Chapter One of Nora Blackwell Dead Walker

I handed my card to the lunch lady, and she swiped it; then, she returned my card and gave me my food. I thanked her, then turned to scan the cafeteria looking for my friends. Thankfully, they were in the usual spot at the round table along the wall.

As I made my way back to them, my phone started buzzing, so I pulled it out to read the messages. They were coming faster than I could read them. The gist of it was that my mom was disappointed, while my dad said they had raised me better. My little brother messaged to say someone had called, and after my parents got off the phone, they were mad. He said he couldn’t hear what they were saying because they were whisper-yelling. I messaged him, thanks for the heads up. What was going on?

I put my phone away before I sat down at the table.

“Are you ok?” Charlotte asked a bit too eagerly, which put me on edge. Amelia and Camelia stopped their conversation to look at me.

“You do look a bit upset. Is everything ok?” Amelia asked, and I swear Charlotte leaned forward a little bit.

“Oh yeah, I’m fine. Liam just messaged me.” I smiled.

“Nora, can we talk?” Ethan asked, making me jump because I hadn’t realized he was beside me.

“Sure.” I smile with a sinking feeling because 'can we talk?' is the universal sign that things are not okay. We walked into the hall and away from the crowded cafeteria, where we stopped outside the library.

“I got messages early this morning that you were cheating on me,” he stated

“What,” i replied, shocked.

“Yeah, along with pictures of your messages to him.”

“I haven’t cheated on you. You can check my phone and laptop.”

“You most likely deleted the message, so it doesn't matter. We’re over,” he stated coldly.

“I promise I have never cheated on you,” I assured, but he just walked away, leaving me alone. I didn't want to cry at school, so I took a few deep breaths and then went back to the cafeteria, trying not to think about the past two years. We discussed attending the same college and possibly getting married one day.

I saw Charlotte rush back into the cafeteria as I rounded the corner. What was she doing? I went back to the table where Amelia and Camelia asked what was going on while Charlotte was on her phone.

“I’ll tell you later,” I replied, picking at my food.

“Come on, tell us. What did Ethan have to say?” Charlotte pushed with a smirk, making me wonder what she had done.

“She said she would tell us later.” Camila snapped, but Charlotte just rolled her eyes.

“Oh, please,” Charlotte snapped, ” We all know she cheated on him.”

“She would never,” Amelia stated

“Here’s the proof.” Charlotte snapped, pushing her phone toward us. It was a screenshot of me messaging someone named Jackson, talking about how I missed him and couldn’t wait to see him again.

“Who’s Jackson?” Camelia asked, looking at me.

“I honestly don’t know,” I replied, feeling the sting in my eyes and the sinking feeling in my stomach.

“Playing stupid isn’t your strong suit.” Charlotte giggled.

“I’m not. Why would I do something this horrible?” I asked, looking at her, but glancing at Amelia and Camila. They wore the same face, but Amelia looked horrified while Camila was angry. Their mom cheated on their dad, so they don’t tolerate people who cheat.

“Nora Blackwell to the office,” the announcement said, which made Amelia and Camila look at me like they were wondering what type of person I truly was.

“Have fun,” Charlotte smirked with a glint of glee in her eyes.

I grabbed my tray, which had chicken and mashed potatoes, and threw the food at her because I sure as hell wasn't the bigger person. She got up screaming at me, but I just headed to the office, setting my tray on top of the trash can as I went, cause I wasn’t a complete asshole.

In the office, my mom was standing outside the office with the principal, both of whom wore an angry, disappointed look.

“I’m so disappointed in you.” The principal said, and my mom nodded.

“Let’s go.” Mom frowned, walking away toward the parking lot, not saying anything, just radiating anger. I followed in silence.

We got in the SUV, and she slammed the door with a huff. We started driving, heading away from home.

“Where are we going?” I asked. Mom didn’t say anything, but her lips got tighter. My phone went off, and I checked it to see that Charlotte sent a message with a winking face with its tongue sticking out. What did she do?

“Unbelievable!” Mom screamed, grabbed my phone, and slung it into the back, then went off on me. She claimed that I was horrible and that they failed to raise me right. She kept on screaming the same thing over and over, but differently, and every time I attempted to ask what I was being accused of, she would scream louder that I knew what I did and start over.

I screamed at her that I didn’t know what I was being accused of, and Mom slapped me, screaming at me.

My mom never popped me or my brother, and here she is just slapped me. I knew then there was nothing I could say or do. I wonder what was said to her and Dad over the phone. Was Charlotte behind it, and if she was, why would she do this to me?

Mom eventually stopped screaming and just drove. I so badly wanted to scream at her, but it wouldn’t be any good.

When the light started to fade from the sky, we stopped at a gas station. Mom parked at a pump, then got out. She didn't go inside but walked to a black van that looked like a kidnapper’s van. The people in the van rolled down the window, and Mom started talking to them.

Four men got out of the van and headed toward our SUV. I locked the door, but Mom hit the unlock when they got close. They grabbed me, dragging me toward the black van.

“This is for your own good. Lina was troubled like you, and it helped her.” Mom assured us when we got close to the van.

“And like Lina, I will no longer be a part of this family!” I screamed as they threw me in the back of the van, and I slipped free trying to open the back door, but it was locked, and I was cornered. One guy grabbed me, slamming me into the floorboard, where they handcuffed my hands and legs, then sat on the seats on the side.

I could hear the passenger in the front talking to my mom, who was crying, telling her she’s doing the right thing for my future.