The cut that always bleeds

Submitted into Contest #65 in response to: Write about a group of witches meeting up on Halloween night.... view prompt

39 comments

Drama Friendship Inspirational

WARNING: THERE IS A LITTLE BIT OF BLOOD, AND SOME SELF-HARMING. IF YOU AREN'T COMFORTABLE WITH THAT, PLEASE DON'T READ IT. IF YOU ARE COMFORTABLE, KEEP GOING!

Jake cursed under his breath. His left arm had started bleeding.

He was at a Halloween party for witches and wizards. His older brother, Micheal, had disappeared with his friends. That was a relief. His parents were talking with their friends. 

Why didn’t he have friends? He didn’t know.

He was fourteen, and the youngest in his family. They all treated him terribly, and he was always glad when they weren’t around.

He weaved through the crowd, flinching when anyone touched him. He grabbed two water bottles, and a roll of paper towels, then went up the steps to the roof. 

He pushed open the door, wincing at the cold air. He shut the door, and walked over to the edge.

This is as good a night as any. No one will miss me, anyway. I'm not important enough for them to care. They're probably expecting it. No one will be upset.

Then he heard something.

“Are you alright?” 

He spun around, eyes wide. He didn’t know anyone followed him. There was a girl his age with frizzy brown hair staring at him. 

“Y-yeah?” He lied. 

Clearly, it wasn’t very convincing. She frowned. “No, you aren’t. You’re bleeding.”

She reached for his arm, but he yanked it away from her. “No.”

“You can’t leave it like that.” She told him, grabbing his sleeve.

His eyes widened as he shook his head. “N-no. Don’t.”

“It’s fine, I’ll just bandage it.” She said, pulling up his sleeve.

She froze. His arm was decorated with small cuts. Blood soaked through some, the red bright on his pale skin. He yanked his hand away, his eyes filled with tears. He hadn’t wanted anyone to see this.

“Wait!” She called as he ran across the roof. She chased after him. She was much faster. He tripped on a rock, and she grabbed his hand.

“Wait, please.” She whispered. 

 “What? Are you going to laugh? Cut me more? Beat me up? Do it already!” He screamed tears running down his face.

She was shocked. “No.”

“No?” 

She shook her head. “No, I’m going to make sure that doesn’t happen to you ever again.”

“What?”

He was confused. Nobody had ever cared about him before. He’d never had a friend before. She seemed nice enough.

“Why?” He asked, wiping his face. 

She smiled at him sadly. “Nobody should have to go through that.”

“But...you don’t even know my name.” 

She stuck out a hand. “I’m Cas! Who are you?”

“I’m-”

Before he could say anything, something hit him in the head. It was heavy enough to move him. He stumbled backwards, and tripped over the edge. 

He managed to grab onto the brick railing. I should just fall, right now. It'd be so simple. All my troubles gone.

"No!" Cas screamed. "Hold on!"

Ropt!” Cas yelled at whoever hit him. No one cares. Just let go.

Lokbc!” They countered.

He glanced over the side, and saw Micheal. Was she really going to stand up for him? Did he mean that much?

"Rife!"

Did someone really care about him? No. Right?

"Eic!"

Was he really that important? Maybe? To someone...

"Rowwas!"

Could he actually have a real friend if he didn't die? A real friend?

"Niwd!"

He decided he would find out. For Cas.

He gripped the railing, determined not to let himself fall.

Lished!” Cas shouted.

Micheal frowned. “How are you beating me?”

 “Refeez!” Cas answered.

Micheal growled, unable to move. 

Then Jake’s left hand slipped. 

“Cas!” He screamed. He grabbed for the edge, but his hand didn't make it. His right fingers slowly slipped off.

No. I don't want to die. No, no, no, no, no.

Right when his fingers left the brick, Cas wrapped hers around his wrist. He was able to grab on and hold himself up as Cas yelled, "Yfl!" causing Jake to float back onto the roof.

“Are you alright?” She asked.

“Yeah. I-I think so.” 

They walk over to Micheal. “Don’t ever touch him again.” She commanded before slapping him hard. She took his wand, and threw it on the other side of the roof.

Then she looked at Jake. “Don't you ever cut yourself ever again, understand?”

“Okay.” He said as she turned to the door.

After a second, she turned back to him. "Were you going to drop?"

"W-what?"

"Yes or no?"

"F-for what?"

"Don't play dumb. Were you going to let yourself fall?"

"I-I was. But, I decided not to."

"Good. Don't ever kill yourself, got it?"

"Y-yeah."

She smiled. “What’s your name?”

“It’s Jake.”

“Jake, my friend, I’m very hungry. Want to go inside?”

“Okay.” Friend?

She said a spell that cleaned his arm, and made the cuts disappear.

They walked through the door to go inside. It was warm, and he smiled.

They both picked up some drinks and some treats on napkins.

His parents were still talking to their friends. He was glad Micheal was on the roof. They could tell someone soon. Nobody had even noticed them gone.

He glanced at Cas. She didn't know how much, but she changed his life, and he was forever in her debt. He had finally made a friend.

This was just a short story I decided to do. Seriously though, people. Please, please, please, don't cut or kill yourself. Someone does cares and will miss you. My friend cut herself, and I was a mess for weeks after I found out. Seriously, I really hate to worry about that. Please try to stay positive! Someone loves you! Don't believe idiots. If you are one of the idiots, this is the type of thing that actually happens. Stop bullying people, okay? You can be the cause of someone dying. You don't know what they're going through. If you really, really need someone to talk to, I'm here. I hope you enjoyed the story, and it was some what inspirational. I love you guys!

October 23, 2020 21:12

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39 comments

Chloe McLellan
15:46 Jun 09, 2021

This is the thing that people who hurt themselves and don't think there lives are worth it, need to hear. I was one of those people who hurt themselves. I wish I could've heard someone, anyone say that I was worth it. Some people just don't consider people's feelings or what they might be going through. I'm sorry that your friend felt the need to hurt herself and I'm sorry you had to go through the difficulties of seeing her hurt and hurting herself. I hope that never happens again to you or your friend. This was a very inspiring and insight...

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Ari Berri
00:34 Jun 25, 2021

Aw, thank you. I haven't talked to her in a while, but I think she's doing better.

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Chloe McLellan
19:39 Aug 31, 2021

Hopefully she's doing better.

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15:28 Mar 11, 2021

This was a miserable story,... It’s quite depressing to think that some people do cut themselves, Tho the the story did end in a hopeful note =)

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Ari Berri
15:32 Mar 11, 2021

=) I'm glad you liked it.

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15:36 Mar 11, 2021

Is it Irksome that I am practically reading all of your older stories?, some authors don't like that, so just thought that I would ask

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Ari Berri
15:38 Mar 11, 2021

No it's fine. I don't like the first few because they suck, but it's fine. I didn't get lots of feedback on these, so I'm grateful when you do it.

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15:40 Mar 11, 2021

I have been noticing, most of the comments in your earlier stories are not about the stories, like, why is that?

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Ari Berri
15:49 Mar 11, 2021

I think they usually start about the story, and then we end up having a conversation.

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AntMan 🐜
00:24 Feb 09, 2021

OMB I love your stories! I like your message at the end! I am always inspired by other writers, and also, thanks for reading my bio! 🏳️‍🌈 I decided it would be nice to read yours, too!

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Ari Berri
01:18 Feb 09, 2021

Thank you!

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AntMan 🐜
02:40 Feb 09, 2021

Anytime! ❤

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Magdalene Lam
07:16 Dec 08, 2020

I think that Michael might be based on Dudley

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Magdalene Lam
07:15 Dec 08, 2020

Wait a sec, Cas is Hermione right?

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Saizen 🦜
10:27 Nov 02, 2020

I like how organic the story is. Like, the spellcasting isn't even stated explicitly, but the reader will catch on. The dialogues flow well too. While this is a self-contained story, so the details beyond may not matter, perhaps it is good to consider it a little, even if you're not directly featuring it in the story. For example, I find it strange that Michael has no qualms almost killing his brother. Considering the surroundings, he may have even been intentional. Overall, this is a nice story, keep up the good work~ P.S. Your...

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Ari Berri
14:32 Nov 02, 2020

Thank you so much for your feedback! I'd love to check out your work. Also, yes, you got the name right! Again, thank you!

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I love harry potter, and jake is like harry. Good job on the spells! (Refeez is my favorite.)

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Ari Berri
13:30 Oct 26, 2020

Thank you! All the spells are scrambled words. That's my favorite too.

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Potterhead question: Michael Corner (ravenclaw) and susan bones(huffpuff). IMMA POTTERHEADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD

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Ari Berri
14:55 Oct 29, 2020

Thank you! I love Harry Potter. Who are your favorite characters?

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Hermione and cho and ginny and luna and sirius~~~

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Ari Berri
20:17 Oct 29, 2020

Siruis, Remus, Draco, and Luna are mine.

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Ari Berri
19:29 Nov 06, 2020

I just remembered Tonks is a hufflepuff too.

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Elliot Thomas
13:19 Oct 24, 2020

This is a great story from all angles. I'm not really one for critiquing people (I've been told I'm too nice but I don't think that's quite it). Self harm is never okay because you are worth more than you think. There will always be people who care, even if it's just some random person. You demonstrated that well. The only thing I think you might need to work on is to show, not tell. I myself am trying to work on this too, but it can really help to draw out a story. Lovely piece. Keep up the good work. If nothing else, you made my morning ea...

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Ari Berri
13:50 Oct 24, 2020

Thank you so much for this! I'm glad I could help!

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Unknown User
02:46 Jan 24, 2021

<removed by user>

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Ari Berri
02:52 Jan 24, 2021

No problem. My best friend did that too, and I'm really worried about her.

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Unknown User
14:52 Jan 24, 2021

<removed by user>

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Ari Berri
15:11 Jan 24, 2021

I don't know, she hates talking about it.

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Unknown User
15:28 Jan 24, 2021

<removed by user>

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Ari Berri
15:52 Jan 24, 2021

I haven't talked to her in a while. She doesn't always answer, which freaks me out.

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Claudia Morgan
18:45 Dec 11, 2020

i like this.

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Ari Berri
20:13 Dec 11, 2020

:)

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