Chapter 87 - Eighty Six: Conflicts

Sometimes people's lives aren't what the seem to be. Sometimes the people we thought had perfect lives were actually fighting their own battles. They have their own internal conflicts. No one is perfect and those who seem to be, just have ways of hiding their problems better.

This was a lesson Becca learnt her whole life. A lesson she was still learning. At some point it felt like the gospel truth while other times it just seemed like an excuse people tell themselves to justify how shitty their lives were.

At different points in Becca's life, she had seen it as the truth and also a shitty excuse but talking to Raquel, spending time with her somehow made the saying sound more like the truth.

Raqual Gonzalez, the girl everyone back in highschool wanted to be. The queen bee. The popular rich child everyone wanted to be friends with, even Becca at a time wanted to be friends with her.

Well that was before Raquel circulated that horrible rumor.

Raquel was the object of every girl's fantasy. Everyone wanted to be her and you could just imagine the surprise Becca got when Raquel said she always wanted to be her. That she had been jealous of what Becca had, her family and now even her brother.

" What about you modeling gigs? You know, the ones you always bragged about." Becca mused, loving how surprisingly soft their conversation had been going.

Sadness flickered in Raquel's eyes for a second before she met Becca's gaze and forced a smile.

" My father saw it was a complete waste of time." She tried to maintain her composure so Becca wouldn't notice but the low tone of her voice exposed her. It gave out just how much of a mess she truly was.

" But you always said back then that your father was your greatest supporter and how he wanted you to become the next Lara Stone. What happened?" Becca questioned and Raquel let out a sigh.

" I thought so too but I guess that was then. As soon as I turned nineteen, he sat me down and told me that my all time dream was just a dream. That I should wake up and come back to the real world." Raquel said softly, casting her eyes to the table again as that was what she always did whenever she was nervous and sad.

" So he told you to join the family business because it would be more practical and productive, right?" Becca asked and Raquel raised her head to look at her, blinking.

" Yes, how did you—"

" Know? Oh please, this isn't the first case of overbearing parents I have heard of or even witnessed. My brother had the same problem with my dad when he was younger. He loved painting and always wanted to become an artist but my father said over his dead body and pushed Johnny until he took over the business." Becca narrated and a smile formed on Raquel's lips. 

" Both me and Johnny had daddy issues, even more reason why we should end up together." Raquel's smile widened into a grin while Becca's eyes rolled to the back of her head so hard, she almost saw her brain.

Their little lunch date concluded with Becca being taken back to Atlas by Martino, only to enter her office and see Navaya once again sitting on her chair.

" If you don't like your office anymore, all you have to do is just tell me." Becca said after catching the heart that jumped out of her chest.

Navaya, who sat leaning back on Becca's office chair, pursed her lips. She had her feet on top of the desk and her hands supporting the back of her head and with the way she sat, one would think she actually owned the place.

" What did that witch do to you?" Navaya questioned, still sitting in the same position and Becca snorted.

" I will tell you when you get your feet off my desk." Becca said, walking towards the couch and Navaya instantly dropped her feet to the floor, afraid of losing the juicy gossip.

" Done. Now spill it." Navaya demanded as though it was her birth right and she was actually entitled to the gist and since Becca wasn't in the mood to argue with her, she relented. She knew she wouldn't win against Navaya's gossip-hungry stomach.

" Lunch went great actually." Becca answered, a small smile forming on her lips as she recalled the time she spent with Raquel.

Perhaps she wasn't so bad after all.

" By went great, you mean you kicked her ass when she tried to insult or hurt you, right?" Navaya asked, raising her right eyebrow and Becca turned to look at her.

" I mean she was nice, friendly even and there was definitely no ass kicking." 

" Ha! Raquel was nice? Friendly even? What is the world turning into?" Navaya chuckled. " So what are we going to call that?"

" Maturity. We will call it maturity because believe it or not, Navaya, but people do really shitty things when they are young and foolish. I did shitty things too." Becca shrugged, the memory of how she used to act like a bitch to Navaya and Kyle, resurfacing. How she shut her heart to the world. " I was just as horrible as Raquel was." 

" No, Becca. You weren't. You were hurt and grieving. Your case was completely understandable but what about Raquel, what was her excuse for making people in school to term you as 'the lesbian'." Navaya stood up from the chair she had been sitting on and walked towards Becca.

Being a lesbian wasn't bad in anyway at all but the school was headed by a Catholic priest who ran it with strict norms that used to frown on such practices and the fact that most of the people that attended it were Roman Catholics, Becca include, didn't make it any easy for her.

Not everyone was open minded and those that aren't were a real pain in the ass. Though the LGBT+ community was now gaining the recognition and acceptance that they deserve, some people, still till this day, hate on them. Some people that were full of shit that is.

Imagine how Becca felt whenever left her dorm to walk through the school grounds, whether it was to class, to the chapel or just to take a quick stroll, and saw people at the corners staring, gossiping and giggling at her.

The frowns she would get from the reverend sisters whenever she walked passed them. The prickling pain in her chest as the same thing happened over and over again for three years of her life.

Yeah, it wasn't so fun. Most especially because it wasn't even true to begin with.

Though Becca hadn't been attracted to a guy back then or anyone from the male species for that matter, she still didn't feel anything for girls either. Not even a tingle.

She wasn't attracted to either and that was why the rumor hurt more, because it was a lie.

Becca was living just fine thinking she was a being lacking a sexuality but when the lie leaked out, everything changed. People looked at her differently, not the good type of different, and it had all been Raquel's fault.

" Have you ever thought about whether Raquel had her reasons for acting that way?" Becca didn't even know why she was defending Raquel like that. Her actions were strange, even to her. Why was she defending Raquel? Why was Becca trying to put herself in Raquel's shoes?

Why was Becca suddenly seeing herself in Raquel?

It was crazy, both of them were completely different— that was what Becca thought before having lunch with Raquel at today. Right now... Right now Becca didn't know anymore. She didn't know what to think but one thing was for sure and it was that Raquel wasn't as bad as she seemed.

" She's a witch and witches don't need an excuse to be evil." Navaya folded her arms. "Just one lunch date with her and you are already defending her every action."

Becca blinked before speaking. " I'm not defending anyone. All I'm saying is that no one is born bad, there has to be an inciting incident." Becca explained and Navaya's jaw clenched.

" Fuck her inciting incident, we all have issues. I don't care what she went through, it still didn't give her the right to treat us like dirt." Navaya gritted and all Becca did was stare at her before letting out a sign.

The lunch date might have helped Becca understand Raquel more but it didn't mean Navaya would. 

Navaya's hatred ran deeper than her own veins and for some reason, Becca actually hoped that her friend would see passed the anger she felt towards Raquel and let go of the past.

The thought sounded kinda weird to Becca, someone who had clutched on to hurt and guilt for six years. Someone who used to tell herself that happiness wasn't for her.

Someone who kept people out for years.. Who was she to advise Navaya to let go of the anger and hate when she herself was still finding herself.