BEFORE YOU LEAVE

Chapter 11

She walked right in the class, books under her arm as the brunette keeps talking about her adorable older brother. The room is still half empty, students rushing inside as the bell rings. "Where do you want to sit?" Ariana asks. Taylor looks around, and finds exactly two empty chairs beside the window.

"Right there," she replies, and they walk slowly towards their destination. They sit side by side, and while they wait, Ariana turns around with a small smile.

"Is the girl in this class today?" she asks.

"I think...yeah," Taylor replies, sounding distant. The bruentte nods, and opens her English book. "Oh god, there she is," she mumbles after she sees Karlie walking in with an unknown girl beside her. They're laughing, hard, and not knowing the girl beside Karlie makes Taylor's heart ache. Who is this girl? Why am I feeling angry?

"Who is it?" Ariana asks, her big brown eyes scanning quickly the room. Taylor points Karlie with her eyes, and when Ariana notices her, she says,"Oh,"

The blond looks at her with confused eyes. "What's wrong?"

Ariana quickly looks down at her white paper and shakes her head. "Nothing," she mumbles, and just when Taylor was about to ask her again what was going on, the teacher entered the class. Her classmates started to quiet down, and just like all mornings, the class began as boring as always. The blond discovered that Ariana was a really smart and flawless girl, as she wrote down all the important things the teacher had to say.

"Can you pass me your notes of this class when we return to our room?" she asks, as they start gathering their things to go to the next class.

"Yeah, sure," Ariana replies. Taylor was about to exit the class when the shorter girl grabbed her arm and stopped her. "I think you should talk to her," she says quietly, pointing Karlie with a hopeful nod of the head.

"No, I don't think so," Taylor shakes her head firmly. "She won't talk to me. I was horrible to her, she will just ignore me if I try,"

"Maybe it's worth a shot," Ariana says quickly, and Taylor gives her a stern look. Sighing, she mumbles a quick, "Fine," and makes her way towards the taller girl. Suddenly, she's nervous as she quietly approaches the two girls who still are picking their things up. Taylor meets, for the first time, the stranger's eyes.

"Um, hi? Who are you?" the girl says, looking at her skeptically.

"Um...I need to talk to Karlie for a second," she mumbles. That seems to interest the brunette, who quickly shots her head up, looking at the blond with big green eyes.

"What do you want?" she asks coldly. Taylor knew this, and she perfectly knew that Ariana was watching them intently.

"Why did you change room? I need explanations," she says with a stern voice, hoping to sound as intimidating as Karlie was. The taller girl narrowed her eyes and lets out a humourless chuckle.

"You, of all people, want explanations? Didn't you think to tell me you were just going to use me for your own pleasure for a month? No? Then, I don't owe you anything. You hurt me, deeply, and I changed room because I couldn't stand the idea of sharing a room with such a horrible person like you. So, I made myself a favour, and please, don't talk to me ever again," Karlie says quickly, and she doesn't even let Taylor reply that she was already out of the class. The stranger looked at her with unimpressed eyes, and shook her head.

"I'm Bridget, by the way, and I'm Karlie's friend. Stay away from her, understood?" Bridget says, and she walks away quickly, sending a dirty look in Ariana's direction too.

Taylor stands there, jaw clenched and fists closed. Tears are burning in her eyes, but she won't let them fall. Not this time. So when she's confident enough that the burning lump in her throat vanished, she turns around and walks out of the class with shaky legs and her roommate by her side.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have pushed you," Ariana says quietly. Taylor can't stand that tone of voice, so grabbing the girl's hand she drags the both of them in the bathroom.

"It's not you fault, okay? It's mine. I made the mess. I hurt Karlie, deeply, and that's my problem. You didn't do anything," she says as soon as the door is locked behind her back.

"I'm still sorry," the shorter girl says, ducking her head.

"It's okay. Sooner or later I would have talked to her," she mumbles, looking her reflection on the mirror. What a horrible person you are, she thinks to herself.

"Can I ask you something?" Ariana asks suddenly, her voice nearer. Gulping, the blond nods, and waits for the upcoming question. "Why do you do this? I mean...fucking people, using them and then just...you disappear. You leave them when they least expect it. Why do you do this? I know we're not really close, but I really want to get to know you better,"

"It's better if you stay in the dark, Ariana. Mine is not a beautiful story to tell the others," Taylor says, not fully replying to the girl's question.

"I don't know what it is until you tell me about it," Ariana replies, inching nearer. She places her left hand on Taylor's shoulder, and squeezes it lightly. The blond immediately jerks away from her touch, and the shorter girl mumbles an apology.

When seeing the most sad brown eyes she has ever seen, Taylor tells herself that maybe, just maybe, she needs to open up and start telling about her life. Her past. Maybe if she talks about it she will feel better, hopefully. She takes a shaky deep breath, and averting her eyes from Ariana's, she starts, "My mother killed herself when I was just eight. My dad sent my brother abroad, because he was older than me and he could live his life on his own. My dad was drunk for all of his life, and he would go to a bar in the morning and return home to me when it was already past midnight." she swallows the lump in her throat, and continues. "He hit me everyday since I was ten. He said that I shouldn't have born, that I'm just a horrible girl who should just die alone and by herself. One night, when I was thirteen, he hit me so hard that I almost died. He took me to the hospital, and I admitted to the police that my father was the one who did that to me. He's in jail since then and I don't hear from him since. I don't know if he's still alive or if he's out. I don't want to know."

Ariana's mouth was a little open, and she has that look of pity that Taylor hates. It was the same look that everyone gave her when her mother died. "Please, don't look me that way," she whispers, her voice teary.

"You don't deserve any hate," Ariana says, and she's embracing Taylor in a warm hug. She tiptoes and wraps her arms around her neck, while the blond puts hers around her small back. Just like that, she lets go. She lets go all of her fears and all of her ghosts, letting tears of grief fall from her blue eyes. Just telling what happened to her years ago brings back all types of flashbacks. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Taylor cries even harder at that, and suddenly Ariana's fingers are wiping her tears away. "Nobody has ever seen me cry," she admits, looking almost ashamed.

"You deserve to let go. You've been through a lot," Ariana conforts her. Taylor nods, and buries her head on the crook of her neck.

"Thank you," she mumbles, taking in Ariana's sweet scent. "Thank you so much."

"I will always be there for you. I'm your friend now, and whenever you need help, I'll be there for you," she says. That was what put a smile on Taylor's face for the rest of the day.

A/N: so Taylor's past is here lol. Hope you liked this! More drama is coming for y'all. Love you sooo sooo much and thank for all the comments and votes.

It means a lot to me❤