Grace

March 17, 2017

I talked to Maia, Tom, and the rest of Julia's friends first. They weren't exactly easy to find, seeing how they spread themselves out around campus, but Maia helped me out a lot in that respect. She's actually a really nice person, and it sucks that I dragged her into this.

I gathered them in front of the library, and then I told them everything.

As I spoke, a range of emotions seemed to cross between all of them—anger, surprise, confusion, disgust, etc. And when I was done, Maia slapped me across the face. "I can't believe I thought we were friends," she snapped.

Their reactions were understandable, and I don't blame them. I just hope that their relationships with Julia will repair over time.

After that, it was time to tell everyone else. Figuring out how to do this was tricky, given that this isn't high school, where an intercom can access the entire building within seconds. The only way I figured would work was the monthly newsletter. Sure, a lot of people probably ignore it, but enough won't, and the news about what I did will spread. We're not in high school, yeah, but gossip is gossip.

I found the girl in charge of the newsletter and handed her my story. She looked skeptical, but after reading the beginning of what I had to say, she agreed to print it. It helps that she liked Julia and hated that her name had been dragged (wrongfully) through the mud.

And then, finally, there was just Mom to deal with.

She tried to convince us to stay, of course. Cried, even. I half expected Grace to cave, but she remained strong. She didn't shed a single tear. Instead, she grabbed onto Mom's hand and said, "Mom. We love you. But we have to go."

I love her so much.

After that, we packed up a few things and then hit the road, ready to begin again in Rhode Island. I don't exactly know why we picked Rhode Island. It just sort of happened. But either way, I'm happy with our decision.

On the way to our new home, we blasted the radio and sang along to the music, happier than we'd been in a really long time. The farther we got from Wellington, the freer I felt. All of the things that had plagued me seemed far away and unimportant. I was on the road with my sister and we were going somewhere where life would be better. I'll find a job and take some online classes to work on my degree, and Grace will find a local school to attend, continue therapy, and find a girl that will love and cherish her the way she believed Julia had.

Of course, there's always the chance that everything will go to hell, but, hey. I'm optimistic.