Misfits - Chapter 8 (Patreon)

I try and picture myself on an island. A warm island with a sunny beach and sand. And it's so hot, that I actually want to get out of the sun. Lay in the shade and eat strawberries. This is what I do. Every night. Every night as I go to sleep by the trash cans, I imagine what it would be like to be on a beach without a care in the world.

Another violent shiver wracks my body pulling me from my inner thoughts. The wind was especially howling tonight. The week was almost up, and my father kept me locked out of the house. I would go to school, and stay as long as I could in the warm buildings before coming home to these freezing cold conditions.

The other night I tried to go back into the house because it was so cold, and that earned me a swollen eye and cheek, which I was promptly thrown back outside without my backpack afterwards.

I push open the door, expecting my father to be passed out in his room judging from the music blaring, but when I open the door my stomach drops. His friends were here. His male friends. And one man in particular, made my skin crawl. His best friend, Dre.

They all look up upon my entrance, my father the first to acknowledge me.

"What the hell are you doing in here," he growls. My eyes shift from him to the white powder that sat adorning the coffee table.

"Hey bitch, your daddy is talking to you," Dre calls out. Everyone laughs.

"I'm sorry, Dad... It's cold out, I just want to get to my room," I say. I try and walk to my room but one of my fathers friends traps me against the wall, earning a whimper from me.

"The things I would do to you if I could get you alone," he groans over me. I immediately begin to shake, praying that these men didn't grab me and rape me tonight.

"Ya'll know what I like to call her?" My dads voice cuts through the air as he makes his way towards me. He points his finger in my face.

"Good for nothin." I flinch from his tone.

"Cause she's good for nothin!" he shouts turning to his friends. They all join in laughing. Dre decides to pipe up from his spot on the couch.

"Actually, I know something she may be good at," he says. Loud hoots and hollers echo throughout the room and I can feel the color draining from my face.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have come," I say. I slowly try and back away but my father grabs me roughly by the arms.

"Where the hell do you think your going good for nothin? Don't you hear my friend over there? He wants to test you out!" He shakes me violently and I cry out trying with all my might to pull away.

"No!" I shout, I rip my arms from his grasp turning to run when his friends grab my bag. I immediately pull my arms free leaving the bag. Not before my father catches me though. He grabs me roughly by the hair and hits me right across the face. I can taste the blood as my lip gets cut on my teeth.

I bring my knee up hard and don't look back as I sprint out of the apartment and hide behind the nearest trash can that night, scared for my life, and my virginity.

Another violent shiver rushes through me as the bone chilling cold begins to get to me. If it weren't for Cal's warm jacket, I might have already frozen to death. I try and hide the fact that I am starving, I try and hide the fact that I am exhausted, and I try and hide the fact that my body hurts. But I know my professors can see right through my façade. They all watch me with pity.

"You're like a diamond trying to hide in a box full of dirt."

Callums words flash through my mind. I wonder what he was doing at the moment. I keep expecting him to be waiting for me at the end of the road each day since I haven't contacted him at all in the past few days, but each day disappointment courses through me to find him not there.

It just shows how much he's grown on me in the time that we've known each other. I depended on his company, and with him not being here, I felt like my life was a living hell each and every day. He was my reprieve. I really did miss him.

I shuffle my body closer to the wall of the garbage can as another gust blows through the night. The sounds of dogs barking and loud music hangs in the air. I was hungry, I hadn't showered, I was sleeping outside every night. I blink back tears that were threatening to fall. I always try and tell myself, this was only temporary. This would only make me stronger. But at the moment it was making me weaker than I'd ever been before.

* * * * *

I'm trudging up the road as the sun rises. I didn't know what time it was, but I just had to go off of my internal alarm clock. My teeth were chattering, the jeans I'd been wearing were frozen to my skin and Cal's jacket wasn't enough anymore.

I keep my eyes trained down on my shoes. They were so worn. I could feel the gravel digging into the bottom of my foot from the hole in my shoe. I try and cling to Callums words, but it's impossible to.

How could I possibly be a diamond. I was dirty all the time, My clothes were old and ragged. I was pathetic. I feel myself stumbling as another wave of dizziness washes over me. I didn't know how long it'd been since I'd eaten last. At one point I resorted to digging into the trash can, but then I realized what I was doing. Not only that, but I was tired. Sleep was impossible when you were on the cold ground in the freezing cold night air.

I'm still walking and I don't even hear the people shouting at me from their car. I look up just in time to see a liquid flying at me. I don't even have the energy or reflex to dodge it and it splashes on me, covering my entire body.

I look up just in time to see my fathers friend and the woman that helped beat me up driving away, shouting all kinds of obscenities at me. My footsteps falter, and my legs give out. I feel the weight of the hard gravel as it digs into my worn jeans. Tears run down my face in large rivulets, and violent sobs shake my entire body. The liquid now soaking my body all the way through to my skin and the cold air chilling me to the bone.

I open my mouth and let out a wild wail, screaming and not caring who saw me or heard me. I give up. I hated this. I hated life. I hated everything. There was no reason for me to live. I wasn't going to be subject to my fathers torture anymore. I slowly stand, loud sobs escaping my lips as I stumble trying to catch my balance. I was so weak.

And I begin walking. And walking. And walking. I don't know where, but as soon as I hear the loud whir of cars, I know I've almost reached my destination. I look in front of me and see the cars zooming past left and right. I don't even think about it anymore. I lift my leg and begin walking out into traffic.

I keep my eyes trained down not wanting to see the moment a car rams into me. I hear the blaring of horns and out of nowhere I'm violently jerked backwards, the collar of Cals jacket roughly choking me. I'm whipped around into a frantic pair of flame colored eyes.

Callum. He's screaming at me. His face is a mix of anger and desperation, I don't even know what he's saying. I just take in his features. What was he doing here anyway? He wasn't supposed to be in town for another 2 days. His hands are digging roughly into my skin and he's shaking me so hard I feel like I would throw up if I had any food in my stomach.

The constant movement of his lips stops and he's screaming the same thing over and over again.

"Rue! Rue! Rue!" My name breaks through the foggy haze that I was trapped in and I flinch from the volume of Cal's voice. But he doesn't seem to notice he's so angry. I can see a vein popping out of his throat as he shouts at me. My eyes travel across his face.

Even when he was angry he was perfect. His skin looked so smooth, the only thing marring his otherwise perfect flesh was all the piercings and tattoos he decided to get. I feel the warm press of his hand on my cheek, I can't help myself as I close my eyes reveling in the contact. Afraid he might pull his hand away, I reach up with both of mine and hold his hand to my cheek, enjoying the heat and contact. I feel a cool breeze on my cheeks and realize that I'm crying. A loud sob escapes me, and I begin letting out my cries of anguish.

I feel my legs grow weak and I can't hold myself up anymore. I sink to the ground, still crying. not caring who was listening and who was watching. All I knew, was that the comfort of Callum being so near to me made me feel like everything was going to be ok. I knew in the back of m mind I told myself not to let anyone distract me, but Cal was a distraction I needed.

I knew that slowly, but surely I was falling for him.