CHAPTER 5: LIBRARY GIRL

Maximilian

"Damn, bro, you've made a ton of changes to your house since the last time we were here," I say, looking around in amazement as we enter Alexander's house.

"That's what happens when you have too much time on your hands," Alexander says with a shrug as he disappears into his house.

I end up going straight to his backyard. His pool is huge. I look around, and he has roses and tulips everywhere. I go back inside, making sure not to touch anything.

This guy is super particular about everything he owns.

I walk into the kitchen where Nathaniel is. "I'm not going to lie, this has been a rough week," Nathaniel says, handing me a beer with a tired smile. "Woodbridge is a mess. No wonder the last principal left." He grabs a beer from the fridge for himself, and we all sit down on the couch.

"That girl Via doesn't like you guys very much, does she?" I say, raising an eyebrow as I grab my keys and open my beer.

I remember meeting her in the library. She was sweet and adorable. She kept stuttering after I caught her. But when I saw her again with them, she was like a whole different person.

"She didn't even give me a chance to talk to her," I say, frowning as I try to understand why she turned me down as her tutor so quickly.

"She hasn't liked me for a whole year. I really don't know why," Sebastian says, rolling his eyes in frustration. "She is a stubborn girl who thinks she has everything under control. Even though people can see right through her and see she's a mess," he adds, opening his beer with a bottle opener on his keys.

"Wait, how long have you all known this girl for her to disrespect you all like that?" I ask, genuinely curious. "She seems to not like any of you." For a teen girl to get under these men's skin, she sure is something.

"Around one to two years. I'm not really sure. I'm not counting," Alexander says, turning on the football game with a dismissive wave. "I met her because of a co-worker—her father. That's all."

"I met her a year ago. We've had terrible encounters since she bumped into me in the hallway while I had a hot cup of coffee," Sebastian says, shaking his head. "I spilled it on myself and instead of apologizing, like a decent person, she blamed me and walked away laughing with her friend."

Oh, that's not what I expected.

"I met her on Monday, my first day working at Woodbridge." Nathaniel shakes his head, sighing. "That girl sure has a bad temper," he says, rolling his eyes and looking at the TV.

She only has a bad temper around them. I'm curious to know why.

I've known these men for over 17 long years.

The minute I look at the TV again, one of the Seahawks players makes a touchdown. Nathaniel and I jump up and cheer. "Hell yeah!" we both say, high-fiving each other.

"You both are Seahawks fans?" Sebastian laughs, shaking his head.

"That's embarrassing, keep that to yourselves," Alexander says, rolling his eyes and taking a sip of his beer.

"You guys are just mad you are losing 17 to 9," Nathaniel says, grinning as I laugh.

"Sore losers," I mumble, smirking.

"That they are," Nathaniel laughs, nodding. "How are you and your wife?" he asks Alexander, glancing at him.

I see Alexander tense up. "Wasn't the call obvious?" Alexander says, keeping his eyes glued to the TV. Sebastian and I look at each other, concerned.

"Sorry, I just thought you were having another argument, Amanda," Nathaniel says, raising an eyebrow, and Alexander turns to him.

"Ex-wife," Alexander says, finishing his beer with a sigh. "We divorced 6 years ago." Alexander stands up and walks somewhere into his house, probably to the restroom.

"I didn't know he and Amanda divorced," Nathaniel looks at me and Sebastian, his expression puzzled.

"You think we did? He never tells us anything," I say, taking a sip of my beer, feeling a bit uneasy.

"I'm not surprised though," I look at Sebastian. "He never loved her. It was obvious," Sebastian nods in agreement.

Alexander was never affectionate to her, and Amanda was so fake. She got drunk once and tried to bribe Sebastian into sleeping with her.

Her man's best friend. Imagine.

Sebastian, Nathaniel, and I all stopped interacting with her once Sebastian told us what happened. None of us told Alexander; we thought it wasn't important, so we kind of just slowly let them be.

Alexander's phone lights up, making us turn to it in complete silence.

Talk of the devil. "Alexander, your phone is ringing," I look at the caller ID. "It's Amanda." Silence.

I put it back on the table, and we just watched it ring.

"Did you ever tell him?" I whisper to Sebastian, feeling a bit anxious.

Sebastian shakes his head and looks back up at the TV without saying a word.

Alexander's phone lights up, and two notifications pop up on the screen. "Do any of you know his passcode?" They both shake their heads.

What are the chances his passcode is still the same one as his high school one?

I put in his birthday, and his phone unlocks. "His phone's passcode is the same one as in high school," I say as I click on the notification from Amanda, feeling a mix of curiosity and apprehension.

"If he beats your ass, don't look at us for assistance," Nathaniel warns me, then turns back to the TV, trying to lighten the mood.

I roll my eyes and look at the message.

Amanda: Why is our son at another damn party!? Don't you know how to control our son?

Our son? Justin was never Alexander's son. What the heck? Why is he still taking care of the kid?

Amanda: Get your butt up and go get him.

Why doesn't she go? It's her son, not his. Isn't that her responsibility, not his?

Another notification comes through.

It's a video this time. I click on it and see Justin putting his tongue down a girl's throat.

I look at the girl and do a double-take.

The girl has wavy black hair, hazel eyes... Oh my god. It's the library girl... Via. 

My heart sinks.