This Can't Be The End of Me

Chapter 2: "Wow! I'm so Lucky"

"Am I overthinking again? Am I a horrible person to others?" Charlotte kept asking herself.

Charlotte had arrived home.

It was now 4:00 pm; she should have been home by 3:00 pm. What happened?

(Flashback)

While Charlotte was walking on the sidewalk, she noticed someone following her. Scared, she decided to keep walking to avoid any trouble. Suddenly, someone tapped her on the back.

"Hey, can I ask you something?" a voice mumbled. Charlotte was very confused to see someone approaching her just like Valeria had.

"Aren't you Valeria?" Charlotte asked.

"Huh? What do you mean? I'm your classmate."

"What's your name? I don't quite remember."

"I'm Vivian, your academic rival," she said.

"So, what's up?" Charlotte asked.

"Can you please stop answering all of the teacher's questions?"

"Why would I?" Charlotte asked, feeling scared.

"Do you want me to kill you?"

"Ah, it's okay. You can kill me any way you want." Vivian was shocked by Charlotte's response.

Vivian had been planning to get rid of Charlotte for a whole year because she was just poor. Charlotte, on the other hand, left Vivian in shock with her reply.

"Hmm, I guess I should just ask for food on the streets. I have no other option," Charlotte uttered. She changed into casual clothes and went outside to look for food. She sat outside a convenience store. While waiting, she decided to steal some food from the store. But before executing her plan, she had to think of a way not to get caught. She carefully put snacks in her hoodie, but someone caught her and loudly announced it in the store. The cashier immediately called the police.

The policeman handcuffed Charlotte. She cried desperately for her wrongdoing but someone else told the police it was their fault, not Charlotte's, even though she was the one who stole the snacks. Charlotte was astonished. The policeman believed the other person and let them arrest her.

Charlotte was embarrassed by what happened and walked out of the store with her head down.

She went home with a growling stomach. When she reached her door, she noticed a paper bag full of fruits and vegetables but no note or indication of who had left it. She didn't care much now because she needed the food, but she wished she knew who to thank.

She happily went to the kitchen, which was very clean since it wasn't used much. She cooked a simple vegetable stock and stir-fried the vegetables. She sliced the fruits nicely and prepared the table for dinner. The meal was the best she'd had in a long time since it was self-cooked instead of canned food. She felt full and healthier, as she had been quite skinny.

Charlotte decided to tidy up. After that, she scrolled through her social media. She noticed messages from her bullies and saw that she was being gossiped about on her school's news feed. She cried and regretted her actions, turned off her phone, and went to sleep to forget about it.

She wished her family were with her and that she had the money to get what she wanted without getting into trouble.