When class ended, Michelle and I went down to the cafeteria for lunch. She asked me to tell more about Corinna.
Michelle learned that she was a bullying victim and that her personality change stemmed from her bad experiences in childhood. I also told her that Corinna transferred to a different school and that she became an honor student.
At first Michelle was convinced about Corinna's honest story. After all, she had not done anything wrong to prove her otherwise.
But later that afternoon, Michelle and I were on the way home when we saw Corinna at the parking lot with someone else. What I witnessed was a complete 360 from what she narrated to me earlier.
We had caught a glimpse of Corinna's bad side. Instead of playing the role of victim, she was acting as the aggressor as Corinna repeatedly slapped the defenseless student while her other allies restrained her.
Corinna and her gang then whipped the student with their belts many times which induced painful screams of anguish. After that, they left her for dead.
"What was I thinking?" my bitter thoughts harbored over Corinna's despicable act. "I befriended this woman and it turned out that she was lying. It truly made a big fool out of me."
"Now you realize why I don't respect Corinna a lot," Michelle advised me. "From the moment my own two eyes glanced at her it was clear that she was not the kind of woman I want to see. Her bad girl image was evident. I mean, she wore dark makeup, a nose ring and some tattoos. That's not the ideal woman you want to get along with."
"I'm sorry Michelle," I tearfully admitted to her. You were right all along. I can't trust this woman."
Michelle escorted me to the corner, still in shock over the sudden turn of events, and waited for Corinna and her gang to come out. After they had left, we went back to the parking lot to check on the tattered victim.
What I saw was a woman whose dignity was heinously taken away. She had severe whip burns on her back and some red patches on her cheeks.
"Help me!!" the victim said in a gravelly voice.
The victim then fell unconscious, and we drove her to a nearby hospital. While doctors treated her, we checked on her bag for identification.
The victim's name was Francesca and she was a 20-year-old third-year business management student. She had long chair, pointy cheeks and large eyes.
After the doctors treated Francesca, we hurried to her bedside and waited for her to wake up. Meanwhile, doctors told us that she would be fine and that Francesca only suffered from minor bruises.
Shortly after, Francesca woke up crying and embraced us.
"Thank you for saving my life," Francesca said to us. "I would've never made it here alive if not for you two."
"We were just concerned," I responded. "A very beautiful person like you does not deserve to get bullied like that."
Michelle and I introduced ourselves to Francesca, and we contacted her parents to immediately come to her aid. Francesca then explained how she got assaulted by Corinna and her goons.
"You see, Corinna and I have known each other for a long time," Francesca began. "We were classmates from first grade onward and we were the best of pals at one point."
"Yet for whatever reason, she became consumed with jealousy as the years passed. While I worked hard to grow into a top-notch pupil, Corinna slacked off and failed to take her studies seriously. She couldn't keep up with me and as a result, our friendship became very strained."
"Still, Corinna's grades were good enough for her to make it to college. But that does not mask the fact that the gap between us grew too wide for her to overcome."
"So Francesca, what happened after that?" I asked her.
"As I made it to the dean's list, Corinna became increasingly consumed with anger," Francesca continued. "Which led to what happened today between the two of us."
"I was on my way to the parking lot and suddenly Corinna and her gang saw me. She called me out for what I thought was a simple conversation, but then Corinna ordered the gang to beat me up and that's exactly what happened."
"Corinna used to be a very decent woman," Francesca added. "But as the years went by, she shed her good-girl image in favor of a rebellious look and now Corinna's one of the bad guys. And when she beat me up, that's when it became clear that my once good friend was no longer the woman I used to know."
A distraught Francesca could not hold back her tears, and she inconsolably wept in front of us. As Michelle approached her, it became clear to me that Corinna was not the kind of woman I wanted to be friends with.
"Don't worry Francesca. We'll help you in any way we can," Michelle assured her. "Just talk to either me or Christine if you have any problems with Corinna."
Later that night, Francesca's parents arrived and thanked us for rescuing their daughter. We left the hospital afterwards, but not before we exchanged kisses and contact numbers to Francesca.
Returning home, I tearfully embraced Charissa and explained what took place between Corinna and me. She shook her head upon revealing that Corinna lied about being a bullying victim.
"My conscience can't believe it," Charissa expressed her frustration by slapping the wall in disgust. "Corinna would have been a decent friend, but she turned out to be a deceitful one."
"Sorry mother," my brittle voice speaking bitterly to Charissa as tears fell on the floor. "I merely tried my best."
"Christine, next time you must carefully choose your friends better," Charissa offered me some practical advice as I dejectedly sat down. "Not all people share the same quality. Always think twice about selecting which people you genuinely want to be friends with."
As Charissa's sermon sunk in, I returned to bed in tears, ruefully contemplating on everything that went wrong. After removing Corinna's contact number, she desperately tried contacting me twice that night but my agitated fingers quickly pressed the hang up button each time.
The following morning, I attended the 9:40 a.m. class in philosophy.
"Good morning Christine," Corinna greeted.
She gently waved her hand at me, but I spurned her. Corinna tried again but I stubbornly refused.
"We better talk outside," my grating voice sternly told Corinna.
I escorted Corinna to the comfort room for a little talk. Something horrible is about to happen.