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The Ugly Truth
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by
Akanksha
(last edited Jan 17, 2011 01:47AM)
(new)
Jan 17, 2011 01:46AM
I moved into my new room on Tuesday, and after a day of work, i was exhausted. I was curled up on the sofa with an Agatha Christie, when someone rang the bell. Silently cursing the person who'd disturbed i went to open the door. There, standing in front of me, was a pretty girl who i'd seen in the adjacent room. But i'd never seen her alone, she'd always be with a dark loud girl who i supposed was her best friend. 'Hey, I'm Angel' she said in a sweet mellow voice. 'Hi, i'm Avery', i replied. 'I live in room no. 205, We just saw you coming in. If there's anything you need, don't hesitate to ask.' She had a shy, cute way of talking that was instantly endearing. 'No worries, i'd be there to nag you for the first thing i need.' 'So how are you liking the hostel?' she asked. All of a sudden, the tall, dark girl, her friend was there. 'Angel! What are you doing here?' She scolded. 'Sorry Di, i was just asking Avery here if she was fine. Avery, this is Diana, she lives in 204.' 'Hey Diana, i'll be alright Angel, thanks for asking.' i said. 'Hey' Diana gave me an appraising glance, 'you'll definitely like the hostel. Angel, come to my room, i need something' she said. 'Bye Avery' Angel managed to say as Diana almost dragged her to her room. 'Strange' i muttered under my breath and went back to my book.
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"Are you crazy! Can you not remember instructions! Have I not told you I don't want us befriending every damn newbie who ends up in our hostel!!" asked Diana in a low almost guttural menacing tone as she almost minced the words eyes blazing in suppressed rage.
"I wasn't becoming her best friend or anything! I just assumed it would be nice and neighborly to extend a welcome...." trailed off Angel.
'ASSUMED!! What did I tell you about assuming?!!When you assume..." ,yelled Diana
"..I make an Ass out of U and Me ...", replied Angel dutifully, knowing it was expected of her.
Angel had been assigned Diana as a room mate 2 years back when she'd been a fresher. Diana had been as normal as anyone could be when they'd first met, but a failed relationship had transformed her into the control freak she now had become. Angel had been by Diana's bed side when she was hospitalized after a suicide attempt. She knew that her sympathy had made her an unwilling victim to this process of subjugation , but in the better interests of her room mate she'd been trying to put up with it. It was now slowly wearing her down as she wasn't a person who could retort back or actually put her foot down.
Swallowing insult after verbal insult was slowly pushing her into a spiral of depression...
I didn't see much of the duo for the next couple of days as i was unpacking and settling down. On the third day, i woke up to the sound of the ringing bell. I looked at the clock, it was 8 in the morning. 'Damn it! I missed breakfast again.' The breakfast at this new hostel was served only till 7.30, i was still trying to adjust to the routine. I opened the door to find Angel standing there. 'Good morning Avery. You missed breakfast today, right? I realised you might be sleeping, so i told the warden that you were not well and asked her if i could take it up to your room. So, here you are!' she said as she handed me a lunch box. 'Thanks a ton, Angel. It's freezing, come on in.''Sorry Avery, maybe some other time. I have to take Diana's breakfast to her too. She didn't want to get up in the morning.'
'No probs! Did you have breakfast?' I asked. 'I wouldn't dare, Diana would be very mad if she came to know i had breakfast without her' 'Whoa girl, Diana sounds like trouble' 'No, no, she's very nice. She's....she's a great friend.' she said hastily. 'Please don't tell her i was here' she added. 'Don't worry, i won't.' 'I should get going. Bye Ave' 'See ya around Angel' i said as she went over to Diana's room. I was thinking about the strange dynamics of their friendship when i heard somebody shouting in the next room.
Mod
"Hey Avy dear, it might sound crazy but, you must always remain alert while in a hostel. Eavesdrop if you have to, listen to what gossip you can> You'll be living within a beast and you'll need to know how to come out unscathed!"
I tip toed out into the corridor. Luckily there was no one else around. I'd carried out my tangled up clothesline to serve as an excuse should anyone wonder what I was doing in the corridor. While pretending to disentangle the length of rope I edged closer to 205.
"....sorry.." I could hear Angel mumbling.
"Soggy bread! A cold bulls eye! And of all things! JAM!!" I could hear Diana shouting.
I couldn't just stand there and keep quite. But then I remembered what Cathy had said, "Stay informed but never interfere! Be like those wildlife photographers. Let the prey be eaten or let the hunter become prey, the photographer with his lens should be miles away!"
There was only one thing to do. I hastily picked up my still entangled clothesline and beat a retreat. A lucky decision. Just as I had crossed by doorway back inside I heard the door of 205 open..
and saw slices of bread being thrown out...and Phat...splashed the wall opposite..I scurried away but could hear Angel sobbing and Diana shouting "Now go and clean up the mess!! After you are done, get me some decent grub...and do HASTEN up. Stop crying for GODs sake - you will make me look BAD"
she was screaming at angel,angel was trying to stop her sob.i thought,"she needs some help.she needs a shoulder to share her helplessness.
Even a servant won't be treated that way.
now i know why,angel want to communicate with me.i would like to change the situation.diana should realise ,what she have been doing to her,and make angel brave.i will join angel and her company.freedom to angel and realisation to diana."
Even a servant won't be treated that way.
now i know why,angel want to communicate with me.i would like to change the situation.diana should realise ,what she have been doing to her,and make angel brave.i will join angel and her company.freedom to angel and realisation to diana."
Mod
Acting casual as if I had actually just walked out I took the initiative and asked, "Angel, I need to pick up some stuff from the canteen for later,do you need anything?"
Angel's look transformed from one of defeat and dejection to a semblance of her normal bubbly self. She assumed I hadn't noticed how low she was feeling and eager to make things look as normal as possible her forced playacting at being normal soon restored her to actually being in much better spirits.
I knew there was nothing I could say to her . It was going to be a tough deal, trying to lend support to Angel by just being there fore her at the right place and the right time and keeping quiet about it.
When the time was right, if she needed to talk, I'd let her talk.
Angel was the easier of the two. Now, should I actually even bother taking on Diana. There should be some way of bringing about a change, the only selfish question was, was it even worth my troubling myself?! as of now it definitely looked like a hopeless situation. So I decided I'd wait till the right moment popped up to offer some sort of assistance to Diana as a conversational icebreaker.
"Thanks Ave,even me, on my way to canteen." replied Angel.
I asked, "That's great!.. so,..can you gimme some company till canteen?
"sure!,why not." replied Angel and we started walking towards the canteen.
To lighten things up I said "'Angel..',nice name huh!!"
Now feeling lighter,Angel giggled and replied "huh huh ,ya."
"where are you from angel,why not we know each other better??",I asked
With a thankful look on her face, Angel replied, "I'd love that, thanks. I am from...
I asked, "That's great!.. so,..can you gimme some company till canteen?
"sure!,why not." replied Angel and we started walking towards the canteen.
To lighten things up I said "'Angel..',nice name huh!!"
Now feeling lighter,Angel giggled and replied "huh huh ,ya."
"where are you from angel,why not we know each other better??",I asked
With a thankful look on her face, Angel replied, "I'd love that, thanks. I am from...
Ohio. My parents and my two brothers live there. So, what about you."she asked. "Nowhere or Everywhere, take your pick. My dad's in the Army so we don't stay at one place, we've been all over the country." "Oooh! That must be fun! I've always had a soft corner for the Army, wanted to be an Army Doc, you know.""Really? Then why didn't you go for it? Engineering and Medical are like the opposite poles." I enquired. "In one word - Diana. We've been together forever, she wanted to do Engg so here i am." "Umm....ohkay." i didn't know what to say. I might offend her by saying something spiteful about Diana, they were best friends afterall. So, i decided to keep my mouth shut. "Hey Angel, i just remembered, i have to submit that Flu Mech assignment. You go on i'll catch up with you later." i excused myself. As i saw her walking away, i decided i had to help her. But for that, i'd have to befriend Diana. It wasn't difficult to guess what makes girls like Diana tick- popularity! And popularity always came easy for me, i make friends very quickly and teachers usually love me despite the numerous pranks i play on them. So it didn't take long for me to become a part of the "popular gang". Finally Diana had to acknowledge me. It was friday and i'd been invited to Ash's party. I was chatting with some girls from my class when Diana approached me. "Hey, Avery, right? We've been introduced i guess, i'm Diana." she said. "Oh hi Diana. Yeah, i'm your new neighbour. So, enjoying the party?" "Not really, this party is kinda boring. I and a couple of friends are going somewhere more happening. Why don't you join us?"
Wow, an invitation from the Snob Queen, i'd definitely made some progress. "I'd love to. So where are we going?" i asked her on our way out. "You'll see"
Mod
Diana's Previa was made for 8 passengers, but the ten of us managed a squeeze in. She drove for about 45 minutes and then stopped at an entrance which already had a queue lined up for the night. The neon sign just said 'The Chamber'
Girls our age have this golden pass to enter clubs. At least that's what I thought till the door guy held up his hand asking us to stop. It was only when he say Diana and her group also walking in that he realized we were all together and said, "Have a great time ladies"
The slightly gloomy atmosphere and Diana's excessive eye shadow like her friends' should have given me a hint, but it was when we finally got in that I realized it was a Gothic Club. Well, I thought, that explains a bit of the dominating spirit.
To say it was boring would be an understatement. Almost everybody was dressed up as a vampire. There was some very loud music playing which sounded a lot like hundrends of horns honking together. Diana and her group immediately attacked the bar on their arrival.
Mod
I was 19, legal drinking age and all that, but had no intention on going down that road. To keep up pretenses I said, "A Bloody Mary please"
"Great choice Ave" said Tina, one of Diana's quieter friends. Tina's approval seemed to help break the ice. I could sense they had , in that one moment, decided I was alright...
So finally I'd got thier acceptance. Maybe now I'd be able to help Angel. She was standing meekly behind Diana and gazing up at her with absolute devotion. this girl has some serious Idol problem i thought to myself as I approached the duo. " Hey Ang, What are you having?" "She fine, she doesn't drink" Diana replied Briskly. " Oh...I don't too usually." I said to angel once again hoping to draw some kind of response from her. But again it was Diana who answered " She just can't handle a drink, she's such a baby" I was horrified to see that angel didn't mind taking all that shit from Diana.
I thought - I will have to take the bull by the horn"So what do you drink Diana?" "I can drink anything and everything - the stronger the better", she answered haughtily.
"OK - care for some tequilla shots?" I asked sweetly
She wasn't the sort to back down and i suppose i didn't look like a serious competitor, she agreed readily, " Sure Ave, bring it on". I was not very sure about this but I didn't want to stroke her already huge ego so i decided to go along with it.
Mod
We started off with a gusto. Quite a crowd had assembled to watch our contest. Diana handed Angel her bag and reached for the first shot. We alternated shots between ourselves and I observed that she knew how to handle herself. Obviously this wasn't the first time she had challanged someone. But I was never one for giving up. I kept on downing shot after shot although common sense told me to stop. Just when I though I wouldn't be able to take it anymore, the glass fell from Diana's hand. Too tipsy to care that I'd won, I sat down on the chair someone had placed before me.
