"Hey Jesika!! wait up a minute!" I heard a voice call out from behind me. I turned around and saw Ryan, a boy from my Englsih class, weaving through the crowded hall to catch up to me. I stoped and waited for Ryan. He stopped and smiled when he reached me.
"Hey" I said, unsure of what he wanted.
"Hi, um, you were just in English weren't you?" He asked me. I gave him a strange look and nodded.
"Sure was...." I said.
"Oh, great... what's the homework assignment? I missed class so I thought I could get it off of you" Ryan said, giving me a smile. I smiled back at him.
"Sure... we just have to read chapters twelve through to fifteen of 'To Kill A Mockingbird' nothing to difficult" I said, laughing. Ryan laughed to as he wrote the assignment on the back of his hand.
"Thanks a lot. Ok, well I'll see you tomorrow in English" He said before giving me a wave as he walked away.
"See ya" I called out after him.
"I want to talk to you" Justin's voice came close to my ear, surprising me. I jumped and turned around. He looked as angry as he sounded and my heart sank.
"Sure, but can it wait until Lunch? I'm already late for Chem class" I said.
"No. We have to talk now. You can skip your Chem class" Justin said. I sighed.
"Justin, I really need to go to this class. Mr. Renalds is preparing us for our exam... I can't miss it" I said, fully aware of how fast the hall was emptying. Justin's jaw tightened as he grabbed me by my shoulder and started walking fast down the hall.
"You are going to talk to me now Jesika" He said.
"Jusitn! Let me go now. You can't decide when I do and don't go to class" I practically yelled at him. Justin ignored me. "What is this all about anyway? God, if it's about me talking to Ryan then you need to get a life! He was asking me about an English assignment for crying out loud-"
"SHUT UP! I saw you flirting with that prick! Thanks to you, he'll think he can ask you out, then it'll go around that you are a flirt and a slut and I will not have a slut as a girlfriend!" Justin yelled at me, stopping in the hall. I stood, shocked as Justin proceeded to yell at me. Finally I yanked my arm out of his grip and started down the hall.
"I'm not going to put up with this from you! You don't own me and you can not and will not control who I do and don't talk to. You are my boyfriend-"
"That's exactly my point! I'm your boyfriend and you have to respect me by not talking to those fuckwits" Justin yelled.
"DON'T YELL AT ME!" I screamed at him. Just as Justin's hand came flying at my face and hit my left cheek. I cried out in pain and backed away from Justin. My hand covered where he had hit me. Justin's face instantly softened as he took a step towards me.
"My god, baby... I'm so sorry... you just get me so angry sometimes, I didn't mean it I-"
"Don't you come near me." I said, taking another step away from him. "You ever hit me again, I'll dump you and I will press charges against you. No matter how much I love you Justin, I will not tolerate you hitting me" I said. This wasn't the first time I had made this threat. I then turned and ran from Justin. Justin didn't follow me. When I looked around again, he was gone. He had obviously gone to his class. I headed for the nearest girls bathroom. It was a miricle that one of my friends, Aleen, was in there.
"Hey sweetie." She said brightly before seeing me. Her face droped as she said. "Not again...". I just nodded and then flew into her arms. She hugged me tightly. Besides Grace and Zac, Aleen was my best friend and she knew about what was happening between me and Justin. "Honey, you so need to get rid of him and find yourself a real man" She said. I shook my head.
"No... he's gonna get help... I can't leave him Aleen... I love him to much." I said. Aleen rolled her eyes.
"You really believe that he's getting help? Jess, he's seventeen, like he would know how to get help. You know he grew up watching his father beat his mother... he thinks that's right. You and I both know that it's not. How are you going to explain your face at lunch?" Aleen asked me. Only she and Grace knew about my problem. I shrugged.
"I think I'll just go home" I replied.
"I wish you wouldn't" Aleen said. I shook my head.
"I have to... I might as well go now.. I've already missed most of my Chem class.. there's no point in going now."
"Do you want me to walk you home?"
"Nah... I'll manage... but thanks anyway... hey, why aren't you in class?" I asked, only to get the subject off of me.
"I've got Study Hall but I decided to skip it... " She said. I nodded.
"Ok.. well... I'll see you tomorrow ok?" I said.
"Yeah.... " Aleen said as she hugged me. I hugged her back and then walked out of the bathroom and to my locker. I gathered my stuff, ignoring the picture stuck up on the inside of the door of me and Justin. I slammed my door shut and then walked out of school. As I slowly walked home, I thought about what had taken place between me and Justin. I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't notice the car pull up and drive slowly beside me. Suddenly, the horn honked, scaring the shit out of me. I whirled around and saw none other than Zac, driving and grinning at me. I mustn't have looked that happy because his grin fadded and he stopped the car. I stopped walking and Zac got out and walked over to me.
"Hey there... why so sad?" He asked me. I stood before him and held in my tears. I so wanted to tell Zac everything that had gone on but I couldn't.
"Oh, I'm just not having a good day."
"Aww... well, maybe I can fix that...." He said, putting his arm around my shoulders and gently leading me to his car. "Hey, is it just me or is your bruise getting worse instead of better?" Zac asked. I bit my lip, as I tried to think of something to say. Thankfully he hadn't noticed that my other bruise was on my right cheek... this was on my left. Zac and I drove to his house and found that no one was home. We walked inside and I smiled as I looked around me.
"Now this is a place that I haven't seen in ages!" I said.
"Nothing's changed... believe me" Zac said as he and I went into the kitchen. "Ok... now tell me what has made your day so bad" Zac said once he set two cups of steaming coffee on the table. I sighed. There was no way I was going to tell him about what had happened with Jason.
"Nothing specific... it's just a day where everything goes wrong, I'll be ok.... you of all people should know about that!" I said. Zac grinned and nodded.
"Yeah... but you sure you'll be ok?" He asked, concern plasterd over his face. I nodded.
"Yeah Zac.... I'll be fine. I have to be" I said.