Throughout the last few periods, Aidan and I secretly texted each other, and he always asked me if I was doing okay. When we walked out together after the whole picture business earlier, some people left me alone, while some continued to taunt me, but I didn't let it bother me as much. There was a small part of me that was hurt by the things that they were saying. But it wasn't so bad that I would burst into tears. I was in my final period of the day, AP English. English had always been one of my favorite subjects, there was something about it that I enjoyed, but I couldn't quite place my finger on it.

I looked down at my phone for a few seconds at a time as I read Aidan's newest text. During that period, Aidan had told me that now he had found me, we could start working on the music together, and I was really excited about that. But the problem was that Aunt Mary had yet to learn that I went behind her back and auditioned in front of him when I was supposed to be at home cleaning the kitchen. And I had yet to tell Aidan about my abusive home life. I was tempted to tell him, but at the same time, I didn't want to feel like a burden.

"Ms. Waterbury, are you paying attention?" Mrs. Johnson asked, bringing me out of my thoughts. Mrs. Johnson was nothing like Mr. Sutherland or the other teachers I had. She was sweet and always made sure her students were okay. "Yeah, I'm fine, Mrs. Johnson. I was just focused on the work," I lied. I hated lying to people, but it was either that or get my phone taken away. She nodded and continued with the lesson, turning around to face the whiteboard. I let out a small breath of relief as she didn't suspect that I was lying.

"So what happened between you and Aidan after Alexa and Ashley spread the photos?" Ethan asked when we were inside the car driving back to my house. "Nothing really, we just talked, and he gave me my notebook back after he heard me singing," I answered as I scrolled through Aidan's Instagram. "So, did you get the duet?" Vanessa asked. Should I tell them now? Or should I wait? "Yes, I got the duet! But you guys cannot tell anyone about this," I answered. Vanessa and Ethan took an oath not to tell anyone until after Aidan announced the winner to the school.

When I approached the house, I had to paint a slight look of sadness on my face so Aunt Mary wouldn't get suspicious. As usual, I only got a small amount of homework done before Aunt Mary told me to do more difficult chores. I had to sweep and mop the floors, clean the carpets, clean out the fridge, and wash the windows by hand, then make a fancy and complicated dinner for them.

Even though I had gone to the grocery store a few days prior, there wasn't a lot of food I could use to make a nice meal. But after a while of searching, I found enough ingredients to make a nice chicken casserole. While I was waiting for it to cool, I received a text from Aidan.

Aidan

Hey, how's it going?

It's alright. I just had to finish up some chores.

Oh, nice. I've got some free time, do you want to call?

I was a little nervous that Aunt Mary would wonder who I was talking to and soon discover that it was Aidan. But I accepted, and I went into my closet so there wouldn't be a lot of noise. When I picked up Aidan's call, there was a long amount of awkward silence between us. I had no idea what to say to him. We mostly talked about everything in that bathroom. "Sorry, I don't know what to say," I said, letting out an embarrassing laugh. "It's okay," Aidan's calm voice had filled my ear.

Even though Aidan and I just started talking to each other, I felt safe talking to him. It was like an escape from reality, and I couldn't wait to start working on music with him. Aidan started playing his guitar, and he started to sing to me, and I could feel my heart start to slowly melt inside my chest. "SERENA MARGERET WATERBURY, GET THE HELL OUT HERE NOW!" Aunt Mary shrieked at the top of her lungs. "Aidan, I have to go," I whispered before hanging up the phone. I slipped my phone into my pocket and slowly walked towards the living room, where I saw Aunt Mary and her daughters standing in the hallway with their arms crossed.

"Yes, Aunt Mary?" I nervously asked. She didn't say a word but slapped me hard across the face causing me to fly towards the wall. "You disobedient child! How dare you do this to me? To Alexa?" she yelled as I carefully picked myself off the floor and stood up. "I told you not to audition in front of Aidan Gallagher, and you did it anyway! How did you even get the kitchen clean? And don't lie to me!"

"E-Ethan offered to clean the kitchen, so I could go to the auditions," I admitted. Alexa and Isabelle looked at each other then looked back at me with looks of anger and deceit. "You're just like your mother. She was rebellious no wonder she ended up marrying a terrible man," Aunt Mary sighed. My heart started to pound rapidly in my chest, and I could feel my hands start to clench into fists. "Don't you dare pin this on my parents! My parents were good people, and they loved me! They had nothing but nice things to say about you, so I am done with hearing you say how awful they were!" I growled.

"You don't get to-" I cut Aunt Mary off. I didn't care anymore. I was going to give her a piece of my mind. "I know you don't want me here, I knew it from the moment I started living here. I have done everything you have ever asked me to do, and it's still not enough for you. Sure, Alexa and Isabelle get to go out and see friends and have normal lives, but not me," Aunt Mary clapped slowly after I finished my rant. "Oh, beautiful. That was so entertaining!" she wickedly smiled.

I shook my head at her and ran towards my room to get my stuff. I couldn't take it anymore. I was leaving, and I was never coming back. "Where are you going?" she asked as I grabbed clothes from my closet and stuffed them into a suitcase. "I'm leaving. I can't do this anymore!" I answered. I filled the suitcase with clothes and shoes and put my guitar into its case. "Oh, and where are you going to live?" Alexa taunted. "I'll figure it out, as long as I don't have to live with you guys," I answered, grabbing my backpack that was resting at the foot of my bed.

"You can't just walk out on me," Aunt Mary, said trying to block me from leaving my room. "Oh yeah? Watch me!" I said, slightly pushing her out of the way. As I walked down the hall towards the front door, Aunt Mary kept spewing insults at me. And told me that I was going to rot in the streets, and that was what I deserved for being such a bad child. But before I left, I gave her one final message. 

"You know what, Aunt Mary? You are such a mean and manipulative bitch! And I can promise you that I am not going to treat my children the way you have treated me. I'm not going to force them to do difficult chores until the late hours of the night. I'm not going to ridicule them for the clothes they decide to wear. And I'm not going to treat them so horribly that they start to contemplate suicide!" I opened the door, and I walked away from my abusive family. And down to the end of the street, sitting down on the concrete, with tears threatening to fall down my face.

I didn't know what to do or who to call. Aidan didn't know about the situation. Some of Ethan's family didn't like me for some reason. So, there was only one person left for me to call.

Vanessa.

A/n: Okay, I did not intend for this chapter to be so long, but I thought this would change things up a bit. Don't worry. This story isn't over yet! There is still more to come!