The Outcast

Chapter 25: Wrath of the Tara

Chapter 25: Wrath of the Tara

“Men often make up in wrath what they want in reason” –William R. Alger

Nirvana Evans

The walk of shame through the crowded hall was almost unbearable. Everyone seemed to stop what they were doing just so they could stare openly at me. I had an urge to scream ‘Didn’t your mother ever teach you any manners? Staring is rude! Mind your own damn business’ but instead I focused on the task of holding my head up high, which was harder than it sounded.  All eyes turned to stare directly at me as I clutched my bag tighter and in a matter of seconds the impending silence was broken and the whispers began.

Except they weren’t exactly whispers since I could make out most of what was being said.

Isn’t that the chick who’s diary got published?

Look! It’s the freak.

Outcast.

How can she bare to show her face here? How embarrassing.

Germfreak.

I would just die if that happened to me.

It’s all over facebook.

What a loser.

All of these things I heard over and over again as if someone had left a broken record playing on repeat. I felt like a circus act, as if my messed up life was a great source of entertainment for these people. But River kept his arm securely around me and so I kept walking until I reached my locker. I had mentally prepared myself to expect Tara to be standing there with a vicious glare and her army of plastic minions to be standing behind her so what I really saw shocked me to no end. What made me stop in my tracks was not the big banner stuck to my blue locker that read ‘OUTCAST’ in big bold letters but more like the two people who were standing in front of it. I could tell they had caught sight of me before I had seen them from the way their postures stood as if ready for battle.

And who were the two people in question, you wonder? The only people who I’d considered my friends for the longest of time. Will and Hazel.

They were standing side by side as if they were friends when in truth Will could barely remember her name most of the time.

I observed them both. Will looked as handsome as ever expect that he had dark shadows under his eyes as if he’d been sleep deprived and his hair was a bit more ruffled than usual. I also noticed there was a hint of worry in his eyes but the look was gone before I could take the time to analyze it and was replaced by an icy cold expression. His face didn’t look like the friendly Will I knew, he looked like the Will everyone thought him to be: closed off and arrogant and that scared me. Was he going to turn his back on me too like the rest of the school had? But my stubborn brain refused to believe that even though he was standing next to Hazel and made no attempt to greet me.

Hazel on the other hand looked like she was at the top of her game and maybe she was. I noticed she wore a short denim skirt (which seemed to have become her uniform lately), a tight top that showed off too much cleavage and a smirk that could only be described as sinister. She flipped her wavy blonde hair behind her shoulder and eyed me and River, who was still beside me.

“Well, well, well look who decided to show her face at school. I would’ve thought you’d had enough humiliation to make you transfer or something. I mean, come on, is it not enough that the entire school has read all of your embarrassing germy little secrets and everyone knows just how much of a freak you really are? I can’t believe I was ever friends with such a loser like you. What a waste of my time. And now you’ve dragged poor River into your miserable little life too?” she spat viciously then turned to talk to River “Let me warn you boy, she’s not worth it. Leave while you can before she brings you down with her. She’s a freak, a friendless outcast-”