Chapter 29: Corinna Reveals Herself
"Christine, allow me to tell you who I really am," Corinna eagerly opened the conversation. "I was a bullying victim too."
"Really?" I asked Corinna. "Tell me what happened."
Corinna started off by narrating how she was cruelly treated by her own classmates in school as a fifth grader.
In her recollection, Corinna tearfully revealed that she was constantly ignored and rebuked by her classmates while attempting to join their group. They saw Corinna as an 'ugly duckling' that does not have what it takes to be a lady.
To make matters worse, Charissa's classmates called her a 'disgusting piece of crap' and a 'poor and ugly SOB'. They even went as far as playing an ugly prank on Corinna.
She recalled one particular moment when one classmate poured a tub of water behind Corinna's back.
"There was this girl who sneaked from behind and suddenly dropped a tub of water on me," Corinna said, her eyes leaking with tears. "My uniform and my whole body were so wet and I was so angry and annoyed that I refused to come back to class."
Eventually, with the urging of her class adviser, Corinna reluctantly made her way back to class. But the damage had been done.
After only a few months, Corinna's parents came to school and told the principal that they would withdraw her from school without further notice. While the principal eventually kicked out the offender responsible for the cruel prank on Corinna, she still left school anyway, never to return again.
"Christine, I felt so severely depressed at the time that taking my life became an unexpected option," she looked back at that emotional moment. "I wanted to have a decent education so bad, but the demands of social life snatched all the joy away."
At this point Corinna started to cry. Her tears melted some of the black eye-shadow off her eyes.
After hugging Corinna and telling her to unleash all of her pent-up emotion, she continued on with her story. This time the mood went from gloom to cheerful in a matter of minutes.
Determined to give her a second chance, Corinna's parents transferred her to a different school which was not far from the campus she previously attended. This time, however, she managed to fit in well with her new classmates.
"Upon moving to a new school, I thought I would receive a frosty reception," Corinna wistfully recalled. "Instead, my new classmates were more than willing to hang out and talk to me, and I enjoyed every moment of it."
Corinna's new classmates were also girls who were two years younger than her. But unlike her former classmates, they were not concerned about being beautiful and elegant; instead, they only aimed for academic excellence and nothing else.
Corinna thrived in her new surroundings and she eventually finished in the top 20 of her class in grade school. The same can also be said in high school where Corinna ended in the top 20 as well.
"Those were some of my best moments I ever experienced," Corinna related to me. "My new classmates helped me work hard on my education, and I got rewarded with it."
Corinna also excelled in debate competitions during high school. She was also a two-time poetry and declamation winner.
Still, not even a new environment prevented Corinna from escaping her troubled past. On a few occasions after class, Corinna went face to face with her former classmates who continued to taunt her at every turn.
"I still have nightmares from my old school every now and then," Corinna recalled. "But I largely ignored it because those new classmates wanted me to concentrate more on my studies and nothing else."
When Corinna entered college, she became determined to leave her troubled past behind. Corinna cut her hair short, inked some tattoos and began to dress in goth-inspired clothing.
Corinna and I went to her condominium unit thinking that she would change clothes. Instead, she took off her black shirt for a moment to reveal some tattoos and a navel ring.
Corinna's upper back tattoo is of her own name written in a Gothic-style lettering. She then showed me two more of them: a broken red heart near her right breast and three stars on her left abdomen.
"Gosh, you really changed a lot," I remarked on Corinna's personal transformation. "You went from nice to naughty this quick."
"Actually Christine I'm still a pretty nice person deep down," Corinna responded. "People sometimes misunderstood me for my choice of clothing, but who cares? I'm comfortable with my choice of outfits."
After putting on her shirt back, Corinna went to the balcony to smoke. Despite offering me one or two sticks of cigarettes, I refused her offer and told her of my dislike towards cigarette smoke.
Shortly after, we went back to campus and continued our conversation. Just then, Corinna encountered Michelle fresh from basketball practice.
"Who's this girl?" Michelle remarked about Corinna. "She looked more unconventional than most other girls."
"Michelle, don't get me wrong. This lady always wanted to look like a rebel because that's who she really is," I answered back. "In fact she is my classmate from creative writing class. Her name is Corinna."
After she had politely introduced herself to Michelle, the three of us strolled leisurely through the hallway. But it was already 11:10 a.m. and Corinna had a class to attend.
"Christine, sorry but I have to go," Corinna announced to me. "I have class coming up in a few."
"Oh well," I replied earnestly. "We can communicate some other time, perhaps in class tomorrow. What can you say?"
"Why not?" Corinna smilingly assured me before walking gently to her classroom. "See you soon then."
After Corinna departed from our sights, Michelle and I were on our way to a different class. But Michelle still harbored personal doubts over her.
"Christine, I'm unsure about Corinna, though," Michelle wondered bitterly. "She acted very nice, but something about her ticked me off."
"Don't worry about it," I assured a doubtful Michelle. "It was her conscious decision to dress like that, but she's still a remarkably kind person to talk along with."
"Hope she stays like that," Michelle reluctantly accepted.
It was off to media ethics class for us. Yet in spite of my continued assurance regarding Corinna, Michelle remains uncertain of her.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
ralphierce
ralphierce Corinna's backstory has been revealed to Christine. But Michelle still has doubts over Corinna's personality. Can she cope up with it? That's coming up on Chapter 30.
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