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He only smirked more. “Good luck getting anyone to believe that.”
“But it’s true,” I pointed out mulishly.
“Yes, and truth has little to do with what people will believe. Put your head back a little now,” he instructed.
I followed his orders, just because he seemed to have stopped the bleeding, and there weren’t many ways to resist his strong grip.
He wet a tissue under the tap and wiped the crusted blood from my lips.
“Yeah, you’re right about that. I’m telling you the truth about that newspaper article, and yet you don’t believe me. The truth really is meaningless, it only matters what people believe.” My words were quietly defeated. Cayden paused.
His eyes met mine.
“I’d respect you more if you just owned it, Bug. Confess, and maybe the truth will set you free,” he murmured.
His words pissed me off. I grabbed the tissue from his hand, his gentle touch at odds with his cruel words, and jerked my face away.
“Right, and what good would that do me?”
“Once the sinner has confessed, they can repent…” He stroked a finger along my chin, wiping a streak of watery blood from my skin. “I could be inventive with the methods of repentance, and all the trouble at school would stop.”
I met his eyes in the mirror, my heart thumping erratically. Gathering my courage, I shook my head.
“I’m not lying to make my life easier. I didn’t tell anyone, and I will never pretend that I did. One day, you’ll realize that you punished the wrong person.” I threw out the red-soaked paper towels and turned to him. “I’d like to think you’ll feel bad when you find out that what you did to me was under false assumptions, but I’m not sure you’re capable of it.”
Then I stepped around him and strode from the bathroom, head held high. I felt Cayden’s eyes on me the entire way.
Cayden
“I mean,you can tell she’s not normal just by looking at her. Oh God, I can’t believe she actually came in here for lunch! I’d go home, I’d be too ashamed.”
Selena’s fucking annoying voice grated on my nerves. I didn’t understand why we had to put up with her or her minions at lunch. I was beyond over it. Everything was irritating me today. Thanks to the gossip about Lily this week, the rumors about me had nearly completely died out.
I should be relieved.
I wasn’t.
I glowered at Selena as she stood to get a better glimpse of the object of her torture.
Lily had entered the cafeteria, Eve at her side. Her waterfall of red hair shielded her face from me. If I saw she’d been crying again, I’d fucking lose it right now. It had been bad enough the other morning in the locker room. That dashed-away tear that had escaped her eye would haunt me for the rest of my life.
I’d caused that.
If I’d ever needed more confirmation that I was a bastard, that tear fit the bill. I’d told her that she didn’t exist to me anymore. What a joke. I couldn’t get her out of my head, she’d taken over my thoughts completely. She was the only thing that existed for me; that was the truth I couldn’t escape.
“Did you hear Principal Smith? It was a prank that got out of hand. You really think Lily is leaving her journal around for just anyone to copy?” Marcus snorted.
Selena sighed at him. “She didn’t just leave it around, obviously. Cayden took it, didn’t he?”
I sensed her turn to me, her satisfaction curling off her like the stink of old cheese. “Didn’t you? You got sick of seeing her at home all the time, being weird and annoying, and decided to teach her a lesson.”
“Are you fucking deaf? It was a prank, end of story.” Asher’s snap had a bite to it, and it managed to silence Selena for a whole minute.
“Well, Bug doesn’t look like she found it very funny, and neither do you guys, so I doubt it was a prank.”
The irritation that had been simmering in my blood overflowed, and I jerked my chin at Selena and shoved her lunch tray. “This table’s too fucking crowded. Get lost.”
Stunned silence met my words.
