I'm Not Pretty (#Wattys 2016)

I'm Not Pretty.

This is not a long story,  it's mostly only one chapter long, it is quite sad,  and definitely not cheerful.

I'm not pointing at anyone or criticizing someone at any point. No offence to anyone,  and only comment if you have good things to say,  it if you have suggestions. If you get offended,  then please stop reading.  But... Have fun! 
Hope you like it!!

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She walked to school with her head covered by her hoodie, and her face was low.

She had not bothered with wearing anything nice because, frankly,  no one  payed her any attention.

She was dressed in baggy sweatpants and an oversized T-shirt. Her hair was tied up into a very messy bun,  and she lugged her backpack,  which was full of books enough to fill an entire library.

She walked slowly and heard snippets of conversations as she went.

'Did you hear, James and Alice got back together? They both are perfect for each other,  and she is sooo pretty',
she snorted and walked on.

She was now deep in thought. Pretty.... Did she even know the meaning of the word now?

She reached school,  and because she was early,  she walked to the ladies room.

She looked at herself in the mirror.
In her mind,  She was what we could call the polar opposite of pretty.

She hated the bags under eyes,  and the way her dirty blonde hair hung limply around her face. She hated the boring brown eyes she had,  and she would always feel bulky,  even after a small meal.
She never starved herself,  because she was strong that way, but that did not stop her from not liking her body.

She sighed and put her hood back on, and walked out of the bathroom,  hoping that, like every other day, she would blend in with the crowd and not be under the spotlight.

Why was she like this? What made her so negative? Who did this to her? Let me tell you.

She used to be the most popular girl in school,  boys fell at her feet,  and she had everything. She had a perfect family,  and the best sister anybody could wish for.

Then,  one day,  he came,  he turned her life upside down,  and made her the happiest she was in a long long time.
All was well, suddenly,  her sister became extremely ill. She would stay up all night, beside her baby sister,  as she coughed up blood.

The day she died, was traumatic. The girl did not know how to react, that was when she needed him the most. But.... He wasn't there. He left her,  when she was at her weakest....broken.

When she got over the grief of her sister,  she started thinking about why he left her, and finally came to the conclusion that she was not pretty enough for him.
She thought that if she was not pretty enough for him,  then she wasn't pretty enough for anyone. She felt like a skeleton, empty of all emotions,  hollow,  and waiting to be filled.

She still remained rich,  but once she stopped caring about how she looked,  she stopped being popular. She was neglected by everyone,  and soon,  no one in school even remembered that she existed.
She couldn't believe that she was ever the person she remembered to be...
She wanted to be pretty again.

She wanted guys to fawn over her like they did to the other girls.
She wanted to be happy about herself... But she couldn't. She just couldn't.

She was ashamed of herself.
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As she walked out of the bathroom,  she did not notice the pair of eyes that follows her every move, wishing that someday,  she would be his.

He had been crushing on her for the past three years,  and not a day went by,  without him thinking about what she was doing, or what she was eating.
He knew everything about her,  and wanted to know more.

He was slowly falling,  and he knew it. He was whipped.

He loved her cheeks,  he loved the way her goldenish hair fell perfectly over her face, after escaping her cute messy bun. Sometimes, when she would look out into space,  he would stare at her, and the beauty of her eyes enthralled him. Her eyes, a completely different shade of brown, with a ring of gold in the middle.

He loved her skinny body,  and longed to hold her in his arms. She was perfect. For him. He loved her because of the little things that made her complete.
He loved her when she was popular,  and he loved her now.
Nothing had changed.

He had tried, on many occasions to talk to her,  and drop her off at her house,  but failed every time. Whenever he caught her looking at him,  she would quickly looked down and busied herself. She had always broken any eye-contact they had shared.

He had been waiting for a week now,  thinking of different ways to tell her about his feelings.

He decided that enough was enough. He would not hold it in any longer,  he couldn't.

During lunch that day, he went to the janitor's closet, where he knew she would be,  to escape the world .
He entered the closet,  and locked it from the inside. He went and sat next to her, and she looked at him.
Her eyes widened and she hurriedly shifted a good distance away.

'Why are you here? What did I do? She asked him,  with fear in her eyes.

'Relax, I need to tell you something. It's important. ' he took a deep breath and continued. 'All I wanted to tell you is that I....I love you. I have, for about a year now, but I only just realised it. I know this is abrupt and you need to process all that I'm saying, but I need to get this out. If you would only give me a chance,  trust me,  and hold my hand, I promise that you will be the happiest person in the world. Just.... trust me. ' he looked up to see tears welling up in her eyes. He went and hugged her.

She separated from him as if he was on fire.

'Stop. Just stop', she whimpered. 'I understand you.. But you have to stay away. We can't be together. We just.. Can't.', she said and looked away.
'Of course, we can', he said and held her hand. 'No!  You don't understand. We can't. You can't be with me. You deserve better. '

'What do you mean? Why do you think so? ', he asked her,  worry etched in his face .

'Because', she said,
'I'm not pretty... '
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AN
This is it. Did you like it?
I could have extended it further,  bit I'm not good with cliché words.
I just thought of this in the car,  and decided to write it down.

If you have any other ideas about stories like this,  please message me.
Also tell me if you want me to turn this into a full on story.

PS: read my other story too! It's called 'Young, Wild and Free'

*Don't forget to Vote, Comment and Share this story.

Toodles,
D.