A Tail’s Misfortune

Sora rubbed her left shoulder as she stood in front of Miami Beach Senior High’s psychologist’s office; Ms. Patterson wasn’t there at the moment, and there was a reason for it.

Doctor Mary Jernigan—a highly regarded psychiatrist that specialized in teenage development—was currently borrowing the office to meet with her during school days since the time suited Mary’s schedule. She was the fourth one that her father had hired to help her work through her ‘troubles.’

Taking a deep breath, Sora’s hand hovered over the blocked window, showing a chart with a happy face at the top and a frowny face at the bottom. When can I finally be through with all these people… No one helps me anyway.

She glanced up and down the hall where a few seniors seemed to have snuck out a few minutes early since the end-of-school bell was about to ring. If only I could get out early to see her at ‘her’ office rather than here… At least then she’d be doing something for me.

Sora knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

Entering the cozy office, Sora dully scanned the far-brighter-than-needed atmosphere; it reminded her of how she hated the school psychologist always waving at her in the hallways as if she didn’t know what was happening. At least she didn’t have to deal with her BS.

A couch and cushioned chairs were put in a circle to ‘share emotions’ with filing cabinets and a computer desk strategically placed. Different tests and games meant to gauge aptitude were sorted by age group on shelves, and the ordinary school carpet was covered by many colorful rugs. Odd abstract paintings adorned the walls—things her father might like—attempted to make the room even more vibrant.

Sora slid off her backpack to drop it beside the couch, falling into the well-conditioned leather in silence. Mary gave her a small smile before it fell a tad as she scanned a thick clipboard filled with papers.

She’s going to make me start!

“Gah… always the same… There, I started. Happy?” Her psychiatrists were some of the few people she could actually be openly hostile with and not face many consequences.

Mary puffed out a small stream of air before swapping her legs in the opposite direction and setting the documents to the side. “Good afternoon, Sora.”

“Mmmgh…”

Trying not to look at the smiling woman, Sora crossed her arms. It was challenging not to with how the chairs were set up as Mary sat facing the couch on one of the cushioned seats.

In her mid-thirties, she was a thin lady with a kind face, standing a little taller than Sora with curly brown hair. Her speckled navy-blue dress shifted with her legs, drawing attention to her similarly colored six-centimeter cutout heels.

“Did you have a good day?”

Hidden left index finger tapping against her side, Sora’s green eyes slid to her knee-length black skirt, trying not to let her temper get the better of her. “What does it matter… Can we just skip past all this nonsense about you actually caring?”

Pushing herself straighter, Sora refused to make eye contact. “Humph. Nothing’s going to change. You’re just like Dr. Mason, Dr. Jones, and Dr. Hallmark, after all. You’re going to pretend to be sad for me and then stab me in the back. You’ll make my dad believe I’m an attention whore, and keep me in this hell hole.”

She bit her lower lip, stomach twisting as the silence stretched after her outburst.

Several seconds passed before Sora caught Mary moving her clipboard off of her lap to the desk beside her. Sighing deeply, the psychiatrist started, “Haaa… It’s been four weeks since I took over for Dr. Hallmark, and I’ve had a chance to go over many of the records they’ve kept, which I will say has been… concerning, to say the least.”

Sora forced a toothy smile, trying to release some of the tension in her breast. “Great! So, we can move past all the monotonous crap so I can go home and cry into my pillow?”

Mary folded her fingers together in her lap, a frown on her lips as she studied her in that perplexing way that didn’t let on what she was thinking. “Mmh… Would you mind if I started this time, instead of me allowing you to repeat everything and further agitating you?”

“Huh? Heh. You want to tell me how I should be feeling? Wow, we skipped a ton of sessions!”

“Let’s see… You’ll be turning sixteen soon, right?”

“Ten days… Why—want an invitation?” she mocked, rolling her eyes.

“I don’t expect anything from you, Sora… Your father hired me after Dr. Hallmark left the state following his… accident, and I was recommended to him.”

“Yeah, do you see the pattern?” Sora growled, arms tightening against her stomach. “I get a psychiatrist and they end up booking it to a new state and get hurt—a new country for Dr. Jones—heh, I’m the cursed, attention-seeking client that ruins practices.”

Mary’s fingers unwound to pick up her clipboard again. “I don’t think you’re attention-seeking or cursed, Sora… Despite what I’ve read so far from Hallmark, Jones, and Mason… I think you have been severely overdiagnosed, so I’m taking you off all of your meds.”

Mind coming to a screeching halt, Sora’s eyebrows came together as she studied the unhappy psychiatrist. “Excuse me… I don’t need to have Howie or Ron watch me take my meds anymore?”

“No,” she promptly replied, flipping through a few pages of the thick stack of papers she was browsing, “and I notified all the concerned parties before our meeting.”

“That’s… You’re lying,” Sora snapped, unable to believe the abrupt change.

“You will be able to confirm it when we are finished, and to be clear, we shouldn’t take you completely off your anti-psychosis medication all at once, and we don’t want to upset the balance on the others too quickly, but we can slowly start cutting it down…”

“I knew it!”

“You can confirm what I’m saying with Ron and Howie, if you want. I totally understand if you have trouble believing me after everything I’ve read. To be honest, after speaking to Ron and Howie, I have confirmed you have experienced adverse effects congruent with a severe misdiagnosis that is… most troubling,” she mumbled, flipping to a new page.

“I’ve gone over your school history, the tests administered by your previous psychiatrists, their notes, interviewed hotel staff, your previous caretaker, and many statements you’ve made—”

“Not all of those are mine; some are lies! I’m not making it up!”

“I believe you.”

A shiver ran down Sora’s spine at the declaration. “I’ve… heard that before. You’re just trying to trick me. T-To keep me calm.”

“Hmm… One recurring theme I’ve seen in these files is a lack of foundation at the start for many of the medications they’ve put you on… Some I’m appalled at, and find the evidence given for their diagnosis quite lacking in regards to any of the DSM standards, which is… troubling considering the reputation and standing I’ve heard of my esteemed colleagues.”

She put a finger on one of the pages. “There is quite a bit of characterization regarding the girl named Kari, and an… unusual amount of coverage and emphasis on her innocence to the accusations you’ve levied against her.”

“She’s the worst! I swear, she has mind control powers!” Sora hissed, leaning forward in frustration to dig her nails into her thighs. “You say all this, but give it a few weeks, and you’ll be calling her an angel like everyone else, but all she does is bully me! And no one believes me!”

Tears forming in her eyes, Sora coughed. “I just want to go to a new school… I want to leave! Why do you doctors always convince my dad I need to stay here? That I’m lying and want attention?!”

A small puff of air came from Mary. “It’s not a hard case to make… If I’m being honest, Sora, your father is away on business as a highly regarded financial consultant for Fortune 500 companies and is often away for months at a time between jobs. You refused any more caretakers after your previous one quit…”

“Nobody but Ron and Howie even try to understand, they’re all so patronizing and bossy! I’m just this spoiled rich girl that doesn’t deserve anything. No, I have to give people money or expensive stuff, and if I don’t, they’ll rip my clothes or put gum in my hair! What am I supposed to do?!”

Mary slowly nodded. “I’m not saying they were right, Sora. What I’m saying is that it isn’t a hard case for someone to make. Your friend Wendy cut ties with you—”

“Kari! It was all Kari’s bullying! Wendy didn’t want to get involved with her—I don’t blame her. It’s, no, everything is Kari’s fault!”

“Mhm… Everything goes back to Kari… Three years ago, when she moved to Miami from Russia, is that right?”

“She’s a monster! A succubus or something! I know I sound crazy—but I’m not! She has p-powers over people or something! Everyone’s scared to talk about her. So… So, I had to go to someone who will help me!”

Mary’s lips pulled in, vision lifting to study her. “What… did you do, Sora?”

“I—did something yesterday that I probably shouldn’t have, but… I don’t have any other choice… Dr. Hallmark didn’t do anything about the video I gave him!”

“What video?”

“See! Everyone covers up for Kari…” Sora took a deep breath. “So… So, before Summer Break, when Kari shaved off all my hair… You’ve seen how fast it grows in the pictures, right?”

“I… haven’t, no… There is a mention of you claiming she cut off your hair, but Dr. Hallmark stated you eventually admitted it was your own doing.”

“Damn him!” Sora cried. “No—it’s not… I know it looks fine now, but this is how fast it grows! Three months, and it’s already halfway down my back…” she trailed off, sniffling a bit after hearing Dr. Hallmark’s lie.

“You do have pretty hair,” Mary commented, “ thick, shiny copper; it’s your most striking feature, given your unique Japanese and Irish genes… but what does that have to do with someone that will listen to you?”

Sora’s nose twisted as she pulled around a few of her silky locks. “I hate it, but I can’t get rid of it! All the girls bully me about it—call it a weed that won’t die…”

Mary cleared her throat. “That’s… horrible. Many girls would be jealous—especially if it grows as fast as you say,” she agreed, eyebrows coming together with concern as she continued.

“I-I didn’t want the bullying to continue, but I was scared. The last three years were just… Last year I set up a camera in the locker room where some of the girls normally bullied me, and—and I recorded her and her group shaving me… while saying all the nasty things she usually says, like how I stink all the time,” she mumbled.

Mary rubbed her hands, uncomfortable vision shifting to the wall as her features turned more serious. “That’s… What did you do with it if Dr. Hallmark didn’t help you?”

Biting her lip, Sora shifted on her seat. She hadn’t had a psychiatrist take this tone with her before, and it made her even more nervous. “I-I, umm… I sent it to the police station yesterday.”

Mary’s left hand closed around her mouth as she looked down at the floor; she seemed to need a moment to contemplate a response, making Sora’s feet knot together.

A small lump moved down the woman’s throat before her fingers locked together, and she took a deep breath before saying, “Sora… You know this isn’t—”

She cut off as the bell rang throughout the school, causing Mary to go silent, deep in thought. “Hmm… Since I’ve gotten your file, I’ve been trying to piece together the inconsistencies and faults in your files, and…”

Mary closed her eyes and leaned back, hands tightening against her abdomen. “I’ve learned that Kari is connected to some very… very dangerous people, Sora. I don’t know who they are, but you know Kari better than most, and I don’t know their intentions yet, but you’ve told me about the teachers and students that suddenly change their opinions of her overnight. Right?”

“Yeah! So, I’m right? You don’t think I’m making this up?” Sora asked, hope sparking in her heart. “She has some kind of power over people!”

“Hmm… I don’t know about powers, Sora,” Mary muttered, rubbing her left arm and looking to the door, “but she certainly is connected to people in powerful positions that don’t like people snooping around.

“You’ve also expressed your suspicions that your previous psychiatrist, Dr. Hallmark’s, hospitalization was, umm, due to Kari’s involvement, and… I wouldn’t say it is her, but possibly someone connected to her. It’s… a courageous thing you did, but… No. Hmm, let’s be hopeful,” she smiled. “Have you received any calls from the department?”

Sora held her breath as she nervously shook her head. Anger, frustration, and anxiety boiled to the surface, and she couldn’t hold back any longer.

“The students know Kari’s a bully… teachers know… you know… everyone seems to know. Yet—yet everyone made my dad think I’m crazy! Makes me stay for some exposure therapy crap!

“They told him I’m seeking attention because he’s always gone on business. For three years—three years, she’s bullied me! Bullied everyone! Yet no one stops her. No one will help me, so I had to go to the police!”

Mary nodded and set her clipboard to the side the moment she took a breath. “I’m not saying it didn’t happen, Sora. I’ve been…”

She trailed off as her phone vibrated on the desk beside her. It caught Sora’s attention because typically she had it on silent—the conversation had come up in the past.

Glancing at it, Mary’s lips tightened. “Sora… I have to take this, but—mmgm… Why don’t we continue our discussions away from the school next time? I’ll write the principal a note excusing you from class.”

“Really?” Sora’s heart sang for the first time in what seemed forever. Anything to get away from Kari was a light at the end of the tunnel. Maybe, just maybe, this doctor would be different. “You won’t go back on it?”

“No…”

Sora hesitated at Mary’s tone while she read whatever text she’d received. It seemed to bother her, so it had to be important, which concerned Sora. “Is… everything okay, Dr. Jernigan?”

“Mmm-hmm? Oh, yes, well… No, it appears to be something involving my husband, but we needn’t talk about personal matters,” she smiled, and even if it didn’t look fake, Sora believed it must be.

“Okay… My pills?”

“I left instructions with the hotel staff assigned to you, and… I left some notes with your father.” She swiftly replied back to the text as she got to her feet, Sora following. “I’ll message you later today about rescheduling, and naturally, heh, I won’t be charging your father for this since we didn’t even get ten minutes in! Sorry, Sora.”

“No! I’ve…” Sora’s voice caught, feeling a bit of heat rise to her face. “I’ve just… You really believe me?”

Mary puffed out a short breath, her smile softening. “Yes, Sora. I’m not trying to placate you; it wouldn’t help you in the least. We’ll talk in-depth about this when we meet next but in the meantime… As I’ve told you…”

“I know. I know. Heh, don’t cause trouble, right?”

Mary would have hugged her, Sora assumed, but after the number of psychiatrists and therapists she’d had, she knew they needed to keep boundaries. Still, Mary was becoming one of her favorites, just by this short conversation. If she was being genuine, that was.

Moving to the door, she opened it to head into the hallway, where the wave of students flooded the walkway, preparing to head home. Just before the door closed, though, she saw Mary get a phone call, and the paranoia started to set in.

Mary said Kari was connected to influential people… But Dad has a lot of friends in powerful positions, too. If she can get him to believe me, then maybe… No, if she can help him see I’m not crazy, then I could just be homeschooled… Maybe Wendy would actually be friends with me again.

Lost in thought as she walked to the front entrance, she almost tripped when someone called out her name. “Sora! Hmm-hmm. Done so soon?”

Sucking in her bottom lip, Sora looked to her right to find Jenny leaning against the wall. Despite her popularity, most of the teenagers gave her nervous waves or cheerful, quick greetings, obviously threatened by the girl.

Having incredibly thick, long, brown hair, Jenny usually tied it back into a ponytail since she was the school’s second-best athlete behind Kari. The tall girl was the Queen Bee’s right-hand gal. If there was someone that had nearly as much influence as Kari—or made her life as much of a hell—it was a close toss-up between Jenny and Lori.

“Jenny… Umm, yeah… what’s up?”

Pushing away from the wall, Sora was forced to look up at the giant girl—185 cm tall—as she casually strode up to her. The brunette was intimidating, for sure, at only slightly shorter than Kari, and as could be expected, she was wearing her gym clothes.

“Yo, Kari wanted to see you.”

Expecting as much, Sora tried to release the tension that tightened her chest, which felt impossible. Also, she knew if she resisted too much, it would only be worse tomorrow. Now was the game of mitigation. “Haaa… right now? I-Isn’t it almost volleyball practice?”

Jenny just snickered and slung her arm around her shoulder in a friendly way, guiding her toward the gym. “Teach is a bit busy, so we should have enough time for a short chat with the girls!”

“Perfect…”

Hoping she didn’t plan on anything too extreme today, Sora breathed to ease her knotted stomach; it might just be money, but she didn’t bring her purse, and generally, that was more Lori’s department as the 3rd in command.

The crowd parted for Jenny, more awkward waves and chuckles as they passed, knowing precisely what was up if Sora was with any of Kari’s little pack of ravenous wolves.

Sora glanced up at the lanky girl—she was shockingly strong for her thin arms and legs. It was rare for her to come and fetch her herself, and that made Sora believe Kari demanded it. No one bossed Jenny around but the Alpha Bully.

“Umm… What’s Kari w-want?”

“Stuttering again, huh; meds not working?” she joked, giving her a small smirk.

Bitch… Mary basically confirmed they’re probably causing all of the problems!

“Eh-heh… I, umm, I-I guess not.”

They stopped outside of the gym, a small, unreadable smirk on the bully’s face as she smacked Sora’s butt to move forward, making her yelp.

“Ack! Jenny…”

“Don’t keep the boss lady waitin’, flat-ass. I’d love to see you meet up with your ol’ pal again, but I got somewhere to be.”

The bully probably did it on purpose because she was wearing a skirt. A few boys’ eyes darted their way, making Sora blush while trying to restrain herself from rubbing the tingling area.

Hesitantly moving through the closed double doors to escape a second threatening slap, Sora hissed out a long stream of air as they closed behind her. Tingles ran along Sora’s spine when a girl on the opposite side locked it with a key only the janitors were supposed to have.

As she feared, the only janitor she knew was standing a short distance away— Wendy—her old best friend who worked part-time for the school.

She grabbed the straps of her backpack to stop her hands from shaking as she saw Wendy’s muddy, brown eyes centered on the floor, her left hand rubbing her elbow and refusing to look at her. Kari… Why did you force Wendy to be here?

Looking between the scattered teenagers setting up volleyball nets for the girl’s volleyball team to see if there were anyone besides Kari’s gang, she couldn’t spot one that wasn’t connected to the girl. She realized she wouldn’t have the cushion of strangers with the door locked, as well.

Kayla stepped around her after locking the door, a big grin on her goofy face as she motioned her thumb to the locker room. “Kari’s waiting! Oi, thanks for the key, Wendy! Hah, c’mon, Sora, let’s go!”

Sora walked silently past the athletes, and she saw Wendy join them out of the corner of her eye; neither of them managed to look at each other.

“Gloomy much?” Kayla giggled, slapping Sora on the back. It seemed the other girls were more comfortable getting physical lately. “C’mon, lighten up!”

“Ugh…” Sora let out a weak laugh. “What’s this about, Kayla?”

“Hmm? Wi-dunno,” she shrugged with a cackle. “I was told to lock the door and bring ya in; I’m the fisher today!”

“A fisher, huh… funny.”

Glancing at Wendy, she saw she was wearing a pair of ripped jeans they’d gotten together three years ago, around the time Kari showed up in their middle school. They looked a little small on her, but she was also a lot skinnier since the last time they’d spoken. Sora cursed at Kari, Wendy’s terrible drunk mother, and her fate; life had only gotten worse by the year.

Nerves mounting as they entered the girls’ locker room, Sora’s fear settled in when she finally saw the pack leader herself.

“Brought her, Boss!”

Kari sat on a bench between them, amber eyes somehow shimmering with her neutral expression as she appraised Sora. “Hmm…”

Wearing all-black sportswear, a fitted polyester t-shirt, shorts, and training shoes, Kari was ready for her rigorous sports routine. A gym freak, she played and excelled in everything. Being 190 cm tall, and as toned as a Sports Magazine model, she had everyone wrapped around her pinky finger.

Kari wasn’t smiling like the other six girls standing around her, causing a nervous silence to ensue as they waited for her to speak. Lori sat next to her, using one of the brushes she’d stolen from her a few months back to straighten her long brown locks, not looking particularly interested in the gathering.

After the awkward pause, Kari scratched the back of her head, shoulder-length, black hair shifting, and she seemed a lot more agitated than normal.

“I didn’t see you at lunch, Sora… I was hoping to catch you before the school day ended, but I got a call that pissed me off. So, I had to cool down a bit.”

Sora held her breath, clearing her throat, and crossed her arms under her bust as the girl’s assaulting eyes berated her. All the girls stood stock still as Kari continued, nose twitching, and Lori even stopped brushing her hair.

“I like to think of myself as a patient and understanding person… I’ve learned a lot since moving here. But some things really… set me off.”

Fingernails digging into her side, Sora saw a concerned look across Wendy’s face, still refusing to meet anyone’s gaze. Wanting to pull Kari’s attention away from her, Sora cleared her throat—probably not a good idea, but she never liked putting Wendy in Kari’s crosshairs.

“Umm—ahem—d-did I, umm… What d-did I do this time?”

She flinched as Kari stretched, cracking her neck, seemingly attempting to work off some tension before dropping back to the bench with a low grunt. Sora could have heard a pin drop in the still atmosphere. She hadn’t seen Kari this upset in a long time.

“Show her.”

Lori clicked her tongue, a grimace crossing her face as she set the brush down to take out her phone from her back pocket. “Dammit, Sora… You’re always so stupid. Kari may just kill you if you do shit like this.”

She made a short guttural grunt before opening a video and holding it up for Wendy and her to see. Sora’s face drained of color; it was the video she’d sent to the police department.

“I-I d-don’t—”

Sora’s stammers cut off as Kari loosely held up her hand, closing her eyes and taking a long, deliberate breath.

“I get it… I do.”

“W-What?”

Sora took a step back, but two of Kari’s girls blocked the exit. It didn’t make sense. How did she get a video she sent to the police? She couldn’t think properly as Kari continued talking.

“Being the… little vixen you are, you thought you could upset the balance of my school by sending this to the police. Surely, if anyone could help your place in life, it would be the good defenders of the people. Right?”

Sora couldn’t speak—she didn’t know what else she could do or say—Kari’s underlying livid tone and tense stretches said it all: she was dead meat. All she could do now was wait for whatever punishment Kari had in-store. It wasn’t like screaming or yelling would get her anywhere while trapped inside the locker room, and Kari knew it.

Kari mournfully shook her head, eyes opening to stare at Sora. “I let you live here, Sora. I let you stay, despite everything everyone told me, but you’ve forgotten the cardinal rule…

“Life is simple, Sora,” she snapped, flexing her fingers, “you have power, or you don’t… you don’t, Sora. You don’t have a backbone—at all—so you didn’t confront me, and instead… you did this…

“Well, at least you did surprise me a little,” she grunted, hands resting on the bench as she leaned back to stare at the ceiling. “Hmm… What to do with you now?”

“You could always kill her! Heh, like she did her mom!” Lori chimed, making Sora’s skin crawl and several of the girls shift nervously. “I mean, how many chances have you already given the girl?”

Dammit! It’s not like I meant to kill my mom in childbirth, you son of a…

Kari clicked her tongue a few times, leaning forward to give the smirking, brown-haired girl a side-long look. “Lori… What did you tell me when I first came to Miami?”

“Humph,” she grunted, looking to the left with a slight pout. “It was different back then; gah, she’s just… such an eye-sore.”

Seeing the casual girl return to playing with her phone, Sora wouldn’t put it past the insane bully to actually stab someone, and the others could see it too by their shifting eyes.

Wendy forced a chuckle, drawing everyone’s focus to her. “U-Umm… Can I go now, Kari?”

Just as everything went quiet, a twinkle appeared in Lori’s brown eyes, her vision shifting between them. “Oh! I know what our little fox’s punishment should be, Kari!”

Sora felt like she’d been punched in the gut. Out of everyone, Lori was the worst—even worse than Kari in some respects. She’d been the one to suggest butchering her hair, to begin with.

“S-Should I buy everyone c-clothes?” Sora stammered, trying to get ahead of it.

“How kind of you!” Lori cooed, getting up to move behind the nearby lockers to pull out Wendy’s janitor trashcan with its supplies in pouches on the side. “We can do that on Saturday with your new fashion statement!”

A lump formed in Sora’s throat as she extracted a pair of scissors. “Again…”

Kari rolled her eyes. “Lori, I’m not feeling like…”

“Just give me a chance,” Lori defended, flexing the blades with a bright grin, and Sora wondered if she’d jump forward to stab her as her eyes twinkled. “I know it needs to be worse than before—she won’t get the lesson otherwise—so…”

“Worse?” Sora choked, reaching up to grip her copper locks.

“Our little fox’s hair grows too fast anyway, so, hmm-hmm… why not do the hair and clothes this time.”

“H-Huh?” Sora squeaked, eyes going wide. “Y-You can’t… if I go b-back…”

“We’ll give you a towel!” Lori scoffed, wearing a big grin; as if that was the issue. “We gotta make it stick, and what better way to do that than showing everyone juuust how crazy you are!”

She’s the devil… You’re the crazy one, Sora internally shouted, knowing pushing Lori would only dig her a deeper hole through experience.

“Please, don’t do this to me, Kari…” Sora cried, attempting to supersede Lori’s insanity as her face turned red and her nose burned. “I can’t g-go out n-naked!”

“Towel!” Lori sang in response, pulling out the white article from her locker that would just barely cover her top and bottom. If it was windy or she stumbled, the embarrassment would kill her for life, and she knew there would be girls following to take pictures.

Wendy’s hands tightened at her front, nervous gaze darting to her.

Sora’s thoughts went wild. No! Don’t do it, Wendy! They might make you join me!

“Isn’t… that a bit much?”

“Hmm?” Lori’s smile faded, pointed eyes drifting to her. “Did you say something, garbage collector?”

“…” Wendy’s eyes shot to the floor, fingernails digging into her stomach, unable to respond.

“That’s what I thought… Well, Kari? You saw how she reacted. Is that a worthy punishment for that phone call you got?”

If that’s all… No, if Mary called Ron and Howie then this could further prove my point! It’s just… but… I don’t know if I can go through with it!

Realizing she was quaking, her focus darted to Kari as the Alpha Bully dumped cold water on her head.

“Mmgh… No.”

“No?” Lori blinked. “I was sure you’d be willing to do that… What’s on your mind?”

Kari rolled around her head and streamed out a hot puff of air that Sora believed she could feel on the back of her neck. “I’m sick of this game, Lori… You and Jenny keep convincing me to let her stay, but I’m not having fun.”

What… Lori and Jenny convince her to let me stay? Kick me out! Sora wanted to scream. Let me leave!

Lori’s fingers curled into a fist at her side, vision wandering back to the bent-over black-haired girl. “What… heh, are you saying, Kari?”

Sora’s whole body went numb as Kari spoke.

“It’s a little harsher than what I was thinking, Lori, but… we’ll go with your suggestion this one last time.”

“Last?” Lori whispered. The hums and mumbled words of the surrounding girls died at the statement.

Kari’s bright amber gaze iced. “I’m finished with this game. After today, I want you to leave, Sora… for good.”

Lori choked. “W-Wait, what? But think of—”

She cut off as Kari’s stern glare slid to her, making all the girls shiver at Kari’s intensity—she was serious. It was a look that said, challenge me one more time, and see what happens.

Kari’s focus slowly returned to Sora. “I’ll give you a week to set everything up—homeschool, transfer schools, leave the state, I don’t care. I want your foul stench of an existence out of Miami Beach Senior High by the end of the week. Period.”

She stood, her penetrating, frigid stare making Sora quake with fear as an aura of imminent danger cascaded like ice through her bones; the girl looked four meters tall, towering over her. “If you stay…”

Kari trailed off with a murderous look of contempt before leaving the locker room, carrying the crushing atmosphere with her. “And don’t make a scene, Sora; I’m pissed as it is.”

Sora finally managed to choke for air with every other girl present, including Lori, at a loss for time for several seconds.

“Shit…” Lori cleared her throat before walking around the girls to face her, one hand on her hip and looking more agitated than Sora had ever seen the psychopath. “Humph… Guess Kari couldn’t help herself… you, eh, really did piss her off. Mmgm… Honestly, I’m shocked she was that civil. Hehe… dammit.”

She took a deep breath, her bright smile returned as she held out the scissors to Wendy. “You do the honors!”

“I-I’ll do it—” Sora instantly replied, reaching for the scissors, but Lori tilted them at the last second, poking her palm and making her wince.

“Uh-uh-uh!” Lori growled. “Wendy does it, or she joins you!”

A lump dropped down her old best friend’s throat as they gave each other frightened stares; Sora never wanted to put Wendy in this position.

“It’s f-fine, Wendy,” Sora coughed, trying to force a smile. It may not seem like it to those watching, but this was the happiest day of her life. “I—umm… It’s fine…”

“But Sora…”

“Just do it already!” she snapped, making Wendy jump and clutch her breast, causing Lori to smirk.

“Yeah, Wendy; just do it already,” she mirrored, dangling the scissors in front of her.

Shakily taking them, Wendy’s shame-filled eyes fell to Sora’s flats and stockings, but Sora gave her a look that said it was okay. She’d gladly have this temporary embarrassment—even if it was extreme—if it meant she could finally be free of Kari, Jenny, and, most of all, Lori.

Wendy tentatively reached up and took a clump of Sora’s hair, slid the blade between the locks, and cut, a tear running down her cheek as Lori snickered.

“Oh, I love watching old friends meet up again! Wendy was your first friend, right, Sora? Grade school, as I remember. Humph. I remembered hearing a rather funny joke she told you at lunch one time… I hated those days.”

Sora only partially heard her as happy tears flowed down her cheeks. The image made Lori’s eyes light up with delight.

“Make sure it’s sloppy and looks bad, Wendy! Don’t be so even with it—there we go—and don’t forget the underwear! Ooh, pink today, Sora?” Lori smirked as if asking who she was possibly trying to impress.

The only thing going through Sora’s mind was, ’I’m free.’