Maya's balcony looks something like what's above or to the side.
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"Good morning," Emma greets me
when I walk into the kitchen.
I nod at her and sit at the island. She is standing on the opposite side from me and is cooking some eggs. I can smell biscuits cooking in the oven, and I watch her as she sprinkles cheese and bacon onto the eggs.
"How did you convince my uncle to let you cook in this kitchen?" I ask.
She laughs. "It wasn't very hard. I told him that I would be doing things my own way."
I let out one of my rare laughs. "Yet he hired you?"
She she turns the burner off and transfers the eggs to a platter. "He seemed desperate. Plus, he doesn't seem to mind the smell of food cooking."
I nod and stand up to leave. "I'm going to the bookstore."
Emma nods. "You sure you don't want anything to eat or to go say hello to your uncle?"
I shake my head and hurry out the door, carrying my bag that has my laptop, notebook, and pens and pencils. I walk quickly down the path to enter the center of town. I walk to the bookstore and walk to my little spot I've made in the back of the store. I say hello to the owner before pulling out my laptop.
I'm writing down ideas in my notebook when I hear a voice say, "Well, we meet again."
I look up and see the guy from yesterday standing in front of me with the same sunglasses on. "Not by my choice."
He laughs, sending a warm feeling all throughout me because his laugh is warm and kind-- not mean and inconsiderate. "You're a sarcastic one."
"What made you notice?"
He smiles at me and switches the subject. "I was looking for the computer the owner told me was here. Do you know where it is?"
I point behind me at a door. "Through that door."
The guy starts walking toward the door and says, "Great thanks to you. To whom do I owe my thanks?
I roll my eyes. "My name's Maya, and please don't ever speak like that again. We're not in some book where the guys try to speak eloquently."
I don't wait for his reaction. Instead, I quickly plug my earbuds into my laptop and start some music. When I look up, he's gone, so I turn the music down and take one earbud out of my ear. I let myself have a small smile on my face and go back to opening up Wattpad and typing a new part for my story.
My phone buzzes, and I look down to see a notification from my email. I stop typing and unlock my phone. I look at my email and see I have a notification from my blog post and the online high school newspaper.
Being the curious person I am, I decide to check the newspaper article. I know it's probably a mistake, but I can't help but feel like I should know what's being written about me. I open a new tab on my computer and type in the high school newspaper address. On the website, I click the link to the newest article.
"How to Avoid the Town's
High School Outcast."
I smirk at the new article title, and I mutter, "Is that the best you can do? That's pretty sad, especially compared to last time."
"What's that?" a voice asks me from behind.
I quickly shut my laptop and spin around to see the sunglasses guy standing behind me, staring at me. I clear my throat. He continues to stare.
"Nothing," I snap.
He walks over to the chair across from me and sits down. "It didn't look like that. It looked like someone posted a mean thing about you."
I smirk. "Wow, you must feel so proud."
He frowns. "You think this is a joke? Bullying isn't a joke, and you're being bullied."
I roll my eyes. "It isn't bullying if you feel absolutely fine after you see it, which I do, so I would appreciate it if you would leave me alone."
He raises an eyebrow, "You can't seriously not be affected by their words."
I ignore my thoughts of him being right and say, "I can. Now, please leave me alone."
He sighs and stands up. "Bullying isn't cool, and you need to tell someone if it's bad."
"I'm seventeen and can deal with a lot of stupidity. I'm perfectly fine. Now, please leave me alone with my laptop and music."
He sighs again and slowly walks out of the building. I sigh and quickly pack my things. He just ruined my perfect afternoon. I say goodbye to the owner and quickly walk down the street as soon as I get out of the bookstore.
"I can't believe the loser is out here in broad daylight, especially when nobody can bear to look at her in the face," Cassandra's voice taunts from behind me.
I resist every urge to stop and turn around. She wants to get a response from me, and I can't let her get what she wants. I can't.
"Too afraid to speak? Must be because of that article in the high school newspaper. Did I mention I wrote it? It's probably the most accurate story I've ever written. Don't you agree?" she pushes.
I don't answer as I stop at my uncle's office. I don't know why, but I open the door and step inside. Cassandra doesn't follow me inside, making me take a deep breath.
"May I help you?" I look up and see a young woman staring at me with a look of contempt on her face, letting me know that she knows exactly who I am.
"Is my uncle here?" I ask.
She raises an eyebrow. "Who is your uncle?"
"Samuel Erickson. I wasn't sure if he had left the house today or not, so I thought I would check," I hear myself saying for some strange reason.
"How would you know him?"
I roll my eyes. "Look, I just said I wanted to see my uncle. How much dumber could you get? Just let me know if he's here; I don't have all day. You'll be sorry if you don't let me."
Her mouth opens wide at my words, and she reluctantly presses her intercom button. "Mr. Erickson, there is a girl here claiming you're her uncle."
My uncle's voice says, "Send her in."
"Yes, sir."
She turns to me and glares at me before signaling me to go back to his office. I roll my eyes at her and walk to his office. Instead of being a normal person who knocks, I just barge in because I have already accepted the fact that I'm not normal.
My uncle looks up at me and signals for me to sit down as he points at his ear, telling me he is on the phone. I nod and sigh and sit down across from him. I have never really been to this office, so I look around. Only two pictures are on the walls, and his desk barely has anything on it.
"Alright, thank you very much. I'll talk to you later. Goodbye," my uncle soon says into the phone.
I look back at him and see him taking the phone thing out of his ear. He sets it down on his basically bare desk and smiles at me. I don't bother smiling back at him. He almost frowns but stops himself.
"What brings you here?" he asks kindly.
I roll my eyes. "Don't act all excited. I don't even know why I'm here."
He sighs. "Does Emma know you left?"
I sigh out of irritation. "What would happen if I said no?"
"Maya," he replies flatly.
"Yes, she knows. Now, I'm leaving so goodbye," I tell him as I get up to leave.
"I'll see you at home."
I just nod and quickly walk out. I don't see Cassandra anywhere, so I hurry down the path to the house. I walk through the back door of the house and try to walk quietly past the dining room where Emma is.
"Maya!" she exclaims as I walk past her.
I sigh and turn around to face her. "What?"
She ignores my annoyed tone and asks, "Any ideas for dinner tonight?"
I think for a moment before suggesting something. "I really like baked potatoes."
She raises an eyebrow. "Hmm. I may have to save that for a special night because those go really well with steak, and I don't think I have time to do that right now. Any more ideas?"
I roll my eyes. "Something that doesn't require me to have to sit with my uncle at the dining room table."
She gives me a look that says that's not going to happen. "Very funny. I guess I'll have to think of something. I'll see you later, Maya."
I nod and hurry up to my room where I set my things down on my bed and hurry out to my balcony. I lean on the railing and look out at the private beach. I breath in the fresh air as I look at the beauty around me.
This is what I live for. I live for being able to seem normal, even if it's behind closed doors. I live for the peace and quiet I get when I'm alone, and I live for being able to be someone who isn't being judged all the time by people who don't even know me, yet they think they do.
I watch as a lone figure begins to walk on the beach. The figure stops and stands as though he or she is mesmerized by the beauty just like me.
I sigh and sit down in my chair while I close my eyes and find myself being taken back to part of my horrible past.
~•••••~
"Worthless piece of junk that I have to call my child," he snarls at me as he throws a book at me.
I manage to dodge the book, but I cower in fear at the monster before me. He comes closer and closer to me with a disgusting grin on his face. I keep backing up but find myself backed into a corner where there's no escape for me.
"Oh, look who's trapped; the worthless weakling," he says as he begins to extend his hand toward me.
I shut my eyes and wait for the sting of a slap or something similar to that to come. It doesn't come. I hear him walk away from me. He starts yelling at someone else, and I slowly open my eyes. My eyes land on him pushing around my mother, telling her to leave.
She tries to tell him something, but he keeps telling her to leave. She doesn't, and she gets slapped for it, along with being called names that should never be repeated or said in front of a child. I hear the slap from my corner and try not to let out a cry for help. My mother looks at him straight in the eye and tells him something that causes him to run out of the room. She doesn't even touch her cheek or cry once he's gone. It's like she's immune to the slaps and dreadful names.
She looks over at me and gives me a small smile before he comes back in and takes her by the arm. He jerks her out of the room and closes the door behind them, locking it in the process.
I sit and wait, hoping he really left. I slowly crawl out of my corner when I hear the sound of the front door opening and closing. I stand up and walk over to the tiny and only window in the room and look out at the street where his car is parked. I watch as he basically drags my mother to the car and forces her inside the car. He jogs to the driver's seat and gets in, speeding away almost immediately after he closes the door.
All I can think about is my mother and how I'm free for the time being while she's trapped with that man who I despise but am frightened by every single time I look at him in the face. I am almost twelve, and I already have to fear for my life.
I always thought my mom was protecting me from him, but I soon found out it wasn't just him. She was protecting me from the things they were both doing, which included the things she was being forced to do that she hoped I would never have to be forced to do.
~•••••~
"Hello? Hello?" a voice calls, startling me from my painful memory.
I open my eyes and sit up. I stand up from my seat and walk over to my balcony railing and see the sunglasses guy standing below me, looking up at my balcony with a puzzled expression.
"What do you want?" I yell down harshly.
"I heard someone crying on my way home, and it sounded like it was coming from here. Are you alright?" he asks.
I glare at him. "Leave me alone. I don't need you."
He ignores my harsh tone. "Why can't you try to be polite?"
I ignore him and sit back down in my chair, hoping he will just go away and leave me alone. I hear rustling for a few minutes, but I soon hear nothing, so I settle into my chair happily.
All of a sudden, I hear leaves rustling again. I think it's a squirrel but it seems too large to be a squirrel. I slowly lean forward and listen. More rustling comes. I slowly stand up and find myself staring at the sunglasses guy's head.
He is climbing up the tree, and he soon jumps onto my balcony and stands across from me.
"What the heck do you think you're doing, idiot?" I demand.