Feather After // Chapter 46 // Punches

Aria's POV 

It was a thundershock to me, I don't know how I managed to sustain it but yeah it was one hell of a shock. I don't remember what happened next. Everything else was a blur. I remember getting up from there and then Ignatius following me. I remember Zachariah, his mom and my mother run after me. It would have been better if they told me that they were not rich anymore. It would have been much better.

"I'm so sorry-" my mother mumbled and I turned to look at her. I had so much to say, so much to tell her. I wanted to shout at her and tell her that she was not a very nice person for doing what she did to me. I wanted to ask her how she would have felt when her mother would have put her through the same thing she was putting me through. I wish I could say something but only sobs left my mouth.

I opened my mouth to say something, anything but nothing happened, all I did was look at her. She was a beautiful woman, she had everything that woman her age would want; the perfect body, a good husband, money, cars, fame. But I sometimes really wondered what she was like on the inside. I sometimes wondered if she was genuinely my mother. And then I consoled myself by thinking that she was my mom and she knew things that I didn't know. Things that I couldn't see, maybe she was doing it for me. I wish I really knew what was going on.

"Aria, please don't create a scene, someone might see us," she said and walked towards me.

"I-" I couldn't say it; I couldn't say I hate you to the person who brought me in this world. I suddenly didn't care what anyone saw. I didn't care about what they said. I didn't care if my makeup was not perfect and that if my hair strand was out of place. I wanted everyone to see me. I wanted them to realize that in the name of society they did everything that they shouldn't have done. They degraded individual and pushed them so hard on the ground that they couldn't even crawl. They got the worst out of you and then judged you.

More tears poured out of my eyes, my vision blurred and I tried to look straight. But before I knew what was happening, I stopped breathing. I took a deep breath but nothing happened. I tried to take a deep breath in, my lungs felt heavy. I felt heavy in my stomach, even though I hadn't eaten anything, it felt like I had eaten a bunch of stuff. I wanted to vomit everything that I had in my stomach. My eyes watered and my head felt heavy.

"Aria please, sit somewhere," Zachariah said and stepped towards me. I stepped back, I didn't know if it was my reflex or not. But I couldn't do it. I just couldn't.

"She is having a panic attack you moron, step back!" Ignatius barked at Zachariah and pushed him back. I didn't know where he appeared from. I tried to take a deep breath again and then failed. "Step back everyone, move."

"What-" mother tried to speak. She was obviously cut off.

"You're daughter here is having a fucking panic attack! Move back," He told my mom and this time she actually stepped back.

"Aria, listen to me okay, lie down on the floor! The floor is cold that's okay! Just lie down. It doesn't matter what the fuçking bastards have to say!" He maintained his distance from me and that was one of the things I was really thankful for. I quickly did what was told to me. He then removed his coat jacket and threw it on the floor near me.

"Tuck it below your head okay? I don't want you to freeze. Just remain calm and concentrate on your breathing," I took the coat and put it below my head, In between my head and the cold floor.

"-but what about everyone else? What if someone sees us here?" I couldn't breathe but I knew it was my mother; she looked around here and there to see if someone was looking at us.

"Ma'am, get back to the room, if you're so-"

"You're kids you don't understand! What if people, what if-"

"Leave!" I heard Ignatius scream, "Leave her alone! Just get in there and save whatever's left of our God damn reputation."

I closed my eyes and I wished I could shut everything out. I tried to take deep breaths and started thinking of things which could make the situation better. I wanted to vomit. I felt so many emotions altogether. I felt my lungs were ready to burst and my eyes were watering up. I had trouble breathing.

"I need-"

"Back off man, she is having a fucking panic attack, leave her the fuck alone," Ignatius pushed Zachariah back. Everything was a blur but I could still hear things, and I wished I didn't, she needs water, and she does."

"Get up," he said, he extended his hands towards me and I put my hand in his. He looked at me and smiled. He stepped back and pulled me up.

"I think there will be an award show after this, why don't you take your party and head inside, I'll drop her off, I'm going home anyway," he turned to look at my mother. She crossed her hand over her chest and narrowed her eyes at him. She wasn't going to send me with him anyways. And I was a mess; I had tears running down my face with mascara and eyes liner.

"I can't do anything anyway, plus you know my mom and mum, very well," he said. My mom hesitated; there was definitely something going on that I had no idea about. I could see the look in her eyes something was really up.

"I'll inform Nanna, that you wish to go back. I'll tell her you're coming home, leave her and go, no funny business," she told him and raised her eyebrow at him.

"What will you do ma'am, banish my family for the Royal Society at-"

"Dude, what the hell is your problem? Either you're cursing at people or making fun of people, don't you have any class man?" Zachariah stepped forward. He rolled the sleeve of his shirt and for the first time, I noticed that his coat was gone. I don't know if I was hallucinating or what but his arms were covered in tattoos.

"Yeah? And you have class? I'll tell you what I know things about you and you don't want to speak it out loud, so I'll tell you to step back. If I open my mouth all you'll be able to do will cry and weep!" He put his hand on Zachariah's chest and pushed him back.

Zachariah stumbled but gained his strength very soon. She quickly moved forward and pushed Ignatius hard.

"I'll tell you what I know About class," he threw a punch at Ignatius and he ducked his head in. He moved to his left and grabbed his hand in his. Ignatius twisted it back and I heard a cry of pain leave his mouth. He fell on his knee and he tried to stand back again and kick Ignatius.

"You forgot, I fight for money, your classy punches and camp moves won't do anything to me," he put his leg on Zachariah's back and pushed him down.

"Leave him! Leave him!" My mother rushed in and pulled Ignatius away from Zachariah. I was too shocked to say anything. What really surprised me the most was my mother. I don't know what she was really up too.

"You really need to learn some manners, you need to! I'm only letting you take my daughter home because I don't have any other way around, you need to respect people and you need to understand that with a few tattoos the whole world wouldn't start running after you!" He looked at me, I just gulped.

"Please ask Nanna to call me when you reach home," she said and looked at Ignatius. She pulled Zachariah up with the help of his mother and went in the other direction.

"Let's get you home before they question my class again," he pulled me in his direction by my shoulder. "Don't tell me you're scared of me," he said and kept moving forward.

"I'm scared of what I feel, to be honest," I told him.

"What do you mean?"

"I don't know, I just don't have even the slightest idea of what is going on in my life. It's like I don't know," I took a deep breath. I pushed my head back and tried to concentrate on everything but at the same time nothing. I just wanted to leave the place and have a new start. I wanted to change my name. A mystery was one thing, but I didn't know what people around me wanted from me.

"Well, when life gets you down do you want to know you got to do? Just keep swimming!" He said cheerfully. He looked at me and smiled, a very genuine one. I saw his dimple on the right cheek appear. He just quoted dory and I wanted to dance.

"Did you just quote-"

"Yeah, I have watched all the Disney movies with Ver. I could narrate the whole god damn movie for you," he smiled fondly at mentioning her sister.

"I never had siblings-"

"Trust me you don't want one, I have three. When Ver was small, not that she is very old right now but the only way she used to sleep was by putting the Nemo movie on, she slept in fifteen minutes and then I ended up watching the whole fucking movie," he shook his head.

"She is absolutely adorable."

"She is but she is quite a pain in the ass but she is our pain in the ass," he said. And my heart sunk. I felt so jealous of him. He knew he belonged there, but I didn't. Nanna and Manchurian were the only two people who I was sure truest loved me. I was so happy that Veronica had a real family to call her home.

"Have you ever felt lost?" I asked him. He looked at me and scrunched his eyes brow. He was trying to calculate how much he should say about it. I knew he was confused, I knew he wanted to tell me stuff but I didn't know if he would let me in.

"I did," he cleared his throat and told me, "but I'm okay now. Remember what the little fish said?"

"Yes, I do. How can I forget it?" We were soon at the back gate of the building. I didn't even realize that we're out already.

"So tell me, Miss. Rhett, are you ready to have some fun?" He said and climbed on his bike.

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