So hi again.

Come As You Are - nirvana

Umm I'm sorry about the last chapter :/ it was a little too personal and I think I need to be more professional lmao. But it felt really nice to get all of that off of my chest

✈️on🏞with🪂the💥chapter😵...

************

✨Emilia POV

"-Don't be a bitch-

-I'm not. I'm just being myself."

"Are you avoiding me?" Rain confronts me after a week of not associating at all with her. She stops a large queue of people that are trying to get through to their next lessons in a hurry.

Felix wasn't here today and I was grateful for it; Rain would leave me alone so I could sit by myself and she would go sit over with Kelsey.

I do wonder where Felix was. I hope he wasn't sick because then I'll have to give him the biggest hug. The only problem is I'll end being sick too.

"Nope." I try to swerve her blockage by sneaking past her and under her arm. I squeeze the straps to my backpack harder with the nerves and mixture of anger soaring through my veins. It's better the straps than her neck.

"So why don't you talk to me?"

"You know? I think you got a little too big for your boots over the holidays. Learn to fûcking respect me and my past then you can question why I won't talk to you," I smile at her evilly day continue to walk up the steps to my English lit class.

"C'mon! I said sorry!" She follows close behind, not going away.

"Yeah it doesn't mean it didn't hurt any less. All of this because of some boy?" The thing is, he wasn't just some boy.

He was Felix. And he's special. He was special to me because he meant too much to me.

"You kissed him-

Yeah, on the cheek.

"Right because I didn't know he had a label on him. We're friends and friends only," I enter the classroom before Rain does and she follows shortly behind taking the seat behind me. My back was resting again the wall and Cole was sat beside me snickering at nothing.

I wish I could say Felix and I were friend but a snapping tinge of my heartstrings pound in my chest with guilt. How can I say he's my friend when I'm in love with him? I know I'm fourteen but I still know what love is. For the mean time, I'll have to bury my feelings for the sake of Felix's and I friendship.

Maybe when I'm sixteen he'll be open for a relationship with me. I'm not sure right now. All I know is that I don't want my friendship to be ruined with him because I have a crush on him.

"Yeah I bet you are. Why do you kiss him then. He's mine so just keep your hands off. It's really not difficult. Stop kissing him and we'll be okay-

"That's what you think I'm mad about?"

"Well... what are you mad about? It's pretty pathetic that you're mad at me for no reason," she rolls her eyes and lives over the desk a little.

"Excuse me? Sorry that I feel offended that you used my past of my abusive step FATHER against me to feel bad about myself!" My fists slam into the desk as I squint at her with a locked jaw. People around us began to stare.

"Yeah stop overreacting," she rolls her eyes. She's not the same person I put my trust in.

"Answer these: have you been touched? Have you ever broken your ribs? Do you have a foot long scar going down your torso because your step dad hated you? ANSWER ME THIS! Have you ever been stabbed?!" Not caring, I rag my school jumper off and I rip open the buttons to my shirt to show her my scarred torso that was a blank canvas for everyone's anger.

I had a bra on my flat chest and only a few other people saw my scrawny and scarred tummy. I don't even care anymore. I really don't.

Presented to her was a slowly fading striking scar from Tate on my thirteenth birthday. The majority of my tummy was also peeled from Mia's coffee boiling my torso. There was also many different ones that had faded, but the most prominent scar of them all: a circular scar located on my stomach.

Darker and tougher, the skin on the scar felt like rubber almost. That's going to take years to heal.

"I-I..." she couldn't utter a word to me. Cole next to me felt the need to use his uniform blazer as a shield to cover my body. That's the only thing I could ever thank him for: keeping my modesty despite many people already seeing.

"Emilia Russo, go outside please," the teacher sighed with his head in his hands. Charming he was. A dark skinned man with flawless skin that complemented us striking and jutted cheekbones - fresh out of university - follows me outside and closes the door as everyone watches.

Insecure now, I tightly wrapped my shirt around my body and pull my jumper back over my body feeling flushed and reddened in the face as the tall man bends down to my height.

"What's that about? You put on quite the show for the entire class didn't you?"

"I don't care. Nothing's wrong. Can I go home?" I straighten my tie and lift my chin to adjust the uncomfortable rope around my neck.

"That's not my decision. So what was that?"

"I already told you! Nothing!"

"C'mon, I'll take you to the Senior Leadership of your year group," he pays me on the back gently urging me to move forwards.

Senior Leaders?! No! They get all into your business and make calls to social workers. I hate them! They gossip about you and tell teachers about your business!

"No!"

"Emilia... please. I'm a new teacher and I'm not sure how to handle this situation properly," he smiles weakly at me but continues to tap my back continuing to urge me to the office of my year group.

"Let me go back there and shank her! Ooh I'll kill her!" I kick one of my Docs extremely hard into the wooden lockers - there wasn't even an indentation in them.

"Yeah you won't do such thing, in."

We arrived at the office that was empty because we had to wait for a senior leader to come back.

When she got back, I realised she was also new but she was older and chubbier too.

"What's wrong Mr Farnell?" She slaps the cream coloured files onto the desk next to her stained coffee.

Looking up at him, I see a glimpse of guilt in his eyes then he shakes his head. "Nothing. Miss Russo just wanted to ask you a question," he covers for me.

"Oh right! Erm... do you have a... do you have a target for the pass mark in the October exams?" This was something that I genuinely wanted to know. We have exams every three months on average.

"Oh. Yeah it's eighty percent for the set one because you'll be doing the higher paper whilst set eight will be doing the foundation paper. Hope that helps," she smiles at me and practically shoving us from the office.

"Yeah-

The door to the office slams shut leaving me and the tea her the only ones in the halls before we return back to class.

"Thanks for that," I hide behind him as we enter the classroom and falling under everyone's stares.

"It's okay. I figured it's not entirely your fault," he dismisses me back to my seat. Rain wasn't there anymore. She was sat next to Kelsey who was at the other side of the class right at the front gossiping with Kelsey.

As Mr Farnell begins with his over dramatic reading of Ozymandias, I slump lowly in my seat blocking out his exaggerated speech.

"Hi," I hear Cole mutter and nudge me with his elbow. What does he want? Didn't he hate me?

"What do you want, Cole?" I whisper as I shut my eyes, locking out any traces of light from entering my vision.

Cole budges me again with his elbow so my head knocked against the wall causing me to groan and wince.

"What?!" I whisper-yell.

"Are you okay? Your thingy," I look at him sharply to see him gesturing to my torso with his index wobbling up and down.

"Perfect."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"You were going to ask anyways so shoot ahead," my head still resting on the cool table, I turn on my right cheek to stare at him. He's kinda pretty. If only his personality didn't smell like bvllshït.

"Where'd you get the scars from? They're pretty badass, you know?" He pokes me on the cheek to lighten the mood. The only thing lightening was my head; I felt queasy and sick almost to the touch. Not repulsion of Cole, but I genuinely felt sick.

Thanks... I guess? Was that a compliment? I mean Cole doesn't exactly have a way with words does he?

"I fell from my mum's vagina when I was born and landed in a meat grinder," I smile sarcastically at him and look at the teacher who was writing on the smart board.

"Oh funny," he says dryly.

"Thanks."

"I was being sarcastic-

"Yeah I know, you dipshît! Don't ask because you ain't gonna know," I huff and hide my head in my hands but holy up when I feel a hand pat my head awkwardly.

"Did you just pat me?"

"Uhh yes?" It escapes his mouth more like a question.

"Oh. Well then..." I roll my eyes and slide away further to the wall against him. Why is he being nice for once? What does he want? He's never nice to me so this is all new to me.

***********

"Are you still not talking talking to me?" She was confronting me with two arms caged around my book with Kelsey stood behind her with a hand on her hip sassily.

I look up from my bitten sandwich and book I was reading whilst sat next to Jayden with my brothers and a few other guys I hadn't been introduced to yet.

"Does it look like it? Apart from now of course..."

"You know? I always knew you were pathetic but I never knew you were this pathetic if I'm honest. Now I know why your step dad stabbed you-

"HEY! You better shut you fûcking mouth," Diego shoots up in his seat with a pointed finger.

"Sit down, bîtch," she looks Diego you and down in disgrace so I kick her leg.

"Ow!"

"I'm glad it hurt," I smile bitterly and glance back down at my book and continue reading the paragraph.

"Are you going to let her do that, Ray?" Ray? Excuse me? I had no idea they were in nickname terms.

Just I was about to turn the page, I feel a hard tug on my scalp which dragged me up to Rain's eyesight so my hands immediately clutch her hands to pry them off of me.

"I hate you," she grits out.

Calm down, ocean piss.

Lifting my leg, I kick it into her stomach so she tumbled over her legs onto the floor clutching her tummy and screaming and groaning in pain.

"Likewise." I slump back down in my seat next to an eye widened Jayden whi gave me the thumbs of approval.

"Gosh... I swear every Russo I've met is a badass," he takes a moment to pat his chest like he was catching his breath.

"Diego are you okay?" I ask when I see his cheeks burning red and a vein pulsing from his neck with his empty water bottle clenched hard in his hands.

Rushing up, he runs from the canteen, throwing the bottle to the ground leaving it in the middle of the floor.

**************

I'm not sure what's gotten into Rain recently. This is three times she's tried to mock me by bringing up my past and belittle my trauma.

"Woah! What's gotten into you?" I slam the fridge closed hard and stare angrily at Romeo with a broken bar of chocolate in my hand.

Lately I've not been feeling good; just rage and fury pump through my veins and arteries. Ooh Rain was on the last straw with me and the thread was wearing thin.

"Fûck off," I drag a chair back from the island and cringe when it makes a squeaking shriek.

"Oi! Cut that out now!"

"Fûck. Off." I flip him my middle finger and chomp on the rock solid chocolate. Who puts chocolate in the fridge? My teeth were glass.

"Damn," Alessandro laughs but stops when he sees Romeo glaring at him deadly.

"Come with me," he pulls me up by a chunk of my hair causing an earsplitting scream to escape my lungs.

"OW!!"

"Dad? Where are you taking her?" Alessandro follows us outside into the back garden and shoved me to the ground before taking Alessandro back inside ensuring to lock the door behind him.

"I'm tired of her bitchiness all the time so she can fûck off to somewhere else. She's not welcome here anymore."

Does he forget I can call the police for the amount of times he tried to assault me physically?

"HEY!" I plummet my fists on the door until they're sore.

"LET ME IN!" I begin to kick the door lightly. Alessandro was trying to get to the door but Romeo was blocking the window of the doors so I couldn't see his entire figure.

In the background, I saw a vicious and blood thirsty Neon ragging like a feral animal at the ankles of Romeo's smart pant leg. That was until his kicks Neon off of him to the side and he limps away with his right front leg curled.

"NEON! HEY! Leave my dog alone!! ASSHAT!"

I hear a loud splatter of hail smacking against the giant, blue pool cover just as the sky suddenly turns a murky grey with abyssal clouds.

A rumble of thunder soars through the sky with the pounding rain and hail shaking the ground.

"ROMEO!"

Gosh, now I sound like Juliet which is just gross to think about considering he's my father. Remember, he's not my dad yet.

"CANT HEAR YOU!" He shouts with his fingers plugged deep into his ears and I see his shadowed silhouette seal away into the kitchen's darkness from the lack of lights.

I think it was only those two in the house because the twins, Blade, Axel and Lijah were out doing god knows what. I think Luca said he was going to stay at Ty's because it's a Friday but I have no clue about the others. I assume Diego was going to blow off some steam or something.

"PLEASE!" I squeal in pain when ice stones crash into my skin like a thousand needles.

Pushing down, I try to get as much warmth from my school jumper but it was no use when I had a skirt on with sheer tights with NO shoes so my feet were cold and frosty so I could barely move them.

Tiptoeing around the long side of the house that took me more than fiver minutes to pass, I suck in my tummy and squeeze through the black fence that allowed me to pass through to the main view of the mansion.

As I rush around the still fountain with a majestic moss blanketed swan that looked old on its pedestal, I stub my cold, already throbbing dead pinkie toe on the stone bath that holds the swan's water.

"AHHH SHĪT!" I begin by hopping on my left foot that was aching when every bone presses deeply into the hail and rain on the drive way.

"LET ME IN!" I pound in the door roughly with my forearms until they're marked purple I'm already blooming blue bruises.

My sobs take over vision and my surroundings like they're magnified with the mixture of saltiness from both my tears and cloud's piss.

Where do I go?! I'm freezing, shivering, crying with no shoes on and still in my school uniform that was weighing down my body and sculpting my body poorly.

Should I go to Felix's?! I feel like my feet would drop off before then or I'll die of hypothermia or some crazy shît because my FATHER won't let me back in the house.

Building up the string courage I have left in my body, my legs burn with a confusing sensation of holy and cold as I bold down the painful pavement and type in the code to the electric gates.

How were they still working? Or am I just dumb? I thought things didn't (especially electronics) in rain?

After my fingers fumbled for the frosty keypad, I listen for the beeping red light that signals for the gate to open so I can hastily jog down the wet streets until I reach civilisation again.

A car horn startles me as I shoot back with my heart skipping a pounding beat as I squint to look at the matte black car that was beaded with hail and large droplets of rain.

"Mini girl?!" A window was rolled down to reveal Gauge. He wasted no time to lean over the passenger seat door to let me in. There was a tinge of guilt that sting on my heart when I realised I was dripping wet in my uniform and my hair was drenched through like a sponge.

Slamming the door shut with my limo arms, I pull my legs up to my chest with my jaw and teeth chattering and trembling lips.

"What are you doing out in the storm?" I wasn't used to seeing his sober self. Usually, he seems to be out of control or snockered and drunk until he couldn't walk no more.

"R-r-romeo," was all I could mutter through my chattering teeth in the frigidity of the storm.

"He kicked you out?" Gauge removes his hoodie from his body and drapes it over my frail one and I smuggle into the heat until the goosebumps face ride on my arms.

His shirt was riding high on his back so he moved forward so he could pull it down so I wouldn't see the crazy amount of scratches and tattoos on his back.

Shaking ferociously, I nod and squeeze my eyes shut and the cold tingle in my feet was too rough.

"You're joking?" He asks with a scoff. I look into his sympathetic eyes as he continued driving down the flooding roads.

"What a fûcking dîck that guy is," he mumbled lowly to himself. I couldn't agree more.

Does this mean I'm homeless? Does this mean I don't have a family anymore?

That's when I realise he's taking me to Ally's business and parks right outside that large vast building.

"Can you walk?" His hair was becoming more wet every moment he spent at my side of the door but I couldn't move. Honestly.

My knees were cramping and they were sore and wobbly so I couldn't barely stand. When I tried to take and step, my knee caps would shatter against the gravely terrain.

He pulls me from the wet floor and hooks an arm under my wet tights and another string arm around my back then uses his foot to close my door.

"Why are you so light?" He uses his soaked shirted back to push open the doors and then we're protected from the harsh hail and rain storm with rolls of sharp thunder.

"I-I'd c-consider myself d-dark," I chatter, falling into warmth he had left. There wasn't much considering her was now drowned in wet rain.

"I didn't mean that," I saw him visibly roll his eyes with a smirk playing on his face.

"Excuse me? Are you going to sign in?" The bubblegum snapper girl smacks her jaw and uses her long talons to type on the crusty keyboard.

"Can't you see my hands are full?!" He exclaims sharply and rudely then continues to barge past the immense amounts of people in overly priced suits and co-ords.

After rushing past the wave of ignorance, I'm finally taken into the dimly lit room that was situated at the other half of the building where everyone goes to hang out or smoke and drink.

The air was thick was smothering my lungs when I coughed and sniffled up to stop my nose from running like a tap.

He kicks Mike in the shin as a signal for him to move along the sofa to the other end.

"What happened? I can feel her organs freezing from a mile away," Mike laughs and rubs his arms like he's cold. Step in my shoes.

My legs were most defiantly purple and blue with blotches of pink. My muscle felt stiff and frozen like they'd been in ice for a thousand years.

"Can you call her brother?" Gauge asks Marci who was downing a can of Redbull then squeezed the can of its life.