Class Villainess

"Whoa, why are you here, Noah?" Mona asked. She glanced at me and then smiled, "Are you Noah's new girlfriend?"

"Uh…" I looked at Noah, asking for an explanation because I was so lost here. 

Noah scratched his head and replied, "She is my friend today because we want to ask a few things."

"… well, you know that I'm busy working nowadays, right?" Mona said it seemed that she tried to dodge us today. I was more intrigued by this weird relationship between her and Noah, though. 

They seemed to be closer than I expected. 

"Oh, come on, we are here because I can't contact you. Did you block my number?" Noah asked.

"Well, sort of. Don't take it personally though, I did that to anyone I am over with," Mona replied. 

Now the way they chatted reminded me of… a couple, well, maybe an ex-couple?"

"That's why we came here today because we want to ask you something," Noah insisted. I was still stunned by his relaxed nature around Mona. 

"Fine, I'll talk to you guys later. Just order something first, so I can justify talking with you guys for a few seconds," Mona said. 

We finally ordered something and then waited for Mona to finish her work, probably also waiting for the cafe to be less crowded, so she could rest and talk with us. 

We waited for almost two hours until we had to order another cake and warm tea until the cafe got emptier. Mona finally walked in our direction.

She already put down that apron acting as a cafe uniform and then sat with us. 

"So, what do you guys want to know?" Mona asked. "I mean, if it's about my job here and whether someone would report my parents for working a minor, then just shut it. My parents will just say that I am helping them. It's not child labor if I don't get paid."

Yeah, that wasn't child labor. That was child slavery.

I glanced at Noah, signaling him to start the conversation since he was the one who knew Mona better than me. They were neighbors, too, right?

"Well, we are here to get some information about… Elise," Noah said. 

"Elise?" Mona frowned after hearing that name. She became defensive immediately, shown by her body gesture that seemed to back off from us. "What do you want to know? Then my answer depends on that."

"We…" Noah gulped, then darted his eyes at me, urging me to speak instead. I knew this was something that would be better talked about between girls, so I nodded and told Noah, "You can leave first, Noah. It's a girls' talk."

Noah left the cafe and waited in his car, so I could speak with Mona.

Mona seemed to be more relaxed with only me here, "Phew, thanks for taking him out. Elise's problem is too sensitive to be talked with boys. It's so severe as well."

I nodded, "My name is Emmelyn from junior batch this year. I came here with Noah because I heard that his friend named Mona knows what happened with Elise?"

"Why do you want to know about Elise's case anyway? Wait, how did you know it in the first place? What connection do you have with her?" Mona continued asking me.

I understood and even praised her intention, though. She was being guarded and careful about her best friend's secret. 

I wished I had someone like her in my life, a best friend who could keep my secret, unlike Cerise, who would act so dependent and trustable. But turned out, she would sell me out just to save herself. 

I didn't want to conceal my intention because I guessed both of us already knew the root of the problem, "I want to know more about what those three bastards, Thomas, Jorge, and Jackson, did to her. I think we both know they are the culprit, right?"

Mona was surprised. I could see that she was also grieving with this problem. She let out a deep sigh and replied with a lower voice, "At least you believe what those three bastards did to my best friend."

"Do tell in detail, don't worry, you and I have the same hatred to them."

Mona took a deep breath and started her story, "It was around a month ago, Elise is my best friend, and she's not really the type who clicks well with many people."

"Elise is a frontal and blunt person, and she doesn't need anyone to support her statement, even if it's controversial. Because she knows what she said is a fact. That's why I can hang out with her because both of us aren't really the type to play a childish game like Barbie and her goons."

"It was about a month ago, she told me, that she had a small argument with a girl from her class named Natasha. It was just a small argument in Elise's opinion because Natasha is coming to the class so late, like… thirty minutes before the class end, kind of late. She just brazenly entered the class while ignoring the teacher. When the teacher confronted her about her behavior, all she said was, 'Sir, I have something else to do than your useless class. My dad is a donator in this school. You know you'll get in trouble for scolding me, right?' And the teacher was literally powerless against her."

"Then, Elise just blurted out in front of her face, saying, 'Your Daddy's donation won't save you from failing this class.' And then everyone laughed at Natasha."

"Natasha didn't want to lose, and both of them argued, even though everyone was already in Elise's side at that point. Because what Natasha did was simply ridiculous and rude to the teacher."

"But Natasha didn't take this kindly. She wants to give Elise a punishment. That's why she hired those three bastards to eat up and shame Elise."

"I don't know the exact command that Natasha gave to them. But those three bastards wouldn't do anything that wasn't in their agreements. They are like high school hitmen, ruthless and money-oriented."

"But they did beat Elise up when she was walking back after school. And after she beat her to pulp…." Mona paused, thinking of the horrible thing she'd say next. "They stripped her shirt and fondled with her breast and inner thighs."

"Elise was already too weak after she got beaten up, but she could hear their laughs, and she knew it was those bastards, Thomas, Jorge, and Jackson."

"She couldn't fight anymore, and after she recovered, she fixed her shirt and walked to her room. She never wants to speak about what they did to her, especially the sexual assault part…."

"How about her parents? Did she tell her parents?" I asked.

"No, she doesn't want to. Because she knows her parents would report it to the police and make a big ruckus about it. She doesn't want the entire school to know what she had been sexually assaulted because she's afraid of getting bullied because of it."

"But in the end, the pain and guilt got inside of her, and she started having some mental issues. She doesn't even want to go out of her room because she's so ashamed and scared. I am the only one who can go inside because she won't allow anybody else…." Mona explained.

"They want to take her to a psychologist, but she just refused and became a social recluse. She told me yesterday via a call that she will drop out of school because she can't handle the pain."

"I already told her that she should at least report those three bastards to the police. But you know what's going to happen, right?"

"They will get expelled at best?"

"Yep, and believe me, Thomas, Jorge, and Jackson don't care much about it in the first place," Mona explained. "We live in the same neighborhood, and I know those three. Even if they get expelled, they will find some way to just play around and screw more people's lives."

I understood what she meant by that. People like them wouldn't care much about getting expelled. They'd just find a way to play around again, and even worse, probably would target Elise for reporting and expelling them. 

"That is the problem with Elise right now. I'm glad that someone other than me believes in her story," Mona said. "I just can't believe how much pain she bears right now. And I don't know how to help her!"

"I know how to avenge Elise. Well, it was a primitive method, but it would work. Of course, I need your help too, Mona."

"Huh? Me? What kind of help do you want? And why do you want to avenge her in the first place?"

"Well, Noah also has problems with them. They are bullying and beating him as well," I had to drag Noah in this because Mona seemed to have some attachment to Noah. 

"Ah, even Noah got bullied, huh? That's weird."