AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Hi, Mr Rogan.” Garrett’s voice is softer than usual, but no less confident.
“Please call me Will. Mr Rogan makes me sound old.”
“You are old, Dad.” Archie snickers, and Conner joins in.
“Yeah. You are like one hundred and fifty.”
“Gee, Dad. You’re looking pretty good for a hundred and fifty.” I smirk, and he grins back.
“Thank you. Good genes, I guess.”
Even my mum laughs, and just like that, the mood is light, and we all enjoy a delicious breakfast.
It’s about an hour later when we arrive at school, so many eyes taking in the fact that Garrett gets out of the principal’s car and then walks hand in hand with me to make our way to the stadium for today’s exam.
I didn’t bother asking my olds for my phone back this morning, but I fully intend on trying to compromise with them tonight. When Shaun, Marcus and Simon see Garrett and me approaching, they look surprised. I guess the fact that we both don’t have a phone for communicating has added to their confusion.
“Hey Rhys.” Lexi’s voice comes from my left, and she barrels into me, giving me a squeeze. “Are you ok?”
Smiling at the blonde beauty, I nod. “All g, I guess. Never a fucking dull moment in the Rhys George world.”
She giggles. “That’s for sure.”
“How come you weren’t answering my calls, man?” Marcus asks Garrett as they do some sort of fist bump handshake thing. “Did something happen?”
“My old man happened. I crashed at our girl’s place. I’ll fill you in later.”
“Oh shit. Ok.” Marcus claps him on the shoulder before directing his dark gaze to me.
“How are you feeling today, Rhee?”
I shrug. “Ok, I think.”
“Rhys.” Tillie barges into me this time, effectively pushing Garrett further away from me. Is it strange that I miss his touch only seconds after I’ve had it? “Bell is about to make an announcement.”
I frown, looking at Tillie in confusion, but she’s not looking at me. Her eyes are behind me, so I turn to see Bell standing on top of a picnic table as Tillie and Lexi link arms with me.
“Attention fuckers!” She calls out, and everyone turns to her. Some guys whoop while some girls curl their lips at her. “To the idiots that honestly thought it was Rhys George in the video, you’re all dumb bastards. Just because there’s some psycho chick out to get Rhys, you fucking idiots believe the crazy lady instead of looking at how fucked up it is that someone shared such a video in the first place. Not to mention how fucked up it is to be slut-shaming a fucking child!” She pops her hands on her hips and glares at everyone. “It was me in the video. That little girl was me, and that sick man is in jail, where he has been for years.” Bell lifts her hands to her hair and starts to take out her dark Wednesday Addams braids while continuing. “And the fact that you all believe Eric fucking Carter, who, FYI, farts when he comes, means you are as fucking dumb as him.”
Some of the girls in the crowd slap their hands over their mouths, and some nod knowingly at Bell’s comment while the rest of the crowd roar with laughter.
“Shut the fuck up, bitch!” Eric Carter’s voice booms through the laughing crowd, and Bell looks towards him as she combs her dark hair out, showing how long it is. Just like mine.
“Oh, Eric. That lady with the video lied to you.” Bell pulls out a makeup wipe from her pocket and proceeds to wipe her thick, dark liner off. “And I can’t let Rhys take the limelight here. I’m the star ofthatshow.”
“What the fuck is she doing?” I whisper, and Tillie tilts her head to grin at me.
“Confusing everyone.”
“See,” Bell calls, turning so everyone can see her make-up-free face and long dark hair. “Are you really sure it was Rhys in that video?” She points to her face. “We look like sisters, don’t we? And yes, while Rhys likes to talk about sex all the time, ask yourself this. Is she really screwed up enough to have endured that as a child? Because she seems pretty fucking cruisy to me. I, on the other hand…” Bell leaves that hanging, shooting everyone a wide-eyed crazy smile, and I notice that everyone watching genuinely seems confused.
“Get down from the table, Miss Bishop!” Mrs Holland calls as she makes her way with a posse of teachers towards the crowd. Bell ignores her.
“Let me guess, Eric. You chose Rhys because she has four boyfriends, didn’t you?”
“Once a slut, always a slut.” Eric calls, and my heart seizes as my guys all fly through the crowd towards Eric.
“Wait! No!” I call to them as Tillie and Lexi hold me back. I don’t want my guys getting in trouble. If Garrett does, it might make things worse with things at home. Simon’s mum might drag him out of state before the school year even ends, and Shaun’s dad will make him quit school for sure. Marcus can’t afford to get in trouble for fighting again after what happened with Shaun last term, either. He has a police record now that I’ll never forgive myself for.
