Musings of an Invisible Girl

MUSINGS OF AN INVISIBLE GIRL

By

SANG KROMAH

The back row at a concert is an awful location; loud, obnoxious, with no view of the show. But the back row of a classroom is real estate heaven. You hear, but are rarely heard, and you see, but are rarely seen, which makes my seat in Mr. Steven’s class an ideal location for an invisible spectator like me, Phoebe Coleman.

Liberty Falls High is like your typical suburban high school to the untrained eye, but spending three years as a social pariah among a group of seemingly vapid counterparts, you find out that everything isn’t always as it seems.

Truth be told, I wasn’t aware of just how invisible I was until elementary school. In the third grade, Isabel Robinson and Joey Trumble had an argument, and when our teacher, Mrs. Scott, who the class referred to as “Roly Poly”, finally decided to intervene, she discovered they were arguing over the definition of the words invincible and invisible.

Joey claimed that Superman was invisible, while Isabel argued that he meant Superman was invincible. Mrs. Scott, who rarely left her seat for any reasons other than lunch, mandatory fire drills, and dismissals, semi-enthusiastically wobbled her rotund polka dot covered posterior to the bookshelf to extract a dictionary that was so dusty it had to be wiped by a wet cloth in order to confirm that it was, in fact, a dictionary.

Mrs. Scott then proceeded to send the two students up to the blackboard to define the two words before the class. Isabel defined invincible as being too powerful to be defeated. Joey grudgingly approached the board, defining invisible as unable to be seen.

Once Mrs. Scott declared Isabel as the winner of the argument, the class applauded her as she perkily gloated and made her way back to her seat. Joey, on the other hand, wasn’t willing to be a graceful loser, so rather than walking quietly to his seat, he erased the definition of invisible, and wrote Phoebe Coleman as the definition of the word, prompting the entire class to stop cheering for Isabel. They all abruptly turned to the back of the classroom to look at me. The laughter then erupted.

After that day, the invisible jokes became endless until I faded into the obscurity of the background, truly becoming the “invisible girl”.

It’s obvious my existence had never been a threat to anyone, but a girl like Sophie Crane was quite the contrary, crossing boundaries and breaking rules at any expense, but this time a line was crossed and there was no going back.

Liberty Falls is a dark place. Dark, not only because it’s veiled by fog so heavy it has frightened the sun away for the last seven years, but dark because one way or another, people tend to mysteriously disappear from this place so frequently that it rarely ever made the news.

Maybe the fog was somehow sucking the residents out of the town, or maybe there was a less supernatural culprit, but the right questions are never asked. And more importantly, the right person has never been asked.

Me, being called to the principal’s office was something that never happened, so when the principal, Mrs. Chatham, sent for me, I was perplexed.

Upon entering the perfume drenched box of an office, my eyes fell upon a boy that looked painfully out of place in a town where everyone dressed as if they were trying to match the ominousness of the fog.

His face was the personification of the sun with skin so tanned it almost appeared to be gold. The exuberance of his spirit beamed from the simplicity of his smile.

He had one of those rare, genuine smiles—the kind that somehow hugged you from a distance even with no physical interaction once that smile was directed at you.

I returned the smile, briefly forgetting who I was and more importantly, where I was. Once his smile faded, reality began to set in, and the warmth of his presence quickly dissipated, being replaced by the moroseness that flooded the oxygen in Liberty Falls.

In most places, being different or unique makes you special, but being special here made you a target—a sitting duck—who at any moment could be the next on a long list of bright lights silenced far too soon.

“Phoebe Coleman, I’d like you to meet our new transfer student, Roman Hart,” Ms. Chatham introduced, with a glimmer in her eyes that told me she thought he was attractive as well. “I want you to show him around.”

It didn’t take long for Roman to find his footing. His name alone gave him attention, but he had the personality to match; outgoing, and artistic. He was magnetic.

I was assigned to Roman for a week, but after the first day, he knew his way around and everyone knew him.

Maybe it was magic. Maybe it was because I was simply fascinated by all things Roman. Maybe I will never know, but things quickly began to change in Liberty Falls. His smile did something to people. I know it did something to me, because whenever that smile was directed at me, I no longer felt invisible. He became my only friend.

The change started with the school, and slowly the rest of the town began to follow suit, becoming brighter…more vibrant. Roman’s presence brought out the best in everyone…well, all except one.

Mr. Asher Stevens—our third period English teacher.

Mr. Stevens was one of those teachers who seemed too cool for school. He was pretty young in comparison to the other teachers. Fresh out of the town’s Teachers’ College, Mr. Stevens had one thing in common with Roman, they didn’t belong here. He looked like the type who would do well in a big city; the kind of place, where there was enough room for everyone to shine.

Mr. Stevens was beautiful for a man, turning heads as he walked, but even with his young coolness factor, and his insistence for students to call him Ash, his light was ominously overshadowed by the natural and unforced brightness that was Roman.

The competitiveness of the situation began as a weighted endeavor with Ash taking the lead in a turf war he fought alone, and with Roman being unconcerned and blind to the juvenile antics of an adult, who should have known better.

Soon the object of every girl’s affection was no longer a teacher, who seemed too young to be a teacher. All girls—and some boys, who would never want to admit—were in love with Roman.

Roman was winning—effortlessly—without even knowing it.

When October came around, the school was abuzz with endless chatter about the homecoming dance’s Sadie Hawkins theme.

“Have you asked anyone out for homecoming yet?” Roman asked as we walked to school; something that had become habitual since his first week at school.

I only laughed, embarrassed to look at him full on.

Roman still looked at me expectantly.

“It’s not really my thing.” I said quickly stealing a glance to inquire if he was still looking at me.

He was.

“You should ask, you know?! You never know, who could be interested.” For the first time since we’d met, his voice was uneven. He almost sounded nervous.

At school that day, our conversation replayed in my mind. Just when I had worked up the courage to ask Roman to be my date, I was interrupted by Sophie Crane with her perfect blonde hair, long model-like legs, and shapely physique that held the attention of Mr. Stevens during school hours, and occasionally on the weekends.

By the end of third period, I was completely crushed by Sophie’s announcement of Roman being her date to the dance.

I fell back as Roman and Sophie made their exit. To Roman’s credit, he did ask me to join them, but I mentioned something about asking Mr. Stevens for extra credit. But the look on Mr. Steven’s face bordered being crushed and a burning rage that transformed his features from attractive to increasingly frightening.

I didn’t go home after school. I stayed in the gym, working on a paper that wasn’t due for two weeks. They came in droves in their inappropriate dresses, and the boys wore pants so tight that I probably wouldn’t have been able to fit into them.

Roman, on the other hand, was pure perfection with bright yellow blazer that made his black ensemble stand out. I had to smile at him even though I knew tears would follow in the not so distant future. I tried my best not to look at Sophie, but she became an additional appendage of Roman’s, unwilling to let him go.

Mr. Stevens seemed to be having the same problem as he was unusually quiet, watching the two with disdain so great, it frightened away those who attempted to greet the usually chipper young man.

As the night progressed, I made my way out of the gym once the couple of the night was nowhere in sight.

Under the street lights and fog of Liberty Falls, two figures were being trailed by a figure who seemed to be sticking to the shadows.

My approach quickened almost to a run as my instincts screamed for me to follow the figures. My heart rate accelerated as one of the figures dropped. The other two seemed to meld into the thickness of the fog, leaving the smaller figure alone on the ground.

Speed walking soon became a run as I sprinted to find an unconscious Sophie on the ground.

My fingers trembled as I apprehensively knelt to check if she was breathing. Before my hand could even meet her pale skin, I knew what the answer would be. Her head was at an awkward angle. She looked like what my Barbie used to look like after a run in with my younger brother. Her neck was most likely broken and her limbs were gracelessly positioned.

She was dead.

Paranoia kicked in as I wondered where Roman was and who the other figure was. I backed away from the body, looking around for signs of life. Nothing.

I began to run once again. The right thing to do would have been to run back to the gym to call for help, but since Sophie was already dead, trying to find Roman seemed to be the most sensible path to take at the moment.

As I ran, branches became clawed hands reaching for me. Maybe my guardian angel was trying to warn me to stop, but I didn’t heed the warning. I proceeded as the branches proceeded to scratch my face and my arms. It was a cold night, but I believe the shivering was more out of fear than the possible hypothermia that was eminent as I wore a thin cotton shirt.

“You’ve messed with the wrong one.”

The voice was one that I didn’t expect to hear, but didn’t necessarily shock me.

It was Mr. Stevens. Now I could make out the two figures; Mr. Stevens and Roman, but Roman was different. Yes, he was tall, but he somehow seemed taller…mightier. The brightness that I once believed was only apparent to me was now unmistakable. An ethereal light shot from his pours as he stood there no longer looking like the student. He looked like the superior being while Mr. Stevens looked like the student.

“I think you’re mistaken.” Roman’s voice was oddly somber as he spoke. He never yelled or even raise his voice, and yet I could hear him as clearly as if he stood right beside me. “This was your chance to redeem yourself, Asher, but once again, you’ve failed.”

I could see the rage building up in Mr. Stevens before he even spoke.

“Redeem myself? Who do you think you are?”

“You know who I am. I have tested you time and time again, and you fail every single time, bringing darkness upon your own town.” Though Roman’s voice was calm, the disdain in his tone was distinctive. “Every seven years, you are tested, and every seven years, you fail. You’re running out of chances.”

Mr. Stevens rushed forward, fists raised to deliver a massive blow to Roman, but with a swiftness that was inhumanly possible, Roman simply stepped to the right to avoid the punch, sending Mr. Stevens clumsily to the ground.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I…”

Before he could complete his statement of denial, Roman raised his hand to stop him.

“Your victims are too many to name, but since your seventh year, I have come to test you, hoping to have enough of an impact on you to change you, but you never learn.”

“That is a lie. I have never done this before.” Rage exited his voice, being replaced by a desperate surge of panic.

“You killed Isabell Freedman when you were only seven. Julie Alvarez when you were fourteen. Sabrina Cooper when you were twenty one. And now, Sophie Crane at age twenty eight.” Roman’s voice was so certain of what he was saying. He possessed a stoic confidence as he spoke. “I was there. Never the same as before, but I was there.”

Mr. Stevens put an end to the useless pretense of denial, his features taking on a sinister edge. He smiled.

“So what? Are you the judge and executioner, who’s going to hold me accountable for my actions?” He was laughing now.

“No.” Roman said simply. “I come every seven years in hopes of proving people can change, and you prove me wrong every time.”

I slowly began to walk towards the two figures, not caring that they would see me. Not caring that what I was hearing was an impossibility.

“This town is cursed because of you. Have you noticed that every time you have tried to leave, something happens to intercept your plans? You always wanted to go to NYU and you were accepted, but you stayed here. You got a job offer in San Francisco, and yet, here you are.” Roman’s voice was now raised, and though I knew I had nothing to fear from him, I knew Mr. Stevens had a reason to fear him. “This town is your prison, and it will remain so until you learn a lesson.”

“Or maybe my curse will break once you’re gone.” Mr. Steven pulled out a hunting knife that looked far from being new.

“Roman.” I couldn’t help myself. I felt the dire urge to do something, but all I could think to do was to say his name aloud.

My voice seemed to break the mental hold Roman had on Mr. Stevens. Once again, Roman appeared to be the Roman I had gotten close to…the Roman I had fallen for.

A smile came to his face and he cupped my chin gently.

I don’t know why, but this time, instead of wanting to return the smile, when I looked into his eyes, I began to cry.

He removed my glasses, wiping away my tears with his gentle fingers. He then threw my glasses off into the distance.

“You won’t need them again.” He said reassuringly before I could even protest.

And he was right; I could see.

“Now go.” Roman said, once again something changed about him and he was mightier than before. Brighter than before. More ethereal than ever. “Leave this town, and no matter what you hear, don’t ever look back.”

“Will I see you again?” I asked, but Roman looked away from me like I was no longer there, and Mr. Steven went on ignoring me as though he never knew I was there.

I heeded his warning, running as though my life depended on it. I left behind screams of torture and horrific cries of terror as I ran, only stopping once I made it across the bridge, and entered the next town.

The sun began to rise once I made it to a gas station. It was weird. I had never seen the sun before, and I smiled, because it felt like Roman was smiling at me.

“Can I help you?” An old man asked as I made my way into the gas station.

“Was there anything on the news about Liberty Falls?” I asked, running out of breath.

“The cemetery?” The old man with the rickety mouth asked.

“No. The town, Liberty Falls.” I corrected.

“That ain’t no town. Unless you mean a town full of dead bodies.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but shut it, not keen on arguing with the man.

He was right. Liberty Falls had always been a cemetery, I just never realized it. I could’ve turned back to see what I had really left behind, but the sun was in front of me and instincts told me to follow the sun. So I did, and never looked back.