Ch. 71: Bruises

CHAPTER SEVENTY-ONE
Rachel~
The weekend should be a time of rest. But with my non-stop nightmares and the pain in my wrist flaring up, I hadn’t gotten much of that. They seemed to be getting worse. Like they were weeks ago. I wish I could remember what helped me the last time. I think I remembered taking a nap on the couch during some funny movie. Maybe that was it? I had been able to distract myself and that had helped me? Somehow that felt close but not quite right.
Monday morning got here faster than I was prepared for. I would be seeing Vance today. Yes, we had a plan. But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. Part of me worried that I wouldn’t have the same strength I had had last week. The bus arrived at Pacific and when I got up I accidentally made eye contact with the tall latino guy from the movie theater. He looked at me with such - worry? June made a sound next to me, grounding me back to reality, and I remembered to move. Poor guy, wonder what he was so sad about?
“Hey Rachel, are you doing okay?” June asked me as we all started walking into the school.
I smiled at her. “Yeah, I was lucky. Just a broken wrist. Some bruising on my ribs. A wicked couple bruises on my legs, and nearly everywhere else.”
“Jeez. Does it hurt?” Angela asked me, joining in the conversation. “Sorry, dumb question.”
I chuckled, “Yeah, I’m on some pain medicine but it comes and goes.”
We walked to the cafeteria and I had them sign my cast. I had picked green for my cast and was carrying around black, blue and red sharpies. I wanted all my friends to sign it. I figured even if things went sideways with Vance today, I would still be able to look at those names for strength.
Ally and I met at the library again and we spoke again about our plan. She seemed like the weight of the world was on her shoulders. Shadows under her eyes. Had she been having trouble sleeping too? I was about to ask her when Joey showed up.
“Ally, please,” he begged her.
But she wouldn’t look at him.
“Joey, please stop. It’s over, it’s been over,” she said softly at no one.
“We’re not done,” he said with clenched teeth, suddenly turning on his heels.
I waited until he was out of earshot to ask, “Should I be worried about that?”
She immediately met my eyes and said, “No. He’s harmless. Just upset. He’ll accept it with some time. We weren’t meant to be.”
I examined her for a moment. Something was clearly going on.
I opened my mouth to ask her about it when she waved at someone. Sean approached the table and spent the next few minutes fussing over my injuries.
Ally smiled at the sweetness of his care, but I did think another look came over her face for a second. A flicker of something else. My questions for her built.
Sean walked with me to class and I talked to Maxine a bit before we were let in. We sat, she started to draw a doodle on my cast, and when Sean got up to help Mr. Waller pass something out and she asked me if I was really okay.
“Yeah Max, I mean this sucks but,” I shrugged, “I just need to be more careful now.”
Her eyes flickered up to Sean before adding, “I’m worried that these accidents you’ve been having aren’t accidents.”
I nearly rolled my eyes at her. “This again? You think you see something in Sean that’s dark… You think he would do this to me?” I asked in a whisper, incredulous.
He would never. She can’t be serious.
Sean came over to us as she said under her breath, “Sorry - I hope I’m wrong.”

After a calm break with Marsha, Maxine, and Ally, I was standing with Sean in line to Humanities. He would be waiting outside for me when I finished class to keep anything from happening. I breathed in and braced myself. He held my hand for some time but the sizzling feeling coming from it soon had me pretending to need it back to rifle through my backpack for something I didn’t need. I found myself doing that lately. I don’t know why.
I moved the backpack back over my shoulder and that’s when I saw him. Vance. I was startled by the two big bruises on his face. One by his jaw, and the other on his forehead. I sucked in a breath without realizing it. Then I looked away before he could notice me looking.
Sean put an arm around me and squeezed me against his side as the classroom door opened. I followed everyone inside and sat at my seat in the back. Vance sat near the front and for once didn’t look at me. Kyle wasn’t even here and he wasn’t looking at me.
I couldn’t help but wonder how he got those bruises. Part of me wishes it had been me. That I had beat him up for what he did. That I somehow forgot about it. Maybe I did?

Ally~
What a weekend. What a day. I was still worried about Vance and Rachel - what I had seen. But for now my grandma was silent on the whole thing so all I could do was focus on what I did know: Vance was bad and I had to keep him away from Rachel. Thankfully this plan for today was heavily focused on that. Hopefully we would have the guy kicked out soon and he wouldn’t be a problem anymore. He had to be the reason why Rachel had been so terribly tired these last few years. He had to be draining her of something.
Sean walked her to class but I still watched for extra precaution. What was he? I wished Kyle were here with me. Sean waved to her and when he turned I saw something. Something dark. Just for a second. I blinked. I suddenly remembered the day Kyle told me what he was, I was looking at Sean and trying to read his aura, his emotions, but nothing was there. I hadn’t been playing with that for a while - why not pick it up again now?
I reached across to Sean and felt… nothing. That can’t be right. I reached across to the girl I didn’t know at the end of the line going into Rachel’s class, and I felt a few things: tiredness, worry, and a sort of artsy personality. Okay, so I wasn’t broken. I tried to reach out for Sean again but he was too far away. I had to get to class. I hesitated for a moment and decided to go with it. I hurried after Sean until he was in range and then I reached out again. Nothing. That couldn’t be right.
I reached out once more, feeling around more, and then I realized there was something there after all. It was like a layer of thick plastic. A bubble. Was he… shielding himself somehow? Was someone doing it to him?