Beauty & the Beast

Ronnie sat on her front porch and stared up at the clear blue sky. It was a beautiful day out but it was a little chilly, it was perfect. She looked down at the organizer in front of her and sighed. She was scheduled for her surgery tomorrow. It was nerve wracking. This was a very serious surgery, what if she didn't make it? What if it didn't work? She'd be stuck with this condition the rest of her life. No, she had to be positive.

She reached over and grabbed her Starbucks. Just as she was about to take a sip, she almost dropped the cup. There were five guys walking towards her house. Did they always have to stay in a group like that? It was almost annoying. She didn't care much though...as long as Brian was there... Ronnie felt sad as thoughts of Becca entered her mind. It was already Sunday and she hadn't called. Ronnie tried calling a couple times but Becca was always 'busy'. She tried not to worry about it too much though. With her surgery coming up, she couldn't afford to have any other distractions.

"Veronica!" Jimmy called out. Ronnie rolled her eyes; she HATED her name. Veronica Jayne West...why? Why did her mother have to name her that?

"Please don't call me that." She mumbled once they got closer. They all found a spot to sit on her porch and plopped down. Ronnie closed her organizer and set it down on the table with the rest of her school books and homework.

"Why not?" Johnny asked. Ronnie grabbed her glasses and put them on. She stood up and walked over to where a large white canvas and paint bottles were. The guys didn't even noticed they were there.

"Because I hate my name. Now, what are you doing here?" She wasn't meaning to sound rude but she was a little weird about them being at her house. At least she was the kind of person to give someone a chance.

"Well, you didn't seem all that bad at the mall so we decided to come get to know you." Zacky said as they all watched her intently as she painted. Ronnie almost lost herself in her painting as Ellie Goulding's song 'Hanging On' came on. The music flowed from her window and into her ears and she felt herself entering Euphoria; she almost forgot to answer Zacky back.

"Well, I'm pretty much an open book."

Brian watched in amazement as her paintbrush danced across the canvas, leaving trails of paint behind it. He wasn't too sure what she was painting right now, he'd have to wait to find out. He got a glimpse of her room in the corner of his eye and he couldn't help but look through the window. He saw Metallica and Misfits posters all over her walls and nodded his head. Her taste in music was excellent. She would fit right in with them.

"How'd you find where I live?" Ronnie asked growing more curious about that question. It's not like they had ever been over before and she hoped to god no one followed her or went through her files at school.

"I live right down the road." Matt said as he pointed to the direction they came from. Ronnie nodded her head, wondering how she could have missed that. If he lived right down the road, wouldn't she have seen him at some point? Brian spotted Ronnie's school books on the table and picked them up. His jaw dropped when he saw her math work. This was math that he wouldn't have been able to do in a million years. Oh and her science work? Yeah, that lost him too.

"Dude, you're like really smart!" Brian exclaimed, causing Ronnie to turn pink slightly. She walked over and snatched up her papers and books. As she picked them up, her organizer fell open on the table. She went to pick it up before they saw her surgery date but Brian got to it before she did. He wasn't sure what to think of it. He knew she had a heart problem and that she needed help but open heart surgery is so risky. He was too involved now. If she were to die, he and his friends would be upset.

"Yeah, I uh have an IQ of 147. That's part of the reason why you guys made fun of me." Ronnie mumbled. She was desperate to change the subject before it was even brought up. The guys each felt a pang of guilt in their stomachs. They had indeed teased her but it was for a dumb ass reason. Brian really wanted to bring up her surgery but he didn't want to upset her. Maybe he could just invite her to go out with them as soon as she was able to after the surgery.

"Hey, as soon as you're able to go places like normal, you know, after the surgery, we're taking you out." Brian said with a grin. Ronnie bit her lip and tried not to fall victim to his brown eyes but she failed.

"Um, that sounds good."

Was this really happening? Was she really becoming friends with people that made her life a living hell? What would Becca say? She had a feeling that Becca would never talk to her again if she knew. But why should she need Becca's approval? It's not like she had been a good friend lately. Becca had been all about herself the past few months, not really caring if Ronnie needed her or not.

A few hours later, Ronnie finished her painting. She stepped back and the guys' jaws dropped. It was the most amazing thing they had seen. It was an angel painted in white on a grayish/black background. The angel was looking down, her dress tattered, her halo bent, and her wings ripped. Brian had to wonder, did this painting symbolize how Ronnie felt inside? Of course it did. He would be haunted with that image for the rest of his life.