Chapter 2 No longer exist

ARIANA'S POINT OF VIEW

Mom stared at me as though she hadn't heard me correctly, the color slowly draining from her face. For a long moment, neither of us spoke. The only sound came from the old wall clock ticking above the dresser.

Finally, she found her voice.

"What... did you just say?"I didn't look away.

"You heard me."Her brows knitted together, disbelief flashing across her face before it gave way to anger.

"Ariana, don't do this."

"I'm not doing anything."

"Yes, you are!" she snapped, her voice rising for the first time in weeks.

"You're refusing to accept what happened."

"I'm refusing to believe a lie."

"Ariana!"

"My brother did not kill himself."The words echoed through the room.

Mom stared at me, breathing unevenly, as though she couldn't believe they'd come out of my mouth.

"Ari..." she whispered, her voice trembling.

"Please."

"No."

"I told you the police investigated the case."

"They investigated a body," I replied quietly.

"They didn't investigate Gerald."She blinked.

"There were witnesses."

"Witnesses can lie."

"The school submitted its report."

"A school will always protect its own reputation."

"It was ruled a suicide."

"Then they ruled it wrong."For a second, neither of us spoke.

The bedroom door suddenly swung open.

Dad stood in the doorway, his eyes moving from Mom's tear-streaked face to mine.

"What's going on?"Mom wiped her eyes with trembling fingers.

"She's saying Gerald didn't take his own life."Dad looked at me.

At first, confusion crossed his face. Then it slowly gave way to disappointment.

"Ariana."He let out a weary sigh.

"Not this again."I straightened my shoulders.

"I know what you're about to say."

"No," Dad said quietly.

"You don't."

"You think grief has made me delusional."

Neither of them answered.Their silence was answer enough.

Dad rubbed a tired hand across his face.

"We've all lost Gerald."I swallowed.

"No.....I lost half of myself."The words hit the room like shattered glass.

Dad looked away first.For a brief moment, I saw his jaw tighten before he forced himself to continue.

"We're hurting too."

"I know."

"No, Ariana."His voice broke.

"You don't."He closed his eyes for a moment before opening them again.

"I was the one who identified his body."Every breath caught in my throat.

Mom covered her mouth as fresh tears rolled down her cheeks.

"I had to walk into that room..." Dad whispered.

"...and see my son lying there."He paused, swallowing hard.

"I buried him."Guilt settled heavily inside my chest.

I knew they were grieving,I knew they missed him just as much as I did but grief couldn't erase the truth.

"I'm sorry," I whispered.Dad nodded weakly.

Silence settled between us again then I inhaled slowly.

"I'm going to Silver High."Both of them froze.

Dad frowned immediately.

"...What?"

"I'm going to Silver High."I repeated and Mom stared at me.

"Why would you want to go back to that place?"

"Because that's where Gerald died."

"Ariana..."

"I'm enrolling there."Dad shook his head immediately.

"Silver High doesn't admit girls."

"I know."

"Then how exactly do you expect to get inside?"I looked him straight in the eye.

"I'm going in as one of them."The room went deathly still.

Mom looked at me as though I'd lost my mind while Dad actually took a step backward.

"No."His answer came without hesitation.

"Absolutely not."

"You don't understand."

"I understand perfectly."His voice grew firmer.

"I already lost one child."His eyes glistened with unshed tears.

"Whatever happened at that school already took my son from me."He shook his head.

"I'm not letting it take my daughter too."

"It won't."

"You don't know that."

"I do."

"No, Ariana!" His voice thundered through the room.

"You have no idea what you're walking into."

"I know exactly what I'm walking into."

"You can't protect yourself inside a school full of boys!"

"I don't need protection."

"You do!"

"I need answers."

"I need the truth."

"There is no truth left to find!"

"Yes, there is." He said and rubbed his forehead with a slight groan.

He suddenly looked older than he had two weeks ago. Deep lines framed his face, and the weight on his shoulders seemed heavier than before.

"You sound just like Gerald."The words caught me off guard and I frowned.

"What?"

"He was stubborn too."Dad gave a sad smile.

"When he believed something... nothing could change his mind."For a brief second, none of us spoke.

Then I looked him in the eye.

"Maybe that's because he was right."Dad closed his eyes.

"I'm done having this conversation."He wrapped an arm around Mom's shoulders and guided her toward the door.

Before leaving, Mom turned back to me.Fear filled her eyes.

"Ariana..."Her voice was barely audible.

"Please don't do anything foolish."The door clicked shut and Silence returned.I clutched Gerald's shirt tighter against my chest then I stood up and slowly walked toward the mirror.

A girl with swollen eyes and waist-length dark hair stared back at me.She looked fragile and broken.

My gaze drifted to the desk beneath the window and I pulled open the top drawer.

A pair of silver scissors lay inside and I picked them up.For a long moment, I simply stared at my reflection.

Then I gathered a thick section of my hair in one hand.Tears blurred my vision.

"I'm doing this for you, Gerald."I tightened my grip around the scissors.

Snip.

The first lock of hair drifted silently onto the bedroom floor.

I watched it for a long moment then I lifted the scissors again.

By tomorrow morning......Ariana Hart would no longer exist.