2. Catherine
Chapter 2
Catherine
I’m so in my head that I almost don’t hear Matt telling me to open the gift. With slightly shaky hands, I grab the box, remove the bow, and open the lid. The first thing I notice is a black hat. I grab it and lift it. Oh god. I know where this is going, and I already hate it. It’s a black witch hat. I set it aside on the table with an awkward smile on my face and grab the dress that goes with the hat. It’s a black long-sleeved silk elastane paneled tulle dress. I trail my hand over the scratchy material. I’m going to look ridiculous.
“Oh, that’s beautiful, Matt.” My stepmother squeals. If she likes it so much, why doesn’t she fucking wear it? She turns to me. “Isn’t it, Catherine,” she says in a hostile tone as she looks pointedly at me.
“Yes.” My skin tightens, and a bitter tang forms in my mouth. “Yes, it’s pretty.”
He claps his hands together. “Glad you love it.” He leans forward and gives me a soft kiss on my lips. “I’ll see you later.” He turns to leave but changes his mind. His face turns serious. “Six pm sharp. Don’t be late.” He gives me the command as if it’s the law and leaves. I grab the box quickly, shoving the hat and the dress back inside, run upstairs, and close the door behind me. I rest my back against the door, chest heaving, trying to catch my breath. I’m glad Matt didn’t stay long. I would not have been able to concentrate with the way my mind is racing.
After I catch my breath and my head no longer feels like it’s spinning, I throw the stupid box on the floor and make my way towards the bed where the clothes he left me are waiting. My heart skips a beat, the butterflies in my stomach taking flight as I examine the white button-down shirt, green plaid skirt, green knee-high socks, black fishnet stockings, and black Dr. Martens in front of me. I grab the Dr. Martens with trembling hands, tears trailing freely down my face as I pass my thumbs over the scratches adorning the material from the wear and tear. A sob escapes my throat, I never thought I was ever going to see these shoes again. The memory of the day my mom gifted them to me plays in my head like a movie. He saved them from my stepmother's rampage. This is one of the many reasons I'm in love with someone I’ve never met or even spoken to. It’s small gestures like these that have my heart tied in knots.
As much as I would love to wear this outfit tonight, I can’t. I have to wear the hideous dress that Matt got me. I release a sigh, my smile turning into a frown as I walk towards my closet to grab a hanger, but before I get the chance to put the clothes away my phone begins to ring. My heart flutters in my chest. Could it be him? My shoulder slumps when I see a message from my friends in our group chat, not him . I’m not sure why I’m disappointed. He has only messaged me a total of ten times in the past six years. He prefers to leave me notes.
Melissa: Guys!
Melissa: I come bearing news!
Melissa: My dad just told me that Haunted Nights is doing a new attraction with freaking Soul Reapers.
Melissa: SOUL REAPERS guys!
Me: Matt, just told me.
Melissa: Cat, you out of anyone should be over the moon with how deep your obsession with them runs.
Me: Trust me, I am.
Melissa: Bitch, don’t lie to me.
Jenny: Did you say Soul Reapers? Like masks, black capes, mysterious and sexy? SOUL REAPERS?
Jenny: Yeah, bitch. No, I'm all the way across town and I can feel the lack of enthusiasm.
Melissa: We have to. HAVE to wear the uniform with our house crest. NO, IF ANDS OR BUTS LADIES.
Jenny: OBVIOUSLY my dude!
I can't help but laugh over their excitement. I’m beyond excited to see the Soul Reapers
in all of their glory, but it hurts too much when I think about how I won’t get to join my best friends in wearing my house crests. Bonding over the franchise is how we became best friends. We met on my first day of school. They saw me reading book four and they came up to me, bombarding me with questions. We’ve been inseparable ever since.
Wait.
Something clicks in my mind, and I look over at the clothes, a smile forming on my face. He knew? How does he always know exactly what I need? I’m starting to believe that he is psychic. My phone rings in my hand with an incoming call. It’s Melissa calling but I know Jenny is also going to be on the line.
“Hi,” I greet them.
“Cut the crap, Cat. What is wrong? You’re not messaging us back and you seemed not too thrilled about the Soul Reaper.” I pull away the phone from my face to stop my eardrums from bursting from how loud she is talking.
“I’m fine and I am thrilled.”
Jenny speaks up. “That was so convincing, let me tell you.” I can hear her eyes roll at her sarcastic comment over the phone.
“This has something to do with that good-for-nothing, piece of shit, toad you call a boyfriend,” Melissa accuses.
I sigh, plopping onto the bed, putting my phone on speaker, and resting it on my stomach. “I have to meet his mom during Haunted Nights tonight. That alone is going to ruin my night. How the hell can I enjoy gawking at the Soul Reapers when I will have queen bitch staring at me and probably judging me at the same time.” I can’t make a mistake. It will cost me. His parents are constantly on trips around the world. They’re never here.
“Sweety, why are you still with him? He is such a tool,” Jenny says. They don’t even know half of it or how true that statement is. They have a long list of reasons why they hate him, but the main and number one reason is he doesn’t want me hanging out with them. At first, I didn’t listen to him, but by the third time, I had to cover a bruise because I hung out with them. I had no choice but to stop hanging out with them as often as I did.
“Wait, you’re not going to hang out with us at all tonight?” Melissa asks the disappointment in her voice, breaking my heart.
“No.”
“Seriously?” They ask at the same time.
“We know you hate going on opening day to Haunted Nights. That's why we didn’t make it a big deal this year when you told us you were going to skip opening day with us to go home and relax after having dinner with the hell-in-laws. We know your anxiety level will be going to be through the roof after having to deal with them. We would never force you to hang out with us at Haunted Nights knowing it would cause you even more stress but I refuse to accept you won’t hang out with us even for a little bit knowing you will already be there.” Melissa says, angry. I don’t know what to do. I’m torn. I really want to hang out with them but at the same time, I don’t want to make Matt angry.
“How about this: instead of arguing, we find a solution. What time do you have to meet Matt?” Jenny says, trying to defuse the situation like she always does. She is the mom of our group and always tries to stop Melissa and me from arguing.
“Six.”
She hums. “Alright, I have an idea. The park opens at four. Let’s meet up at that time, go inside a couple of haunted houses, and spend the rest of the time eating and enjoying the view.”
“That’s a good plan.” I agree, and so does Melissa. That solves one issue, but what about the clothes? I don’t want to tell them about the hideous dress Matt wants me to wear. They will lose their shit. They already say that he is too controlling, and I've lost my Catness. They don’t know how right they are. But it’s hard to be yourself when there’s someone who is beating you out of you. The only option is to do as he says, hoping the pain will end. Hoping that was the last punch, the last slap, the last shove. The messed up truth is that it will never be the last, and there’s no way for me to get out. I was forced into this situation months ago, and I have not been able to get myself out. It’s best to ride it out. Be a good girl until I leave. He hasn’t tried to force me to go to school with him; he hasn’t mentioned it since the day he told me he was going to Northwestern, and I told him I had a full ride to Penn State. It’s as if he doesn’t care what school I go to.
In fact, he doesn’t care what I do when I’m alone; he only seems to care when anyone can see me and if my best friends are around. He doesn’t call me or text me unless I need to go to a game of his or a party. We don’t spend too much time alone. We don’t act like a couple unless people are around. That thought has me sitting up in my bed abruptly, completely ignoring my friends as they talk about our plans and what they’re going to wear.
Matt is using me, but what for? It can’t be to make someone jealous. I’ve met his ex-girlfriend. She’s skinny, blonde, and on her last brain cell. All the chemicals they used to dye her hair burned them away.
I shake my head, pushing those thoughts out of my mind. It doesn’t really matter anyway. I just have to toughen it up for a few more weeks. Anyway, my stepmother will make my life hell if I end things. I’ve mentioned it before, and she flipped, getting my dad involved and grounding me. It was a terrible week of her making me miserable. Dad will do whatever she wants. I’m not sure he even has the strength to fight her. That’s what happens when you marry someone almost forty years younger.
“Cat?”
“Earth to Cat.”
I hear Jenny and Mellisa call out to me.
“Sorry, I got distracted.”
“Do you know what you’re going to wear?”
I glimpse over at the clothes. “Yes, I do.” A soft smile on my face. I’ll wear what he left out for me and then change into the hideous outfit Matt got for me. It’s a win-win situation.