Chapter 7 by Fathiah Zarafi

I scrubbed my face tenderly as I listened to the morning assembly. Two days had
passed since the visit to the hospital yet I couldn't get the issue out of my thoughts. My nightmares came back with a vengeance; haunting my dreams until I woke up breathless and panting. Since that day, I started bringing the sleeping pills along to school, hoping perhaps I could catch some shut eyes during free period or if desperate, during classes. The teachers would slam their hands or books on my table but a look at the hideous bruises under my eyes, they somehow understood my situation and left me be with a warning.

"Sup, Adele," greeted Chayton next to me. I eyed him wearily. He had a cheery smile on his lips with a refreshed face. How I envied him.

"Hey," I retorted wearily. I was thankful that Chayton didn't notice my tiredness in the darkness of the auditorium. He casually draped an arm at the back of my seat and leaned back.

"How long has he been babbling about school toilets?" he asked, directing to Mr. Akagi, our principal.

"Fifteen torturing minutes." Chayton whistled lowly at my answer, drawing attention from several people near us. I slid deeper into my seat as my eyes grew weary.

Chayton began chatting with Stuart and a couple of his friends and the sound of his voice was like white noise, creating an ethereal sense of peace in me. I welcomed the tranquility of sleep, even if it was only for mere minutes. My bobbing head finally found a resting spot on a very comfortable shoulder and I was out like a light.

The darkness was teemed with whimsical giggles. My hands were splayed in front of me as I tried to find my way through it blindly. I went around in circles, occasionally tripping on my skinned knees. The giggles surrounded me and I tried to follow it but the sound would fade away whenever I got near it. Just as I was about to give up and curl up on the cold ground, a warm hand descended upon my shoulder. I didn't scream or recoiled in fright; the hand delivered warmth that settled comfortably at the pit of my stomach.

"Don't be scared, Aly." I knew that voice. The darkness slowly faded away as a glow took its place. Only then I could see the faces of my sisters. Lucy was smiling at me, holding a giggling Sarah's hand. Tears blurred my vision upon seeing them again.

"Lucy, Sarah, I miss you," I eked out through quivering voice. To my shocked, Lucy's smile faded and a frown settled upon her brows.

"She is not who she says she is, Aly. Be careful around her." It was my turn to frown.

"Who, Lucy?"

She opened her mouth to answer but no sound was emitted. I watched in horror as she crumpled to the ground, clutching her stomach as blood poured out of a wound. It was an all too familiar sight. Sarah cried out in pain and clung to my leg as her white dress slowly turned crimson. I was frozen in place, helpless to do anything. All I could do was clutch Sarah's little body as life was drained from her.

"Adele, wake up!"

My eyes snapped open and saw Chayton shaking me. I raised my head from his shoulder to find the auditorium almost deserted, save for only a few students and us. I blushed furiously when Tristan walked past us and eyed our compromising position.

"Er, sorry Chayton. I didn't mean to fall asleep on you like that," I said as he helped me to my feet.

"Hey, no sweat. I dozed off a little too when Mr. Akagi began nagging about mooners," Chayton laughed.

"Who mooned whom?" I asked curiously. Chayton began guffawing as he recalled the incident.

"A bunch of seniors flashed their pale butts to that gym teacher you hated." I couldn't help but join in his laughter; I really did hate that woman. We walk alongside each other since we both had free period.

"Oh by the way," Chayton spoke, "you were whimpering in your sleep just now. Everything alright?"

Flashes of the dream entered my mind. My steps faltered as I remembered the horrid scene before my eyes. I didn't realize I had forgotten to give Chayton an answer until he began staring expectantly at me.

"Oh yeah, just a weird dream," I chuckled nervously. As we neared the study room, I diverted once I spotted the girls' toilet. My heart was pounding against my ribcage as I felt the telltale signs of an oncoming panic attack.

"Adele, where are you going?" Chayton called after me in surprise. I didn't answer him; I couldn't answer him. My throat had closed up and I was trembling badly.

I locked myself inside an empty cubicle and buried my head in between my legs. This was all too much; why was I having these dreams, who ran over Mr. Charles, who can't be trusted?

"Oh god," I groaned, as an intense wave of fear and dread washed over me. My breaths were coming in short and shallow pants. The only things running through my head was I'm going to die, oh god, I'm going to die. The feelings remained for a few minutes until I managed to calm down. As the fear left me, I slumped on the floor in exhaustion. I haven't dreamed of the night of the murder since two weeks ago. The sudden onslaught of the memories felt fresh and new, as if I had just experienced it yesterday.

I reached into my bag for the clear container, the pills clattering against the walls and poured it into my open palms. I didn't know how many I swallowed but I couldn't care less. I just wanted the feelings to disappear. My knees wobbled when I pulled myself up and I had to cling to the wall for a few seconds until the dizziness ebbed away.

Making my way in the deserted hallway stirred up the dream once more, where I was running in the darkness but I summoned all the will power to shake it away. My fingertips just barely grazed the doorknob when it suddenly slammed open, knocking me and all of the contents of my backpack to the floor. I was momentarily dazed until I heard the voice of Chayton.

"Stuart, you klutz, you just walloped Adele!" he yelled as he rushed over me.

"Shit, so sorry but I really have to pee!" Stuart stepped around me and sprinted to the toilet. Chayton crouched down and started helping me gather up the strewn books and papers.

"You gotta go when you gotta go, huh?" he joked. I offered him a weak smile before shoving my books into my backpack. I was busy gathering the papers that had flown a few feet away from me when I noticed Chayton stiffening from the corner of my eye.

"Adele, what is this?"

I swiveled around and followed his gaze to his hand. Immediately I froze upon seeing the container of my sleeping pills in his palm. His bewildered eyes met my shocked ones.

"Is this what I think it is?" he asked cautiously, studying the container closely. I hastily reached over to snatch it away but Chayton held it away from my reach.

"It's just sleeping pills, Chayton," I whispered through gritted teeth, "not weed or something."

"It's a drug, Adele. How long have you been taking these?" he demanded to know. If it wasn't such a humiliating situation, I would've found his shifts of emotions comical. His expression was suspicion at first but it was quickly replaced by comprehension.

"That night, when you asked me how to get to the city, you were going to buy these, weren't you?"

My face burned red upon getting caught. I glared daggers at him and seized the little container away from him.

"It's none of your business, Chayton. It's just sleeping aids because I can't sleep!" I spat as I shot to my feet. He scowled at me in return and I was momentarily shocked at the sight, since I had never witnessed anything but a smile on his features.

"The date on the prescription wrote two weeks back and you only have five left. You're over using them, Adele," Chayton stated in a grave voice.

I felt like slapping him for intruding on my privacy but I decided not to since it would cause a commotion.

"I don't tell you how to live your life so don't tell me how to live mine," I hissed before brushing past him, intending to escape but he grabbed a hold of my arm before I could.

"Adele, wait."

"Let me go!" I pushed, shoved, squirmed until his grip loosened and I fled away instantly.

I didn't stop to even look back and continued my flight until I reached the library. Once inside, I searched for the furthest table and collapsed heavily on the wooden chair. I buried my face in the folds of my arms, suspiring tiredly. The face of an angered and disappointed Chayton filled my vision spontaneously. I felt guilty and a little bit ashamed to be the cause of his smile to be replaced by a frown. Somehow, I didn't want to see that expression again, especially when it was directed to me.

I couldn't face Chayton just yet so I skipped lunch and opted to hide in the nook of the library like the coward that I was. The librarian stared at me through her half-rimmed glasses briefly before proceeding with whatever she was doing. I decided to kill the time by picking a random book and try to read it. My hand flipped through the Portland News Collection aimlessly when an article caused my hand to freeze.

Renowned Ronald DeHeart dies in a freak explosion

I re-read the headline a few times in confusion. DeHeart? Was he related to Mary Anne and Tristan? I scanned the strip of newspaper further.

Ronald DeHeart, a renowned scientist, was killed in a deadly explosion at his lab in San Francisco late last night. DeHeart was reportedly working on a new experiment supervised by his partner when the incident occurred. His partner, Jonathan Fischer, also a scientist from San Francisco, escaped unharmed. DeHeart left behind a wife and a son.

My mind was buzzing with confusion. Was this man Mary Anne's husband? If he was, why were there absolutely no trace of him at all, not even pictures? And my father was involved? I have never heard of him in an explosion before. I couldn't comprehend a thing. Before I could ponder any longer, the bell rang and the librarian was staring at me coldly. I gathered up my things and headed for class.

The voices of my teachers were droned out. I couldn't focus on a single thing except for the article. How could father not have told me about a laboratory catastrophe? When the clock finally struck 3, I was delirious to head home and researched more about Ronald DeHeart.

I scuttled out of the school building and passed the sea of students that gathered on the compound. I had reached the porch of the red house when suddenly I was grabbed backwards. A scream tore from my throat before the person muffled my voice with a hand.

"Shh, Adele, it's just me." I spun around once I was released and indeed standing there sheepishly was Chayton.

"Are you crazy?" I yelled, "You gave me a mini heart attack!"

"Sorry," said Chayton though his tone was far from it. I was about to turn away and leave when he snatched my hand, gently tugging me forward.

"Come and follow me."

"Follow you where?" I protested, trying in vain to wrench my hand away from his tight grip. He was silent, dragging me past my house and back to the school compound. Curious eyes followed our steps, some even whispering amongst themselves.

"Look, Chayton, I know we had a little spat earlier but please don't rape me," I said nervously when we approached a row of houses perpendicular to the school. Chayton shot me a glance over his shoulder and instantly my worries fade. His eyes were full of trust.

Chayton stopped in front of a small green house. It was much smaller than Mary Anne's house and had a little garage next to it. "This is my house," he started, extending his arms to the open air.

"That's all you want to show me?" I asked skeptically. He rolled his eyes at me and led me to the porch.

"Hold on, Miss Impatient. I want you to meet someone."

We entered the small house but I didn't have time to ogle around since Chayton pulled me straight to the back room. He palmed the doorknob but paused, staring at me intensely.

"Adele, I want you to meet my sister."

I frowned in confusion. Why on earth would he want me to meet his sister? "Why would you—"

My words died in my mouth when the sight before me registered in my brain. A woman, possibly in her early twenties, was sleeping—no, lying on a bed peacefully. Her black hair was braided to hang over one shoulder and the covers were tucked underneath her arms neatly. I turned towards Chayton in puzzlement but he had already taken a seat next to the bed, clutching his sister's hand in his. I approached him slowly and stood at the back of his chair, waiting for him to speak.

"Her name's Aiyana, which means eternal bloom," Chayton started, "she turned twenty two last week. Aiyana has been in a coma for two years now."

I gasped softly at the information. Gently, I rounded him to seat at the foot of the bed so we were face to face.

"She was supposed to be a teacher by now. Her passion is always teaching and nagging," he continued, "so Aiyana enrolled in University of Maine at Augusta. She worked hard, never failed a single test or missed a paper. She was an honor student."

When Chayton paused again, I was forced to ask. "What happened?"

"One night, her roommate threw a college party and invited her. Aiyana, being herself, was too polite to decline so she went. Aiyana—decided to try alcohol for the first time when a few guys offered her a drink. Hours after downing the cup, Aiyana began feeling lightheaded and sick. After complaining to her roommate, she collapsed to the floor. Her roommate thought Aiyana was simply drunk so she brought her back to her bed. A few hours later, the party finally died down and the roommate decided to check on Aiyana. She then saw my sister lying in a pool of her own vomit, having seizure fits."

My gaze drifted towards Aiyana as Chayton told this. I was mesmerized by her beautiful ethnicity features. I instantly knew she had the same radiant smile as Chayton.

"Her roommate called the ambulance and brought her to the hospital," Chayton continued, "They pumped her stomach but it was too late. The drug had done too much damage to her brain."

"Drug?" I questioned. Chayton nodded, staring at me straight in the eye.

"The drink she was offered, was spiked with a large amount of GHB, or as they called it, date rape drug. It caused Aiyana to overdose. The doctor said the chance for her to wake up is very slim but we're still praying everyday for her."

My vision was blurred with tears while gazing at Aiyana. She was rendered to nothing but a living shell because of someone else's careless mistake. Her whole future was ruined and her family was in shambles. The realization of the dangers of drugs hit me like a ton of bricks and I couldn't help the tears from escaping.

"She's beautiful," I croaked out. Chayton smiled, caressing her hair with his palm. He paused as he noticed the tears dripping shamelessly down my face.

"Sorry," I mumbled, rubbing the irksome liquid with the sleeve of my sweater. Chayton shifter over to sit next to me and pulled me into his arms.

"I don't want you to have the same fate as Aiyana," he spoke quietly, "You have a choice, she didn't."

I began sobbing as the full impact of my stupidity hit me. I couldn't believe I had resorted to drugs to escape from my problems. I knew father would be disappointed in me if I ended up like Aiyana, after all the sacrifices he had made to ensure my safety.

"Please stop taking them Adele, please," Chayton begged, "You don't have to do it alone; my mother and I, we'll help you without a second thought."

I slightly pulled away from him to gaze up at him. "I was being selfish, I'm sorry. Why do you even keep up with me?"

Chayton was quiet for a few moments. "I know you're hiding something. I'm not sure what but it's the reason why you're dependent on the sleeping pills, isn't it?"

"I—I don't know what you're talking about."

Chayton leaned his elbows on his thighs and stared at the wall. "Two days ago, you visited Mr. Charles at the hospital that's half an hour away from here."

I distanced myself away from him, scooting closer to the edge. "He's our teacher; of course I would visit him," I retorted.

"But in a state of near panic, rushing over there like a mad man?" Chayton turned his head to face me, "There's something else going on."

I averted my eyes to the floor and studied the carpet. "Chayton, I can't—"

Chayton suddenly got up and hauled me to my feet with him. He enveloped me in a gentle embrace that made me feel there was no other place I would rather be. "I'm here if you want to talk, okay," he whispered, "I care about you, so much."

I tightened my arms around his torso as my lip trembled with overwhelming emotions. "I—care about you, too."

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