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The card lands on the desk, exactly where I aimed it, and I cross my arms. “Fine. Is that all you want?”
Wren has the common sense to look startled and then she pulls back, straightening her spine. “I was worried, Charlotte. We’ve been friends for so long.”
I scoff and shake my head. “You forgot that when your date hit on me. You told everyone I was a slut as if I were begging to be groped.”
“I should’ve apologized sooner. I got in trouble with Helen, but then something else happened...” For a moment, Wren looks away but doesn’t explain. “I am sorry. It was petty and definitely not worth it. I don’t want to lose a friend, not over him.”
Wren stares at me, her lips tightening as if she might burst into tears. But she won’t. She’s a Stonehaven graduate par excellence, and we never cry in front of our enemies.
“How am I going to come back from what you did?” I ask in a steady tone.
“I really am sorry about everything that’s happening, but it isn’t my fault.” The irritated tone drops from her voice. “I’m sorry. I fucked up at being a friend. I had no idea all the things you’ve been going through. I wish I had known.”
She isn’t talking only about my troubles. I falter, almost placing my hand on her shoulder. I almost tell her it’s okay. I don’t want to see Wren looking as lost as I’ve felt for months. But I stop myself and put down my hand.
“We should spend more time together.” Wren’s smile replaces her fluctuating angst. “Stop by my room.”
Instead, I reach for the card and hand it back to her. “I’m not going to pretend,” I reply. “Why bother? You’re only here because I’m in again. I have my money back, and now, you think I want my old friends back too?”
“That’s not why I’m here,” she replies shortly. “Charlotte, you’ve been as distant as I’ve been. You didn’t tell me everything. You kept secrets from me too.”
I arch a slim brow and cross my arms. “And you can’t imagine why I did that?”
Wren looks at the card in my hand and then at me. The hurt is apparent in her eyes and then, quickly, it’s hidden behind the mask we wear around certain people. We stare at each other without showing emotion, waiting for the other to crack. I want to scream and cry and tell her how much she hurt me. How bad it hurt to have a friend claw into me when I was so low.
“I’m sorry for your loss.” She snatches the card out of my fingertips and tosses it in the trash can by my desk. Wren turns on her heel and leaves before I can react.
For the rest of the day, I stare at the card sitting in the trash can every time I look over at my desk. Temptation finally beats me down, and I pull the white envelope out of the trash and tear it open. The card is pretty, with watercolor flowers spilling down a girl’s cheeks like tears. My hand trembles as I read it.
Dear Charlotte,
I’m sorry that we are not what we used to be. And even more sorry for my lame behavior. You’ve always been a good friend, and I haven’t been lately. I’m sorry for what has happened and especially for the things I’ve caused. I want to be friends again when you’re ready.
Love, Wren
I feel like shit after reading that, but I’m the one who’s right. Wren shouldn’t have told. And she’s been a snobby bitch. She kept pushing Kurt Ashford on me. My skin crawls as I think about him, and I hide the card in my dresser drawer. I spend the rest of the day thinking of all the reasons why I should hate Wren while hoping she’ll try to speak to me again.
***
The dorm is too crowded and shabby for me to exist in. I feel like a prisoner in solitary confinement in that tiny room, so I leave. My temporary room at Gamma house is triple the size and furnished with mid-century furniture except for the double bed, which is new. The room has a large picture window that looks out onto the backyard with a view of the gazebo covered in snow. It would be charming as a fairy tale, but I hug my arms as goose bumps flare across my arms. I stare out into the dimming sunlight, wondering if that creep is waiting out there and peeking back at me.
Raine knocks on the open door of my room as I shut the blinds. “I wanted to say sorry about your dad in person,” she says, pulling me into a quick hug. “I took notes for our classes, just in case you need them.”
I smile with sincerity. “Thank you. I saved the card from the flowers. It was sweet of Gamma to send them.”
Raine pauses a beat. “Yeah. No one knew your father was so sick. I mean, we knew he had cancer, but still. Let me know if you need anything. A few of us are going into town to the burrito place. Want to come?”
I shake my head. “I just bought some new clothes. And I’d like to fit into them.” I glance at Raine’s tummy. “Maybe we should stay here and find something to eat in the kitchen. I’m thinking of going vegan.”
She crosses her arms in front of her body as if to conceal five extra pounds. “Okay, that’s a lifestyle, not a diet plan.”
“It wouldn’t hurt to try it,” I reply, hanging a few of my new clothes in the closet. “It will be easier to fit into those bodycon dresses for the next formal.”
Raine stares at me as if we’ve just met. But I notice a hardening glint in her eyes. Astrid used to look at me like that.
I take a blue dress and hold it in front of her. “This would look cute on you, but you’re going to have to work if you want to fit into it.”
Raine pushes the dress aside. “I thought you would want to be cheered up. Next time, just say no.” She leaves the room as quickly as she can.
