'Ewe, how gross'

She said how gross, of all things. My heart fell out of my chest and mind shattered from existence. I found myself struck and unable to move at all.

'Octavia, hey'

Hearing that voice call out to me was an embarrassment, with that I knew that the girls would now know I was there and they did. My heart thumped in such pain, as I reached for my pocket and took out some ear pods to mask my attention to what had just occurred. I placed one in my ear and the other held in my right hand. Drowning in humiliation I turned to the person who had called out at me, to smile.

I waved the girl and watched her walk by, grieving by how I'd encounter those fakers in little to no time. Just as I did the President along with those two insignificant fakes came out from the class room. Because they took my pride from me, I couldn't see at them in the same way any longer. They were voids who stripped my every smile and confidence from me in moments and now they even had the courage to stand in front of me.

'Honey, what's up Tavia?', Brian spat.

'Brian, President, Lille I just got here, I came back for my umbrella'

'Oh, that was yours?'. Lille murmured, 'Here...'

'No, I don't need it anymore'

'No here take it'

'Thanks but, no'

'Here', Lille insisted.

Her force towards me enraged my every being, the fact that she was now playing nice, thoughtful and considerate tipped me off so I slapped her hand away from mine, watching the umbrella she'd held, now sharply hit the floor.

With that, the space became tighter and silent. Feeling their eyes preying on me, I felt uncomfortable, ugly and naked.

The President whispered to the pair and later still staring at me, they walked away without words. As they were diminished from the scene, the president approached me like a devil.

'Deputy, now what did you..?'

My adoration was now turned fear for her, my ears severed, so what more she had to say muted and never reached me. Rapidly out of the college grounds. I ran, even in the rain, I ran and didn't care that my Endever bag would ruin or Lionas shoes would dirty. I just had to run from the shame.

Later that night wishing that I never knew what I did, I huddled with my dolls unable to cry. My effort to let my pain out, at least tired me to the point that I could easily fall to sleep.

In a sleep like existence, it was warm and dark, but I soon found myself opening my eyes beneath a pattern of radiant, fire breathing lights. Burning inside as though it was normal, a strong hand reached out to me. When with no hesitation I took the hand and sat up, I felt saved; the hand of my savior turned out to belong to a man I'd never met before. Behind him the Jay and Malcolm my oldest of brothers, and others I didn't recognize standing as though they were waiting for me to come to them. Lurking in my vision of the others, the president stood beneath a smokey shadow, withdrawn from the rest of the group. 

Why?, I'd kept asking myself and the more I'd ask, the more it'd hurt. The more I begged to know, in response my chest would sorely burn.

 It went black, but strangely I found comfort in the dark.

'Octavia has to go'

The sound of my Dad calling my name, pulled me out of the dark with such force. I chose not to open my eyes as I knew that I'd be interrupting something important.

'Darling, she's not ready'

'Not ready?', 'Look at the state of this room, she needs to learn to control her inheritance'

Shaken by what was being said between my parents I pulled myself up from my bed, to find that I was in the mist of what looked like a War zone. Scanning my entire room, I noticed my belongings destroyed as though affected by an extinguished fire. The smell of charcoal intoxicated my nose and the wall above me covered in ashes like the pattern of the fire breathing lights that occurred in my dream. Unable to comprehend the situation, I began to panic, but as I did, steam started to arise around my body.

'Mummy, Daddy?'

'Aliane, take her out' 

'Octavia baby, calm yourself and lets go for some ice tea', my Mum with her soft words shielded me.

'But...'

That was the last time I had slept in that room.

TO BE CONTINUED...