Many things were running through Sophia’s mind as the oversized fist connected yet again to her squishy, already battered nose. She could have not gone to school today. Perhaps not antagonized the other senior girl that had her hair into a death grip and was mercilessly using her face as a punching bag. It wasn’t her fault that the other girl, Genette, called her ugly or pushed her in the locker room after PE. She had just tried to stand up for herself as her older brother taught. How could she have known that calling Genette a bitch would have caused this? A lot of good standing up for herself did as the stars continued to spring across her vision. It also didn’t help that there was a crowd of other seniors that just stood there and watched her get mauled by this behemoth of a girl. Just as Sophia began to shift her consciousness internally in a natural reaction to dull the pain, the tension on her hair released and the fist stopped flying. Soon, the ground quickly rose to meet her face and with a dull thump, she was greeted with a final flash of lights before her eyes went dim as she lost consciousness. The faint voice of Genette saying something about her being a whore was the last thing she heard.
Not knowing how much time had passed, Sophia woke with a start and a gasp of air. The pain in her face was near unbearable as she took a second to try to sit up and process everything that had happened leading up to her getting her face smashed in and the subsequent impromptu nap. As she looked down at herself, she grimaced yet again. Her shirt had been torn somehow and it was ripped off halfway along with the strap that typically held her bra in place. At some point during her beat down, her boob must have fallen out of her bra, and with another wave of embarrassment, the sudden realization that some of the other students must have been recording the fight hit her like a ton of bricks. She quickly stuffed her boob back into what was left of the tattered remains of her bra and did her best to set her shirt back on her shoulder in some semblance of modesty.
“Ugh. I can’t go back to school ever again. I’m just going to drop out and go sell crack or something…”
She mumbled to herself as she shakily stood to her feet. Her nose was on fire and she had a hard time seeing out of her left eye, but that paled in comparison to the impending doom of returning to Pressmont Senior High School. As Sophia took in her surroundings, she was somewhat relieved that she wasn’t far from the small three-bedroom house that she shared with her older brother and mom.
“All right, Sophia, you can do this.” She murmurs as she steels herself for the three blocks that she had to walk to get home.
The first wobbly step was the hardest as she stepped out of the alleyway that she had gotten jumped by Genette and painstakingly made her way home. She was completely sure how her family would react to her coming home, not only late but as beaten and bruised as she was. She wouldn’t have to wait long, as the first thing she heard after walking through the front door of her simple home was the sharp gasp of her mom followed by an equally sharp exclamation of her name.
“Sophia Marie Espinoza! Dios Mio! Are you ok! What happened? Who do I need to kill?” The usually sweet voice turning more and more shrill with each passing word.
Sophia’s mom was a small dainty woman standing at about 5’2” and even soaking wet weighed no more than 105 pounds. The death threat would have been funny, considering the size of her mom if she didn’t think her mom was actually capable of carrying out that treat. She had chestnut brown hair with only the slightest traces of grey hairs that framed an extremely gentle face with a small, slightly upturned nose. Her lips were pursed in concern, anger, frustration, and a genuine look of wanting to take someone else’s life. Her eyes painted a different picture of wanting to pull her daughter into a hug and crying for what had happened to her.
“I… Uhh…”
At a loss for words, she didn’t really know what to say and at that moment, her brother, Nathaniel burst into the entryway after stampeding down the stairs like a man possessed. He had his phone in one hand and based on how white his knuckles were, along with the background noise that Sophia had just heard rather recently of the fight between her and Genette, the reason for his stampede was soon to be brought to light. Nathaniel was only a year and a half older than Sophia and had already graduated high school. He was a tower compared to their mom, standing at 6’3” and built like a professional college football linebacker. In fact, he was actually accepted into a four-year university with a full ride for that exact reason. Having started varsity his freshman year of school, which in Texas is almost unheard of, he shone in every facet of life but was always humble as he always seemed to have a wide circle of friends.
“That fucking bitch! Are you ok, Sis?” Nathaniel said as he wrapped her up into a hug that only a brother can do. The one that made everything just a little more bearable.
“What? What bitch?” Their mom, Vanessa, exclaimed as a glint of fire passed her eyes and it is apparent that unless Sophia managed to diffuse the situation, blood was going to be spilled. Well, more blood than what had already seeped out of her nose and face earlier today.
“Here!” Nathaniel exclaimed as he handed the phone over to their mom, allowing Sophia to see her face get caved in. It was a fleeting moment, but Sophia was able to see her breast fully exposed for all to view as she groaned, wishing Nathaniel had kept that to himself.
“It was on my Snapchat. I know the prick that posted it and I’m going to beat his ass.” Nathaniel growls as he looks her over again. Sophia on the other hand could only watch in horror as all the blood drained out of her mom’s face, watching her only daughter get the daylights knocked out of her.
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
Several moments passed before Sophia’s mom mercifully locked the phone and with a shaky hand passed the phone back to Nathaniel.
She first turns to Sophia, pulling her into a hug after Nathaniel had finally let her go, her eyes already brimming with the tears that threatened to overflow. With a dainty hand, she stroked the back of Sophia’s head. Not sure if she was doing it to calm herself or Sophia, she asks softly,
“Sweetheart, do you need to go to the hospital or something?”
“No mom, I’m ok. I just. I’m ok.” She replies, not really able to bring out more as she was pulled into the hug.
After what felt like an hour to the battered girl, her mom finally let her go. The tears were gone and replaced by them was the fire of revenge. “We’re going to the police station right now to file a report. This is unacceptable. I want that girl charged with assault. Nathaniel. Grab your things, and Sophia, sweetheart. Do… do you feel like you can come too?”
Sophia shook her head but quickly stopped as the throbbing from the headache that was already present increased like someone had taken a sledgehammer directly to her forehead. Well. Someone had, she thought to herself, in the form of a fist. Several times over. After she took a deep breath to steady herself, she replied.
“Uhh, I just kind of want to be alone for a little bit, if that’s ok?”
“Sure honey.” Her mom replied, “We’ll be back shortly and we’ll bring you your favorite. Those egg rolls from The Buffet. Take it easy and we’ll be back soon. Nathan, can you help her up to her room?”
With a nod, Nathaniel weaved his arm through Sophia’s and as he escorted her to her bedroom, he said softly to her, “I’m going to kick his ass. Sis, you did good.”
Before walking out, he turned and gave Sophia another look of sympathy, then he bent down and kissed her on the top of her head and left her bedroom, leaving the door open just a crack as he left.
Sophia waited until the familiar click of the front door closing reached her ears before beginning to sob uncontrollably. She cried for several minutes before even that, too, gave her headache a reason to begin throbbing again. She couldn’t even cry properly, she thought as she began to get undressed slowly from the tatters that used to be her clothes. Once she had been completely undressed, she took a moment to grab her bath towel and wrap it around herself before going to the bathroom to try to take a shower. She looked at herself in the mirror and with a gasp to rival her mom’s, she took in the damage that had been done to her face.
She was, by her own standard, a rather pretty girl. When her face wasn’t bruised and battered, she had almond-shaped eyes that framed deep brown irises. Her face slanted down to a soft point of a chin. She thought her lips were pretty full and usually her straight black hair draped delicately across her cheeks. She didn’t feel like she had a hard time with boys who wanted to take her out on dates. She remembered one cute boy after her eighteenth birthday a few months ago that even had brought her a few roses and asked to go on a date with him. He seemed sweet enough, but Sophia wasn’t interested in getting into a relationship at the time with finals so close. She had hunkered down in her studies and was trying her hardest to get good grades so that she could have a chance at going to college.
Sophia turned on the water to the bathtub. It spurts a couple of times as the water pressure equalized and then soon after, the steam from the water began to fill the bathroom. She hung the towel up on her designated hook and stepped into the ridiculously hot water letting it wash the grime of the day away. After taking her pink loofah and scrubbing herself, she noticed that the water running off her was a light pink, showing her just exactly how much her nose bled. She watched for a moment or two as the pinkish water swirled a little before the drain consumed it, washing away her shame and despair. At least that’s what she was trying so desperately to imagine happening.
Finishing her scalding hot shower, she stepped out and began to dry herself off, wrapping her hair up in another towel and wrapping herself up as she heads back to her own room. As she stepped back inside her sanctuary, she looked around. Her purple galaxy blanket was a little unkempt, but not quite unruly. Her dark wood dresser and mirror at the other side of the bed pressed tidily up against the wall. She went to the dresser first to grab a new set of panties and bra and begins to put them on when she hears the front door unlatch.
Was she really in the shower for the few hours that it took for her mom and Nathaniel to finish up at the police station and return? She hastily threw on a pair of sweatpants and her favorite tank top, pulling her hair up for now. With one last look around her room, she went downstairs and was greeted by Nathaniel, her mom, and a police officer that she’d never met before.
The police officer was a short man, standing just an inch or two above her 5’3”. Through her battered eye, she took in his features. A man in his early 40s or so with salt and pepper hair, built like a lumberjack with massive arms and an incredibly large bushy mustache. He took a moment to take in Sophia’s battered state and says, “Miss Sophia. I am Detective Mack. I wanted to come and talk to you personally and let you know that we’re going to hold those that are responsible for what happened to you accountable for their actions. We currently have officers heading to Miss Genette Johnson’s home and Mr. Mikel Welsh.”
Sophia could do little more than nod at the detective’s words, not wanting to break down and cry again. She was already fighting back the tears that were threatening to form in her eyes. With a small sniff. She looked to her mom and Nathaniel and with a small sniff that caused her to wince in pain, she asked “If you don’t mind… I think I’m going to go to bed. Mom? Can I not go to school tomorrow?”
“Of course, sweetheart, I’ll talk with your teachers and get any work that you might need to do and as far as I’m concerned, you can take the rest of the week off.”
“Thank you,” Sophia replied, as she took a few hesitant steps up to her mom to wrap her into a hug. “I love you.”
“Love you too sweetheart. Go rest. We’ll talk more in the morning.” Her mom replied as she escorted the detective to the door saying, “Thank you, Detective Mack. It means a lot to us that you would come personally to let my daughter know the matter was well in hand.”
Detective Mack nodded and left the small house without another word. As the door shut the lock was flipped by Nathaniel, locking up the house for the night.
Sophia made her way back up the stairs to her room and collapsed on her bed, hair still damp and wrapped up in the towel. As she laid in bed, she finally took a moment to collect and reorganize everything that had happened to her that day. It didn’t take long before exhaustion overtook her and darkness swept up and she was overcome by nothingness.