Inner Demons

Chapter 7

Ryan went up to his room once it started getting late and he came down with a shirt and some sweatpants for me to sleep in. Once I got in the bathroom I could finally see how bad my face looked after the beating, it wasn't too bad actually I just had a bruised nose (from what I could tell it's not broken) a split lip and a black eye and a few more bruises along my jaw and cheek. It hurt when I touched it but I could deal with it, when I got out after changing Ryan's dad took my clothes to wash, I had seen that there was blood stains on my shirt and hoodie when I changed and called out, "Soak the shirt and hoodie in water and soap first it should get the blood stains out." He laughed and called back, "Thank you. Wasn't sure how to get rid of those," and I went to sit in the living room back on the couch. Ryan had heard me and was staring at me, "How do you know how to get rid of blood stains?" His face was saying should I be worried but I just looked at him and said, "You are joking right?!" I have never seen a guy turn red so fast as he covered his face and I heard him say, "Oh god am I really that stupid!?" I laughed at that, even if it hurt my face to laugh I couldn't help it the look of pure horror on his face was funny. When he heard me laugh he looked up and started laughing too. It felt good to laugh again, Ryan is a really good person and I am glad to call him my new friend, unlike the others he stood up for me and actually stopped them from hurting me once he realized what was happening. "Oh Ruby I almost forgot, you dropped these by your locker," it was my earbuds, "I saw them and then I heard a door so I thought maybe you had forgot about meeting me to walk home together so I was going to go catch up with you and give them back when I saw the crowd and that jerk from this morning push you to the ground." I grabbed my earbuds from him and set them on the table next to my phone. "I guess I just lost it seeing all these people waiting for you to get beat up. Why do they all want to hurt you so much? You've been nothing but nice to me so I can only imagine that you've always been a nice person," he questioned me, I knew he would ask at some point I just didn't think it was going to be the same day that we met.

I guess I should tell him why the entire school hates me. "Well it's not just one reason why people don't like me, some of them don't like that I'm top of the class because they want to be valedictorian, some of them have told me to change schools, that none of them want me there, that I'm a waste of a scholarship. Some of them were my 'friends' before the lies started coming out," I look over at him and he's just looking at me waiting for me to keep going, "The lies that I am a whore that was sleeping with Angel's boyfriend at the time Cole, the guy that was beating me up, but I wasn't. He tried to kiss me under the bleachers at a game and I slapped him and ran away, next thing I knew I was the target of rumors started by him because I wouldn't make out with him. And it's hard to kill a rumor when half the school is in on the rumor and tells everyone I'm a slut that goes around trying to sleep with guys that have girlfriends. I've never even kissed a guy before though so I'm not the whore, if anyone is it would be the devil with the ironic name! And anyone else in the school just either doesn't like me or enjoys seeing people at their worst. It's high school, if the popular people don't like someone everyone else in the school makes sure that person regrets everything that makes that person them." Ryan scooted closer to me on the couch and hugged me, when he pulled away he looked at me green eyes meeting green eyes and said, "I believe you Ruby. And as long as I am around I am not going to let people bully you okay?" I could feel my throat closing up, this is all I wanted and I was choking on words to say so I just nodded, he hugged me again before saying good night and heading up to his room. They were still moving in, there were boxes everywhere but Ryan's dad had made the bed in their extra bedroom while I had been talking and he said, "You can sleep up in here I wasn't going to let you sleep on the couch, and you are always welcome over here Ruby just so you know. I'll come wake the two of you up in the morning, good night." He walked out and I was so tired from today I fell asleep as soon as I laid down.