>>Matthew
"You seem to be avoiding me these days," Chris said as she stood in front of me in my office.
"It's just your imagination." I replied, "Why would I do that?"
"I don't know," She looked devoid of emotion, "But I would like to know."
I shook my head, "There's nothing like that," I assured her, "I would never avoid you, and definitely not after what happened with Rameen." I kept myself calm, "I want you to know that I'm keeping my eyes on you." I nodded, "You don't need to worry,"
Yes, I am keeping my eyes on her.
She stared back at me for a few seconds, it created an awkward air between us since she didn't even blink, "Who released that video?" She asked finally.
"The CCTV?" I folded my arms, "Who else could it be but the police?"
"Why would the police do that?"
I noticed a person behind her, through the open door, making his way towards us
"Why don't you ask the police that?" I kept my eyes on the other person as he came in, "Hm? Detective?" Chris looked back at him, "Why don't you tell us why you released that footage to the public."
Harou stopped by Chris's side, "Hello," He greeted her first, then apologized, "I'm sorry if it offended you, must have been hard to see and learn that the footage of your daughter is out in public."
Chris gritted her teeth but didn't pursue that topic, "Do you have any idea who that person is in the video?" She looked at Harou with angry eyes. Eyes that held an emotion of loss.
Like she was losing.
"Unfortunately," Harou shook his head, "No," He looked at me, "But," He smirked, "I've got my hands on other footages that reveal where the murderer is coming from."
!!!
"So?" Chris stepped towards, "What did you get?"
Harou kept a straight face, "So far," He gently patted the side of her arm, "We're still investigating." He replied, "But don't worry, I will inform you as soon as we reach a conclusion."
Chris did not like that answer but there was nothing more she could do about it.
"I want to be the first one informed when you get to an answer." She demanded.
"Of course," Harou nodded.
"You should take care of yourself Chris," I added in, "Everyone will get worried if they see you here," She looked at me, "Go home and rest."
She then looked away, "Hmm," Then began to walk away.
Harou and I both watched as she left, and then the detective turned to look at me
"Now then," There was a glint in his eyes, "Let's get to business, shall we?"
***
>>Clio
(Trigger warning - Assault)
The waves of fear and anger collided within me, and a primal instinct to protect myself emerged from within. The vulnerability was intense, and the intrusion became a harsh reality, tearing away the illusion of security that I could have gotten if I had been here alone.
My emotions became a tumultuous sea, tossed by the storm of uncertainty and fear as Dani approached me.
"Wait!" Kagan said and Dani paused, "Shouldn't we finish what we couldn't last time?"
My heart dropped to the pit of my stomach. It didn't even take me a second to know what Kagan meant.
'The thing they couldn't finish last time', the memory flashed in my mind. The horrible day was filled with miserable memories that got etched in my mind.
That day when Kagan, Dani, and some other school fellows decided to take off my clothes to check what I really was.
They held me down and violently tried to take off my clothes after school while I yelled at them to stop.
"Don't!" I yelled, "Don't come any closer!!!" I moved back till there was no space left. I was standing in front of the wall now, right next to the table and the bed.
"Right," Dani looked at me with a disgusting look, "We never got to confirm if it was a girl or a boy."
Kagan made his way towards me, "The school nurse said he had a special condition."
"What special condition?," Dani laughed, "No special condition makes you bleed like a girl." And all of a sudden he launched himself onto me.
"Hey!!!" I screamed as he grabbed my arms, "Stay away!!!" I screamed at the top of my lungs. But pain shot through my back when he slammed me against the wall and I let out a groan.
The oxygen got stung in my lungs as if paralyzed.
"Keep your mouth shut!" Dani glared at me, "This is all your fault," He then yanked me away and threw me on the ground harshly while Kagan came over limping.
I gasped for air, trying to breathe as my brain rushed with thoughts.
"How is this my fault!" I turned as the air got caught up in my throat, "You guys started it!!!" I glared at them as they both came and stood over me while I breathed hard.
"Us?" Kagan shook his head, "You're the weird one. You're the freak."
A sharp pain gripped my chest, a visceral response to the verbal assault. "Freak." The word echoed in my mind, wrapping around my self-perception like a dark shroud while their faces contorted into sneers.
I felt like a specimen under a harsh spotlight, "No," I felt the tear well up in my eyes, "I'm not," But my voice came out as a mere whisper. Like I doubted myself.
"Huh?" Dani grabbed my hoodie with his left hand, yanking me off the floor till I was on my knees, barely hanging up from the floor, "You're not?" They both laughed, "Then what are you? You're not a man, are you? Men don't bleed, yet you go around dressing as a guy and pretending to be one," I grabbed his hands and tried to free myself when Kagan hit me in the back of my head.
The shame burned hot against my cheeks, and a wave of self-doubt crashed over me, just like it had that day when I was treated like some sort of a clown. The world seemed to contract, and I became hyper-aware of my differences once again.
It wasn't something I had chosen to do.
Kagan grabbed my pants, "And if you go around pretending to be a boy, doesn't that mean you're a freak?"
They both sneered at me, "Well, we'll see for ourselves what you are."
"Don't," I looked at him in horror, "Please!" I looked from one to the other, "That would never have happened if you didn't pull this same thing that day!!!" A tear slipped down my cheek, "Please," I begged because at this point I couldn't do anything else but beg, "Please,"
They didn't pay attention to my plea and I tried to fight them off but Dani then slammed me back on the floor, making all my body go limp for a moment due to the impact and pain.
"It's revenge time." And I closed my eyes in fear, which was followed by a loud deafening sound.