Different (1)

Chapter 5

When I opened my eyes I found myself looking at a white ceiling.
‘Willow!’ I heard my mom’s voice, as her face appeared in front of me.
‘Mom,’ I addressed her in a hoarse voice. A knot started to form in my neck when I saw my mom. I had disappointed her. I had not followed her advice of staying low.
You have always been a disappointment, said my subconscious. No truer words were ever said.
‘I am sorry, mom.’ I apologized. I didn’t like seeing her worried. She looked so tired.  It seemed as if she had left everything behind to come see me. She had light bags under her grey eyes and her mouse brown hair was all ruffled up.
‘Mom…I couldn’t…the patterns…didn’t want….hurt….afraid.’ I broke down. All of sudden, I felt vulnerable. And all of that was because of a lame senior who was….normal. Just plain, old, normal.
‘Hush,’ my mom said, signaling me to look behind her. I instantly stopped myself from crying. My mom had taught me since childhood that I should never let anyone, except her, to see me crying. If I did, then they would not consider me as a competition. Never ever.
But after what you did today, said my subconscious , not even the weakest of the humans would see you as a competition.
It took everything of mine to not break down again. I shifted my head a little to look behind mom. Even that small moment hurt as if my body was being hit by hammers repeatedly.
Theodore sat on a chair with Diana standing a foot away from him. Theodore had his eyes closed and Diana took that as an opportunity to glare daggers at him.
I opened my mouth to call out to Diana but she noticed me before that.
‘Willow!’ she cried, hurrying towards me, ‘How do you feel? I was worried for you. We have been waiting for you to wake up since the last two hours.’
Two hours? I had been out cold for two hours? How much more of a wimp can I get?
‘Mrs. Aurora?’, a voice called out to my mom, who had been staring at Diana as if she belonged to a totally different specie. It was probably because of the piercing. My mom flinched when the school doctor called her ‘Mrs. Aurora’. After what our father had done to us, it was a normal response.
‘Yes?’ my mom asked turning around, her body rigid.
‘Can I have you here for a moment?’ asked the doctor.
Squeezing my hand for reassurance, she left me and Diana. I closed my eyes and waited for the questions to come but they didn’t.
Confused, I opened my eyes. Diana just stood there staring at me, her eyebrows furrowed as if she was thinking hard.
‘What are you thinking?’ I asked, hoarsely. Although I knew what she was going to ask.
‘Why did you save Tyler?’ she asked. Now that was unexpected. I had expected her to ask the main question : Why the heck were those patterns glowing? And how did you suddenly get them?
‘I…’, I coughed.  It was really hard for me to talk after being punched so hard, almost everywhere. ‘I didn’t want someone who had raised his voice get hurt.’ I answered
I heard Diana sigh, relieved. When I looked at her , shocked, she shook her head, embarrassed.
‘It’s just that,’ she said, ‘I have known Tyler since sixth grade and, you know….’
‘That you have a crush on him?’, I ended ‘ Yeah.’
It was weird to know that a girl like Diana could have a crush on a guy like Tyler. I mean, he is outspoken and stuff but he isn’t brave. He’s the exact opposite of Diana. I don’t know if Diana is brave bur looks like it.  But opposites attract, I guess. Although not as much as forcing you to stand with your crush as he gets ready to be beaten up.
On the word ‘opposites’, I remembered Theodore and the patterns I had seen on his leg. The patters so similar to mine.
‘What is he doing here?’, I could barely recognize my voice. I sounded like a dysfunctional robot, for god’s sake!
Diana grimaced and in a sour voice said, ‘He was the one who carried you here after you passed out. You should’ve have seen the way he kicked Ronald. I swear that I saw Ronald fly a foot up before falling.’
Of course his kick would be powerful, informed my subconscious , he has those weird patterns on his legs after all
‘Why wouldn’t he go?’ I asked, desperately. Carried me to the sick room or not, he hadn’t saved me while I was getting beaten up by a giant.
‘I didn’t go because I wanted to talk. To you. Alone.’ said Theodore, smirking at me.