Battle Scars
Meeting
Chapter One {meeting}
**Flashback**
— Calum's POV
"You guys ready?" I asked as I toyed with the keys, soaking up the tense moment as my hand edged closer to the lock. I was purposely drawing suspense, not exactly to frustrate them as such, more like playfully torture.
"Yes!" Luke wailed, not being able to handle the droned out wait any longer. He shook me violently by the shoulder; a childish act in some sort of attempt to hurry me along. "Just let us meet her already!" Luke rushed.
I cackled out in laughter, "Alright, alright. Let's go." I opened the front door and it swung open, almost creating a protruding dent in the wall in the midst.
The boys scrambled in and Ashton shut the door behind him with his boot-clad foot. I wondered how my teasing had continued to make them this excitable. Perhaps it was down to the fact that my mom had gotten hitched almost a month ago and, for some odd reason, our new additions to the family had only just settled into our home, so my mom had made a strict ban for having friends over until the whole fiasco had all ended and calmed down.
Naturally, I'd flaunted my new step-sister off to my friends and they'd obviously gained a certain amount of interest because Mike had taken an extra five minutes with his hair and Luke even showered and put on colone for the occasion!
"Angie!" I called, "There are some people I'd like you to meet!"
Angie came running down the steps with thudding stomps against the wooden floorboards, stopping to observe the boys as she reached the bottom step. Her eyes widened once they reached Ashton and she flushed red as she continued to walk over to me.
"Guys, this is Angie," She waved to them, now standing beside me, "Angie this is Michael, Luke, and Ashton."
"Hey." She greeted with humble smile.
Ashton grinned, "Hello beautiful." She blushed deeply and looked at the ground. I attempted to hold back my gag, his charming ways seriously disgusted me — especially when it was my relative.
"Damn Calum," Luke started, "I sure wish she was my step sister." The rest of the three hummed in agreement and I found myself rolling my eyes with irritation.
Micheal, in his confident self, strolled over to Angie, grabbing a lock of her hair and comparing it to his own. "How do you guys think I'd look with pink?" He joked but I sensed some seriousness as he eyed up the pink strand in his hand before Angie awkwardly tugged it back.
We all laughed but didn't, however, fail to recognise the way Ashton and Angie stared in one another's eyes. They held eye contact for a total of five Mississippi's and I shook my head.
This aught to be bad news.
**Present Day**
— Angelina
"God, get out of the way, Loser." Elizabeth growled in a blunt demand and barged me. Our shoulders ruthlessly collided and the force shoved me into those who'd gathered to retrieve their belongings from the lockers behind me.
Elizabeth and her signature posey — Eleanor, Sabrina, and Jamison — laughed mechanically together, their thick lashes of mascara fluttering around as if they were having the best time of their life, entertaining themselves despite the constant stress it put me through.
I muttered profanities under my breath as I stumbled back into my feet. Several people walked past me, observing half-heartedly as I scrambled to pick my bag off of the floor.
"Excuse me?" Elizabeth turned back around to face me, pivoting on the heal of her foot and crossing her arms over her chest accusingly.
I stared wide-eyed, realising my mistake. "N-nothing." I stuttered as I attempted to pry my history textbook from under her shoe. I must have looked pathetic, that was for sure, because the next thing I knew, it had been kicked out of my reach until it eventually skidded into the middle of the hall to be trodden on by the dozens upon dozens of careless students who simply continued on with their day.
"You never learn do you?" Liz breathed, pushing me back into my previous position to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
I fell with a thud and then Liz pounced towards me. She gripped my hair and for a spot second, I recalled how Michael had once so sincerely admired it. A painfull sensation shot through my scalp as she tugged roughly at the faded pink roots, sharply forcing my head to crane to the side. I started to whimper when she still didn't release.
"You keep need to stop treating me like a fool, Angie, because trust me when I say that I will not hesitate to beat the stupid out of you until you realise that." She was so close that I could practically taste her perfume. She'd threateningly crouched down to my level, her eyes narrowing into slits until I was forced to glance around for someone to swoop in and come to my rescue.
The systems around school had gone so terribly down hill that not only was bullying dramatically on the rise but the actual education itself had also hit the dust too.It was like Survival Of The Fittest in a place they had claimed to call safe, it was a eat or be eaten habitat and everyone was the enemy if it meant fending for themselves. It was a wonder the school was still open.
"Have I made myself clear?" She whispered lowly with a calm yet hostile tone.
I watched Mr.Rhode, my geography teacher casually strolled past, donut in hand as he acknowledged us with a courteous nod and I wondered what kind of sick, twisted school I had enrolled in where the teachers prefer their jammed delights over stopping other students from assaulting each other.
I frantically nodded my head and she sent a proud, satisfied smirk my way, finally releasing my head. I looked after her, my head in my arms. She strutted off with her friends as if she hadn't just brutally attacked me fifteen seconds previous.
Shortly after, I found myself in a sprint to get home. There was a slight limp in my step and I had simply assumed it was from the nasty tumble that Elizabeth had caused back at school, I hadn't hesitated to make a swift exit after her and her gang of gal-pals had finaly left and I'd most likely forgotten my text book behind me but that didn't matter at that point when all I truly desired was to return to the cookie stash hidden in my room.
I prayed that Calum had still stayed unknowing upon my chocolate-chip stash as salty tears flew vigorously down my face — seemingly making me apear as the human version of Niagara Falls. I'd only hoped that no one had yet seen me because I looked more than a wreck and the last thing I needed was more ignorant taunting in my life.
I opened the front door to my house and my bag was shortly lobbed to the side, unfortunately missing the kitchen counter and landing on the floor with a loud clutter. Sliding by my back down against the door, I pulled at my hair as I cursed my lack of aim. My head still pounded from earlier in the day and I pondered over if taking some pain-killers would even be worth it seeing as we were only half way through the week and I would nodoubt get more hassle tomorrow, so what was the point?
"Angie?" I heard Michael's voice.
He strolled into the room and choked on the drink he was sipping at, "What happened to you?" I rolled my eyes and, with a sigh, pushed myself up onto my feet.
"Nothing.." I murmured.
"Angie, you're crying." He said a little softer but it was nonetheless stern. He crossed his arms over his chest, a stuborn look over his features.
"I think I know that," I breathed in annoyance and paused for a moment or two, "I cut onions at school and it's emotionally draining for me." I opened the door to the refrigerator, it's light brightening up my reddened face. I gasped, my bloodshot eyes widening as I scanned the contents inside it.
"I ate all those cookies by the way, you know the ones with the milk chocolate chips inside? They were pretty good, you should try them."
Mike fell back onto the sofa, scooping the controller into his hand and casually flicked through the television channels.
I growled, "Do live here now?" with a day as worse as I'd just experienced, I had really needed a crunchy delight to cheer me up such as those cookies that he'd so selfishly devoured to himself. "Because it feels like it." I snatched the remote out of his grasp and changed it to the music channel.
"No, but I may as well." He chuckled, "are you going to tell me what is wrong now or am I going to have to force it out?"
I sighed and turned my head to the ceiling, "I've just had a rough day," gnawing at my lip, I looked back down at him. "I think it's just all the exams stressing me out, don't worry about it; soon I'll be out of that hell hole and we'll be able to eat cookies all day for as long as we want."
With a smile on his lips, Mike returned his attention back to the TV screen, accepting my complete lie of answer. I couldn't tell him — he was dating one of my bullies — school would be over before I knew it and I couldn't spend all my teenage life up to that moment, moaning and wining about myself and my struggles.
I had to get over myself.
I laughed, "Get out of my face, Retard." with one hand, I pushed Calum away by his face.
He licked my palm and I recoiled in disgust, "Retard? I'm wounded." He pouted and pulled a strange attempt of the puppy-eyes. Disturbed, I shook my head in dismissal.
"Yeah, sure.." I grinned.
His eyes narrowed, his bushy eyebrows furrowing and creasing together in false anger. "Angie called me a retard!" At this, any other person would have suspected him to be calling my parents or some sort of serious authority, but as his cavalry of friends came bounding down from somewhere unknown upstairs, it was obvious that there was no threat for me to be worried about.
They all came to the bottom of the stairs, trying to apear as if they were apart The Avengers.
"Dobing me in to your friends, again I see. You're the biggest snitch I know, worse than Luke — and that's saying something." I scoffed.
Luke winced, "Offensive!"
"Angie called me retarted." Calum cried, pointing his finger into my nose, and pretended to fall into hysterical sobs.
"Oi!" Michael yelled, "Nobody makes my bestfriend cry!"
I squealed and curled up, shielding myself as Mike flew through the air to tackle me. I rolled to land beside the coffee table — trying to escape Michael's wrath. I scrambled off of the rug and sprung into defence mode.
The pillow in my hands knocked him across the head, a lucky shot for sure. The pillow reflected back, hitting Calum who gasped and threw it back, aiming for Micheal but catching Ashton off guard. I giggled at the irony as we found ourselves mid-attack in what I would call a pillow war rather than fight.
I froze as Luke shoved me, intending to be playful but throwing me roughly against the sofa and eventhough it was a plush and cushioned seat, it still hurt. Suddenly it reminded me of school and I was stunned as the events played back before my eyes.
You need to stop treating me like a fool, Angie, because trust me when I say that I will not hesitate to beat the stupid out of you until you realise that.
I shuddered just in time for Michael to tackle me and singlehandedly toss me on the couch without so much as breaking a sweat. He pounded on his chest like a gorilla and began to tickle me.
"M-Michael, stop!" I said between laughs and attempts to remove his attack off of me. However, soon enough Calum and Luke joined in and I stood no chance against all three of them.
"Stop, I will puke on you!" I warned, slapping their hands, causing them to throw themselves back with disgusted faces.
"You can puke on Michael —just not me or Lukie-pookie." Calum ruffled Luke's hair. Michael gasped and punched at his chest. "What, it will probably match your hair anyway!"
We all laughed in perfect synchronisation.
An hour and five plates of pizza later, Ashton and I were stood in front of the bubble filled sink that had threatened to flood over any time soon. Luke on the other hand, with his height, had put no effort in sliding the now pristine plates and utensils into the high shelves and cupboards. So I was caught off guard as when I reached for another clean plate to hand to him, Ashton held my wrist in place.
I squirmed slightly and looked up at him. "Hey Angie?" Ashton asked.
"Yeah?"
"Can I tell you something?" The smile of my face grew and I had sworn it was almost grazing my very ears, "I started dating Elizabeth today." My smile died.
Did you hear that?
That was my heart shattering into a million pieces.
**Flashback**
— Calum's POV
"You guys ready?" I asked as I toyed with the keys, soaking up the tense moment as my hand edged closer to the lock. I was purposely drawing suspense, not exactly to frustrate them as such, more like playfully torture.
"Yes!" Luke wailed, not being able to handle the droned out wait any longer. He shook me violently by the shoulder; a childish act in some sort of attempt to hurry me along. "Just let us meet her already!" Luke rushed.
I cackled out in laughter, "Alright, alright. Let's go." I opened the front door and it swung open, almost creating a protruding dent in the wall in the midst.
The boys scrambled in and Ashton shut the door behind him with his boot-clad foot. I wondered how my teasing had continued to make them this excitable. Perhaps it was down to the fact that my mom had gotten hitched almost a month ago and, for some odd reason, our new additions to the family had only just settled into our home, so my mom had made a strict ban for having friends over until the whole fiasco had all ended and calmed down.
Naturally, I'd flaunted my new step-sister off to my friends and they'd obviously gained a certain amount of interest because Mike had taken an extra five minutes with his hair and Luke even showered and put on colone for the occasion!
"Angie!" I called, "There are some people I'd like you to meet!"
Angie came running down the steps with thudding stomps against the wooden floorboards, stopping to observe the boys as she reached the bottom step. Her eyes widened once they reached Ashton and she flushed red as she continued to walk over to me.
"Guys, this is Angie," She waved to them, now standing beside me, "Angie this is Michael, Luke, and Ashton."
"Hey." She greeted with humble smile.
Ashton grinned, "Hello beautiful." She blushed deeply and looked at the ground. I attempted to hold back my gag, his charming ways seriously disgusted me — especially when it was my relative.
"Damn Calum," Luke started, "I sure wish she was my step sister." The rest of the three hummed in agreement and I found myself rolling my eyes with irritation.
Micheal, in his confident self, strolled over to Angie, grabbing a lock of her hair and comparing it to his own. "How do you guys think I'd look with pink?" He joked but I sensed some seriousness as he eyed up the pink strand in his hand before Angie awkwardly tugged it back.
We all laughed but didn't, however, fail to recognise the way Ashton and Angie stared in one another's eyes. They held eye contact for a total of five Mississippi's and I shook my head.
This aught to be bad news.
**Present Day**
— Angelina
"God, get out of the way, Loser." Elizabeth growled in a blunt demand and barged me. Our shoulders ruthlessly collided and the force shoved me into those who'd gathered to retrieve their belongings from the lockers behind me.
Elizabeth and her signature posey — Eleanor, Sabrina, and Jamison — laughed mechanically together, their thick lashes of mascara fluttering around as if they were having the best time of their life, entertaining themselves despite the constant stress it put me through.
I muttered profanities under my breath as I stumbled back into my feet. Several people walked past me, observing half-heartedly as I scrambled to pick my bag off of the floor.
"Excuse me?" Elizabeth turned back around to face me, pivoting on the heal of her foot and crossing her arms over her chest accusingly.
I stared wide-eyed, realising my mistake. "N-nothing." I stuttered as I attempted to pry my history textbook from under her shoe. I must have looked pathetic, that was for sure, because the next thing I knew, it had been kicked out of my reach until it eventually skidded into the middle of the hall to be trodden on by the dozens upon dozens of careless students who simply continued on with their day.
"You never learn do you?" Liz breathed, pushing me back into my previous position to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
I fell with a thud and then Liz pounced towards me. She gripped my hair and for a spot second, I recalled how Michael had once so sincerely admired it. A painfull sensation shot through my scalp as she tugged roughly at the faded pink roots, sharply forcing my head to crane to the side. I started to whimper when she still didn't release.
"You keep need to stop treating me like a fool, Angie, because trust me when I say that I will not hesitate to beat the stupid out of you until you realise that." She was so close that I could practically taste her perfume. She'd threateningly crouched down to my level, her eyes narrowing into slits until I was forced to glance around for someone to swoop in and come to my rescue.
The systems around school had gone so terribly down hill that not only was bullying dramatically on the rise but the actual education itself had also hit the dust too.It was like Survival Of The Fittest in a place they had claimed to call safe, it was a eat or be eaten habitat and everyone was the enemy if it meant fending for themselves. It was a wonder the school was still open.
"Have I made myself clear?" She whispered lowly with a calm yet hostile tone.
I watched Mr.Rhode, my geography teacher casually strolled past, donut in hand as he acknowledged us with a courteous nod and I wondered what kind of sick, twisted school I had enrolled in where the teachers prefer their jammed delights over stopping other students from assaulting each other.
I frantically nodded my head and she sent a proud, satisfied smirk my way, finally releasing my head. I looked after her, my head in my arms. She strutted off with her friends as if she hadn't just brutally attacked me fifteen seconds previous.
Shortly after, I found myself in a sprint to get home. There was a slight limp in my step and I had simply assumed it was from the nasty tumble that Elizabeth had caused back at school, I hadn't hesitated to make a swift exit after her and her gang of gal-pals had finaly left and I'd most likely forgotten my text book behind me but that didn't matter at that point when all I truly desired was to return to the cookie stash hidden in my room.
I prayed that Calum had still stayed unknowing upon my chocolate-chip stash as salty tears flew vigorously down my face — seemingly making me apear as the human version of Niagara Falls. I'd only hoped that no one had yet seen me because I looked more than a wreck and the last thing I needed was more ignorant taunting in my life.
I opened the front door to my house and my bag was shortly lobbed to the side, unfortunately missing the kitchen counter and landing on the floor with a loud clutter. Sliding by my back down against the door, I pulled at my hair as I cursed my lack of aim. My head still pounded from earlier in the day and I pondered over if taking some pain-killers would even be worth it seeing as we were only half way through the week and I would nodoubt get more hassle tomorrow, so what was the point?
"Angie?" I heard Michael's voice.
He strolled into the room and choked on the drink he was sipping at, "What happened to you?" I rolled my eyes and, with a sigh, pushed myself up onto my feet.
"Nothing.." I murmured.
"Angie, you're crying." He said a little softer but it was nonetheless stern. He crossed his arms over his chest, a stuborn look over his features.
"I think I know that," I breathed in annoyance and paused for a moment or two, "I cut onions at school and it's emotionally draining for me." I opened the door to the refrigerator, it's light brightening up my reddened face. I gasped, my bloodshot eyes widening as I scanned the contents inside it.
"I ate all those cookies by the way, you know the ones with the milk chocolate chips inside? They were pretty good, you should try them."
Mike fell back onto the sofa, scooping the controller into his hand and casually flicked through the television channels.
I growled, "Do live here now?" with a day as worse as I'd just experienced, I had really needed a crunchy delight to cheer me up such as those cookies that he'd so selfishly devoured to himself. "Because it feels like it." I snatched the remote out of his grasp and changed it to the music channel.
"No, but I may as well." He chuckled, "are you going to tell me what is wrong now or am I going to have to force it out?"
I sighed and turned my head to the ceiling, "I've just had a rough day," gnawing at my lip, I looked back down at him. "I think it's just all the exams stressing me out, don't worry about it; soon I'll be out of that hell hole and we'll be able to eat cookies all day for as long as we want."
With a smile on his lips, Mike returned his attention back to the TV screen, accepting my complete lie of answer. I couldn't tell him — he was dating one of my bullies — school would be over before I knew it and I couldn't spend all my teenage life up to that moment, moaning and wining about myself and my struggles.
I had to get over myself.
I laughed, "Get out of my face, Retard." with one hand, I pushed Calum away by his face.
He licked my palm and I recoiled in disgust, "Retard? I'm wounded." He pouted and pulled a strange attempt of the puppy-eyes. Disturbed, I shook my head in dismissal.
"Yeah, sure.." I grinned.
His eyes narrowed, his bushy eyebrows furrowing and creasing together in false anger. "Angie called me a retard!" At this, any other person would have suspected him to be calling my parents or some sort of serious authority, but as his cavalry of friends came bounding down from somewhere unknown upstairs, it was obvious that there was no threat for me to be worried about.
They all came to the bottom of the stairs, trying to apear as if they were apart The Avengers.
"Dobing me in to your friends, again I see. You're the biggest snitch I know, worse than Luke — and that's saying something." I scoffed.
Luke winced, "Offensive!"
"Angie called me retarted." Calum cried, pointing his finger into my nose, and pretended to fall into hysterical sobs.
"Oi!" Michael yelled, "Nobody makes my bestfriend cry!"
I squealed and curled up, shielding myself as Mike flew through the air to tackle me. I rolled to land beside the coffee table — trying to escape Michael's wrath. I scrambled off of the rug and sprung into defence mode.
The pillow in my hands knocked him across the head, a lucky shot for sure. The pillow reflected back, hitting Calum who gasped and threw it back, aiming for Micheal but catching Ashton off guard. I giggled at the irony as we found ourselves mid-attack in what I would call a pillow war rather than fight.
I froze as Luke shoved me, intending to be playful but throwing me roughly against the sofa and eventhough it was a plush and cushioned seat, it still hurt. Suddenly it reminded me of school and I was stunned as the events played back before my eyes.
You need to stop treating me like a fool, Angie, because trust me when I say that I will not hesitate to beat the stupid out of you until you realise that.
I shuddered just in time for Michael to tackle me and singlehandedly toss me on the couch without so much as breaking a sweat. He pounded on his chest like a gorilla and began to tickle me.
"M-Michael, stop!" I said between laughs and attempts to remove his attack off of me. However, soon enough Calum and Luke joined in and I stood no chance against all three of them.
"Stop, I will puke on you!" I warned, slapping their hands, causing them to throw themselves back with disgusted faces.
"You can puke on Michael —just not me or Lukie-pookie." Calum ruffled Luke's hair. Michael gasped and punched at his chest. "What, it will probably match your hair anyway!"
We all laughed in perfect synchronisation.
An hour and five plates of pizza later, Ashton and I were stood in front of the bubble filled sink that had threatened to flood over any time soon. Luke on the other hand, with his height, had put no effort in sliding the now pristine plates and utensils into the high shelves and cupboards. So I was caught off guard as when I reached for another clean plate to hand to him, Ashton held my wrist in place.
I squirmed slightly and looked up at him. "Hey Angie?" Ashton asked.
"Yeah?"
"Can I tell you something?" The smile of my face grew and I had sworn it was almost grazing my very ears, "I started dating Elizabeth today." My smile died.
Did you hear that?
That was my heart shattering into a million pieces.
Notes
Hey my lovelies:)x
Brand new story! *Squeee*
I'm so excited for this one!! I hope you guys like it too!!!!!!!
Please rate/subscribe/comment! Feedback keeps me going!
XxX,
Aby
@AbyKay562
No problem i just reallly love this story soo much and i don't wan to wait to long haha
4/16/15