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ISABELLA
Although I said the words,it took a few minutes to process what had just happened.
Jason had always been jealous and controlling, but to have someone spy on me was a new low. It made me wonder how long it’d been going on and, of course, who was the spy. It could be one guy or a group of them, all sworn to watch my every move and report back to Jason. What was it about him that elicited such loyalty from everyone he had ever fucking met?
My cell phone was bombarded with text messages and phone calls, all of which were from my parents and Jason. I didn’t need to read or listen to any of the voicemails to know what they were about, either.
All of them would have to get over the fact that I wouldn’t end up with Jason and that I’d figure my life out eventually. My only genuine concern was being linked with The Bedroom King. As long as nobody else on campus thought we’d hooked up, then I could live with my parents and Jason thinking otherwise.
I headed back towards the sorority house when a rustling in the bushes caught my attention. Wildlife was pretty common on campus, like the birds that loved to sing me the song of their people in the earliest hours of the morning, but the mop of human hair sticking out from behind was no raccoon. I jumped and let out a scream as Blade slowly stood up, making eye contact with me as he brushed the dirt off his pants.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to frighten you.”
If Jason didn’t hate Blade so much, I’d suspect that he was his informant, considering how much he likes watching me. “Do you like scaring me or something?”
He walked out from around the bush and attempted to approach, but I took a measured step back away from him. He seemed to get the drift and stopped himself in his tracks. “Not everyone’s out to get you, Isabella.”
“Why are you here, Blade?”
I stood silent in front of him, arms folded across my chest. I wasn’t certain how long he was hiding in the bushes, but by the tenor of Jason’s voice, he absolutely fucking heard too much.
“Look, I wasn’t being a stalker or anything. I just want to set the record straight. I may be a lot of things…” He let out a deep breath, “But I’m not that kind of guy.”
“And what kind of guy would that be?”
His mouth formed into a tight line, “The kind that fucks unwilling participants.”
“I wasn’t accusing you of that,” I snapped back.
“Then what exactly are you saying?”
“I don’t know!”
“Listen to me okay, you have to believe that nothing happened between us last night.” He placed his hands above his head, swearing. “I promise.”
“How do I know you’re not just saying that so my parents don’t go contacting their lawyer or something?”
“You mean, the same parents that just chastised you for being, in their words, a whore? Something tells me that they’re not the type to press charges for something they most likely blame you for.”
I hated that he was right. We lived in a shitty world with shitty people that had a shitty habit of victimizing the victimizers. I opted to remain silent.
Blade ran his hand through his hair and let out a frustrated sigh. “Look, if I did do anything, wouldn’t I have left, so you didn’t see me first thing in the morning? Why would I stick around the scene of the crime? If I was the monster you want to believe I am, I would have snuck out the window before the sun came up.”
Maybe that was true. After all, he wasn’t known for being ashamed of his bad behavior. The odds of him somehow being embarrassed now didn’t really fit his reputation. And he was right. In the condition I was in the night prior, I was in no way capable of consenting. He would’ve been gone.
I sighed, pained to admit it. “That’s a good point.” I kicked a rock away and stared down at the ground. “So, how much of my conversations did you hear?”
Blade dug his hands into his pockets and stared down at the ground with me, as if he was staring in unity. “Not much.”
“Really?” I questioned, peeling my eyes upwards.
He was lying. I could tell by the way a smile cracked across his lips.
“No,” he admitted, “Actually, I heard everything.”
“Great.”
“Technically it’s not my fault since your boyfriend and parents don’t seem to know what inside voices mean.”
