Suffocating

Three Days (Trigger)

Sophie.

I was worried about Calvin. He told me he was fine and he would let me know if he wasn't. He seemed so okay when he was with me the day before. How could things have changed so quickly? And why didn't he tell me?

Was it my fault? Did I say something to him or ask too many questions? Did I trigger him to try again all by asking what had happened the first time?

"You're going to break a nail gripping that door so tightly."

I blinked back to the present and Kelsey and Rachel were standing just a few feet away from me. They were wearing their dance uniforms which meant there was a game of some sort going on. Kelsey was looking bored but Rachel was looking directly at me, ready to talk.

"Did you and Calvin break up? How sad." She said, pushing her bottom lip out in a pout.

"We're fine." I snapped harshly. I slammed the locker door shut and headed off toward my last class of the day. I had so many emotions running through my and I couldn't focus on just one. I was mad at myself, at Calvin, sad that I was ruining everything between us, angry at Kelsey and Rachel for bothering me and possibly making the situation worse.

"It doesn't sound like everything's fine." She said, the two of them catching up to me.

I groaned. "Would you stop following me? I'm not your friend and I don't want to be your friend."

"Oh, we don't want you to be our friend. We're just really worried about Calvin-"

"If you were so worried about Calvin, why didn't you do anything to help him?"

Rachel stepped in front of me, her arms crossed over her chest. "Calvin's too screwed up as it is. If you realized that, you'd find someone else to be with. Someone that wouldn't try to kill himself."

Did she really think that something like that mattered to me? I liked Calvin. We may not have had much in common but he cared about me and I cared about him. I liked being with him and I didn't have any plans to change that.

I hit her, right on the cheek. It was out of character for me, to say the least. The most fight I'd ever been in was with my sister when we were younger and it was over a Barbie doll. Nothing like a boy or suicide.

Rachel stumbled backward a few steps before she glared at me. "Maybe it's not him that should kill himself."

I was about to go in for round 2 but a teacher stepped in front of me. I knew the consequences of hitting a teacher and I wasn't about to risk it so close to graduation.

"Principle's office, both of you."

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Rachel had a bloody nose. I didn't think I'd hit her that hard but it was nice to know I could do some damage at least. Her mascara was stained down her cheeks and she looked awful. I, on the other hand, felt fine. Though it could have been the adrenaline.

The principle sat behind his desk, watching the two of us. He said nothing for several minutes, just leaned back in his swivel chair and stared. It was annoying and bothered me more than it should have. I just wanted to be suspended and let go. I was tired of waiting.

"Rachel," He said, finally. He leaned forward and clasped his hands on the desk. He sighed like his words were too hard to get out. "we have a zero tolerance policy here when it comes to bullying. You should know that by now. Any threat to another student results in a three day suspension. You won't be able to perform at the basketball game tonight."

She gaped at him, her eyes filling with tears. "Mr. Vance, it's senior night. I have to be there."

"I can't make an exception just for you, Rachel."

"But-"

"You can go now."

She stared at him for several seconds before she stormed out of the office. She didn't look at me or say one word to me. Maybe she was scared of me.

I hoped that was the case.

Mr. Vance turned his gaze to me and I felt myself shrink back into the chair. I'd never been in trouble before. Not like this.

"I understand you are fairly new here, Ms. Chase. Your record says you have no previous incidences at your last school."

I nodded.

"Yet this is the second time you have been in trouble since you enrolled here. I hate to jump to conclusions but I believe Mr. Taylor may be a bad influence on you."

Of course. Why wouldn't he bring Calvin into the conversation? Was everyone against Calvin?

"I wouldn't have punched Rachel if she hadn't told me to kill myself."

"I'm very aware of that, but-"

"No. This isn't my fault and it's certainly not Calvin's fault. No one is helping him. No one's trying to prevent something like that from happening again. You're not doing anything to fix the situation. Like do you really think three days is enough to get her to not say something like that to someone else?"

"Ms. Chase, you're on very thin ice here-"

"Imagine if I were Calvin and she said something like that to me. What if I killed myself over it? Could you imagine the press you'd get? The judgement this school would be under? Your reputation would be ruined-"

"Ms. Chase, please leave this office at once. I'll see you back at school in three days."

I stood up and stepped close to his desk. "If you were a little bit smarter, you'd realize that it is the weekend and I want nothing more than to be away from this hell hole." I stormed out, slamming the door shut behind me.