Before another word could be said, Jonie appeared. I hadn’t seen her in days, but there she stood creating another barrier between us. She spun around to face him, a viciousness set in her eyes. “I explained something to you over the weekend, yet here you are doing this shit.” Her words were furiously whispered before she grabbed me by the hand and all but yanked me from the cafeteria. I followed without protest, shame washing over me at the thought of what she may have told him and how our little scene had looked to our audience of onlookers. The whispers followed us until we hit the door—nothing less than expected by this point. Jayden and I had put on quite the show without giving any resolution or so much as an explanation for the fire that had sparked between us. It would be interesting to hear the theories they came up with for our tragically derailed interaction we’d been all too eager to participate in just moments before. I resolved to ask Jonie what she’d explained to J
At the door, I heard talking coming from the other side. Jonie rule #4: if you hear talking behind a closed door, don’t make any sudden movements. Get whatever information you can to inform yourself further. Carefully, I pressed my ear to the door. “She asked you to be her date to the dance?” Erin was furious. Peering through the keyhole, I found her pacing back and forth in agitation while the others watched with varying degrees of concern. “Not exactly,” Jayden said. He wasn’t too far away, leaning against the table by Jonie’s seat. “What was your reply?” She asked, flashing around to face him. “I refused, more or less,” he said with a shrug. “Why?” Sydney was just as distraught as Erin had been, though for evidently different reasons. I didn’t know I’d grown enough in her esteem for her to defend me in my absence. It was as curious as the conversation I listened in on. “What do you mean why?” Erin shot back. “Jayden’s my date, no questions asked. That’s how it’s always been
Erin rolled her eyes at the childish retort. “Anyway,” Seth said, regaining the attention of the others, “it would be quite the inconvenience for Jayden if he decides to reconsider. He’s already told her no; if he changes his mind, he’ll have to go back to Kai, and she’ll make him beg.” Not…a wholly inaccurate deduction. “Furthermore, if she’s as wary of guys as Jonie’s tried to paint her out to be, he won’t be begging in private. She’ll want an audience to feel safe and that’s the sort of damage he could do without.” Yet another…fair deduction. “I never thought of that,” Jayden said, now mulling over all his friend had laid out. “You’re a dirty rat, Seth Robinson,” Sydney said, moving beyond the level of patience she possessed for the matter. “The only reason you’re so hell bent on Jayden not changing his mind is so you can ask Kai yourself.” The boy straightened in his seat, looking positively scandalised by her accusation. “Me? I wanna ask Kai?” “It’s what you were plucking u
The front halls were eerily empty. I looked down at my watch, both verifying I hadn’t shown up on a weekend and that I’d arrived at a normal hour. My eyes blurred, distorting my vision, and making it impossible to view the analogue face I glanced at nearly obsessively throughout the school day.A few steps inside, I could see that something was…very wrong. The halls belonged to my old school. The trophy case by the fountain, the verdant, earthy colours along the wall…they had no place in my new school.Figures appeared at the other end of the hall, too indistinct for me to make out. Despite their distance, I could hear their whispers filling my ears.Slut.Whore.Lying bitch.The ceiling started falling, inching lower and lower until I feared it would crush me. Terrified, I turned to make for the exit but the figure before me prevented further movement. Indistinguishable at first, it took shape. Those eyes, the towering figure…those hands that handled me so roughly.I began pinching a
Multiple footsteps barrelled up the stairs and I could hear the nonsensical chattering of the newly minted teenage boys. It was as I’d thought, only my brother’s germy friends. They would lock themselves away in Matt’s room trying to uncover the mystery of girls and comparing their facial hair—or lack thereof. The puny one with the lanky limbs and pronounced Adam’s apple had one hair long enough it could be plucked. It made him the winner by default.I lay listening to the music on my iPod for what could’ve been an hour before I heard the faint approach of too many feet. I stashed my prized possession beneath my pillow then trained my gaze to the ceiling.As far as either my mother or brother knew, it was all I did when there was no schoolwork left to be done. Without a phone, I couldn’t text anyone. Mother never bought me either a computer or a laptop—Matt had already broken three. The only books I could read were those taken from the library, but Mom refused to take me there and I h
Ten minutes flew by without my notice, but the ringing of the doorbell was harder to ignore. On his way down to get it, Matt stopped by my door to threaten me again. One could never instill too much fear, after all. He warned of dire consequences should I make any attempt to hog or otherwise so much as speak to Jayden for any period of time he deemed excessive. Should he feel slighted, he would tell our mother that I’d hit him—the most grievous of transgressions in our house.The regulations were too arbitrary for my liking and left a great deal of room for error. Not wanting to end up on the wrong side of a 13-year-old’s temper tantrum, I opted to shut the door and be done with it. I would return to my earlier plans for the day; out of sight, out of mind.
A chorus of laughter erupted before a sudden and suspicious silence enveloped the second floor. Matt’s door creaked open but never closed. Soft footsteps made their way to my door, pulling my attention from the ceiling and the thoughts that held me captive there. My bedroom door began a slow creep open, alluding to a mission of stealth. My heart dared hope Jayden had managed to sneak away but it was only Kaden, the boy with one whole strand of facial hair.He stuck his head inside, nearly jumping out of his skin when our eyes met. The boy paled, losing the courage had seen him down the hall.“What?” his presence was disappointment enough without any attempts at lingering.
The door to my room creaked open slowly. It was turning out to be the most action the bloody thing had seen in ages, and I was beginning to think that wasn’t a good thing. “Go away, I said I’m not giving you my underwear,” I said without ever turning to look another pimpled-faced try-hard in the eyes. The embarrassment was sufficient without that unnecessary bit of intimate connection. It was just like them. Seeing the others head next door, I suppose I was meant to lower my guard, fall asleep as they’d hoped. Then, they would make their move again. I wasn’t an idiot, and I wasn’t amused. “Fine, I’ll just get Jonie to take a pic and send it to me.” I whirled around so quickly that it caused my eyes to prolong their motion. I ignored the moving room, more concerned with the entitled boy who’d let himself into my room. “Don’t you dare.” With anyone else, in any other situation, I may have been able to laugh it off as a cheek