Us - Arianna Joseph (best book clubs txt) 📗

Prologue

Prologue – Before Us

Arelie gazed out through her window, wincing as she heard the crash of glass downstairs. Oh God, she thought, please let this not be another fight.

Arelie had been getting so tired and weary with all of the fights and arguments that went on between her parents, they never seemed to stop anymore, sometimes they’d start hitting each other and Arelie would get scared, she’d get worried that maybe the neighbors would hear. She’d usually stay upstairs in her bed, hoping they would just get exhausted from yelling and screaming and would just stop. But they didn’t.

“I’m tired of trying to reason with you! I’m tired of you and your shit!” Ben yelled.

“I don’t give a damn anymore, Ben, I give up. We shouldn’t have even started this relationship.”

“Relationship?” Ben spat. “This was more than I hoped, but you . . . you just made my life hell these past seventeen years. What about our daughter? Did you forget about her?”

“How can I? She’s always up in my face! God, I hate all of you.” Jen screamed.

“Keep your voice down! Are you stupid? The neighbors probably called the cops already.” Ben hissed.

“Get out.” Jen said; her voice flat.

“What?!” Ben laughed nervously.

“Get out. Now. I don’t want to see you near my house again.” Jen slammed her beer bottle on the counter.

“You’re drunk; you don’t know what you’re saying. When you get sober we’ll figure this out-”

“I don’t want to figure this out, I don’t want to solve unending problems with you, I’m done Ben, get out or I’ll call the cops.” Jen’s voice croaked; dry from lack of water.

“You can’t do that.” Ben declared.

“You don’t do a damn in this house. I work, I pay the bills, I get food on the table, if I needed your help I would’ve asked.” Jen threw another bottle, it shattered against the wall.

“I work! I help you pay those bills!” Ben protested.

“Really? From where? Your girl toy?” Jen’s eyes narrowed. “You don’t think I know about Laura? You ass, did you really think I was that stupid? Sure, I might be drunk. Yeah, I’m not around, but that doesn’t mean I’m dead!”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about-”

“Stop giving me lies, Ben. If you want a perfect life so badly marry Laura. Hell, I’ll give you the divorce papers tomorrow!”

“Just stop!” Ben shouted. Arelie could hear padded foot-steps on the floor, and dialing. Then a choking sound, shortness of breath, glass breaking once more, and then silence.

Arelie sat up, threw her door open and bounded down stairs, her mind was in a panic, and her whole body ached with fear. When she got downstairs there was no one there. Arelie quickly went through the whole house, scouring for any trace or sign of her parents but there were none. Suddenly, the house just seemed too quiet. She ran to the phone in the kitchen and dialed 911. After frustrating moments of stuttering and stammering and trying to explain the situation, the police were finally able to come to the house and investigate.

Arelie was shaking, where had her parents gone? What had occurred downstairs? There seemed to be too many questions and no answers at all! Elie just wanted to leave, disappear. She hated her life at home.

Why? Why me? She asked to no one. The police officers were attempting to talk to her, to understand what was happening in the house, but Arelie didn’t hear any of it. Only air, everything that happened just now was shocking and terrifying that Arelie had to remind herself that it was reality, whether she liked it or not. Right now, reality didn’t feel good, neither did she feel well herself.

Chapter 1

Chapter 1- Us

One year later.

“C’mon Arelie. School!” Arelie groaned and stretched. She looked at the clock.

6:50am.

Perfect, she thought, her first day at school.

After a year of sorting out everything with DCF she finally got a place to stay; in Florida, with her aunt. The police had tried to track down her parents; they sent a bunch of their detectives on the run for them. After a week, they found her mother’s body in a dumping yard, thirty seven miles from her home. They also found out that their neighbor, Laura Stevens, had vanished and was suspected as a runaway with Ben O’Neil.

After several months they decided that they might have gotten out of the country, or was dead.

Arelie decided not to care. But when she had started going back to school, just to be able to pass to the next grade, everyone piled her up with questions. Some asked if she knew her mom died, others asked if she was the cause of everything, some tried to reassure her everything would be alright. After three months of putting up with their questions she gave up. Arelie, who had never been independent before, finally gave up on people, only relying on her true source – her bedroom.

Sometimes she wondered where her father might be, if he was really dead or not, but then quickly cleared all her thoughts with the music pumping through her earphones. Arelie worried sometimes over the situation that had happened around a year ago. Everything seemed perfect right now, not exactly picture perfect but good enough.

Arelie bounded off the bed, into the bathroom and cleansed herself, as she was going into her closet her phone buzzed. Awkwardly she bounded back to the bed and unlocked her phone, tapping the message.

It’s me. I’m waiting.

Arelie looked around, after pulling on her t-shirt that loosely hung on her body and then pulling on her jeggings she went to her window. Lifting the blind, she peeked through it. No one was there, after trying to figure out the number and coming up empty, she shrugged off her eerie feeling. She grabbed her handbag, with all of her old school supplies in it, stuffing her wallet and phone in the side pocket, grabbing her keys and heading downstairs.

She bumped right into her aunt on the way down.

“Good.” Beatrice smiled, “Your up.”

“Been up” Elie mumbled, heading toward the kitchen. Bea just nodded.

“I put breakfast on the table, its cereal and milk, works every time.” Bea smiled.

“Seriously? ’Cause I thought it was only for old people and little kids.” Arelie muttered, reluctantly stuffing the cereal into her mouth and dropping it in the sink. Bea had taken her in a few days after the incident with her mom and dad. She was barely home, though, always doing her business trips. But she was kind and sometimes Arelie disliked being rude to her. But what could she say? After all she grew up with Ben and Jen O’Neil.

“Do you remember the way?” Bea asked, Arelie nodded, and unlocked the door. “I won’t be here! Not until nine thirty; Late business trip.”

Elie raised a brow, “When are you leaving?”

Bea looked at the time and bit her lower lip, “Maybe in half an hour. Call me when you get home, please.”

“Sure.” Arelie shrugged off her aunt’s concern. Focusing back on her cereal she ignored her aunt.

“Arelie.” Arelie paused with her hand on the door knob. “Have a good day.”

“Maybe.” With that Elie left, and Bea shook her head ruefully.

@>------

The bell rung right in Arelie’s ears and she winced.

Why is it that she had to endure high school after everything she’s been put through? Arelie felt weighed down and weak. Everything just seemed to be happening to fast for her; she hated the way she felt, being bottled up and not knowing anyone here. It felt like a waste of her time, and she just wanted to scream with frustration.

She glanced down at her schedule. She looked up right in time before bumping into someone, but it didn’t avoid him bumping into her. He knocked her off her feet, and sent her things scattering on the floor. His arm shot forward, grabbing her from the waist and breaking her fall.

“Sorry, didn’t see you.” He said softly. Arelie cast her eyes downward, and bent down to retrieve her things. But she was able to make out a pair of green eyes and midnight black hair. He was probably over six feet. When his arm shot out to her she saw ripped muscles, the veins popping out slightly.

He was probably every girls dream, she thought wryly.

He bent with her and grabbed her schedule by his feet. He handed it to her without looking then stood up and left. She had noticed a tattoo, barely noticeable, on his wrist. Arelie shrugged it off, and continued on. She walked through the hallways, praying to God she wouldn’t get lost. This was one of the reasons why she hated new schools, but the thought of starting fresh in a new school was definitely tempting to the mind right now.

She found her first hour – Ms. Treddale, Geometry.

Without looking at the class she handed the teacher her schedule, and quickly took the farthest seat from the front. The teacher stood up and beamed at her class. The teacher had brown short hair and dark brown eyes, she looked around the classroom, she finally caught Arelie’s gaze and smiled.

“Class, I’d like to introduce to you a new student.” Ms. Treddale nodded at Arelie. Arelie groaned inside.

She hated anything that had to do with the words ‘new school’. Just keep your head down, she reminded, don’t look at them,

“Arelie O’ Neil.” Everyone’s gaze seem centered on her but she didn’t look up, quickly nodding and back to looking at her blank sheet of paper. Someone whistled, another laughed.

“Isn’t that the girl who’s mom died?” a kid whispered loudly. Arelie suppressed and exasperated groan.

“Hell, nah.” Another kid protested

“It’s true! It’s her.”

Everyone again seem to look at her, Arelie looked up and gave them all a hard gaze until they finally looked the other way. Ms. Treddale started teaching, asking the students for last nights’ homework and announcing a pop quiz.

Arelie had already learned most of the things they already did, but because she didn’t attend to many school days last year she had to make up for it this year. Many people considered Arelie like an encyclopedia, swearing she was too smart for her own good.

Arelie was just glad that she could learn such things so fast. Otherwise her life would be hell, especially with parents like hers. She gazed at the clock, half an hour was ahead of her, she sighed. It was going to be a long day.

@>------

Throughout the rest of the day many girls came by, trying to make a conversation, trying to be friends, trying to gossip. But when they came by, Arelie was either on her iPod or drawing, or both. She ignored them, pretending that they were talking to somebody else.

The guys were not so hard; they came up, said their game and if she shook her head they left, most of the guys though were stubborn, though. One guy had come up to her and tried to physically assault her when he tried Arelie used self defense against him. Arelie frowned, she had started learning because