Killer

Chapter 1: Girl Fight

"Suffering has been stronger than all other teaching, and has taught me to understand what your heart used to be. I have been bent and broken, but—I hope—into a better shape." I slowly read to myself from the paperback of Great Expectations laid out in front of me. I sheepishly smiled at the quote and how it linked to the words: growth, heart, life, and suffering. It oddly reminded me of my life so far.

It was the middle of my lunch period, and I was sitting at a table alone in the crowded cafeteria, which had the terrible smell of someone burning popcorn in the microwave. I wanted to catch up on reading several pages of my favorite book by Charles Dickens. That money cannot buy someone's worth. I had fallen in love with reading since my elementary school days when our internet used to get cut off. My mom didn't have much money to pay the bill. I found reading books to be an alternative way to keep me entertained.

The old pages covered the stages of Pip's expectations of his life, from being born into poverty to being rich. "I have been bent and broken, but—I hope—into a better shape." I read the last sentence over and over again. The concept of happiness and well-being wasn't associated with a social position. That would be my life, wouldn't it? My mom had always told me during her sober days that I would be great in life. But first, I had to go through adversity to accomplish all the things I wanted in life.

"Hey."

I jumped at that soft voice and looked up. It was Tre again, and he was standing in front of the table I was sitting at. He was wearing a tight-fitting camo jacket that made his brawny arms protrude and look sexy. His attire made me blush like roses blooming on a spring day. Even though Tre and I didn't fully know each other, we've been talking since grade school. It was nice that we were starting this small interaction somewhere.

"H-Hi," I stammered, not trying to cover up how hard I was blushing.

Tre flashed his straight-ivory smile and sat across from me at the table. "Here," He then dug into his pocket to pull something out. "Your pencil."

Before he could hand it to me, I said. "Keep it."

"Oh, okay," Tre just said. I couldn't tell what that tone of his meant. But it ended up not mattering when he pivoted on his heel. He stopped midway and turned right back around. "I'm having a party this Friday," he announced, sounding cool like the wind. "Do you want to come?"

I scoffed, although I couldn't hold back how surprised and excited I was getting. Instead, I acted bitchy and somewhat bitter. All to hide what I was truly feeling. "Are you talking to me?"

He nodded. "Yeah."

"I don't know." I sighed heavily. "Parties aren't my thing." It was true. I had a difficult time talking and being around people in general. I often kept to myself because of how nervous some people made me. It also occurred to me that I had never been to a party before. I wondered what it would be like, though. Will I drink too much and puke somewhere? Maybe. Will I find a cute guy to hook up with? Maybe. Or walk home afterward with no one to offer me a ride? Maybe. All these endless possibilities.

"C'mon," Tre protested, booming through my inner thoughts. "You should go. It's going to be fun. Do you have a piece of paper?"

"Yeah, I do." I looked into my binder and tore a piece of paper for him.

With my pencil, Tre wrote something down and handed it to me. "That's my phone number," I said, staring down at the digits. "Call me if you're having issues finding my house."

"Thanks," I shyly said, lifting my head.

Tre's glance flew at someone behind him. Rachel scooped up from out of nowhere and shot a glare in my direction. My insides ran cold, but she didn't say anything to me. "Hey, baby." She placed a kiss on Tre's lips. "You're coming, aren't you?" she snickered. "Or will No Name not allow it?"