I looked from Leo to Via to Leo to Via and back to Leo. What am I supposed to say? That I was in a car crash 4 years ago and my brother's dead and it's all my fault? I can't tell him the truth.
If I tell him the truth, then he will look at me with pity and I've had enough of that look. Back when the accident first happened, the news kept blaming my brother. Saying stuff like he was intoxicated, high, or both and purposefully drove into the other lane, killing a mother.
The media got so crazy that I couldn't even leave my house. I hated it. Whenever I did leave they followed me everywhere, trying to get me to admit that my brother was drunk or high. But I knew the truth. He wasn't.
When the autopsy report came back on cause of death it was blunt force injury to the head and there was no drugs or alcohol in his system, but the media never learned the truth.
If I tell Leo he would start doing research to find out how exactly it happened and then he would blame me for asking my brother to pick me up and causing the accident.
"I was in a car crash 4 years ago."
That's all I said. I grabbed Via's arm and pulled her away from Leo and towards our locker. "That was the worst thing ever," I whispered. Leo was still watching us and I didn't want him to hear our conversation. "How does he even know about your scar?" Via asked.
"Last night my window was open and I got up to stretch and my shirt came up a little bit. I guess he happened to be looking at me right at that moment."
After that, we both dropped the subject.
Talking about the scar was bringing back painful memories that I wanted to keep locked away for forever.
As we walked to class, Teddy approached us. "Hey Athena I was wondering if you wanted to go get coffee or something this weekend and talk about the decorations for Homecoming?" he asked. Teddy rubbed the back of his neck nervously.
"Sorry, I can't this weekend. Via and I are going shopping for our Homecoming outfits. Maybe some other time," I replied. I felt bad that I couldn't hang out with him, but I still haven't found a costume and Homecoming is in a week and a half. I like Teddy and I want to hang out with him but I'm just too busy. I also have to work on my Anatomy project this weekend too.
"Well maybe we can text our ideas because Homecoming is really soon." He sounded really eager and I figured why not. I still kind of like him so maybe this could lead somewhere.
We exchanged numbers and then Via and I went to class.
---
The rest of the week was completely uneventful and before I knew it, it was Saturday and Leo was coming over.
Since we had decided on our topic for the project and done some basic research, now we need to do a little more research and then put the project together. He was coming over any minute so I was just putting everything we will need downstairs. I decided that it would be easiest for us to work in the kitchen that way if we get hungry or thirsty the fridge is right in front of us. Food is very important.
The front door opened a second later and Leo walked in. He was carrying his Anatomy textbook with him.
"Let's get started," he said.
---
A couple hours later and we had finished our project. I think that it's pretty good. It's definitely worth an A. We have to present it to the class on Friday, so I'm hoping Leo shows up. He tends to stay up late and sleep in a lot, missing the first part of class. The teacher hasn't told us who will be presenting first, so I'm crossing my fingers he shows up on time.
"So do you want to watch a movie or something?" Leo asked.
"Uhm, maybe some other time its getting kind of late. I have to go shopping with Via in an hour. If we watched a movie I wouldn't have any time to get ready," I replied.
I walked Leo to the door where he put on his shoes and we said our goodbyes.
Since Via and I were going shopping in an hour I decided that I had time to take a shower before before we left. It was already 11 am, so by the time we got to the mall it would be 1 since we are going to the big mall in Malibu.
After taking my shower and drying my hair, I walked over and picked out my clothes. Normally on the weekends I just wear sweats and a baggy t-shirt or hoodie, but today I decided to wear actual clothes.
I put on a light pink sweater since its getting a little chilly out, some light ripped jeans, and black-heeled boots.
I left my hair the way it is because whenever I dry my hair after a shower it always gets super wavy. I fixed a couple stray hairs and then walked downstairs. Via was sitting on the couch eating a bag of chips. "Why are you eating right now? I thought we agreed to eat at the mall."
Via turned and looked at me and just shrugged her shoulders. She got up and put away the chips before walking back over to me. She was wearing a white off the shoulder crop top with black pants and combat boots. Even though I had heels on Via was still taller than me.
It's not like I'm short, I'm actually average height. I'm 5'4". Via just happens to be tall like her brother. She is 5'8", which is really tall for a girl. Both of their parents are tall so I guess it makes sense that their kids would be tall too.
"Lets go. I want to find something before everything is gone. Halloween is in a week," Via stated the obvious.
"Okay."
---
When we got to the mall, the first thing we did was go to Panda Express to get some food. I was starving. Long drives always make me really hungry. We ate our food while discussing which stores we wanted to go to first. Via wanted to go to the clothing stores first that way we can get what we need and then look around at other things.
Once we had a plan we got up and threw away our food.
The costume store was right below the food court so we took the escalator down and walked in. The store wasn't overly crowded, but it was a lot more crowded than normal. The shelves also looked a little empty too. I guess we aren't the only ones doing a little last minute Halloween shopping.
Via and her date Miles were going as Cinderella and Prince Charming. A little cliché if you ask me. It was a cute idea and I know Via and her date will pull it off, but I personally wouldn't have done that.
After 5 minutes, Via had already found a beautiful blue dress and a tiara to go with her costume. We walked by the zombie section when I stopped all of the sudden. "What if you go as Cinderella and Prince Charming zombies?" I asked her. "That way it would be a little less cliché."
"That would be a good idea. I can make rips in the dress and have a huge gash going across my chest with fake blood and everything. I can also get some fake blood and swear it across my dress. This is a great idea. Thanks Athena!" She exclaimed.
I left her with the zombie makeup and walked over to a rack of dresses. Honestly, all I really needed for my costume was a plain white dress and a couple other things. One white dress caught my eye. It was really simple yet beautiful at the same time. I looked at the tag and saw that it was in my size.
I tried on the dress in one of the fitting rooms and it fit perfectly.
Once we found everything we needed, we headed to the register to pay.
---
A couple hours later and I was exhausted. Via had been dragging me from store to store looking at all different kinds of things. She was a sucker for malls. It didn't matter what store it was if she saw something that caught her eye, she would go into that store and look at it. A lot of the time she ended up buying it.
Right now, we were sitting on a bench looking at out at a children's play area. There was a little girl with purple ribbons in her hair, running around squealing as a boy, who I'm assuming is her brother, chased her. She was smile was so big it looked like it couldn't stretch any further. Her brother also had the same lopsided grin on his face.
The brother and sister ran around until a man walked over to them and told them it was time to go. My blood ran cold when I saw the mans face. My heart rate sped up and my breathing became uneven. Why was he here? I thought he wouldn't left town after that night to start over, have a clean slate. I hadn't seen him in so long. He slowly turned his head to look up and I accidentally made eye contact with him.
I saw his face turn stone cold as he looked at me. He recognized me, he remembered. Of course something like that you could never forget. He still blamed me for what happened and I can't hold that against him. If I'm being honest I blame myself too.
The only thing I could do in that moment was run. So, that's what I did. I took off running. People gave me weird looks as I ran by but I don't care.
Since it's a mall in a major city, it's packed with people shopping and hanging out with friends. There was a group kids about middle school age hanging out near the fountain, lost in their own world. There isn't really anywhere that you can be by yourself besides maybe the bathrooms but even those tend to get crowded on the weekends.
I burst into the nearest girls restroom and locked myself in the last stall. My breathing was coming in short, staggered breaths. My skin had somehow worked up a layer of sweat, or maybe it was because I was having a panic attack and getting nervous.
Either way, it's never a good idea to have a panic attack in a mall bathroom. After a few minutes, I had managed to calm myself down enough to walk out of the stall. The cold water that I splashed on my face from the sink made me feel a little better. As I looked at myself in the mirror, I saw a girl out of the corner of my eye.
She looked to be only a year older than me. She was staring at me. "I'm sorry for staring at you, but I just couldn't help but notice that something is going on with you. Are you okay?" the random girl asked.
"I'm fine," I replied.
"Well I just want you to know that whatever you are going through will pass. Whatever you are feeling will pass. And when it does you will realize that whatever it is that you went through will make you stronger. It will make you a better person and you will be glad that you came out on top and didn't let it destroy you."
"Whether it's heartbreak or something deeper, you will survive." I looked at the girl in awe. She must have gone through something awful too. "What's your name?" I asked her. Maybe I could become friends with this girl. She might be able to help me overcome my grief. Sometimes overcoming something difficult like grief is easiest when someone you don't know helps you. Then you don't have to worry about them judging you or feeling pity for you.
"My name's Isabella Davis," she replied. My eyes widened. I recognized that name.
"Of the famous Davis Industries?"
"Yup."
Wow I can't believe I'm meeting her. I also can't believe that someone as rich as her would be able to sympathize with someone like me. I always thought that rich people never went through anything bad. They just coasted through life and had everything handed to them on a silver platter. I guess I was wrong.
"Well, if you ever need anything just call me and I'd be glad to help." Isabella grabbed my hand and wrote down her number in pen. I can't believe I have a rich person's number. This day has been filled with so many bumps.
Isabella left the bathroom and a moment later Via burst through the door. "Are you okay? I've been looking all over for you?" She asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine now. Let's go home."
She didn't question me and took my hand and dragged me out to our car.
Once in the car, my eyelids slowly drifted shut after a long day.
-----
Who is the guy Athena saw at the mall? What is her costume? Will she actually stay in contact with Isabella? Will Leo find out the whole truth?
So my goal for this story right now is to get it to 1,000 reads by the end of my school year, which is in 2 and a half weeks. I would really appreciate it if you guys could help me with that. If you have any friends that have Wattpad please recommend this story to them. It would mean a lot to me if we can get this story to 1,000.
Also, since school is ending soon I will have more time to write so hopefully I will update chapters more frequently.
Don't forget to vote and comment! (And share this story with your friends).