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“Here,” I said, handing him my student ID. The kids at the front desk had already learned to recognize my face, due to the fake period stain—the one thing I could thank Vivian for. I wouldn’t need to show it to them. “Show this when you walk in and come to the fourth floor. We’ll be in room 434.”
Leo, Elliot and I got out of the car and headed straight toward the entrance. A few of the students around us fell into fits of whispers and giggles, but most just stared. On any normal day, I would’ve figured they were just swept away by my companions’ toxic good looks, or the fact that they were being seen with me.
But this was not a normal day. I was running on less than an hour of sleep, but even I could tell that these kids were judging us. That they knew more.
“Hey,” Leo called out to one of them as we parted ways with Felix. “Whatchalookin’ at?”
They immediately cast their gazes to the sidewalk and began whispering amongst themselves. Vivian must’ve started some fresh rumors, and I honestly couldn’t care.
In a few hours, she’d be done for. I just had to keep that in mind.
In a few hours, my life would be off to a good start. For good.
We strode into the lobby like the biggest,baddestclique any high school had ever seen, and I didn’t need to say anything to the front desk kids as we slipped by. Yes, I did drag these two boys out of bed, and yes, they were my guests, and no, you can’t do anything to stop me from bringing them into the dorm.
This is what it must’ve felt like to be Elliot Lancaster.
Once we reached Tara’s room, her door had already been opened. I heard a voice from inside, but it didn’t sound like hers. It sounded more like a recording. I motioned for the guys to stay behind me and knocked lightly a few times on the door. When she didn’t answer, I pushed it open a little further, and peeked inside.
Tara was on the floor, leaning against her bed, face clasped in her hands. Crying.
“Oh my God,” she said, lifting her head suddenly, startling me more than I must’ve startled her. “Sorry, I… Come in.”
“What…” I pushed open the door and rushed in, crouching down beside her. “Tara, what happened?”
If it was Vivian, I swore…
“It was her,” she stuttered, as if reading my thoughts. “Yeah. Big surprise, right?”
I shook my head, reaching out to stroke the hair out of her face as she sniffled in some snot. “What did she do to you?”
If it had anything to do with me, I was going to ram my skull into the nearest hard surface. Not that it mattered. How was I supposed to ask Tara for help with someone who was already making her life hell? Who’d alreadybeenmaking her life hell?
Perhaps that would be an incentive.
“Look, you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” I said, and waited a moment. “But I think you should.”
She looked up at me, pausing her shuddering shoulders and sniffling to look back and forth between my eyes, as if realizing who I was, realizing that I wasn’t there to hurt her. Seeing her like this made me beyond angry.
I was disappointed in the whole of humanity. Could there be such a feeling?
How someone could make a girl as sweet as Tara break down like this was beyond my comprehension.
No. Iwishedit was beyond my comprehension.
“It’s okay,” Tara sniffled, taking in a deep breath. “She… must’ve found out about my stupid little crush on Eric, because she started something. Something between me and you.”
I shook my head, not understanding her words. “Between… me and you?”
“It was Kenny,” she said, breaking out into another short-lived, but strong round of tears. “She saw him leave my room this morning, and she knew that you’d been with us. He must’ve let slip that I had a thing for Eric. She told him. Told all his friends. And some rumors about how me, Kenny, and you had a threesome.” She said the last word as if they were hot garbage on her tongue, which they might as well have been. “Everyone thinks I’m some psycho. Thatwe’rethe ones who are whores. She’s turned us into a fat joke. And everyone believes her.”
Fuck.
I wanted to burst out laughing. If only Vivian knew—threesomes weren’t my thing. Foursomes were more like it.
Still, I couldn’t hold back. Not anymore.
Mess with me? That was one thing. I was used to being kicked around. I had Elliot to thank for that.
