The Girl Next Door

Chapter 16

At Jesy's house, Ms. Marigold was sitting in a plastic chair next to Jesy's bed. "I just cannot fathom who would do something like this and why." She had come back to England early this morning because of a call she had received the night before. She had been told by the principal that her little star had been beat up severely. That had sent her into a state of vertigo because she just could not think of why someone would do that. From all of her conversations with Jesy, she had gathered that the girl was nothing but a nice, charming young woman trying to go against all odds to follow her dreams. She admired that.

Mrs. Pinnock sighed. She was standing next to Ms. Marigold with fingers rubbing her forehead. "They must have been insane. I'm certain that Jesy here has done nothing wrong." She mumbled with her mentally ill daughter in mind. She never liked to refer to the child as 'insane' but it was the only word that fit with how beat up poor Jesy looked. Only somebody who was mad for no reason and who knew several forms of self-defense would be able to accomplish this. I'm going to have to send her to her father if she keeps up this behaviour. I just cannot handle it. She felt more stressed than she had been in years.

The drama teacher had called Mrs. Pinnock while she was at work this morning to find out where Jesy lived since the girl apparently was not with the boy they had left her with so she had told her. She'd decided to come check to see if Jesy was home with the teacher because she felt as though she was supposed to be responsible for Jesy also. I wonder if this had been what Lee-Lee had been screaming about last night. She had been very busy, too busy to check on her last night so she would not know.

"But no one at school is insane." Ms. Marigold was rubbing Jesy's arm gently. She and Mrs. Pinnock had bought medicines and food for Jesy before they got here. The fridge had been more or less empty when they arrived so they were happy to fill it with groceries.

Mrs. Pinnock rubbed at her forehead more. "Right . . . no one is insane." She was having a memory of saying that to Sairah when the girl and Leigh had been younger and still trying to cope with the disease Leigh had. Leigh hated that word. "No one is insane."

At that moment, there was noise of feet hitting on wood coming from the near downstairs.

Jesy who was lying in bed without speaking closed her eyes at it. She had come home to be away from people. It had been hard and painful to walk here alone from Namjoon's house but she had wanted solitude that much. Who else was coming in? Who else was going to obtain confirmation that she was struggling on her own in a tiny dump house? She had heard what Ms. Marigold had to say about her conditions already. It had made her feel embarrassed that her living state brought sympathy from the woman. Leigh's mom had only reiterated what Ms. Marigold was saying.

"Hey." Sairah Pinnock walked in with a backpack over her shoulder.

"What on earth are you doing here young lady?" Her mother was walking up to her with a frown. She sounded strict.

Sairah let out a breath as she looked at the immobile girl on the bed. Jesy really had not done anything. Sairah felt stupid for not questioning those girls and simply falling into their trap. "I came here to apologize." She whispered shamefully looking up at her mother.

Ms. Marigold was confused. "For what?"

Jesy was stiff in her bed. She did not want Sairah close to her at all. She tightened her closed eyes. God make her go away. She was afraid all over again.

Mrs. Pinnock stared with a frown of confusion at her daughter before her eyes became wide and she gasped. "You did this?!?!"

Ms. Marigold gasped. She looked at the stiff Jesy. "My word. Jesy is this true?" She stood to get a look at Sairah. This was frightening.