Elle was one of the first ones to sit down with her food in the cafeteria. She hadn’t waited behind in math class to finish her problem and get the shit beaten out of her when the hallways were deserted. It was also taco day for the main line, which meant the other line of chicken patties and hamburgers was nonexistent, and she had chosen that option.

It was her first day back since the beating, and she was keeping to herself, but that wasn’t much different than what she had done before.

Looking at her empty lunch table and to the other tables that were starting to fill up with students, she remembered how she used to feel embarrassed sitting alone. But now it beats bleeding behind the school.

She just needed to finish the school year out. Her father wasn’t going to be able to pay for her tuition anymore. That was one small blessing out of it all.

From the moment she had walked through the school doors for the very first time, Elle had felt like she didn’t fit into this prep school. She had been happy back in public school, and she wished her parents had never enrolled her there in the first place. The kids there only cared about the label stitched into their clothing, while all Elle worried about was if she was going to survive her first and final year here at Legacy Prep.

Doubtful.

The cafeteria slowly went suspiciously quiet as whispering began. Looking around the busy room, she saw everyone’s attention on the door behind her.

Spinning around to see what had gained so much attention, Elle’s eyes rested on a once beautiful girl who had the most gorgeous pair of striking gray eyes. Now, in her place, stood a girl with enflamed red slashes across her face and tortured gray eyes.

What happened to her?

“Fucking freak!” was said, followed by laughter filling the space with continuous echoes of the word “freak.”

Elle’s heart dropped as she watched the girl turn back around and leave the lunchroom. She didn’t know who had yelled it, but she was sure Chloe had seen.

She stared down at her plate before squeezing the sides of her tray and quickly standing up, getting rid of its contents and heading out the door the marked girl had just left.

Seeing the swinging of the girls’ bathroom door, she went inside what seemed an empty bathroom, but the feet under one of the stalls revealed otherwise.

Elle put her hand on the occupied stall to feel that it wasn’t latched. “Chloe?”

Opening the door, she was able to see this new version of her up-close for the first time.

The once beautiful girl sat there, spilling silent, glowing red tears down her cheeks. She was right to think Chloe had once been beautiful, but now her beauty was truly breathtaking. You would think that the red slashes would have tainted her looks. However, it was the complete opposite. They let you see her true beauty: her strength.

Elle could see the torture Chloe had endured. She didn’t think she could have survived it if she had suffered Chloe’s fate.

* * *

Chloe looked up at Elle through blurry eyes, waiting for her to call her a freak just like the others. It wouldn’t make her hurt any more than she already did.

I deserve it from her.

“Are you okay?”

What? She could see the true concern on her face and couldn’t understand.

“W-why would you care after what I-I did to you?”

“We both know you wouldn’t have done it if I didn’t tell you to.”

Chloe stared at Elle, even more confused.

“That doesn’t make what I did any better.”

“I think getting Mr. Fredrick’s to find me does.”

Elle stared at her, waiting to see if she would confirm that it was, in fact, her who had gotten her help. Though she didn’t say anything, her silence answered the question.

“Do you think Sebastian, Cassandra, or the others would have gotten me help? How long do you think I would have been out there till someone found me?”

“I’m sorry I didn’t do it sooner. I’m sorry for everything,” Chloe whispered.

“I don’t blame you. Sebastian and Cassandra are the only ones I blame.”

Chloe stared up at her in disbelief. She wanted Elle to hate her or, at the very least, put some blame on her. She blamed herself.

Why doesn’t she—

“They didn’t do that to you, did they?”

Chloe quickly shook her head and started wringing her hands.

“What happened then?”

When Chloe didn’t answer, Elle took a seat on the floor in front of her.

“W-What are you doing?”

Elle crossed her arms. “I’m going to sit here and wait till you’re ready to tell me.”

“But you’re sitting on the bathroom floor.”

“And you’re sitting on a toilet.” Giggling, she continued, “I would say that’s both pretty gross.”

A slight smile lifted Chloe’s lips for the first time in what felt like ages. “That’s true.”

“Now, are you going to tell me, or are you going to make me sit here all day?”

Chloe took a deep breath, not looking up from her hands. “I w-was in a car wreck.”

Staring at her intently, Elle studied her a moment before she replied, “No, you weren’t. That’s a lie.”

“W-What! Y-Yes I wa—”

“Again, that’s a lie,” Elle responded. “You’re a terrible liar, you know.”

How would she know?

“Why do you think I’m l-lying?”

Elle shrugged. “Because I have to lie to my parents way more than I’d like to, and when you are a professional liar like me, it’s easy to tell when someone is clearly lying straight to your face. Also … You are just really, really bad at lying.”

Chloe looked down at her hands as Elle slightly chuckled at her lying skills. She didn’t know what else to say other than what her father had embedded into her since she had woken up at the hospital.

“Okay, fine.” Standing up off the floor, Elle started wiping off any dirt that might have stuck to the back of her jeans. “You were in a car wreck. For now, anyway … till you decide to spill.”

Brrring.

The lunch bell sounded right on cue.

Elle reached her hand out to help Chloe up off the seat, and as her hand came close, Chloe let out a small scream.

Quickly, Elle pulled her hand back. “I’m sorry … I was just going to help you up.”

Chloe covered her mouth and tried desperately to blink back the tears that started to fill her eyes, but she was unsuccessful.

I’m so screwed up. What’s wrong with me? How am I supposed to go on with school or life now?

Sitting back down on the floor, it was like Elle could read her mind. “It’s okay. We’ll wait till you’re ready to go back out there.”

Silently crying, Chloe could only repeat the words that would forever be ingrained in her soul.

I was in a car wreck; that’s all I know. I was in a car wreck. No one hurt me …