Untouched (Untouched #1)(Old Work)

Chapter Two

Ellen sat on her bed, her back and head propped up on the black wooden backboard. She clenched her fist into a tight ball before relaxing and letting it open. It reminded her of a flower coming into bloom. Although other's may find it laughable, it made her feel calm and at peace with the world.

Her room was dimly lit by a desk lamp angled towards the wall, and the cream walls had become more like a shade of grey from the storm clouds outside. Textbooks were piled precariously on a corner of her desk, and her wet clothes which she wore that day were now placed in a wicker basket by the door. This was her bedroom for as long as she could remember; the only difference throughout the years being that the solid, wooden cot was replaced with an equally solid double bed and a study desk had been added at the start of her schooling journey.

The police officer had left a short time earlier but not before he took the opportunity to gaze up at Ellen from behind his cruiser. There was the look of pity in his eyes; his eyes that softened to be almost doe-like when he saw her.

It was as if they tried to tell her that everything would be okay. 

But this was ridiculous. 

He didn't know about anything that was going on in her life and it really was none of his business to intrude on uninvited. He wouldn't understand anyway so what was it to him?

The officer then waved at her, dropped himself behind the wheel and drove back down the driveway. He turned the corner, kicking up loose gravel that got caught in the treads of the tyres as he went. As he disappeared, Ellen felt herself relax on the bed. Her body became light and her head slid down the headboard onto the soft, white pillow. A deep state of thoughtfulness threatened to take her mind hostage and it took mere seconds for it to be successful in that battle. Her brain kicked into overdrive and started shifting through her thoughts. No matter how hard she was pushing her mind - no matter how hard she was pushing herself to the edges of rationality - there were no realistic explanations available to account for what she had experienced and seen firsthand ever since she turned sixteen.

The first of these incidents happened on none other than the day after her sixteenth birthday. Her head was buried deep within biology books that were piled around her on a desk at the back of the library. Studiously, she jotted helpful notes which would prove to be useful in an upcoming exam for bonus credits later that week. The library was normally a peaceful place except for that day. Someone whom she recognised as being in the grade above her sat at a neighbouring table, and ripped his headphones out of the jack on his phone. Instantly, the music he listened to blared for everyone else to hear and it most certainly wasn't tasteful.

Ellen muttered to herself, and hoped that the librarian would throw him out. Ironically, the elderly woman was nowhere in sight and neither was her assistant.

"Excuse me, do you mind?" she called out to him with an air of irritation. He rocked back on his chair and flipped the bird before making the music, if you could call it that, louder.

Irritated, she slammed the heavy book shut  with a loud thud! and cursed him in her sigh. Almost instantly, she heard a thunderous crash and looked back up.

One of the legs of the chair had snapped in half and splinters had flown all over the charcoal carpet. The ignorant boy was now on his side, red faced and with blood pouring from his crooked nose. His hands flew to his face and he began to wail like the little brat that he was. Ellen heard scuffling and the librarian had appeared with a handful of books. Her assistant – a fresh graduate from university – was hot on her heels and tried to stifle a giggle at the sight albeit, with great difficulty.

"What happened?" asked the librarian, pushing the stack of books onto the table. She had grey, flyaway hair and always wore a brown apron over subdued clothes. She had been with the library for decades and was constantly badgering people to be respectful of their surroundings and to use furniture as intended. She had become a staple to the place and it was suspected that she would stay here for the rest of her days.