Descent pt-2 - by Talib Anibaba

*I was unable to make a new cover so I'll be using the original one* I was pulled back by my arm and then seemed to hit a hard surface. With a sharp pain, everywhere went black and I slipped unconscious.“What was that just now? Am I dead?” I asked myself.No, I was definitely pulled back, but by who?Who would care enough?Or at all?When I slowly gained consciousness, opening my eyes to see who seemingly had pulled me back, I had first thought it was Brandon, my ex who had been leading me on for months. But when my vision cleared up, I was met with a stranger’s familiar face.As I stared into his face, a feeling of recognition filled my body, yet also a sense of unfamiliarity. This was most definitely our first time meeting one another, but I realized he had always been in the background since even elementary school.This was Brandon’s brother.Jason.…I always tried my best to not stare and just watch from a distance, tho I wanted to talk to her.She always seemed so down ever since we were in the 4th grade.And I tried to talk to her, trying to find out what was wrong, but she always seemed to be so out of reach.Always minding her own business.And never lacking behind.She kept getting bullied, but I never had the courage to stand up to them.Then one day,“Hey, I see the way you always stare at that Rachael girl. Do you have a crush on her or something?” Brandon snickered at me.“What?…….. I don’t know. I’ve been trying to talk to her, but ….” I stared down at the floor, making Brandon laugh.“You seriously have no balls, Jason. You can’t fight for something you want, never have been able to since we were little kids,” Brandon said, his words cutting like a knife. “I’ll show you how easy it is, watch.”And proceeded to go help Rachael out.After that, they seemed to get close, tho I already saw a disastrous outcome, considering he already had a girlfriend.I was jealous of how easy my brother made something I couldn't do for years. Yet I was still proving his point by not warning her about Brandon.I watched the events that happened at prom play out and saw Rachael run out, and finally decided to grow a pair and chase after her, knowing exactly where she was going, as it was somewhere I used to go for fresh air as well.…“Rachael, shit, are you ok?” Jason exclaimed with a genuinely worried look in his eyes, and I don’t know, the moment I saw how worried he looked, I broke down into tears, which was surprising considering it was the first time I’ve cried in a while.It was hitting me like a truck, and all it took was a genuine look of concern.“I’m not ok.” I cleaned my face. “I hate my life. No one’s truly given a shit about me, and I’m so tired of being used and or ignored…. I…….. I just.”Just then, Jason hugged me, which made me cry even harder.“Rachael, I’m so sorry. I could’ve said something, done something since elementary school, but I didn’t,” Jason said, with a tremble in the way he talked.“I should’ve stopped my brother from doing that to you.”Jason eased up, putting his hands on my shoulders and making me see the visible tears running down his eyes.“I am so sorry. I was too much of a coward. I should’ve tried enough to reach out, help, or warn you.”And after that night, a lot of things changed.First, school.Things were heated at first. I got a lot of attention from the scene I made at prom. Most of the attention I got was negative — looks, whispers, and laughter when I walked by — but some ended up positive.I made new friends, and people seemed to bully me less. Not to mention Brandon got branded as a playboy and was dumped by his girlfriend. Serves him right.Everything went back to the way it was.Well, not everything.Next, I was finally able to stand up against my mom and was put into my dad’s custody, who had seemingly become better than how he was when he was with my mom.He’s calmer now and more caring, tho my brother still decided to stay with my mom, considering she couldn’t lay a single hand on her baby boy.Everything has been so much, but I have been able to get through every bit of it because of Jason.We’ve become so close over the past month and have lifted each other through the tides. He’s become someone I can rely on and trust. It goes both ways.I really am happy he pulled me back that night, unless we were able to stop each other’sDescents.

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