Normally I would introduce a story with the cliche' phrase "it was a dark stormy night," but at that particular time in this particular story that was not the case. Darien had been sitting in the library when the snow began to fall. He looked up from his book to see it. "Hey Darien it's snowing outside come outside with me!" said Jessica pulling on his sleeve "alright, alright I'm coming" laughed Darien as he rose from his seat. Normally Darien was reserved, but Jessica had a certain charm and a face that he just couldn't say no to. When they went outside she tackled him in a playful manner.
He fell to the ground and she landed on top of him "and that's how you make snow angels" she said as she was getting up. He laughed and then got up. His hood was full of snow now. He smirked and threw a snowball at her and moments later a full scale snowball fight ensued. When the sun began to go down he walked her home as he had always done. "I had a lot of fun today Darien." she said as they got to her front door "me too replied Darien "goodnight" he said then he walked away without another word. As she took to doing her homework (which her teachers had piled on her in droves) she kept thinking about the day and the fact that Darien would never have allowed anyone to touch him much less tackle him, she smiled to herself and went back to her homework.
On the way home Darien wasn't even thinking about her. He had certainly had fun, but he had something else on his mind. He was thinking about his and Jessica's mutual friend Brianna. She had been committed to a mental institution years ago after trying to take her own life. Before her suicide attempt she had reported seeing strange things in the desert near the neighborhood and she had developed dark circles around her eyes from not sleeping at all. She had been put on several medications but nothing helped her and then one night it happened. She was found frantically trying to slit her own wrists and screaming about the demons outside the door. That night she was taken away and neither Jessica or Darin had seen her since. Darien remembered Brianna when they took her away she was screaming and crying and begging for them to stop her. It had been three years now, but he still remembered.
He himself had become a bit darker since that day. He had begun to wear all and hadn't stopped since that day. He was glad that he had befriended Jessica, because everything around him was so dramatic and bleak. She was a good balance to him.
As that thought crossed his mind he reached his house and went to his room. So many things had happened since Brianna had been taken away. Several relationships and all other drama that comes with high school, but when Darien thought about it all of those things seemed to become trivial when he thought about his friend locked away in a padded room.
The next day Jessica met with Darien at school and right as Darien was about to say something Jessica interrupted him and began to talk about how cruel her teachers were with the amount of homework they assign, but his mind was somewhere else and he was barely even listening. "Hey I'm talking to you!" said Jessica giving him a scolding look "sorry I was lost in thought" replied Darien "lost is right" answered Jessica and as that was said the bell rang. After school they met again. "Do you ever wonder how Brianna's doing?" asked Darien "I do but it's too horrible to think about so I just kind of tune it out. i just really hope that she's getting the help she needs." replied Jessica. They went to the library to do their homework and then he walked her home. It went on like this for three months until one day one very fateful day. Darien being the people watcher that he was heard the news before anyone Brianna had been released.
Darien was very bold, but today he was excessively so. He pushed his way through the crowd of high school students to meet up with her and he did just that. He was the first one to say hello to her since she'd been released. She threw her arms around him "I've missed you all so much" was the first thing that came out of her mouth "we missed you too" replied Darien with a sort of closure. When Jessica arrived she began to bawl "I've missed you sooo much!!!" said Jessica as she hugged Brianna "I've missed you too, but you're hurting me" said Brianna and Jessica let go, she hadn't realized just how hard she was hugging her.
The rest of the day proceeded as usual, except for the fact that Brianna joined them at lunch. She sat down and began talking as if nothing had changed. It made Darien happy to see that she was okay, but it made Jessica uneasy. She couldn't let go of what had happened and she kept on having to stop herself from asking Brianna about the institution. Brianna joined them in the library after school and on the walk home. She was acting unusually attached to Darien and somewhat over affectionate. I kind of made Jessica a little jealous. Darien walked both of the girls to their houses. When he got back he remembered his personal history with Brianna. He couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible for her being institutionalized.
They used to spend a lot of time together the three of them until Darian started taking nothing but advanced classes. That's when he began going to the library. Suddenly he didn't have the time to spend with her anymore and she started falling in with a bad crowd. Brianna had always been prone to depression and these people offered a temporary solution, prescription medications. Darien didn't think anything of it at the time, but her depression and mental state only got worse as time went on and with prescription drugs causing half of the problem she only saw one way out and that was suicide. He suspected that on some level she hadn't forgiven him. Things went on as usual for several weeks until one day
Darian didn't show up at the library, he had gone strait home to see his uncle who had flown out for a visit.
Jessica and Brianna began to walk home together. "Hey I know a shortcut" said Brianna "okay let's go" said Jessica hesitantly and followed Brianna Jessica was shaken with fear when she realized that Brianna had led her into a dark alleyway. Jessica turned around "Brianna I don't like-" she was interrupted by a blunt blow to the head. Brianna had hit her across the back of the head with a metal pipe knocking her to the ground. Jessica looked up horrified and tried to get up, but right as she got to her knees Brianna hit her hard in the back with the same pipe. "Brianna it's me Jessica!!!" she cried out in agony "I know who you are and I know what I'm doing" replied Brianna coldly and kicked Jessica in the stomach. The kick was so hard it made Jessica begin to spit up. "What have I ever done to you?!?" cried Jessica between coughs "well first of all you didn't do anything to help me when I was taken away!" said Brianna as she picked Jessica up by the hair "It wasn't my fault there was nothing I could-" Jessica was interrupted "shut up you didn't help me you never wrote me you never did anything. I waited every day for at least one piece of mail from you or Darian and everyday I was heartbroken. Every day they told me I was crazy they locked me in a jacket and locked me in a padded room for THREE YEARS!!! My parents never visited they were too ashamed to and I hoped I might get some solace from my friends, but no I got nothing!!!" said Brianna then punched Jessica in the solar plexus. The blow caused Jessica to cough up blood.
At this point Jessica was in too much pain to even talk "now here's what's going to happen. You're going to stop talking to Darian and you're going to disappear like you were never even there" Brianna finished and Jessica was in too much pain to say anything. Brianna walked away and after about an hour Jessica was able to walk home. When her parents asked her why she was so late she simply replied "I had a lot of homework." She was hurt physically, but more emotionally one of her best friends had just beaten her and told her to disappear not only that she caused her to lie to her parents. Jessica hated lying, when she got to her room she locked her door lied down on her bed and cried herself to sleep.
After a few weeks of not talking Darian noticed something was amiss, and when he asked Jessica about it she simply said that she just had a lot of work to do. In that time Darian was completely oblivious to what had happened and he had even begun to date Brianna. Jessica had never hated anyone in her life before, but now she knew what it felt like. She hated Brianna for what she did. She forced her not to see her best friend physically beat her made her feel vulnerable and now she was regularly lying to Darian. Every night now Jessica would cry herself to sleep. She started wearing black. One night after seeing Brianna kiss Darian and then give a smirk towards her Jessica finally snapped. At home she tore off the heads of her stuffed animals crying and screaming (luckily her parents weren't home.)
The next day Jessica went to talk to Darian and she stayed with him every chance she got. Brianna got in the way several times and scowled at Jessica. That afternoon Jessica knew Brianna was going to come after her, and she didn't know what she was going to do. Sure enough Brianna came after her. "You know what I told you" shouted Brianna "I don't care!!" retorted Jessica and with that Brianna pulled a knife out of her purse and tried to stab Jessica. Jessica managed to escape the knife a couple times, but eventually Brianna managed to stab her in the arm, and little did Jessica know it, but this would be a blessing in disguise. Jessica screamed in agony from the knife, and her scream did not go unheard. Darian came running out and saw what was happening. Immediately he knew what was going on. Brianna's jealous nature, Jessica not talking to him. It all made sense now. He ran at Brianna and disarmed her. He tackled her to the ground and held down her wrists "Jessica call the police!!" he shouted and she did. Minutes later they heard sirens. The police took Brianna away "This isn't over!!!" she screamed as the police put her in the car.
Neither Darian or Jessica went to school the next day. Instead they both stayed at her house and watched movies together. They made no attempt to pretend they weren't hurt and they didn't try to pretend the whole thing never happened. They had both come to the conclusion that they would go visit Brianna in juvenile hall, even though she hated them both it might help bring back some of her sanity. While the snow came falling down as it had been Darian remembered a quote. Triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing