Devil Incarnate (On Hiatus)

Chapter 6

Author's Note:

Hi all, sorry I have been so inactive lately. I've been in a bit of a slump and have been super stressed about school and things. I hope to be publishing on a more regular schedule once school starts in two weeks and I figure out my work schedule. 

I am very excited for you to read this chapter. I don't want to spoil it but this chapter is a little bit of a breakthrough for Marie. Enjoy reading and thank you so much for all the reads and all the likes. I appreciate every single one of you. :)

The remainder of my day was spent taking the long way to and from all of my classes to avoid going near the lockers on the first floor. I only got things from my locker during class, when I would ask to use the bathroom. I even ended up eating my lunch in the bathroom with my feet up on the door in case anybody recognized my shoes. I was looking forward to my walk from school when I realized that I might run into the trio of trouble if I take my usual route. So I'm going to have to take the long way home, probably be late to mass, not get to see Aunty Roseline, and I have to figure out how to get my dad to sign this permission slip to go on a voodoo walking tour. I've never believed in curses or magic or anything of the sort, but I feel like somebody must have cursed me or something.

~

Taking the long way is absolutely no fun. I have to walk along a busy street and everybody here is so rude. It is a stark difference from the warm, welcoming environment of the market. All there is here is the smell of exhaust and people expecting me to move around them when they are in my way. It also doesn't help that I feel like every person I walk by is Connie. I see her hate-filled eyes in everybody that is on this road. My heart starts to race and I begin to panic. I know I'm just being paranoid but why is everybody looking at me like that. Like they're out to get me.

I get snapped out of this when I bump into someone. I look up and it is Aunty Roseline's granddaughter, Rose. Rose is a couple of years older than me and a couple of inches taller than me. I don't know her well but from all the, albeit few, interactions we've had she is very nice. However I've heard some terrible rumors about her. I've heard things like that she worships the devil but I'm sure that it's just old-church-lady gossip because she wears a lot of black. Speaking of which, she is clad in ripped black jeans and a black graphic tee with the picture too worn to decipher what it is.

"Watch where you're going, dude." she says, picking up the bags she dropped.

"I'm sorry," I reply, helping her. She looks over at me and her eyes grow wide as she recognizes me.

"No problem, I didn't realize it was you, Marie. I shouldn't have been so rude. My bad." She says, looking me in the eyes. "But you should watch who you bump into. There are some people on this road that are much meaner than I am."

I start to panic. What if I run into one of Connie's many friends? Rose seems to notice my discomfort and reaches out to grab my hand. "Woah, you don't have to freak out, I'll walk you to wherever you're going. Church, probably, knowing your dad." She says with a smile.

I give her a nod and she lets go of my hand and she walks with me to church. Rose is really nice, I don't know why those old ladies spread those horrible rumors about her. I also appreciated that she assumed that I was going to church because of my dad. Most people don't know this, but I'm not super religious. I believe that people should try their best to be a good person and that good people will get rewarded but a big angry man in the sky and Jesus rising again doesn't really seem plausible to me.

As I continue to think about all of the weird things I learned about in church, like how Noah built a boat for animals, Rose turns to me and asks, "So how is school going for you?"