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Call your parents.Right.
My limbs went numb, despite the fact that my thoughts were crystal clear. Because if I wanted to pursue any kind of future with water polo, I had to get past my father first.
Chapter 3
PENELOPE
Afterthecrappystarttomyday,Ithoughtthingscouldn’tgetanyworse.
I was wrong.
I blinked back at Gabby Haines’ disgustingly perfect face and said, “I don’t understand.”
Forcing down my rising panic, I twisted the strap of my bookbag in my hands. The last thing I wanted was to give her any sort of reaction that’d tickle her all but shriveled heart.
“Let’s try this one more time in case you’re hard of hearing.” Gabby leaned over the office desk, then said, “Your scholarship has been revoked,” enunciating the words like I was stupid, and I wondered if maybe she was crueler than usual because of her supposed breakup with Topher.
Not that I cared. I had zero interest in Royal news, but it’s not like Topher and Gabby’s dating status was a secret. Every time they broke up and got back together again, it was all anyone could talk about, which was more than just a little annoying.
Newsflash people: They’ll do it all over again in a few months.
I took a moment to process the information she’d given me, hoping it wasn’t true, while she sighed and flicked her long blond locks over her shoulder, batting those cool green eyes of hers framed by a fan of artificial lashes.
She smiled slyly and twisted a lock of hair around her finger while I stood there like a mute, waiting for Principal Bell to call me back into his dungeon.
“Trust me, I know everything, darling,” she said like it was nothing. Like it wouldn’t completely crush me if what she said was true. “I wasn’t even supposed to say anything. It’s not like I take pleasure in bringing people bad news.”
Sure you don’t.
I absorbed the happy glow on her face and her bright eyes and remembered all the times I’d seen her cut a girl down just for breathing the same air.
“But,” she continued, undeterred by my silence, “I thought I’d give you a heads up, do you a favor.” She placed a hand over her chest like the admission pained her, when, in reality, she looked super pleased at being the one to inform me.
“Yeah, thanks,” I mumbled.
“You’re welcome,” she preened, as if my gratitude were genuine, then turned away from me and went back to whatever it was she did to “help” in the office.
I paced, unable to relax enough to sit while I waited.
She could have her facts wrong, I told myself. How would she know if my scholarship dried up? After all, wasn’t that kind of information confidential? Then again, Gabby Haines was Queen, which meant, along with Topher, she ruled the school, and her charm wasn’t limited to her peers. Even the teachers were caught under her spell. It always amazed me how the faculty and staff weren’t supposed to be biased, yet somehow the royalty of Lakeview held their favor.
Regardless, I was sure Gabby was wrong. I mean, what kind of scholarship program dropped a student at the start of their senior year after years of hard work and dedication?
I sucked in a breath as Principal Bell poked his head out of his office and met my eye. “Oh, Gabby, you found her. Good. Penelope, can you come in here for a moment?”
My chest tightened as I passed Gabby who flashed me a smug grin, and I hoped in vain the anxiety tightening my chest wasn’t written all over my face.
“Good luck,” she trilled, her voice sharp as nails.
I gritted my teeth as I followed Principal Bell, taking a seat as he closed the door and joined me by perching himself on the edge of his desk. He clasped his hands around one of his knees, and his eyes crinkled in concern underneath his bushy gray brows.
I swallowed, a cloud of doom descending upon me at his grim expression.
“I have some bad news,” he said. “Due to budget cuts, as you’re well aware, we had to cancel a couple AP courses this year, both of which you were supposed to enroll in to maintain the stipulations of your scholarship.”
Panic swelled in my chest. “But that’s not my fault. So, I’m fine, right?”
“I’m afraid not.” Bell steepled his hands in front of him. “Your scholarship has been revoked.”
