Chapter 3 Raging Emotions

The alarm barely went off when Aurelia awoke. Quickly, she went through her usual morning routine before returning downstairs for breakfast. Breakfast was quiet as usual; after all, it was a bad habit to talk while eating. After the meal, she downed the glass of water handed down to her by her dad before quickly rushing out, following the ever lonely but familiar path until she successfully found herself by the busy streets, surrounded by noises that were quite unfamiliar to her.

Thankfully, her father had chosen a private location for their home else she doubt she would be able to live with all the noise. Walking on, she finally got to her school gate. As usual, there were clusters of money-draining cars around the front of the school. Not like she cared anyway. Keeping her head down, she headed towards her class when all of a sudden, she felt something hit the back of her head, making her hiss in pain. She turned, only to find Bella with her crew of girls standing behind her.

"Did it hurt? Ouch!" Bella taunted.

Aurelia swallowed hard and then turned to continue her journey to her classroom.

"I told you ladies. She's a big weakling. She doesn't even know how to defend herself. Poor Lia." The girls behind Bella giggled at Bella's comment. Aurelia sighed. She took a deep breath to calm her raging emotions and walked on. Revenge was for the weak, said her father and now, it rang mightily in her head. maybe, he was right. As she walked out of sight, Bella stomped her feet in anger. why couldn't she tap into this girl's emotion and make fun of her? Everyone in school knew the quiet hood girl who spoke to literally no one. She didn't make friends either and the news went round that everyone was scared of this girl. It made Bella mad. This hoodie girlie was a weakling and she was going to prove it to everyone. The thought of it made a naughty smile spread across her lips. Classes went on, as usual, that day, and just at the end of school when Aurelia was about to return home, an egg flew from nowhere, hitting her at the back of her head. Aurelia stopped as she felt the gelatinous liquid wet her hood. Now, she was holding on to her temper on a thin thread. She turned abruptly, not surprised to see Bella standing hands akimbo.

"Oh my God! Did it hit you?" she asked her voice heavy with sarcasm. Aurelia glared heavily at her. Hoping the spoilt brat got the message and just leave her alone. But Bella didn't seem like she was giving up anytime soon. Instead, she approached the girl who was fuming in anger, glad that her method was finally working.

"What? You won't even accept my apology? What do you want to do? Fight back."

Aurelia balled her fist. She had never felt so angry before. She had never felt this mad. She only stood rooted to the ground, trying hard to fight this strange feeling that seemed to overwhelm her. It was taking control of her senses and even her father's word wouldn't stop it. Seeing her balled fist, Bella already guessed what was going on. With a naughty smile on her face, she stood in front of the girl but just as she reached out to remove her hood, with reflex, Aurelia caught her straying arm, and the next minute, Bella felt her body hit the hard floor heavily, as she passed out. Seeing the unconscious girl on the ground, fear gripped Aurelia. Her heart pounded heavily against her chest as she stared at her palms, unable to figure out what had happened. Noticing the mini crowd that was beginning to converge around her, she ran away quickly, not stopping, until she found herself in the lonely path that led to her home. Panting heavily, she looked around, making sure she was not being followed. Suddenly, it hit her. First, dull pain in her abdomen then it grew by the second, then everywhere began to spin and her body fell with a thud, as she lost sight of her environment.

When Aurelia opened her eyes, she found herself back on her bed in her room. Sitting up, she wondered how she had gotten home. Was it her Dad? And why had she fainted all of a sudden? The pain... gasping, she reached out for her stomach but heaved in relief when she realized the pain was no longer there. Thank goodness.

Sitting up, she left her room, heading downstairs. She could hear her father's footsteps in the kitchen. Pushing her straying hair away from her face, she pushed the kitchen door open, "Good afternoon, Dad." She greeted nervously.

"Good evening to you too, Lia." He replied and only then did she notice the time. "You must be hungry," He continued. "Have a seat."

Nodding, she obediently took a seat and obediently ate what he served her, glad it wasn't porridge. Quietly, she ate her meal, counting the time to when the dreaded topic would be mentioned and the time finally did come.

"Mind explaining what happened at school today?" He finally asked her.

Aurelia continued with her meal, not surprised at the question. It wasn't the first time her father was knowing what happened in her school even before she could tell him. Sometimes, she wondered how he did it.

"I am sorry, Papa." She quickly apologized.

He sighed, "You know saying sorry won't suffice, don't you?"

She remained silent, knowing what the answer already was.

Closing his eyes, he sighed again as if struggling, "Come up to my room after your meal for your punishment." With that, he walked to his room, ignoring the pair of eyes that followed his every move. Aurelia looked down at her meal, suddenly losing appetite but for now, it was her only means of prolonging the minutes to her punishment. Suddenly, she began to regret why she had fallen bait to Bella. Perhaps, if she had continued walking, this wouldn't have happened.