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Imani, Allie’s best friend, shoved her way through the crowd and ripped the flyers off Allie’s locker. “I’m sorry, Allie. I didn’t see these ones. I would’ve taken them down. I’m so sorry.” She continued to rip them all off until there weren’t any more naked pictures of Allie in Redwood’s locker room.
“You think this is fucking funny?” Jace shouted through the halls.
The chatting stopped. Students shuffled to the sides of the hallways and stared wide-eyed at Jace, who looked like he was on the verge of losing control.
Imani wrapped her arms around Allie’s body and pulled Allie into her lap, stroking her hair. “I’m going to take you home,” she whispered to Allie and wiped tears from Allie’s cheeks. “Don’t cry. People are mean, Allie. People are so mean. I’m so sorry.”
“People are more than mean,” I whispered to Maddie, grabbing her arm again. “They’re fucking cruel.”
“Who the fuck did this?” Jace shouted.
When nobody answered, Jace stormed through the halls toward Allie and Imani. “Allie is my stepsister. We’re not related by blood, and all of you fucking know that already.” Jace grabbed her hand and tugged her to her feet. “You can continue to talk shit about us, but I love Allie, and nothing you do is going to change my mind about it. Grow the fuck up and stop being childish about a relationship you know nothing about.”
Everyone stayed quiet and glanced between them, then started whispering again.
“If you want to call Allie a fucking whore or slut or mention anything about incest, say it to my fucking face,” Jace said, glaring from person to person. “Because you have to deal withmenow. Nobody insults Allie ever fucking again.”
The bell rang through the halls, yet nobody moved.
“Do you understand me?”
Nobody said a word.
“Do you. Fucking. Understand me?”
A flurry of yeses echoed through the hallway, and then everyone scurried to their classes. Jace wrapped an arm around Allie’s waist and pushed the tears off her cheeks.
“Allie, I’m so sorry. If I had known someone was fucking watching us, I would’ve never done that. Fuck school. Let’s go home.”
“I can’t miss another day,” Allie whispered.
Imani scoffed. “If I can miss a day, you can too.” She grabbed her hand. “Come on.”
“Jace Harbor.” Principal Vaughn stepped out of his office with arms crossed over his chest and hairy gray brows furrowed in a furious stare, as if this was their fault. “My office. Now.”
Once they disappeared into the principal’s office, Blaise seized my waist. “I’m glad that wasn’t you. I would’ve fucking lost it and actually killed someone. Jace has some fucking self-control.”
My lips trembled as I thought about how terrible Allie must be feeling right now.
“Guess you don’t have to worry about people talking about your smut,” Maddie said, leaning closer to me. “By the way, I totally read it last night, and,whew, girl, I had to fan myselfdown theremore than once.”
I smacked her hard on the arm. “Now is not the time for this. Is there something we can do for them?” I whispered to Maddie, tears welling up in my eyesforAllie and Jace. I barely knew them, but this was even crueler than what had happened to me on Friday. “Something? Anything?”
“Take down whatever flyers are left on the lockers,” Maddie suggested. “That’s all we can do right now.”
ChapterSixty-Nine
BLAISE
Vera hurried off after Maddie, like the good girl she was, tearing down pictures of Jace Harbor and Allie Hall that someone had posted all over Redwood Academy. Seemingly, she had forgotten all about what had happened the other day here.
My lips curled into a small smile as she disappeared into the crowd. I could still feel her hand in mine, the warmth that had exploded through my body after she grabbed my hand back and told me to never let go.
In the midst of students rushing around to get to class and chuckling at the naked pictures, Mr. Avery stood in the hall with his arms crossed, staring right at me. He must’ve wanted to talk about something. After nodding toward his classroom, he disappeared into the crowd too.
I followed behind him, sure to keep my distance. Last time, he’d told me that there were people at Redwood who were in the mob, watching and waiting and trying to pin this on me. Whatever information he was about to give me or whatever he wanted to say was supposed to be secret.
If anyone found out, they’d rat him out, and the mob would kill him.
