(Outfit on the top)

Chapter |4|

I could hear the bustling outside my door early in the morning. The shrieks of Alicia regarding her suitcases echoed through the hall but I kept on laying on my bed, in my precious duvet and snuggled into the softness of the mattress.

Dad didn't bother to show his face after that. Though, I was glad that he understood what I felt, a tiny little part of me wanted him to keep trying to win me. Just because I had verbally banished him from my life, it wasn't easy to totally throw him away from my mind. After all, he'd been a part of my life for good eighteen years.

The only plus point I got out of this was space and avoiding Alicia and her mother.

Thank God I didn't have to bear their taunts.

Now since I had told dad that I was going to drive by myself, I relaxed and enjoyed the feeling of turning a year older. A birthday was supposed to be full of happy surprises given to you by your family. But since I didn't have one, I wasn't going to complain.

A big smile was pasted on my face as I enjoyed the cool temperature of the room and hugged Joe, my big brown teddy.

I didn't realise I dozed off until I was woken up two hours later by my blaring alarm clock that read 9:00 in big black letters.

Groggily, I got up and pushed my duvet aside. I nearly fell down since my thigh belts had slipped down. Pulling them off, I breathed a sigh of relief as it's weight came off. Along with it, I pulled my stomach belt off too.

Taking some clothes, I hopped into shower and washed my caramel-brown hair.

After scrubbing myself, I got out of the shower, wrapped a towel around myself and examined myself in the mirror.

The towel hugged me tightly, showing off the body I'd gotten due to my work out sessions.

With that, an idea struck me. Since I was going alone to Silver Valley, I could wear my belts after I reached there. A small part of me nudged my mind, urging me to discard these belts forever but I knew no matter how tempting this idea was, I couldn't do that until I was totally out of this family's grasp. 

Even though I had told my father that he was out of my life, it wasn't the reality. He and his family had quite a hold on my future which I couldn't neglect.

Throwing that thought out of  my mind, I concentrated on the temporary happiness I was going to get when I actually got to be Skylar for the rest of the world, without the races.

It wasn't as if anyone was going to recognise me anyway.

The thought itself brought a huge grin on my face. I could be me for at least four hours, that too on my birthday.

With these happy thoughts, I exited the bathroom and went towards my cupboard.

There, in an unnoticed corner, lay my old clothes. I grabbed my light blue denim shorts and a cute white crop-top.

I sipped on the clothes and walked towards the mirror.

An ear-splitting grin was etched on my face as I saw my reflection. The shorts reached a little above my mid-thigh and showed off my toned legs. The crop top came down till my belly button, showing a bit of my equally toned stomach that I was proud of.

I curled my hair a bit, to make them fall in bouncy waves and applied a bit of mascara and my favourite Chapstick.

With that, I was ready.

I glanced around my room to see if I forgot something when I caught the sight of my messed up cupboard.

I don't know what came over me but I went up to it and grabbed a few of my old clothes, the ones that weren't so shabby and dumped them in the suitcase.

I put my wallet in the back pocket of my jeans and gave the room a once over. Satisfied, I locked my room and went downstairs.

Taking a few packets of chips and a few granola bars, I was ready to go.

Excitement bubbled inside me as I shut the door of the house and pocketed the key.

I spotted my black beauty standing there in the gleaming sunlight. I owned a Camaro SS in black. I was pretty attached to it too. It was something Dad had bought me before our relationship had deteriorated. Even though he had bought me a car when I was a minor, I wasn't allowed to use it until I'd gotten my learner's permit.

I put my suitcase in the trunk and kept the poly bag with my belts, wig and extra clothes in the backseat. Opening the driver's seat, I inhaled the smell of it. Sliding into the cool leather seat, I shut the door.

Gripping the steering wheel, I couldn't help by feel exhilarated. Putting the key into ignition, I reversed the car out of the driveway and started for my journey.

****

After two hours of continuous driving, and emptying the bags of chips, I decided to stop for something to eat.

Luckily, I spotted a Starbucks after a few more minutes of driving.

Right now, I was in a small town. You could basically tell that here, everyone knew everyone. By the looks of smiling faces, the love seemed almost palpable.

Lush green trees were spread almost everywhere. There were small but cute shops lined up on one lane, where there was a bustle of voices. On one side, cute brick huts with flower pots hanging by the window sills gave a homely feeling.

I parked my car near Starbucks and got off.

I stretched my arms and legs as I shut the door. While stretching, the crop top rose an inch above my belly button, resulting in a few stares from the onlookers.

A small smile spread across my face as I read appreciation in their eyes.

I locked my car and headed towards the shop. Upon entering, the luscious fragrance of coffee and donuts entered my nostrils, making me sigh in content.

As I stepped towards the line, a wolf whistle caught my attention.

I turned around to see a boy, younger than me, maybe fifteen or sixteen looking at me suggestively.

"Wanna share a quickie, babe?" He spoke and his friends howled like mad wolves.

I raised my eyebrow and gave him a once over. He wasn't bad looking. He had short blond hair that had a few brown streaks in them. He looked like an athletic person, given his physique. He had a fairly tanned skin, complementing his brown eyes.

The only flaw was his arrogance which had to be brought down a notch.

But before I could say anything, he spoke again. And this time, not to me.

"Ooh. Ms. Fattie here has come to gobble up the entire store. Beware, people, beware," he exclaimed in fake horror. Snickers followed his insult as the person whom he insulted stood there with wide eyes.

Visible fear crept into her eyes as she took in the laughing crowd. Almost the whole store was watching and listening to the taunts.

I clenched my jaw. Having an extra amount of fat wasn't necessarily a bad thing. The people who chose to make fun of this, were bad. I'd never grasped the concept of criticising a person based on their body shape. Just because a person didn't have abs or wasn't toned, didn't give any right to anyone to give them reasons to be conscious.

My lifestyle was such that the only thing that helped me survive was my racing. It was the only thing in my life that made me feel somewhat in control of my life. Without it, I'd be totally lost.

Being a constant victim of these taunts and insults made me feel and want to wring the necks of those who bullied people.

I glanced at the girl. She had a cute face and was beautiful. Her black hair fell in short waves till her neck and she was wearing a summer dress. The only thing marring her soft features was the tremble of her lips and the frown between her brows.

"So, back to you miss," blondie spoke, looking at me. "Are you up for my offer?"

I walked towards him and his smirk grew. His friends were still tormenting the girl. I reached him and put a hand on my hip. He was only an inch or two taller than me so it wasn't a problem as I looked him in the eye.

He was expecting me to fall into his arms like a stupid, brainless doll. The way some people thought that girls were just some stupid one-time use trash was just irritating.

"Only if you let me chop off your precious jewels with a chainsaw while we're at it" I spoke, loud enough for his friends to hear.

His fellow chipmunks stopped the taunts and gaped at me while Mr. Blonde's facial expression contorted into that of anger.

"Careful who you talk to babe. I'm the captain of my football team," he said as if that was going to make me fall into his arms.

"And how is that even relative?" I asked, mocking confusion. This seemed to increase his anger.

"Thats relative because it clearly proves my worth, which is much more than that fattie," he sneered.

I let out a humourless laugh. He was too cocky for his own good. "You think that just because you're a football captain you have more worth than a girl? Please enlighten me with the sense your statement carries," I asked, keeping my annoyance and anger suppressed.

"I don't need to explain any sense behind my statement. Clearly the sensible people have already understood what I mean," he barked out.

"You mean only you, right? Because if I go by your definition of sensible, I can clearly see that only you or maybe your friends come under that definition because the way I see it, the girl you're making fun of is much, much better than you," I stated, keeping a poker face as I said this.

He let out a bark of laughter which only increased my anger.

"T-That girl? You mean Mia? Haha. Oh please. She won't be able to walk a mile before panting. You girls are just good to look at. I mean, even you for instance. No offence, but you have a great body but please, you're just like any other girl. You can't compete with me or any of us, for that matter," he exclaimed in between laughs.

Again I tried to speak up, trying to state how irrelevant that was to the topic we were debating on but what he said next made me stop my words, my anger slowly simmering to the surface.

"I mean you girls are only good for cheering for the jocks, like us."

I clenched my fist and held myself from socking him in the face. Instead, I calmed my expression. I didn't know why such brain dead people existed but since I was already in a situation where words weren't good enough, I plastered a sickly sweet smile as I spoke-

"Clearly you think you're the king of the world. Now since you have absolutely no respect for your fellow female humans, how about I show you your place on the ladder? I'll race you on behalf of the girl. If you loose, you apologise," I challenged calmly, still keeping a smile on my face.

He laughed out loud. But since I'd challenged his ego, he gave me a smirk. I could sense a tiny hesitation in his eyes but since his male ego was a bit too big for his own good, he accepted my challenge.

"Why do you want to present yourself as a loser to everyone here?"

I smiled, surpassing the oncoming smirk . "We'll see who the loser is."

He had just accepted a challenge that I wasn't prepared to lose. It was what gave meaning to my life and it was in situations like these that the meaning always cleared up for me.

I hadn't learnt how to run just for fun. It was my escape and a way to challenge myself and my problems. It was my getaway. It was my life.

I was proud of the fact that I could run as good as some people in the sports teams and I wasn't going to lose to some arrogant bastard. He needed to see his place on earth.

I followed Blondie to the doors. He pointed to a pole outside which seemed about a hundred meters away. I accepted the distance, already feeling the familiar excitement racing through my veins as I knelt down, readying myself.

It was decided that the race would be back and forth. The one who would complete two rounds first, would be declared as the winner. I stood in line with Blondie. Almost all the people who had witnessed our argument were outside with us.

Just as I was about to tell one of his friends to initiate the race, I felt a hand on my shoulder.

I looked back to see the same girl looking at me with a polite and a sweet smile.

"Thank you. I don't care if you lose. Keith always insults me so I'm kind of used to it. But I really appreciate you for standing up for me. No one has ever done that," she spoke in a soft voice.

I was left speechless for a little while but a sense of determination washed over me, making my aim to win the race even stronger.

I smiled back. "Don't worry. Record the race. If I win, you can shove it in his face. If I lose, you can do whatever you want with it."

I turned back to the starting line, which was nothing but a bunch of straws on the ground.

It was a good thing I wore my running shoes.

I bent over to tighten my laces when suddenly a whistle blew and Blo- I mean Keith dashed towards the pole.

I didn't think twice before following him. It was like an instinct. Just like when a fire alarm blows, you don't think where the fire erupted. You just run.

It was the same with me.

When I was halfway through, that is when I realised what happened. Anger coursed through my veins as I willed my legs to make me run even faster.

That loon cheated!

Even though his cheating clearly indicated that his hesitation had won over, I wasn't going to let him win. He was still a few steps ahead of me and this angered me even more. Filled with rage I ran like my life depended upon it.

Within a few seconds I reached the pole. Touching it, I quickly paced back. Keith had wasted a second at the pole, which gave me a short lead.

The familiar excitation washed over me as my feet padded against the gravel. My breath came out in short pants as I quickly reached the line of straws and started my second round.

I didn't realise that I had almost gained a three second lead as I raced towards the pole again.

Smiling to myself, I increased my speed. Willing my feet to run faster, I reached the pole again and without wasting any time, started for the finishing point.

This was what made me feel alive. Usually, I was just existing, not living. The familiar rush of adrenalin while running, the will to run and live is what the source of my happiness was.

The wind slapping against me face and my hair flying back, liberated me from any burden that I carried.

The moment I crossed the line of straws, the cheers for me resonated in the thick humid air, making me feel even more happy than I already was.

About two seconds later, Keith finished and nearly collapsed on the ground.

I supported myself by resting my hands on my knees. My lungs trying to take in as much oxygen they could. My eyes were grazing the gravel underneath.

After a few deep breaths, I looked up. The amount of pride that a few people had, nearly threw me off guard.

I swept my gaze to find the person for whom I did this. When my gaze landed on her, an ear-splitting smile spread across my face as I took in her happy expression. Her eyes glistened in the light with unshed tears as she stood there smiling.

As the clapping and cheering died down a bit, I looked to see Keith red-faced siting down on the pavement and his friends looking everywhere but a me.

I took a few steps towards him. The adrenalin still courses through me as I jogged a bit.

His face grew redder with embarrassment as I approached him.

"So you were saying?"

He stuttered an incoherent response and looked away.

"It's funny how I defeated you even when you cheated with a head start," I taunted, but immediately felt bad.

Yes, he was arrogant but I didn't mean to create a reverse situation by bullying him with my taunts.

I was here to speak against bullying and not to resort to it myself.

With that thought in mind, I offered him my hand.

He looked up surprised. I gave him a small smile in return. He hesitated but slipped his hand into mine and I helped him up.

"Try not to hit or taunt anyone because of how they look. You never know, they actually might turn out to be better than you," I said, looking him in the eye.

He had the decency to look ashamed as he muttered an apology.

With one last smile, I started making my way towards my car. My appetite was long gone and as it is I was getting late for the opening of the Ball.

Before I could enter my car, I heard a shout. I looked back to see Keith running to catch up to me.

I gave him a confused look.

"Can I at least know your name?" He asked. There was no hint of flirting in his eyes. His expression was sincere.

"Skylar," I responded.

His eyes widened. "You mean you're The Skylar? The state champion of track?"

Now it was my turn to widen my eyes. "You know me?"

It was a lame question. Of course he didn't know me as me but that was the first thing that came to my mind.

"Who doesn't? You're my idol, well sort of. Aside from Luke, you're the one I admire. I can't believe I said all those things to you. I'm really sorry," he said, clearly embarrassed.

Luke was the State Champion in the boys category. But what I couldn't believe was that people idolised me.

Yes, I was the State Champion, but I didn't know that anyone outside my own hometown knew me.

"I-It's okay. Thanks," I stuttered.

He gave me a smile and retreated. I stood there frozen for a few seconds before getting into my car and driving off.

In almost half an hour, I was out of the town and was nearing Silver Valley. There was still a two-hour drive left. But now, as the reality of going to Silver Valley, that is Mom's town struck me, the distance seemed too short.

But I wasn't going to back down and give Alicia the satisfaction of my absence.

So, as I pressed the accelerator and clutched the steering wheel harder, determination washed over me.

To the Cinderella Ball I go!
*****

Hey lovelies. How are you all?
I'm sorry but my updates for all of my stories will be a bit slow.

I hope you enjoyed the chapter, though 😊
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Until next time. <3 ❤️