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“Sure, but that’s not saying much.” Leah arched a brow at her. “He’d take any excuse to beat someone up.”
“That’s true.” But the blonde girl still looked thoughtful. I wasn’t sure she was convinced that was all there was to it.
I didn’t want to talk about Cole, or any of the Princes for that matter. This was the longest conversation I’d had with Leah in months, and although I’d gotten used to life without her around, I still missed her. She had a bright energy about her that had been one of the only things that’d made my first semester bearable.
The tension between us wasn’t really gone—the distance that had developed couldn’t be banished with a few short words of apology.
But I’d meant it when I’d said I was sorry. I had felt a combination of guilt and anger toward her for a long time, but it was the whole fucked up situation with the Princes that’d driven the wedge between us in the first place.
I wouldn’t let them do it again.
Seventh period was well underway when the three of us emerged from the locker room. We ditched eighth period too, went back to Prentice Hall, watched a movie on the big TV downstairs—and for a few hours, it was just like old times. I’d changed back into my uniform before we headed across campus, throwing Cole’s shirt in the trash on the way out of the building. I’d been afraid if I left it in my locker, his scent would somehow ingrain itself in the space, and I couldn’t handle that.
I’d already had too much. Too much of Cole today.
Besides, just like the chunk of hair I’d cut off his head that first week of school, a lost t-shirt was replaceable. Fixable.
And I still owed him something he couldn’t fix.
Father is abusive.
I shoved the thought away and concentrated on the movie. It was a rom-com—Leah had lobbied hard for horror, but Maggie and I had overruled her—and the leads had just met in a stalled elevator.
The thing I’d told Cole about not being able to take something back once you put it out in the world sat like lead in my stomach. It was true.
What was I prepared to put out in the world?
After the movie ended, Maggie went upstairs to her dorm room, and as soon as she left, Leah made a quick exit too. Things definitely weren’t back to normal between us, but at least we were able to hang out with a buffer present. That was a step in the right direction.
I took another long shower before bed, trying to wash the entire day off me. To scrub away Oliver’s unwanted touch, and the caress of Cole’s fingers against my cheek that had felt too good.
The next morning, I felt jittery as I walked across campus toward Craydon Hall. Oliver was in my second period class, so I’d have to face him sooner than I was prepared for. I was still on the fence about going to the dean, but even if I did, it wouldn’t be until later in the day.
Jesus. So much for trying to go for a nice, normal boy.
Did I really have that bad of taste in men? Or were they just all assholes?
I’d actively worked to make myself feel something for Oliver, had seen him as the type of guy I should be going for. But in the end, he hadn’t been any better than the Princes. He’d lied to me about what he wanted, played the “nice guy” card until he realized it wasn’t getting him into my pants like he’d hoped, and then tried to force me.
First period went by in a blur, and I held my books tightly against my chest like a shield was I walked into room 229 for Trigonometry, bracing myself to see Oliver’s face. It’d been a mess of purple bruises and smeared blood the last time I’d seen him, just before he’d fled the dance studio.
He wasn’t in the room when I arrived, and I picked a seat in the back row—somewhere that felt protected and defensible. But when Mrs. LaVaunne began lecturing five minutes later, he still hadn’t arrived.
I sat on edge all through class, and when the period ended with no sign of Oliver, I tapped the girl in the row ahead of me on the shoulder as we gathered up our books.
“Hey, um, do you know where Oliver Hedelston is?”
The girl, Beth, glanced over at me. “Oh, yeah. You didn’t hear?”
I shook my head, nerves roiling in my stomach.
“He transferred out. Can you believe it? Senior year, and he just left. I heard he’s going to go to Hilton Prep.” She scoffed. “Guess he felt like taking a giant step down the social ladder.”
Hilton Prep was a rival school, and I was sure it was still a way better institution than Sand Valley Public High. But… Oliver had transferred? Just like that?
The classroom was clearing out, and Beth slung her backpack over her shoulder. As we headed for the door, she added, “I heard he got jumped in Roseland last night. Maybe that’s why he decided to leave.”
She turned and headed down the hall without another word, leaving me staring at her retreating back. A few students jostled by me, but I couldn’t get my feet to move.
