The Mates Pull

21

"Sweetie you gotta go to school." My mom said as she sat on my bed and rubbed my back.

"I'm taking a personal day." I grumbled.

"Harper you've missed all week." She pointed out. "Your attendance will affect your grades honey."

"I'll go back when I'm ready will you please just leave me alone for one freaking second."

It was going on two weeks since the masquerade ball. That night after I couldn't cry anymore I stepped out of the shower, wrapped myself in my robe, picked up the dress and the shoes and placed them all the way in the back of my closet where I would never have to see them again.

I text my sister letting her know I was home and after that I turned my phone off.

I haven't talked to anyone other my parents since then.

When my parents woke up the next day my mom said I looked sick and as if she could read me I began growing sick. It started with the shakes and progressed to a fever and vomiting.

But when my mom took me to the doctor he couldn't find anything wrong with me.

I became weak and didn't want to eat, I moped around the house and my parents begged me to talk to my friends.

But I refused to talk to anyone, and I refused to go to school.

Braxton had showed me a reality most people don't know exists, and in this new reality, all of my "friends" were really wolves in disguise.

"You've got to do something Harper, I won't let you lie in here and wallow away." She said before she finally left me alone.

I hated feeling so weak.

But more than anything I hated that I wanted so badly to talk to Braxton.

My sweatpants were usually used for working out, but as I hardly had an appetite anymore, I didn't feel it was necessary to work out anymore...or dress in anything else.

But I took mom's advice, and did something in the form of having a shower and putting on some fresh leggings and a comfy sweatshirt.

I had half a sandwich my mother made for me and a glass of water. She tried to force me to eat the other half of the sandwich as well as the potato chips but I flat out refused.

Mom mom had surprised me When Mr Castillo, my high school counselor suddenly showed up, he (just like everybody else) asked me what was going on with me.

But (just like with everybody else) I declined to talk about it, who would believe me even if I did want to talk about it.

"Harper dear, we all care about you...you are a bright young lady with an even brighter future that you are seemingly tossing away."

I ignored him.

"I'm just trying to get you to reconsider, coming back to school, if not you have other options available to you such as home schooling...I really don't want you to just throw away your education over nothing."

I looked up at him in a menacing sort of way, I've never been a "hard" sort of person or one to openly speak her mind. But after what I had seen something in me changed.

Mr Castillo seemed to find it hard to look me directly in my eyes as I continued to stare at him. "I will go back when I'm ready, and if the school seems it for that I be removed then so be it." I said smoothly.

"If you're certain Harper." He pulled out a binder and handed it to me, "this will explain all the procedures to test out if you wish, as well as homes schooling options, or even G.E.D and it also contain the course material...protocol dictates that you have at least a week to study before I administer an exiting tests, I will have to sit in and monitor you but once you're finished I will have it mailed out we will have your results within a couple of days...if that's the road you so choose to take."