by N. Phillips
“Why are you being such a bitch to me now?”
“I’m being no such thing. You’re the one trying to get personal information out of me. Others have tried before you, Aliyah, and it never ends well.”
Those words alone informed me of how troubled she was, and that she had been living with her dark emotions for some time now. If anyone needed my help, it was her.
“If you keep living in this introverted bubble, you’re only going to feel more miserable about yourself at the end of the day,” I told her. “That’s when the demons come. They’ll prey on your weaknesses and make you do something you’ll really regret.”
“Then I guess it’s too late for me. Because I already have.”
Maylene’s last words before leaving the room and walking downstairs left me frozen in dismay, but the savory aroma of my mother’s cooking made its way into my nostrils and snapped me out my motionless state. Rushing down the stairs to chase Maylene, I was surprised to see that she was still in the house, conversing with my mom near the front door.
“Mom?”
“Aliyah, I insist that your friend stay for dinner. I’m making the plates now, so you two can go sit at the dinner table.”
Not good.
“Mom, she’s probably not hungry,” I jumped in, not wanting my mother to push Maylene’s patience. “I don’t think you cooked enough for an extra person anyway.”
“Since when do you pay attention to how much food I make? There’s enough. I made a lot in case Lucas was stopping by.”
Maylene glared at me as my mother walked into the kitchen. “Is everyone in this family so damn persistent?”
My nerves tingled as the dreaded feeling in my gut intensified. She was a ticking time bomb waiting to go off. I just prayed no one at the table cut the wrong wire.
CHAPTER 8
The heated tension between Maylene and I as we sat across the table from one another was hotter than the feast my mother spent all evening preparing. The food consisted of pork chops smothered in mushroom sauce, with side dishes of rice, yams, and string beans. A homemade sweet potato pie also sat on the stove for dessert.
“Can you pass me the salt?” my mother asked Lucas, who had arrived just before the food was served. He sat next to me, but my eyes were locked on Maylene.
“Lucas, my man, how’s the music thing going? Do you have any plans in case the buzz fizzles out?” my father quizzed from one end of the table.
“It’s going good, actually. The band’s growing more popular every day. I put a lot of passion into the music and it’s really my only focus right now, so I can’t say I have a specific plan in mind if it doesn’t work out. If I had to choose, though, I’d probably go to college for sound engineering after I graduate.”
“That’s smart,” my mother proudly declared at the other end of the table. “You should always keep an open mind and have options available for the future.”
“Who’s the girl in the band?” Mya blurted out. “She’s pretty.”
Lucas took a sip of his drink before answering. “Her name’s Robyn. She’s not going to be a part of the band for long, though.”
“Why? I like her. She’s a really good singer, too.”
I glowered at my sister until I noticed my mom staring at me. “Mya, that’s Lucas’s business. No more questions about it,” she said, possibly realizing that the topic was bothersome to me. “So, Maylene, are you enjoying the meal?”
Maylene’s green eyes were glued to the burning candles on the dinner table. “Yes, Mrs. Dawn. It’s good.”
I wasn’t taking any chances. Rising out my seat and grabbing the candles, I said with a forced smile, “I think I’m gonna take these and put them over here,” before placing the candles on the kitchen counter and sitting back down. “So, what were we talking about?”
My mother’s forehead creased as she observed me. “I was going to ask Maylene what her parents do for a living.”
“My parents are gone. They died last month on my birthday.”
Maylene’s revelation silenced us all at the dinner table. The only sound that resonated through the home was the chomping bites made by Cinnamon, who chowed into her food vigorously.
“Maylene, I’m very sorry for your loss.”
She stood out her seat after the mournful words of my mother. “If it’s not a problem, I should be getting home now. My grandpa worries if I’m not in the house at an appropriate time.”
“Yes, it’s alright,” my mother said. “Thank you for staying, Maylene. You’re always welcome here.”
Maylene gave her a small smile. “May I use the restroom before I go?”
“Yup. It’s up the stairs to your right. You can’t miss it,” my father told her.
She walked up the stairs with her head down. I felt tempted to follow her, but the strong vibration of Lucas’s cell made me turn to him.
“I’m sorry, I have to go, too,” he said after looking down at his phone. “My dad wants me to grab a few things before the market closes tonight, so I’m gonna need to go now.”
“I’ll walk him to the door,” I said, rising from my seat and seeing the disappointed expression on her mother’s face.
“Oh, okay, Lucas,” my mother said. “Get home safe. Tell your father I said hello.”
“Will do. Goodnight, everyone.”
We walked to the front door. My eyes flickered looking up at him. “Lucas, was that really your father who texted you?”
“Yeah. Ali, listen, there’s a lot I need to tell you, but I can’t do it right now.”
“Why? What are you hiding?”
“I didn’t want to say it in front of your parents, but—”
“Just say it. It’s Robyn, isn’t it? You’re fucking her.”
His face contorted into a scowl. “No, I’m not. But alright, since you wanna know so damn badly. My dad’s drinking again, okay? The fact that he could sit there and pick up a bottle every night knowing Mom died in a drunk driving accident kills me. I’m going through a lot right now, and it’s hard to keep it all in because I don’t want to worry you.”
I shoved him against the door and pressed my body against his. “Then don’t. Keeping things from me is exactly what will worry me. I want to be there for you through it all. You don’t need to feel ashamed.”
“I know. Things are just hard right now and really confusing. But thanks, babe. I’ll call you tonight.”
He gave me a quick peck on the lips before walking out the door. Leaning my back against it, I thought long and hard about his situation until Maylene walked downstairs.
“I’m leaving. Don’t try to stop me.”
“As much as I’m afraid of you being in my house right now, I’m not moving until you tell me what’s going on with you.”
She chortled at me as if I was a joke. “Cute. Now move.”
“No. I’m not moving. It’s about your parents, isn’t it? I saw the way my mom’s question bothered you.”
“Don’t ever mention them. I won’t hesitate to burn this place down, Aliyah.”
A tense stare down resulted in me stepping aside, allowing her to open the door and walk to her car. I couldn’t help but follow behind, eager to speak one last time in hopes of convincing her to talk.
“Maylene, did you kill your parents?” I asked, regretting that decision seconds later. The wrong choice of words could’ve gotten me killed. “You need to talk to someone. I can see and feel the dark aura around you. It’s eating you up inside, I know that. If you don’t do something about it soon, you’re going to attract the demons I’ve been telling you about.”
“Then maybe that’s for the best,” she hollered. I must’ve jinxed it, because her vicious shout summoned a small group of demons that lurked across the street.
“Dammit, they’re here.” I mustered enough courage to grab her hand. “Stop getting so angry and open up before they start manipulating you.”
She shot me a searing glare as her pupils transformed into scorching flames.
I screeched in agony and released my grip, peering down at my hand to see the burn marks on my palm.
“Stay away from me,” she demanded, getting in her car and putting the key in the ignition.
“You don’t have to run,” I cried out.
Feeling the harsh sting of my scorching flesh, I contemplated if I should go after her. Watching the pack of demons follow the vehicle as she drove down the street did me no favors.
My desire to save her encouraged my next move. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.”
My heart pounded in my chest after stomping on the gas pedal. The motion of the moving car made me fearful for my life, almost as if it were tugging the strings of my soul.
This was only my second time behind a wheel, and in this moment, I didn’t care that I had stolen my dad’s car. All I had hoped for was that the demons pursuing Maylene wouldn’t cause her to do anything life-threatening.
A red light halted my chase. “Dammit,” I uttered, hitting the wheel with a closed fist. The pain in my hand reminded me of how dangerous she could be.
“Why don’t you turn around before you get hurt? She isn’t worth it.”
The deep, grueling voice of my demonic tormentor shot in my head. It was seated in the back of the car. Its presence made the journey of locating Maylene even more unnerving.
“She killed her parents. That’s unforgivable. She deserves to die.”
“I’m not listening to you. No one deserves to die.”
We debated as I drove through the busy streets of New York. The sirens of police cars driving by made me panic.
“You should go home. The girl is going to die no matter what.”
Taking a deep breath, I ignored its callous words and concentrated on the road. Using my ability to sense the negative aura of the demons following Maylene, I tracked her location to a bridge where several cars were crowded together.
My eyes widened at the unsettling view of her standing at the edge of the bridge. The brisk wind brushed against my face after unbuckling my seat belt and getting out the car. Pushing past the people who had gotten out their vehicles with their cell phones in hand, I made my way toward Maylene and saw her step one foot out onto the railing.
The heart wrenching reminder of Valeria’s death shrouded my mind with doubt and despair. “Not again,” I said to myself. “This isn’t going to happen again.”
I approached Maylene with caution, who turned to me with a scowl. “I told you to stay away from me,” she yelled through the loud commotion from the people nearby. A collection of demons were also present. “I’m not strong like you. I can’t live through this anymore.”
“Yes, you can. This isn’t the answer, Maylene. It never will be. Think about your grandfather. You can’t do this to him. He needs you. You have your whole future ahead of you. Life can change.”
Her eyes shut with a single tear trailing down her left cheek. She placed her other foot out on the railing, causing me to scream in anguish.
“Grandpa will be safer without me,” she said. “I don’t want the same thing to happen to him.”
“Whatever happened, we’ll get through it together. I won’t be afraid of you. You can talk to me.”
“It’s my fault they’re dead, okay? I played with fire and they got burned alive. There’s nothing else to discuss.”
A deafening explosion erupted with her shout. Panicked pedestrians began scampering away from the bridge. Maylene’s anger had caused a vehicle to explode, causing more demons to surface and creep closer to the catastrophic show on display.
“They would still be alive if I wasn’t so captivated by something so destructive. You don’t know what it’s like to love something so dangerous. To desire the one thing that destroyed your family, your home. I can’t even look at myself in the mirror anymore because if I did, I’d see the person responsible for my parent’s death. If I was a normal person like everyone else, they’d still be here with me.”
Her disgruntled demeanor created multiple explosions close by. Onlookers scurried away in a frenzy, with some being trampled and lost in the stampede. Tears were ready to roll down my eyes. I could feel every bit of Maylene’s suffering.
“Maylene, you are normal. I know your parents wouldn’t want you to end your life this way. It was an accident, and I know they would forgive you. You have to believe me. Please.”
“What would you know? You can’t talk to the dead. You have the perfect family and a boyfriend who loves you. You can never relate to me. Hell, you don’t even know me.”
“I don’t need to know you to understand and relate to you. You may feel like no one cares about you, but those feelings can change. We all make mistakes, Maylene. We all have regrets, but we can’t let the past control our present and shape our future. You’re coming down from there, you hear me? I’m not gonna let the darkness take you, too.”
I reached out my arm and pulled Maylene off the railing. Police sirens and relieved citizens brave enough to watch were heard in the distance.
“I told you. You don’t have to run,” I said.
“I’m scared,” she told me, her eyes flooded with tears that were held back for so long. “I don’t want to hurt innocent people or anyone I care about.”
“You won’t.” I leaned over and hugged her. “I’ll make sure of that.”
The demons scattered in search of other victims. Several officers rushed over and covered us with large blankets while escorting us away from the scene. I smiled feeling Maylene’s grip on my hand. It was a scary night, but going through it all for her was worth it.
Tonight, a friendship had been born.
CHAPTER 9
“I could’ve sworn I left more gas in the tank.”
My dad shot a sarcastic comment my way as he pulled up in front of Ravenvale High the next morning. He had picked me up at the police station last night after the officers were done questioning me about Maylene’s suicide attempt.
“Oh, that’s right; one of my daughters went on a fast and furious chase through the city last night,” he said, looking at me out the corner of his eye.
“Dad, I said I was sorry. Can you drop it? Please?”
“Alright, you won’t hear about it from me again. But your mom’s a different story. You scared her half to death, you know?”
He was right. My mom also came to the station, but unlike my dad, she was in tears. Sensing her emotions, I knew she was angry with me, but that frustration was overshadowed by fear and sadness. She was afraid of losing me to the unknown again, and I honestly couldn’t fault her for feeling that way.
If only there was a way to be a superhero to the world, and a daughter to my parents.
“I won’t do it again, I promise,” I assured my dad. “But speaking of Mom, isn’t it a little weird that she let Mya stay home from school so easily?”
“Well, she did use one of your infamous excuses.”
“Yeah, the one that never works. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she’s the favorite in the house.”
“Maybe she is,” he said with a smirk before shaking his head. “I’m joking, sweetie. Now go on inside before you’re late.”
I responded with a sarcastic laugh before exiting the car and walking to the entrance of the school, only to turn back around at the sudden beep of a car horn.
“Hey, are you sure your hand is alright?”
I raised my bandaged left hand for my dad to see. “This? Yeah, it’s all good.”
“How did that happen again?”
I had forgotten the lie I told my parents last night and had to think fast. “Uh, curling iron?”
He tittered. “I expected a better lie than that. I’ll see you at home, sweetie.”
Uh-oh. Were my lying skills beginning to fade? The thought crossed my mind upon entering the school until I saw a large group of students circled together in the hallway. They fought for a better position with their cell phones i
n hand to record whatever was going on.
Peering through the crowd, I saw Bruce and Jerome holding a boy down to the floor and forcing a pink dress over his head. The agony and humiliation of the moment was written all over his face.
“What the hell are you two doing? Let him go,” I ordered, making my way to the center of the scene. My eyes landed on Candice, who stood next to Bruce and Jerome laughing at the boy’s embarrassment.
“Is this your friend or something?” Candice asked in an arrogant tone. “Or is that your ugly dress and you came to take it back?”
“That’s funny. You sure it didn’t come from the tasteless wardrobe you wear to slut around?” I shifted my glare to Bruce and Jerome. “I said let him go. Are you two her lapdogs or something?”
“Now hold on a minute,” Jerome started, “this kid’s been starting trouble with us since last year.”
“For some reason, I doubt that’s the truth.”
“No, he’s right,” Bruce jumped in, standing the boy up for the amusement of the entire school. “This wimp looked at us the wrong way, so we’re showing him that we’re still the bosses around here.”
“Boys, you don’t have to explain anything to her,” Candice said. “She’s nobody. She’s probably bitter because her boyfriend is gonna dump her soon.”
I approached her with merciless intent, my hands itching to get around her throat and rip her lungs out. “What did you just say?”
More students gathered around us. A fight was definitely gonna go down.
“Let me make it clearer for you,” she began, “You’re nothing. After your boyfriend becomes famous, he’s going to leave you. You’ll feel all sad and cry about how your life is so miserable, and then you’ll kill yourself just like your friend. That’s the summary of your life. Judging by your hand, the misery has already started. Hashtag Candice Forever.”
“Kill her.”
I launched myself on top of Candice, digging my nails into her neck with my teeth gritted in rage. I wasn’t sure if it was her insults or the words of the antagonizing demon that sprung me out of control, but at that point, all I wanted was to cause pain; even death, perhaps.
