Total pages in book: 70
Estimated words: 65210 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 326(@200wpm)___ 261(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 65210 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 326(@200wpm)___ 261(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
I could make out the trio of girls, all of them with blond hair that ranged in shade.
They primped and prepped, re-glossing their lips and touching up their eyeshadow.
“Like who even is she?” the one in the center said. “Some bitch who shows up at a brand-new school her senior year? I’m sure she had a lot of skeletons in her closet. She was probably a whore at her last school.”
The one speaking gasped like she’d just come up with the most perfect conclusion.
She looked at the other girls. “I bet she got knocked up. Popped out the kid and had to transfer to a new school.”
There was a round of laughter, a couple more insults thrown my way, and then two of the girls left. I could still see one standing by the sink. I realized she had said little the entire time her friends had been talking shit about me.
She exhaled and turned to leave, but she froze, her gaze trained on the ground. I realized she could see my shoes between the space underneath the stalls.
“You can come out. They’re gone.”
Her voice was soft and coaxing. Almost nice. I couldn’t hide in here forever. I stepped out, and we stared at each other. She stayed by the sink, looking more curious than anything else. But there was a strange cast in her eyes. She averted her gaze and cleared her throat.
“I just want to let you know—”
“If you’re going to call me something colorful, save your breath. I’ve gotten enough thrown at me today. I really don’t have the energy to entertain you.”
She shook her head, her dirty blond hair sleek and shining as it coasted over her shoulders. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry that he did that to you.”
I felt my eyes widen. “Excuse me?” My voice was threadbare. Of course, I knew what she was talking about, but as far as I knew, nobody had seen Trevor attacking me. Sure, the rumors on how he’d gotten his ass kicked had run rampant, all painting me in an awful light and making him out to be the victim.
She took another deep breath and looked down at the ground, tracing the edge of a tile with her Mary Jane. “I heard what that big man kept saying to Trevor. He was shouting loud enough the entire house could hear. They act like they didn’t know what Trevor was doing to you, but they do. They all know because this isn’t the first time he’s done that to a girl.”
She looked up at me then, that sadness something I instantly was familiar with. She empathized with me. Because she’d gone through the same thing.
She lifted her hand to her throat, and I could see her fingers shaking. “He did the same thing to me last year. We were at a party. We all had too much to drink. The only difference is…” She turned away from me and gripped the edge of the sink, staring at her reflection. “I didn’t have somebody to protect me.”
“I’m sorry, not only because Trevor tried to take from you what you weren’t offering, but because everyone thinks you’re to blame.” My voice was soft, my tone laced with all the empathy I had for her.
My heart was racing, and I took a step toward her, but she faced me and shook her head, putting on a fake smile that I knew she probably perfected to hide how she really felt. The truth was in her eyes.
“Nobody knew what he’d done to me. I told no one because he said nobody would believe me. And he was right. Not only is his father a judge, and a corrupt one at that, but Trevor is adored in the school. It doesn’t matter that what he did to me was wrong. Doesn’t matter that he took things from me I didn’t consent to. I could’ve shouted it from the rooftops, and it wouldn’t have mattered. Because it was my word against him and his family.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered again, but she cleared her throat and shook her head. “What’s your name?”
She hesitated before finally answering. “Bree.” She smoothed her hands down her skirt. “This school is a cesspool, and everyone in it are piranhas. Guard yourself and know that the only person who has your back is you.”
With that, she scurried out of the bathroom, and I was left standing there in stunned silence.
By the time I left the school, there was still half an hour of last period left. My mind replayed what she’d said.
At first, a small part of me had felt a little bad that Trevor had gotten the shit kicked out of him. But now? Fuck him. I hoped he didn’t make a full recovery.
I was lost in thought when motion in front of me had me stopping and glancing up.