Falling Apart[POSTPONED]

Chapter One

SERENITY

The seat squeaks as I sit down, causing me to cringe. I pull out my phone and connect my AirPods as I watch my neighborhood fly past. I feel the bus reach seventy miles per hour. I can hear my younger sister, Claire, already congregating with her entourage in the back. I've tried many times to pull her out of that pit of toxicity, but she refuses to believe that her "friends" would ever hurt her.

"Did you hear that Cody Gates came out as transgender?" One girl asks. Another gasps at the news.

"Really? He never really seemed to be girly..."

"I heard that he goes by Kiara now."

"Who cares? Either way, he's a fucking fag."

I whip around at the sound of Claire's smug little voice, shocked that she would say such a thing. I watch in horror as the group laughs and nods in agreement. Claire shoots me a look, and I shrink down in my seat and return to scrolling through Instagram, panicking internally.

꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁

I flip the latch of the bathroom stall, straightening the skirt of my school uniform before exiting the restroom. The skirt is periwinkle, a very light shade of blue. The uniform also features a white button up, with a periwinkle blazer to accompany it. The school's emblem, which proudly reads William Perry Catholic Academy, is sewn onto the chest of the blazer.

As I straighten my outfit, I can hear Joshua Everfields, Claire's boyfriend, feeling up Lily Karnell, Claire's best friend, in the next stall over. I recognize their voices. Instead of choosing to vocalize my presence, I slam the bathroom door shut on my way out. Sure enough, as I'm pumping soap onto my hands, Joshua comes sneaking out of the women's restroom, followed by Lily. Lily joins me at the sinks and begins to wash her hands, eyeing me.

"So, Serenity, do you remember that wild party at Seth's last summer?" Lily asks, an innocent tone to her voice. My hands immediately freeze, and my heart drops. I've prayed for the last eight months that Lily would've been drunk enough to forget that night.

"Yeah, it was pretty great, especially that water balloon fight." I reply, trying to play it cool. I wonder if she can sense my dread.

"Especially when we were in that closet together. You know, when you confessed your feelings for me." Lily's voice suddenly becomes sly, and she turns off her sink and approaches me until she's so close I can smell her coconut shampoo. I grit my teeth in response.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Lily." I begin to dry my hands, and Lily brushes back my hair to expose my neck.

"Oh really? Well, I wonder how you're parents would feel if they found out their little girl wasn't as perfect as they thought." I swat her away, and throw my paper towel into the disposal bin.

"I gotta get to Bible study. I'll see you later." I grab my backpack off the floor, and rush down the hall, sweating.

Shit, I think. She didn't forget.