The Truth in Pain | Book Two of the In Pain Trilogy

Jasmine Wynter

"Lend me your cute black shirt," Kristin said.

"No."

"Please!"

"Why?"

"I'm going out with some friends tonight and I don't have anything to wear."

Jasmine ignored her pout and went to her dresser, dragging clothes out. "Does mommy and daddy know you're going out tonight?"

"Of course they do. What do you take me for?"

Kristin popped up beside her, smiling. She was the lightest in the house, favouring a caramel shade while everyone else was coffee coloured. Her hair was shorter but currently had false hair braided down to her back. It was tied up now since she never bothered to wear a bandana to bed. A long shirt served as her pyjamas. Jasmine looked at her.

"Fine," she said. "But when I want something, you have to lend it to me."

"Deal!" Kristin was quick to jump back into her bed. She was a phone addict. If she wasn't talking to someone, she was text messaging them or reading. Sometimes she did all three at the same time.

With her clothes in tow, Jasmine went to shower. Ten minutes later, she left the bathroom in only her underwear. Her brown skin glowed with the scent of strawberries, her hair tucked under her shower cap. For most her life, Jasmine hated her tiny boobs. They barely scraped the requirements for an A cup, and surrounded by heavy chested women, she was the odd one out. Her hips may be wide, her ass may be sizeable, but God forbid any guy be interested in her with such tiny breasts. She didn't mind them anymore. They were a part of her she had to accept and so she pulled on the tight V neck with confidence and slid her legs into skinny jeans with even more. Her necklace swung around when she bent to tie her shoelaces.

"Aren't you going to school?" Jasmine asked Kristin while she ran her hands through her afro. The curls were heavy with products so it fell downwards.

"Teacher's workshop," Kristin murmured, too caught up in her phone to push out a full sentence.

Kristin was still in high school. Jasmine didn't think she would miss being at that hellhole, but law school made it possible. Her professors were assholes, her classes were impossible to pass and she was awful at studying. Not a very good combination.

At least she didn't have to commute to school any more. She lived an hour and a half away from campus, which was hell if you were trying to get there on time. It took two buses, nearly three hundred dollars and a cup full of anxious sweat to get to her first class. She finally managed to convince her parents that living on campus was the right thing for her. Jasmine would finally be able to wake up later than usual and she would be closer to Raymond, her best friend.

"Bye guys!" she shouted, running down the stairs.

"Bye, dear," Jacey called out. "Don't forget to call us and visit us whenever you can! Keep your necklace on!" Jacey never failed to tell her that whenever she left the house. Jasmine dismissed it as her mother wanting her to keep her close at all times.

"Yes, mommy. Bye, daddy!"

"Bye, dear." Frank's eyes never left the TV screen. Jasmine smiled. She would miss them. She would even miss waking up to her sisters screaming at each other, and to the sound of weed wackers. She would miss the chirp of crickets at night, and surprised shouts when a bug flew in from the window. She made a promise to herself to visit as often as she could. She knew she wouldn't even get to see Felicia a lot, since her sister didn't mind commuting back and forth and preferred to stay at home.

With one last look, Jasmine grabbed her book bag and left.

**

This time, when she took the very last bus to the Dement University campus, Jasmine wasn't thinking about the hole in her purse. Nor did she complain about the long ride to herself. She was thinking, instead, about all the campus parties she could attend. She was happy she didn't have her parents breathing down her neck anymore. Jasmine was in no way a party girl. She much preferred hanging out with a few friends to downing alcohol with strangers. Yet, the fact that she had the breathing room to do what she wanted made her feel free.