Chapter 7

My hands search for my phone, heart throbbing even now. I had woken up screaming, but no one came. I didn't really expect anyone to, but I really miss Grace right now. She would have woken me up and soothed me. Or at least have stayed with me till I calmed down. I wouldn't have needed to run to the kitchen and gulp down a gallon of water, crying all the way. What I need now is someone to tell me that they will be there, no matter what. I check the time. It is too late for Grace to stay up, but I know exactly the person for this hour.

"Hey! Are you awake?" I send the text.

His reply comes almost instantly.

"Sure. You know I stay up late. So, what's up? I thought you slept early."

"Well, I do. But I had a bad dream. So, I thought if you were awake, I could call you up and we could chat a little."

I count 400 breathes before his reply comes.

"I would love to. But I am too tired today. We will talk tomorrow, okay? Goodnight."

I sigh and thump down on my pillow.

Sleep evades me as dreadful scenes of my nightmare blasts me from every side. I lie still, fingers and toes curling around the bedsheets to stop my body from shaking, staring at the roof, heart thumping as my eyes try not to look around lest I see more limbs crawling out of the dark. Something about the dream is unsettling, more so than the zombie children making me drink the raining blood, but I can't put my finger on it. Vaguely, I think of the child in the off-white dress. I try to remember the features of her face, but just like the time when I had thrust my toes inside the sand on the beach and the water had swept it away, the image slips out of my mind the more I try to hold on to it.

Dawn comes before sleep does. And brings with it a bold decision considering I have school today. But yesterday's episode in the Chemistry Lab has prepared me to skip school and pack my clothes. I'm almost done when my mother pokes her head in my room.

"Are you out of your mind? What are you doing?" These are her first words in the morning.

"I'm going to Aunt Sayani's. She texted me yesterday saying I could visit her."

I reply without looking up.

"And what about school? You are skipping your classes? To visit that woman? What in the world..."

"I'm not going today. Not after..."

"Oh! Don't talk rubbish," she cuts in, "I don't care if someone ruined your classwork, or bully you, or whatever. You-are-going-to-the-school."

"I'm not."

Slap!

My cheeks feel the heat before the sound reaches my ears. My nostrils flare as I refuse to meet her eyes as I walk out with my bag pack trailing behind me.

My eyes scream with fury and tears that don't fall as I make my way towards the Train station. The two hours journey is enough to reflect how much I hate my life, and everyone in it, excluding Grace, my Aunt Sayani, and her daughter, Kaitlyn. My hatred for Roopal, my classmate, reaches new heights when I have the chance to channel my thoughts on her cruelty. From everything she has done from the day I joined this school, to yesterday, her behaviour is just pathetic.

Ten minutes to the Chemistry Practical class, and Miss Shah was, as usual, congratulating me for being the first one to find out the cathode atom of the given salt. Roopal stood beside her, the look on her face was as if she was sitting in a broken public restroom. As I collected more acids to start my experiment of finding the anode atom, she took the test tubes in which I had prepared the salt solution, and threw it on the floor.

It was alright, I think numbly, as the train neared its destination. At least it was better than the times when she had slapped me in front of the whole class because my elbow had accidentally brushed against hers, or when se had emptied her water bottle on my head as I passed. I think I really deserve a rest after all these, even if it is just for two days.