TASHA
When I arrive home, I dump my school bag on the sofa and proceed to the kitchen to wash my hands.I have never fought before in school. I can get into fights anywhere, but fighting on school grounds is off limits. That was one rule of mine that I made to myself to keep. However, today, I broke that single rule, and I am certain that I will be made to pay for it no matter what."Tasha!" I hear my mum yell my name.Oh fuck no! Why is she home already? Her chef working hours at the restaurant down the street doesn't end until 6pm.And why do I have the feeling that she already kn—"What the hell happened in school today?! What is going on with you?!" She yells again as she enters the kitchen, clutching her phone in her hand."Mum I can expl—""How could you stoop so low?! Fighting a girl in school over a boy?!" Her beautiful blue eyes blaze as she spits out the words in anger."He isn't just any random fucking boy mum! Jason was my boyfriend!"My mum bobs her head back a bit. Her eyes twitch in utter disbelief as she flips her deep wavy black hair over her shoulder. "Jason? What do you mean by Jason was your boyfriend? Wait a min—""Yeah mum. Jason is the guy who made me lose my shit today and got into a fight. He cheated on me with a girl, and the girl in question just happens to be Diane."I chuckle painfully. "Turns out she and Jason were banging each other's brains out behind my back."My mum clamps her hand over her mouth, her eyes widening."I just. . . . ." My voice cracks. "I just couldn't take it mum. I caught them fucking each other right before my very eyes. And I. . . .I lost it.""Oh dear." My mum pulls me into her arms and strokes my hair. "This sucks.""Yeah." I whisper into her chest.The kind of pain shredding my heart right now is the kind of pain I never dreamt of feeling in my entire life. I loved Jason so fucking much.How could he do such a terrible thing to me?"I swear to God," My mum rakes. "If I ever see that Jason boy near this house again, I am going to dump a full bowl of hot scalding water on his shitty, God forsaken face."I sniff. "Just make sure that the water is super hot."She chuckles. "Oh darling, trust me to make sure of that. Gosh, I still can't believe that he did something like that to you."I lift my head from her chest and wipe my eyes. I shrug. "Maybe I wasn't good enough for him.""Hey!" My mum scolds, shaking me by my shoulders. "Don't you ever think like that ever again. Listen to me. You were more than enough for him. He is the one who wasn't enough for you. He is the one who couldn't keep his fucking prick in his pants. He is the one who chose to cheat on you. He is the one who made that choice. And as for Diane, well, now you know who she really is."She cups my face. "You have to be strong darling. And listen, you are permitted to cry, but you are not permitted to blame yourself for what happened. Jason and Diane are both assholes that fit each other perfectly, and you, my darling, you deserve better. You hear me?"I nod."That is my girl." She brushes my hair back before pulling me into her embrace. I nuzzle into her, allowing her warmth and patchouli oil perfume to calm my nerves. In the entire world, my mum is only one I blindly trust to always stand by me. However, if my dad was still alive today, I would have trusted him blindly too.My dad suffered and battled terminal cancer for as long as I could remember before he passed away three years ago. He was a loving, cheerful soul, tall with jet black hair and a face that shone like the bright morning sun even on a gloomy day. Sometimes, mum spaces out while staring at me, and when situations like that happen, I don't try to stop her from looking at me, because I know that in her mind, she is looking at Dad.Yes. I have my dad's face. His light brown eyes, his straight nose. Even the dotted birthmark on the left side of his face. I have his jet black hair too, although mine is a little bit lighter and not deeply black like his. My hair is long and straight too. Though I should be mad at myself for being a living reminder of the man I love so much that isn't in this world any longer, I am rather happy.Right now, I am so sure that if he was still alive today, Jason will never smell the four walls of this house again.But I have Mum. And I am certain that she will definitely not take it lightly with Jason if he ever shows his face here.I sniff and lift my face from my mum's shoulder. "I am tired mum. I want to go to my room.""Alright dear. And oh, before I forget. . . .," She pauses, her silence making me feel like she is weighing the next words to say. "I will be coming with you to school tomorrow. I never knew you could be a nasty fighter. Principal Salazar said you injured Diane and Jason."I roll my eyes. "Yeah I did. But I think they will be fine. I just scratched them.""Just scratched them? Principal Salazar said they were rushed to the school clinic.""Yeah. They were taken to the school clinic, but that doesn't mean that I hurt them too much. Besides, they deserve more than what I did to them."Fucking assholes."Tasha." My mum warns."I know mum. I will try my best not to fight in school again. Besides I have never fought in school until today."I turn around after voicing out that last statement and grab my school bag from the sofa before I begin to head upstairs to my room._______________10:00pm.As I roll over to my other side on my bed, I keep on wondering what kind of punishment Principal Salazar will give to me tomorrow. I wonder the kind of article the school's gossip blog will post about me on their platform this night. The urge tempting me to grab my phone and check their plushy pink website for any updates is nearly irresistible. That blog, Ville Secrets, is the worst fucking nightmare of any Westville student. It has brought so many students up and crashed so many students down.Anyway, whatever tomorrow brings, I just hope that I will be prepared for it.NATE"Young man, what is this?" My father snaps, dropping my Maths test result on the dinning table like some piece of shit.Well, in actual sense, the test result is a total piece of shit. But what is my shitty Maths test result doing here on the dinning table when it should be safely hidden in my bag?"Answer me Nathaniel!" He barks, slamming his palm on the table, the action rattling the plates and the candelabras on the dinning table.I wonder why is he getting so worked up on my test result like he fucking cares."Antonio calm do–""Don't tell me to calm down Suzie."One fucking interesting fact about Dad is that no matter how angry he is, he still calls my mum Suzie and not Susan.But in my case, he goes all rogue, and even yells out my full name with disgust. His thick eyebrows arch, his blue eyes darken, and his nostrils flare up like they are about to combust into flames."Answer me you ungrateful spoilt brat!""It is my Maths test result." I shrug, picking at the blue berries
TASHAMy mum's car pulls into the senior parking lot. She turns off the car's engine and adjusts her hair and makeup while looking at the side mirror.I know she wants to look all posh and serious in front of Principal Salazar, and I can't even complain, because obviously, I am the reason why she is here in my school today."Alright Tasha, let us go." She says, climbing down from the car. I exit my side of the car too and shut the door behind me.As we walk towards the massive school building at the center of the entire large premises, tons of students glance our way. But what catches my attention more is the fact that they keep on switching their eyes between their phones and me. Something is definitely not right here. And I have this huge feeling that their reactions are tied to that monstrosity of a blog called Ville Secrets.Anyway, my mum flips her long hair over her shoulders as we walk into the building. She looks poised and elegant, her eyes focused straight ahead. Mine is al
TASHALike the supposed goody girl I am, I knock a couple times on the door of Principal Salazar's office before I open it. The moment I enter the office, I jam Diane's blazing eyes staring daggers at me.Like I give a fuck.I resist the urge to roll my eyes, not wanting to worsen the tensed situation in the room. Mrs Kate Brandon, Diane's mom, sits elegantly beside her daughter, looking rich and posh, her white round fluffy hat donning her raven black hair cascading down her back. Her neat red manicured fingers adorned with multiple silver and gold rings are clutched around a Chanel designer bag resting on her bosom. Her lips shine with a red matte lipstick, a colour in sharp contract to the spotless sparkling sleek two piece white suit she is wearing on her multimillion dollar celebrity body.Diane's parents are fucking rich. Her mum is a celebrity fashion designer. Her dad is an international renowned sailor, so he is not around much. I still wonder where and why Diane got the heart
TASHAOh shit.The air in the room is choking right now. My mum flips her hair over her shoulder and relaxes back on the sofa, raising her chin nonchalantly and crossing her right leg over her left knee. Principal Salazar is sighing and rubbing her bent forehead, obviously stressed. Jason's father is scowling at Jason like he wants to drill out an answer from his wretched face. Diane looks like she is burning in flames with the angry puzzled glare her mum is shooting at her right now."I asked you a question Diane!" Her mum snarks, her grip on her designer bag tightening. "What the hell is going on here?! What are you not telling me?! You didn't say anything yesterday when I asked you why Tasha hurt you!"Diane jolts, startled at her mom's angry outburst.Principal Salazar bangs her hand on the table. "Mrs Brandon! Please calm down!" She snaps her attention to me. "Tasha Quinn, why did you hurt Diane and Jason yesterday? You better start talking if you want your punishment to be less
NATE"Hey man," Marco nudges me with his arm, corking me a mischievous eyebrow. "What are you thinking about?""Nothing." I deny, taking a sip of my orange juice, pretending to focus my eyes on my phone lying on our lunch table by the edge of the noisy cafeteria."You are thinking about her again, aren't you?" Jennie teases, wrapping her hand around Marco's arm.I take a bite of my burger, feigning ignorance. "What are you talking about?" "I am talking about Tasha." She throws a fried potato chip into her mouth with her free hand. "You bumped into her this morning. Marco and I saw the way you were looking at her."I swallow down the mashed burger in my mouth, trying to look unbothered. "What do you mean by the way I was looking at her?""Come on man." Marco nudges me again. "We all know you have feelings for Tasha Quinn and that she is the reason why you don't have a girlfriend. You never stopped looking at her in class today, and you do that every single day. Cut the pretense already
TASHAI dash into the female restroom and shut the door behind me, crashing helplessly to the floor. Fresh hot tears stream down my cheeks, and I silently wish the floor would just open up and sink me in. My stomach growls in hunger, but the sound is not loud enough to drown my sobs. They jerk out of me, trembling my entire body, stealing my ability to breathe properly.I know I should be in class now, but I can't bring myself to concentrate on anything at the moment. I am angry. I am sad. I am hungry. I am depressed. In fact, I am feeling all the worst emotions anyone can ever think of right now.My ears catch clinking footsteps echoing down the hallway. My ears register girly giggles from the outside. Judging from the sound of the thudding footsteps increasing and drawing nearer by the second, I can tell that they might be heading towards this restroom.I glance at the mirror from my sitting position on the floor.Fuck. My face is a total ugly mess.I quickly jerk to my feet from th
TASHASchool hours breeze fast like an invisible wind, so fast that I nearly jump out from my seat when I suddenly hear the school dismissal bell ringing so loud. So loud that it subconsciously keeps on reminding me of my punishment waiting for me at the Green Den.I swear I hate that damn place. Everyone hates that place. It is just a silent torture zone.Obviously not having any other options or routes of escaping my punishment, I grab my bag from the floor and stand up from my seat, ready and yet not ready for my journey to the Green Den. Diane looks pretty busy in her new sitting position with her latest vampire friends, chatting happily with them. I hope she rots in hell one day.Flashback: When I got back from the principal's office after receiving my punishment, I saw that Diane had switched her sitting position with someone else. She should thank her stars for not giving her the damn guts to still remain by my side after all she did to me.However, I was shocked to my bones wh
TASHA.Stepping out of the school building, I head towards the green den, my heart skyrocketing, my breaths deepening with each second I find myself getting closer to the massive building. I have never worked or had anything to do with the green den before, but Principal Salazar said some labourers will help me learn what to do there during the one month timeframe of my punishment. To be honest, I hate that I am being punished, but the bitter reminder of WHY I am being punished hits harder than the punishment itself.Reaching the entrance of the greenhouse, I suck in a breath, preparing myself before entering the building. Climbing twisting weeds, shrubs and varieties of flowers greet my presence when I enter. The greenhouse looks like a tall giant wide marquee with transparent glass roof planes that allow the bright light and heat of the sun seep into the greenhouse. The floor is like mowed grass, soft and tender to walk on. Different plants, most of them grown in giant white and bro