Ughh! I don't get anything. I'm in the second chapter of this stupid book and I still don't know what's going on. I know there's that lady, a baby (is it her baby or what?), there's a scarlet letter (no idea why it's in there other than to serve as the title), and a prison. I have no idea how these things are related. I don't know what half of those words mean. Sepulchres? Is that even English?

"This is so boring," Kenny whines.

She's been whining ever since I opened that book. I knew it was coming so I steeled myself for the imminent avalanche. Nonetheless, it took me more than one hour to finish the first chapter. I'm currently struggling to pass the first page of the second chapter. It's so freaking hard. This isn't reading, it's torture.

"Stop reading," she continues to whine. "Just watch the danm movie and get it over with."

Uh, that's actually kind of smart.

"Of course it's smart, I came up with it not you."

"How's it going in there?" Dad says from behind the door.

"Reading!" I shout at him.

The door opens abruptly. "I'll be danm," he says while grinning in my doorway. "You really do have a book in your hands, I don't think I've ever seen that before."

"I've read books before," I argue.

"No, I've read books to you before but you actually picking up a book and read it by yourself...That's never happened before. I think this lady doctor really is a good investment."

I make an exasperated sound, "If you're just going to keep mocking me, please get out." "Ok, fine. I just wanted to make sure this was for real. Jenny said you were really quiet after the session."

"Does this woman ever shut up?" I grunt.

"I heard that," he says with his back to me.

"That was the plan," I smirk at him.

I wait until he leaves before I flinch the novel on the floor.

Who's going to be willing to lend me laptop for me to watch this stupid movie? I know it's going to be one of those movies that just leave you with a dumb-founded expression on your face, like what the hell did I just wasted two hours of my life for? Even that won't get me out of this obligation. Dr. Frey is a really determined woman. Once she's invested in a case, she's not going to let it go before she receives the results she wants. She's ridiculously patient. The woman had to spend hours with a silent me on a weekly basis. She got it anyway, she got my story.

Now, with the laptop problem. Mine is at Steven's house (obviously I can't use that one), my dad doesn't have one (I know, unbelievable right?), and he doesn't have money to buy me one – but he has money to pay for a private high school. That leaves me with my two friends as an option, Brandon's in college so I'm sure he has tones of work to do on it so I can't take it to watch a movie (not like he would talk to me long enough for me to ask). Great, Cassie it is.

I text her. She can't possibly still be mad at me. Everyone would have reacted the same way as me. Who the hell have their first date at a fast food restaurant? At least put some effort into it, go to the movies or a game. Anything that doesn't scream cheap.

The phone pings with her reply. She's bringing it over right now. I knew she wouldn't be mad at me for long. She can't, I'm the best thing that ever happened to her.

She arrives thirty minutes with laptop in hand and jubilant attitude revived. She doesn't say anything about our last incident. I guess she got over it like I knew she would. It's either that or her date was amazing. I highly doubt the latter.

"She looks stupidly happy," Kenny says. "You should bring that spirit down a notch. It's annoying."

Ignoring her, I drag Cassie to my bedroom.

"What do you want to watch?" she asks as soon as we lock ourselves inside.

We sit in the floor, facing the computer screen. I refuse to openly let somebody make themselves comfortable in my bed despite how cheap or uncomfortable it may be. I know Jenny did it but it's not like I can do anything to the woman.

"I have to watch The Scarlet Letter so I can skip reading it."

"Why do you have to read that? I've heard my dad talk about it when he's remembering the great novels that today's authors will never be capable to write."

I groan internally. I really do not care about such information on her dad but I nod and smile like it's the most interesting thing in the world.

"Do you think they have it on Netflix?" I ask as I begin to browse the net.

Turns out they don't. Yes, the movie is that outdated. However, we find it in Amazon Prime. Cassie uses her money to pay for it which doesn't settle well with me. I don't like owing people. Even though Cassie says it's fine, it's not fine by me. Owing people leads to favor. God knows how much I dislike doing favors.

Halfway through the movie, I fall asleep. It's as boring as the book had seem. There's Demi Moore with a baby and the infamous scarlet letter on her chest (still don't know what it's there for). There's a young reverend, a bunch of Native Americans, and a lot of other ugly, old people dressed in disgusting fashion. There's that one guy who picks my interesting a little. I think he's a conman or something like that because nobody knows where he's from except Demi who keeps their relationship a secret.

However, even he can't keep my interesting for long because the next thing I know, it's morning and, Cassie and the laptop are gone. I'm in bed, under the covers with my yesterday's clothes still on.

I grumpily get ready for school so my dad doesn't leave me behind. I know he's not going to but I'm too tired to call his bluff.

The air in the building feels different today. It catches in my lungs, nearly bursting them in fire. It scraps at my skin, trying to peel it off me. Taking books out of my locker seems so much like a drug deal. My heart can't stop pounding in my chest. I lift my eyes every other second, afraid of getting caught. My converses feel heavier with every step.

I've never craved Cassie's presence so much before. Too bad she has a doctor's appointment today. As if she couldn't have gone after school.

I can't blame her entirely because I pushed her to confirm it. She has asked me several times whether I will be fine without her for the entire day and I said yes every time. At the time, I really wanted her away from me. I didn't know how much of my courage to hold my head high while walking through these walls had come from the knowledge that I had the support of at least one soul in here.

Now, that feeling is gone. With all my senses on full alert, I continue towards homeroom. Everything and everyone is out there to get me, I know it. I try to stay away from everyone but every two steps, there has to be someone pushing me, pinching me, and tripping me.

On the twelfth step, my body has enough. I drop my backpack and push the next person too close for comfort. His back hits the blonde next to him.

"Derek?!" she shouts, holding the arm that hit the metal locker.

"I'm so sorry, babe," the red hair boy coos. It's always the ginger going after me. "It's not my fault. It's that bitch."

He turns to me with murder in his green eyes. I back away a little bit. I'm not so sure about this anymore.

"Did you see what you've done to my girl, freak?"

Outrage forces me to stand tall and square my shoulders under the gaze of a 6' tall monster with killer muscles. "Who are you calling a freak? Do you know who I am?"

"Of course I know who you are," he walks to my face. His fist bunch up into tight fists, ready to rearrange my face. "You're the lying bitch who's trying to send Steven Reel in prison. I don't know why that freak hospital let you out. You're clearly not right in the head."

I really want to give him a piece of my mind. I really do but I don't do physical confrontations. Nope, I don't do it. I ran away from that shit. I can barely throw a good punch. If I go in a fight with this guy, I'm sure I'll be pudding by the fifth second.

My force is into indirect fights. I lie, I steal, I spread rumors, and I drive people crazy. I can create crazy cons to get people in trouble but I never come in their faces to fight. That's simply not me.

He grabs me by the collar of my shirt (Seriously, I've just bought it). My feet lift a couple of inches off the floor. "You have five seconds to apologize to my girl right now or I'll punch the crazy out of you."

I gulp, looking around for someone to help me but there's no one. Most people go about their business, those who stay to look are smiling with their phone out to take a video. No one is there to take pity on me.

"You're running out of seconds, bitch," his breath tickles my face. My feet are cramping up.

When he reaches five, I scream my head off. He winces and drop me on the floor. My butt hurts but I push the pain away and scream louder.

"Shut up, shut the hell up," he screams at me.

"Mr. Rowland, Ms. Jackson," the principal shouts as he approaches us. "What do you think you're doing?"

Rowland? Seriously? As in relations with Nina Rowland? I guess the red hair and violent hatred for me should have given it away.

"He-he-he w-was trying to beat me," I hiccup. Tears are already rolling down my face.

I see some people shake their head as they move away. However, nobody says anything. They can't contradict me and they know it. There's too much evidence hinting at my statement. We'll just leave the part about me antagonizing him away from this conversation.

"No, I wasn't," he yells. "She..."

"Enough," the principal interrupts him. "Both of you in my office, now."

After slightly wiping my eyes with the back of my hand, I get off the floor. I leave most of the tears and my red eyes as proof.

We walk silently behind him. Me, sniffing every few seconds, and him, cracking his pale knuckles.

"Have a seat," he orders after he shuts the door behind us.

I take the first chair and drop my backpack on the floor. He rounds the table to take his seat. The idiot is still standing.

Why do they always worsen their case without my help?

"Mr. Rowland, I'm waiting."

"No, I'm good here. I don't want to be too close to the crazy bitch."

The principal's face hardens, "Take a seat young man before I call security."

The idiot finally moves away from the door and seat in the empty chair. He drags it as far away from me as possible.

"I cannot believe you two," Principal Garland begins. "So early in the morning and you're already interrupting the peace."

"It was..." the idiot starts (I should learn his name).

"I don't care Mr. Rowland. You both have some responsibilities in this. This kind of behavior is unacceptable. I expected better especially from you Mr. Rowland. As quarterback of the football team, it's your responsibility to be a model student. You have to set an example for the other students."

He groans loudly, sliding down in his chair. Principal Garland's hard face stays focus on him.

"What on earth do you have to say for yourselves now?"

"She started it," the idiot points at me.

My eyes water once more, "I'm s-sorry. I was just walking here. I didn't want to offend anybody but it's not like I can change my skin color."

"Wait what?" Principal Garland's eyes pops out of his head. His face sweat a little bit.

This is a really sensible subject. I know that but it's the first idea that comes to me right now for punishing the idiot and save my skin.

"She's lying," he yells. "The bitch can't stop lying."

"Watch your mouth, young man. Ms. Jackson, I hope you know what you're saying is extremely sensible. You can't take be throwing it around like a toy. It's serious."

"I am being serious," I shout. I hide my face in my palms, versing more tears. "I thought this was a good school. I've never been more scared in my entire life. To be pick on just because of the skin color I was born with? Who does that?"

"Ms. Jackson..." the principal loosen his tie knot. He moves his chair a little bit forward.

"I was just minding my own business, I swear. I was just walking then he pushed me."

"That does not suggest racism," the principal says. "It's bullying. Although, I will not take that subject any lighter than any other important subject. Mr. Rowland will be dealt with as the school's rules indicate."

"What?" the idiot jolts on his feet.

"Sit down, Mr. Rowland."

"So calling me the N word is fine? Telling me to get my filthy self back to Africa is not racism?" I cry.

"I never said that," the idiot shouts. He grips the armrest, containing himself to not throw himself on me and let his rage out. "Are you trying to get me off the team?"

"I don't care about your stupid team. I want justice and I'm calling my lawyer today."

The principal quickly gets off his chair, "No, no, you don't have to do that. Mr. Rowland will be submitted to proper punishment. As of today he's officially suspended from the team."

"You can't do that. She's lying. I can't be punished because of her lies. I have college recruiters coming to see me play next week for God's sake."

"You should have thought of that before you insulted Ms. Jackson. You can leave now, Mr. Rowland."

"You got to be freaking kidding me," the idiot yells as he leaves the office. He slams the door behind him, shaking every object in the office.

Principal Garland turns to me, "Is there anything else I can do for you, Ms. Jackson? I'm really sorry about how you've been mistreated. Please, tell me if there's anything I can do."

"Can I go home?" I wipe my tears away.

"Of course, I will call your parents right away. You can go wait for them in here. Again, I'm so sorry."

I nod, hiding a smirk.

"Hello, Mr. Jackson," the principal says in the phone.

And that's how you do it. My thanks go out to all the people in the world who screamed for racism even where it is not present, making every average white American scared to punish any minorities. This in turn hide the face of true racism and focus on distasteful jokes. I really could not have done it without them.

Jenny arrives pretty quickly after the phone call. Apparently, my dad is held up at the station. He thinks he's smarter than me. I can see clearly through his actions. He's trying to force her into my life. He's trying to make me replace mom.

When will either of my parents learn to stop trying to replace each other? When will they stop forcing their lovers on me? I don't care how bad my mother is or how much she hates me right now; she's my mother, not Jenny.

"Rachel?" she barges in the office, eyes wild and her scrubs spotted with blood spatters.

I scrunch up my nose. "You could have at least changed," I whisper to her. "You're reducing my credibility."

Her frightened stare changes into a furious glare. "Your dad asked me to come get you because you were attack."

"It wasn't really an attack," the principal corrects. "He's just a kid. I'm sure he didn't mean it. We create a friendly environment here for our students. I assure you that this will not go unpunished."

"I wouldn't go too hard on him if I were you," Jenny tells him, her stare pining me in place. "Some people are simply not capable of changing."

She means me, I know. I grab my bag on the floor and walk out without another glance at her. I get out of the school building to go wait for her in the almost empty parking lot.

When she reaches the Honda, she unlocks it without a word.

"Can we go to the mall?" I ask. I don't want to go to that small apartment with her. I'm scared of being in any closed, private place with that woman. Even now, I can feel the heat of her frustration invading the car. It stifles the air around us. Her foot keeps pushing on the gas pedal, urging the already groaning car to go faster.

"No, she grits through tight lips.

"Can we go...?"

"No," she says without giving me time to finish my question. "I'm binging you to the apartment just like your father said."

"Do you always do what he tells you?"

"No, but I think right now he needs at least one person to be proud of and who can make him happy."

My playful smirk disappears. That bitch!

"The idiot started it," I argue.

"But you certainly finished it," she turns the car in a curb.

"What did you expect me to do? Let him walk all over me?"

"I didn't say that. All I'm asking is for you to be honest."

"He was trying to beat me in the hallway and nobody was going to stop him. And he called me a lying bitch."

"So you proved him wrong by lying?" she glares at me questioningly for a quick second before returning her gaze on the road.

"I did what I had to do."

"No, you took the easy way out. The wrong way out."

"It still got me where I needed be," I say, my arms cross over my chest in a defense manner.

"No, it did not. You're right back to square one. What you did doesn't help anybody. It doesn't help the school. It doesn't help that boy. It certainly does help you."

"I. Don't. Care," I shout. "He got exactly what he deserved. It's justice."

I slump back in the chair, watching pedestrians cross in front of us.

"It's not like you'd know anything about justice anyway? All you ever do is spread your legs and obey my dad like some lovesick puppy."

The car comes to a screeching halt in the middle of the street.

"Get out," she orders.

"Excuse you?" I arch my eyebrow at her.

"I've had enough of you. Get out of my car."

The cars behind us begin to honk. A few of them pass by, seeing that we're not going to move. When I don't make any signs of leaving. She leans across from me and pushes the door open.

"Out now," she orders again.

"You're being serious?" I ask. "We're barely halfway home. How am I supposed to get there?"

"That's your problem not mine. Now, get out of my car."

I hold on to the door handle, one of my feet outside. "I'll tell dad."

"Don't worry, I'll tell him before you."

She shuts the door as soon as both of my feet touch the ground and speeds off.

"Congratulations," Sarah laughs. "You're back to your old self. I got to say, I was kind of worried there for a moment."

My spirits sink as I watch the car disappear from my view. Oh Lord, What have I done?

_____

Next week Steven's court trial starts. There's so many demons that can unlock for Rae.