Not a Stranger

When I felt cascading, hot water on my back I truly felt at ease. New Haven was quite difficult due to the fact that we were allocated fifteen minutes for showers, but I found that so long as I was in the shower, I was in Zen mode.

“GEORGIA IF YOU DON’T GET OUT OF THAT DAMN SHOWER I WILL TAKE YOUR FAVOURITE PAIR OF JEANS AND DESTROY THEM UNTIL THEY LOOK LIKE UNDERWEAR!”

I leant my head against the shower tile wall. Knowing my sister, she probably would destroy my clothing, because she thought most of the material possessions I owned actually meant something to me. I allowed for my flaming red hair to fall in wet dreadlocks in front of my face.

Whenever I was in the shower, the pink scars along my wrists and thighs would turn a vibrant pink and become shockingly noticeable. I usually tried to scrub away the scars, which resulted in the skin turning even more red than it was prior, which meant I would leave the bathroom as pink as a beetroot.

I reluctantly turned the taps off and wrapped a towel around my bodice, once I had exited the bathroom; Monica practically flew past me to assume control over the shower. I crossed into my bedroom and dressed in a ratty pair of sweats and a long-sleeved shirt that was two sizes too big on my frame.

As I had pulled back the sheets on my bed and gotten in, my cell phone gave a trill.

“Leo?” I questioned, knowing he was the only person who would call me.

“Can I come over?” he asked breathlessly without uttering a greeting.

I was startled. “Yeah, o-of course,” I spluttered. “Is everything okay?”

“We’ll get to that later,” Leo mumbled as I heard the doorbell ring. “I’m here,”

I yanked open my bedroom door and sprinted down the stairs to answer the door before any member of my family did. I threw open the front door, grabbed Leo’s hand and tugged him up the stairs before my father could understand what had just happened.

“What are you thinking?” I squealed at my best friend. “My dad would go Texas Chainsaw Massacre on my ass if he knew you were here,”

“Sorry Little Red,” Leo breathed apologetically. “I wasn’t thinking straight,”

“What’s wrong?” I mumbled, sitting down beside him on my bed.

“That house,” he groaned before punching the air in frustration. “That fucking house is going to make me homicidal,”

I winced. “Your stepmother?”

“Of course, that evil slut of a woman,” Leo spat. “She somehow convinced my dad that I should move in with my grandparents in freaking Iowa to give her and my dad some “alone time”,”

“Your dad would never agree to that,” I mumbled, suddenly petrified at the thought of Leo leaving me.

“I really don’t want to talk about it now, it’s just going to make me fuming,” Leo got to his feet and started to pace. “Can I stay over?”

“Yeah,” I got to my feet and clicked the lock button on my door.

“I’m sorry to do this Georgie,” Leo fell back on my bed with his eyes closed.

“No, please, I’ve spent three years burdening you with my problems, it’s about time something goes wrong with your perfect life,” I attempted a lame joke.

Leo looked up at me from under his floppy hair and smiled at me. “How on Earth did I get such an amazing friend?”

~

The next morning I woke up to Leo’s sleeping form beside me, it wasn’t uncommon for Leo to sleepover, however he usually slept in the guest room due to my father’s distrust for all men around his daughters. Occasionally, Leo would be too tired and would just crash in my bed, which usually resulted in awkward mornings for both of us.

I internally groaned and subconsciously pulled the sleeves down on my shirt, Leo and I had always been friends and I was aware of what happened to men in the morning, which lead Leo to be a much hornier guy when he just woke up.

Fortunately, Leo knew he boundaries.

“Morning gorgeous,” I heard Leo drawl from the bed and I rolled my eyes.

“Morning,” I squeaked. “Sleep well?”

Leo nodded and stretched; I got to my feet to avoid any awkwardness with Leo and advanced towards my closet. It was quite difficult to decide on outfits that hid my scars well, in the beginning I would wear skirts and shorts because I had nothing to hide, but now I felt that everybody was a critic.

Leo was still waking up on the bed as I scrutinized a baby blue dress.

“That’s cute,” Leo mumbled from the bed.

“It’s also revealing,” I muttered, observing it from the back and front.

“It’s going to be a hot day, Georgia, you’re going to have to wear shorts or a bikini or something else revealing eventually,” Leo fell back on the pillows.

I glanced towards Leo who was eyeing the dress.

“Just wear it,” he spluttered. “I’ll castrate anyone that looks at you funny,”

Going against all my instincts, I quickly slipped into the dress. The hemline fell short of knees so that my thighs were covered but my arms were screaming at the world. In my mirror, I saw Leo wince at the sight but pretended not to, he turned away and begun to get ready for school also.

I swallowed hard, if my best friend couldn’t look at my scars without shuddering then what hope did I have for the general student body? While I was still scrutinising my body, Leo came up behind me and put a light cardigan over my arms.

“First step,” he croaked and kissed the top of my head before slipping out of my room and to the bathroom.

~

If I could be any more anxious today, it was exemplified when I walked into my first class of the day, Advanced English, only to see Castiel sitting front and centre with his two friends. I stopped in the doorway, only to have people walk into the back of me and swear under their breath.

I scuttled into the class and took a seat as far away from Castiel as I could. After the confrontation I had with him the other day, I had mixed feelings towards him and wasn’t sure how to act. However, from across the room I could feel his eyes on me.

The teacher walked in and began waffling on about a paired assignment that was due in three weeks. I was hardly listening until the people around me started to swap seats and rotate around the room and I began to panic.

The teacher up the front was rattling off names and I was straining my ears and wondering if my name had already been called. It wasn’t until everybody had moved that I heard my name.

“Georgia Nielsen paired with Castiel Walker,” the teacher said pointing to the both of us.

Castiel and I immediately snapped our heads towards each other. He had a look of genuine surprise and confusion on his face, whereas I probably had an expression of utmost fear on my features. Castiel grudgingly collected his books pens and came over to sit beside me.

Once Castiel had pulled out the seat beside me, a wave of anxiety washed over me and I began analysing everything I was doing and wanting to say. I didn’t know if I should speak to Castiel or if I should be quiet and do my part.

“Hi,” I said softly.

Castiel snapped his eyes towards me, I had never noticed the deep colour of his eyes before, but I found myself being drawn towards him in a new light. I never saw the tenderness in his eyes before; they were usually full of malice and hatred often directed towards me.

“Hey,” Castiel said throatily, he cleared his throat before speaking. “So, have you read the text?”

I flickered my eyes away from his, finally, and looked down at my copy of Frankenstein.

“Yeah, have you?”

“I’m halfway through,” Castiel nodded, not a glimmer of a smile or light on his face.

The remainder of the class we spent in silence, copying down notes the teacher was writing on the blackboard. I wanted to say something to Castiel, possibly just so I could look at his eyes again, but before I knew it the bell had rung overhead and Castiel was packing up his things.

I sighed and began to put away all my pens, only to have the light cardigan slip off my shoulders, exposing my arms for the briefest of seconds.

“Shit,” I swore under my breath and hastily covered my arms once more, however when I glanced up I saw Castiel staring at the spot on my arms that had just been exposed.

The expression on Castiel’s face was that of shock mingled with anger, I heard him inhale before sharply exhaling and then he looked me in the eye. I wasn’t sure how long we maintained eye contact for, but I could detect a hint of pity in his eyes.

It wasn’t until Bobby came up to him and tapped him on the shoulder that we broke eye contact. Castiel hurriedly packed away his things and left the classroom at the speed of a hurtling bullet leaving me sitting in the deserted classroom with a mixture of fear and confusion tossing over in my stomach.