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"Tell him I never want to see him or talk to him again," I said. There was no anger in my voice. No tears behind my words. I never wanted to see him again, and I meant it. "Then block him." She nodded.
"What are you going to do?" Chaz asked. "You'll see him at school tomorrow."
I was going to do what I should have done to begin with this year, but I'd hoped for a chance for just one good year of high school. One where I get to go to the dances and football games. One where I was just a normal teenage girl. But I wasn't normal. I was a dork.
"I'm going to call the school and let them know I would like to graduate early." My gaze blinked to stare out the window. "Maybe I can start college in the spring."
TWENTY-ONE
ADDISON
"All clear," Karly whispered, peeking her head out the double doors of the entrance of the school. "Chaz is keeping watch in the main hall." I didn't want to be here today, but the school was forcing me to come in and withdraw to get my transcripts to send to college.
Yesterday morning, I hadn't made up my mind about which college I was going to. By that afternoon, I knew I wanted to get as far away from this town and Maddox as I could, so I contacted Florida Southern University, which was over a thousand miles away. The academic advisor said I could start early in a couple of fast-track classes if I hurried. So, tomorrow, I would get on a bus to Florida, and I hoped never to return to this town or see Maddox Parker again.
"Are you okay?" Karly asked as we walked from the front entrance to the main office. I wasn't okay. Not even close. But right now, I couldn't talk about it. I couldn't put my actual feelings into words. So, I forced a smile and nodded.
"I'm leaving for Florida tomorrow morning."
"Shit," Karly muttered, her gaze darting around the empty hallway. Something caught my attention at the end of the hallway. It was Chaz. "Someone is coming."
Chaz waved his hands; his face screamed abort mission, and I knew with every ounce of my being that Maddox Parker was about to round that corner. I froze, my chest tightening as panic surged through me. "Get in here." Karly shoved me hard through the bathroom door, letting it close behind me. I blew out a breath as my heart pounded in my chest. Had he seen me?
"Karly," Maddox's voice boomed from across the hallway. I was right; it was him. I leaned against the cold bathroom door, straining to listen.
"Go away, Maddox," she snapped.
"Karly, please," Maddox begged. I couldn't see what was happening, but I imagined Karly was silently telling him to fuck off.
"You should go, Maddox," Chaz warned. "What you did was fucked up."
"Look, I did fuck up," Maddox said. "I know I did, but it's not what you think. Please, I need to talk to Addy, and she's not at school today."
"She's not coming back," Karly said. "And even if she was, she never wants to talk to you again. You should move on."
"Could you give her this?" Maddox asked.Give me what?Not being able to see was making me crazy.
"No," Karly snapped.
"Please," he begged. "Just give it to her. If she doesn't want to read it, fine, but please give it to her." A note? A book? What was it?
"Fine," Karly said with a sigh. "But under one condition."
"Anything," Maddox said.
"I give her this, and you never contact her again," Karly demanded. "You don't go to her house. You don't try to find her number. You leave her alone."
"Okay," he said. "Thank you."
Everything went silent for several minutes before Karly ushered me out of the bathroom.
"He's gone." She smiled. My gaze trailed down to the white envelope in her hand. "He wanted me to give this to you." She raised her arm, holding out the envelope. I didn't take it. I wasn't sure I could.
"Just throw it away," I finally said after several long seconds.
"Addy," Karly said, her tone softer than it had been all morning. My eyes locked with hers. "I told him I would give this to you, and in exchange, he would never bother you again." She shook the envelope. "So, I'm giving it to you. If you want to read it later, you can. If you want to throw it away, that's your choice. If you want to shove it away somewhere to maybe read someday down the road, that's up to you. But it should be you who does it."
She was right. This letter was a form of closure, and it was my decision how I would close this chapter of my life. Swallowing hard, I reached out, taking the letter from her. My gaze was fixed on the white envelope that said 'Addy' in Maddox's handwriting.
