Jessica was slammed against her locker. She slumped to the floor the air had been knocked out of her. The cause of the event were 2 girls and a boy ,bullies standing in front of her. “Oops” one of the girls said giggling. Jessica didn’t fear them though ,she couldn’t. Jess had Urbach Wiethe a genetic disorder that caused the victim to have no fear, none. She got up and grabbed her things she felt tears form in her eyes. She tried to blink them away but her attempts failed.
Tears streamed down her cheeks. She ran to the bathroom, cried her heart out and cursed those girls .Jess always thought she’d be popular since she couldn’t fear and was one of the best PE students she had been proven wrong day after day, year after year. Then she started needing aids to watch her in certain classes to insure she didn’t do anything to endanger her life and it got even worse when she started stuttering.
Jessica walked home alone her best and only friend had swimming practice today. Her dad called her. “H-hello?” She said. Her father answered. He reminded her of her defense and gymnastics later.”Ok. Bye” she said.
She had started taking self defence when multiple rapes happened in alleys in her town and surrounding areas. She’d taken Gymnastics as long as she could remember. She suddenly felt a push. Startled she fell forward. She heard running and giggling. Jess groaned.
Weeks Later….
Jess walking with her best friend Erric. They walked home by the forest a different path in an attempt to not run into the bullies Emma,Cory,and Brianna. A twig snapped. Jess and Erric turned around just for Erric to get knocked out by Cory. Jess stared in surprise.
Then Emma and Brianna pounced. They tackled Jess to the ground. The girls fought as Cory walked over to Erric and dragged him away into the forest. Jess screamed for help then blacked out. That was the last time Jess saw Erric.
Jess woke up in the hospital there were bandages on her arms and she felt some covering her mouth. She looked around and saw her parents and her older sister there watching her their brown hair messy, their eyes concerned and teary. Jess reached for her bandages but her wrist was grabbed by a hand. She turned toward its owner. “Hello Jess I am Dr.Martin a physiatrist.You have some cuts on your mouth and arms. Can you explain to me how they got there?” He asked.
“Some girls named Emma and Brianna did it th-they got Erric too” Jess said. Jess’ mother called her school. After she finished her phone call Jess’ mother turned toward her daughter. “Honey there isn’t anyone named Emma or Brianna at your school” she said. Jess sat in disbelief.
“That’s not possible!” Jess said.
Her father took her home and locked her in the attic. They said it was “for safety reasons”. Jess had tried and tried to tell them she wasn’t lying but it was no use. She cried until at one point she fell asleep. She suddenly woke to a ringing noise. Jess walked to the door and to her suprise it was open.
She walked downstairs and passed her parent’s room the clock read 11:59.The ringing was much louder now and there was a fizzing to it. She walked to the garage and got her bike. She rode it down the street. All the while the noise grew louder.
There weren’t any cars on the road ,so she got there faster. She stopped at the woods. She walked through it toward the noise. It was so loud now that she covered her ears. She heard a crack.She uncovered her ears and spun around the only thing she saw before she passed out was a tall looming figure.
She woke up in her bed that morning she dissmissed last nights encounter as bad dreams caused by her pain killers for her slit mouth ,well it was really only slit on the right side of her mouth. She walked downstairs her sister and father sat in the living room sobbing. Her sister turned around. “Mom’s dead” she chocked out “,Someone ran her over on her way to work”. Jess sank to the floor.
A day later…
Jess reached for a knife to butter her toast her hand was slapped. “Don’t you DARE touch that! You might cut yourself again!” Her father yelled. Jess could tell he was drunk he would never hit her. “I’ve told you before I-I, it wasn’t me!” Jess said quietly. She was responded with a slap to the face. Jess felt a burning feeling in her chest ,but she pushed it away.
Weeks went by Jess started …changing.Her brown skin was becoming a grayish color. She started loosing memory: dates,people,even her closest memories. She’d do and say things unrelated to the topic at hand and she’d talk to people that weren’t there.Finally her brother convinced his father to take Jess to the physiatrist.
Jess sat on the bed that was in the physiatrists’ room alone her brother waited outside. Jess mumbled about people named Kate and Charlie. Dr.Martin walked in “Hello Jessica” He said. Jess waved. “I’m going to ask you some questions. What is your name?” He asked.
“Jessica Paige Rodriguez”
“How old are you?”
“Sixteen”
“What grade are you in?”
“10th”
“Who are Charlie and Kate,”
“No” Jess whispered. Her voice rose until she was screaming. “NO NO NO NOOOOO!”
Dr.Martin wrote something down.
“Why did you keep your bandages on?” He asked pointing at the marks on her arms. Jess shrugged. Dr.Martin took the brown old bandages off.
“The hell-” he muttered. The cuts on Jess were really words Crybaby and Crying Jess. Dr.Martin turned around to see Jess staring out the window mumbling. “Jess-” Dr.Martin began “Who are Kate,and Charlie?” He tried one last time. Jess looked at him with a hard dead stare. She pushed past him.
Dr.Martin gave Jess’ sister a prescription for Jess ,then they waited for the medicine to come in. When her medicine came in her father refused to take her. So her sister took her. The pharmacist saw Jess walk in and disapeared. Another pharmacist took his place.
He was light completed and his big smile gave anyone looking at a bad vibe. He gave Jess the canister with her medicine and usheredher over to the counter. “Don’t worry Jessica this will make it better. Maybe he’ll go easier on you now.” He whispered in her ear. She walked away, smiling. The next day Jess was locked in the attic by her father. Jess was banging on the door.
It was October in Texas where she lived. It was still hot. Jess was in need of water. Thats when the ringing started. It was coming from a nearby window. She backed away from the window.
She leaned against the door. Then suddenly it opened. She tumbled down the steps. “What the hell are you doing?!” Her father yelled. Jess was getting up when her father kicked her in the ribs. Jess coughed.
Her father was about kick her again,but Jess had stood up and had a knife in her hand. “Hurry up Kate.” Jess whispered. She looked around. “No time.” Jess continued. She ran towards her father who pushed her back into the counter. He snatched the knife away and tried to stab Jess.
She was quicker. The knife plunged into the counter instead. Jess had ran into the garage and grabbed a hatchet. While her father was distracted looking for her, Jess threw the hatchet at him. He fell to the ground with a loud yell as the hatchet made contact with his back.
Jess smirked. She walked over and sat next to him. A tear fell down his cheek. “Shhh don’t cry.” She whispered in his ear. She picked up the knife and slammed it into his chest multiple times. Jess started to laugh.
She went to her moms workshop. Her Halloween costume lay unfinished on the desk. The mask was white with a black grin and black sockets where the eyes would be. Jess felt it was the perfect disguise she just added some black tear streaks connecting the eyes with the mouth with some black paint she found. She put it on.
She thought it matched her blood stained pants,navy shirt,and gray jacket perfectly. The door opened and her sister walked in. Jess heard her bags drop. “JESS! JESS, WHERE ARE YOU?!” Her sister screamed. Jess heard the ringing begin and she knew she had to leave, and fast before she was found out.
She leaped out the window and into the garage ,she grabbed a bag, and put the knife and hatchet inside,got onto her bike, and rode down the empty night road to the forest and never came back. To this day her sister still searches for her.
