry, Tate. Uhm... I didn't mean to-"

He cut me off with a low rumble, "Don't apologize to me, ever. I don't want to hear that useless word, especially from you."

And with that he stormed ahead of me as we approached Westfield High. I was confused at his outburst, and felt even guiltier. I didn't even mean to set him off, but I tried to convince myself he was just sensitive and was having a bad day.

I was a bad liar, even to myself.

 I quickly lit up a cigarette and walked through the courtyard. People were everywhere. Jocks were throwing a football while girls giggled and watched them. I rolled my eyes and took another drag from the lifeline clutched between my fingertips. Everyone here looked so different from back in Boston. Yeah there were the preps, but here, everyone was decked in designer and it was obvious I didn't fit in. It's not liked I even wanted too, it wasn't my scene, but it would be nice to know someone.

Well, I knew Tate but I already pissed him off so he didn't count. So I was a loner, again.

"Hey! There's no smoking here! Student council voted it out last year!" A girl yelled in my face. God here we go.

"Sorry," I said as I dropped the cigarette to the ground and smudged it with the tip of my shoe. "I didn't know."

"What do you think you're doing?" She screeched and picked up the cigarette, "I want you to eat it."

"What? No. Why are you doing this? You don't even know me." I said angrily.

"Leah's grandmother died from lung cancer, she takes this stuff pretty seriously." One of Leah's cronies said with a smirk.

Leah grabbed my arm and tried to touch my lips with the cig. I whipped her hand off and spit in her face with a smile. I could hear her screaming as I ran away. People gaped at me as I ran into the school with abandon. My bag swayed awkwardly at my side and I held my hand to my hat as I kept running until I saw room 223. I remembered that my first period from my schedule.

I caught my breath before yanking the door open to the class. No kids were in there, but the teacher, I assumed, was sitting at her desk. She looked up at me with a smile before gesturing me in. 

"I'm Mrs. Miller. You can take any seat you want." She said nicely while handing me a paper; the class syllabus. 

I took a seat in the back corner and put my ear buds back in and turned on my iPod. The Moody Blues played softly as I took out a pencil and notebook from bag. I opened it up to the first page and started to randomly doodle. I must of been doodling for a long time because students were piling in as the bell rang. They all talked to each other and sat with their friends, leaving me alone in the back. I yanked my ear buds out and shoved them in my bag along with my iPod. 

I went back to doodling as Mrs. Miller took attendance. I said here when she called my name, not even looking up from my notebook. 

"Tate Langdon."

My head popped up as his name was called. I looked around the class but didn't see his blonde curls anywhere. 

"Here."

My head cut up fast as I stared at the doorway. There he was, slouched against the door frame looking all kinds of sexy and mysterious as he smirked at me. 

Holy shit.

Vote, comment. Thanks~