After my physical I arrived to school during a class change. I moved towards my locker to get my stuff together. As I retrieved my things I felt like people were staring at me. I turned around and noticed a couple guys in the corner staring and winking at me. Disgusted, I closed my locker and made my way to the senior hall. As soon as I entered all eyes fell on me. I wasn't being paranoid, every person was literally staring at me. Soraya ran up to me, and I could anger written all over face.
"What the fuck Sydney?" She started.
"What?" I asked.
"Everyone knows so you can cut the innocent act. I thought I knew you better than that. How could you do? And what about Daniel?" She questioned.
"Soraya, I'm sorry. Kevin and I ... it was only once ..." Her eyes got really big as I spoke.
"Kevin? My Kevin? You slept with my Kevin?" She said stepping closer to me.
"Soraya I'm sorry. I ended things with him a long time ago though." I explained. SLAP! I grabbed my cheek where her palm had just landed. Instinctively, I threw my fist and it connected with her mouth.
We were full on fighting. I cannot lie, Soraya had the upper hand. She was really fighting me, none of that hair pulling stuff. I had to just focus on defending myself, protecting my face.
"You fucking thot. How could you? You were supposed to be my friend!" Soraya screamed, tears streaming down her face, as we were pulled apart.
"Soraya..." Kevin approached reaching for Soraya's arm. She moved out of his grasp.
"You just fucked up." Soraya stated to me and left the hall with Kevin chasing after her. I was left standing in the midst of everyone's glares. I noticed Daniel moving out the hall and followed after him.
"Daniel wait please..." I begged, grabbing his arm.
"What Sydney? What the fuck do you want?" He yelled.
"I'm sorry..." I started.
"For what? For fucking Kevin behind my back? Or for fucking Nathan in the gym yesterday?" He spat.
"How do you know ...?" I asked shocked.
"THE WHOLE FUCKING SCHOOL KNOWS SYDNEY! It's a whole video. Everyone fucking knows." He said pulling out his phone with the video already on the screen. There was no mistaking that it was me and Nathan from yesterday.
"How could you Sydney? I thought you loved me." He stated.
"Loved you? You never told me you loved me Daniel!" I shot.
"Because I wasn't ready! With everything going on with my parents I wasn't sure about love. I couldn't say it yet." He explained.
"But you could have sex with me." I retorted.
"Are you serious Sydney? You know what, I'm sorry for having sex with you. I wish I never gotten involved with you, turns out you're nothing but a whore. I bet your ass wasn't even really a virgin." He finished and walked off.
I couldn't control the tears falling from my eyes. I was hurt by Daniel's words, I was sad about losing Soraya, my face still stung from the fight but mostly I was pissed at Nathan for spreading that video.
Classes had already resumed, and the halls were empty but I knew he had a free period which he usually spent in the library. I made my way there. I caught him before he reached the library. I ran over to him and pushed him from behind.
"What the hell Syd?" He said pulling his earphones out. I couldn't speak, instead I opted to throw punches at his chest. I tried slapping him but he kept blocking all my shots. I was physically trying to fight Nathan. He eventually had both my arms pinned behind me and me against the wall. I knew I looked a mess. My face had to be puffy from crying and fighting. He took my face in one of his hands and moved it side to side, examining it.
"It doesn't look half as bad as that live video made it seem." He commented with a smirk. I pushed him off.
"How could you do that to me Nathan? After everything you've said to me?" I asked between breaths.
"You think I did this? I would never spread that around school. Sydney you know me better than that." He defended himself.
"I'm learning I really don't know people at all." I stated.
"Yea, well me either. I expected you and Danny had did it but I just learned that I'm not the only guy you stepped out on Daniel with. So don't come at me accusing me of something I didn't do. I've been genuine with you this entire time; you're the one who's been lying and thotting it up!" He spat. Nathan wasn't the first to call me out of my name today but it hurt hearing the words come out of his mouth more than anyone else's. Nathan sincerely liked me for me and I screwed up.
"If you didn't do it then who did?" I asked.
"I don't know Sydney, but it wasn't me. Regardless of how pissed I am with you, I would never do something like that." He said. I was crying harder now. The whole school had seen the video by now and the news about Kevin and I was quickly getting around.
"I can't stay here." I said as the tears flowed.
"Whatever, you're no longer my business Sydney..." He finished. I watched Nathan walk away from me and my heart ached.
"Oh look suddenly the bitch has a conscious." A random girl commented as she walked the hall to the bathroom.
I requested an Uber, and went back to my locker collect everything. Sicily was standing by my locker when I got there.
"Sydney..." She immediately pulled me into a hug.
"I really don't want to hear it Sicily." I stated as I pulled away and grabbed my stuff.
"I'm just checking on you Syd. Are you okay?" She asked.
"The fuck type of question is that Sicily? No I'm not okay!" I slammed my locker shut.
"There's blood on your jacket Syd. Here, just take mine." I sighed I took her jacket.
"Where are you going? Let me go with you." She offered.
"Sicily, I want to be alone please." I stated.
"No Syd. Let me..."
"Damn it Sicily. I don't want you around right now." I exclaimed.
"I've been getting the looks too Syd! All morning they've been dragging both of our names through the mud. Did you forget, you have my face!" She stated.
"Well I'm sorry Miss Perfect that your name came up in a rumor; at least you can tell them it was your thot ass twin. God, just ... just leave me alone, okay." I finished and went outside to meet my Uber. My phone was blowing up with notifications from so-called friends and people I didn't even know. My sister was in the mix as well. I turned my phone on Do Not Disturb.
No one was home as I expected so I updated my route and told my Uber to wait for a few minutes. I ran inside and packed an overnight bag of clothes along with my laptop. As I was heading back downstairs I saw my father enter the house. I froze, then quickly regained my composure and walked towards him.
"Where the fuck do you think you're going Sydney?" I had never in my life heard my father curse. It scared me.
"Your principal called me. I saw the damn video Sydney. How could you do something like that? Hmm? What you have nothing to say? You're grown right? You can act like a fucking porn star, but you can't speak to your father? What are the people of the church going to think?" He ranted.
"Who gives a fuck about what the church thinks!" I exclaimed.
"Excuse me?" He questioned. "I put rules in place so things like this wouldn't happen." He continued.
"YOUR RULES ARE CRAZY! God didn't make me Asexual for a reason!" I screamed.
"I don't know who the fuck you think you're yelling at but you better remember your place before I put you there." He warned. "I got people from church whose kids go to school with you calling me, calling you a Jezebel." He sighed.
"So what! Fuck you, fuck the church and fuck God too!" I hit the ground from the force of my father's slap. I scrambled for my bag and ran out of the house into the waiting Uber.
My actions were extreme, I knew this in the back of my head but I continued. I couldn't bring myself to slow down and think. So when I arrived to the airport I bought a one way ticket to Georgia scheduled to leave in two hours. Once through security, I made my way to the bathroom. I looked at my appearance for the first time since this morning. I was flushed. My eyes were dark from my eyeliner and mascara smudging. I could see red scars across my cheek too. I took the time to wash my face and apply a tad bit of b.b. cream before walking out to board my plane. It was a fairly empty flight so I was able to choose a window seat. From California to Georgia was a six hour ride and two time zone changes. I turned off my phone and slept, that's all I had the energy to do...sleep.
I woke up when the pilot announced we were landing. I turned on my phone and dialed.
"Hello..." a groggy voice answered.
"Aunt Jo..." I started.
"Sydney? What's going on? Why are you calling so late?" She questioned.
"I need to come and stay with you for a couple of days..." I told her.
"Why, what's going on?"
"I can explain when I get there." I offered.
"No Sydney explain now otherwise I can't allow you to come." She said.
"Too late, I just got to the airport." I said.
"Ugh Sydney... I'm on my way." We hung up. Once she picked me up we had a silent ride to the Denny's. The silence quickly ended once we were seated at our booth.
"What's going on Sydney?" She asked as she sipped her coffee. I explained everything I had done, and what had happened at school.
"I messed up Auntie..." I admitted.
"It's okay...we all make mistakes... You are responsible for your actions along with the consequences, remember that child." She told me.
I loved my aunt. My father and her weren't very close, which is why I rarely saw her. Their differing views on how to be a christian put a strain on their relationship. She was also upset that he and my mom had chosen to leave us ignorant to our heritage.
Once we were at her house she set me up in the guest room and left me for the night. I finally checked my phone. As expected I had missed calls and texts from my family and a few nosey acquaintances but what I hadn't expected was the missed notifications from Nathan. He was worried about me. He was mad but he wanted to know where I was. He and my sister were the only ones I texted, and I simply said I'm ok.
A/N: we're almost at the end