Chapter 11
aimee
“Oh my god, it is her. Lindsey wasn't lying about seeing her yesterday.”
I ducked my chin, lowering my face at their words.
“Can you imagine showing your face in public?”
I flinched, drew in on myself, squeezing my eyes shut.
Acutely aware of how I might look as they filmed me.
Tears burned in my eyes as I clenched my phone in my hands.
I was trapped, pressed against the wall, unable to move—to barely breathe.
The panic was seizing my throat as my heart rattled dangerously in my chest. They weren’t even trying to be discreet, hushed whispers that were just a tad too loud to be covert—this was in your face… in my face.
“Ugh I know. I’d be so embarrassed. I’d never leave my house again.”
I heard more crunching of gravel—footsteps drawing ever closer, and I fucking prayed that it wasn’t Lindsey or some other person these two girls knew.
“What the fuck are you doing?”
Relief flooded through me and the tears slipped past my clenched eyelids. I could feel how badly my body was trembling.
Lukas.
I opened my eyes to see fury in his expression.
“We —”
“Well? How would you like it if someone shoved a camera in your face and said awful things about you?” He snapped.
“Oh come on. She’s Aimee Bryant,” one of the girls said, derision in her voice.
“Yeah, everyone knows what happened, how it was her fault.”
It should have been me.
My knees gave out, and I felt the ground meet my ass. I curled around my knees, clutching them to my chest.
Lukas was suddenly right there in front of me, hands on my arms, his body blocking me from the camera that was still pointed towards me.
It should have been me.
It was all my fault.
I knew that.
“Aimee —” his voice was low, concerned.
More footsteps. I felt myself sinking further into the numbness that was taking over.
I felt his hand come up and brush hair back from my face.
I found myself wanting more of his fingers on my skin, but also wishing he would stop.
I didn’t deserve it—to have him care And have him shield me from these people.
It should have been me.
“Oh shit! The girls weren’t lying.”
“Babe, I told you! She’s right there, clearly wracked with guilt.”
“Dude, she’s not even denying it.”
I flinched, and I felt Lukas tense up in front of me. He tilted my face so that he could look in my eyes. He cursed under his breath, I was vaguely aware of him sending a text, but then he was pressing his lips to my head, apologizing for something, and standing up.
“Man, you do know that she’s the reason for the accident right?”
The other guy laughed. “Yeah, make sure whatever she’s showing you, skates aren’t involved.”
The two girls laughed like these guys were the funniest people on the planet.
“Though, she is pretty enough that maybe it would be worth it,” the first guy said.
“Might not be a terrible way to go, fuck her and then get taken out by a skate.”
“Hunter!”
“Babe, it’s all theoretical. You know I’d never cheat on you.”
“I mean, there are probably worse ways to go,” the other guy said.
“She’s probably a good fu—”
The guy never got to finish his sentence.
I’d watched through tears as Lukas whipped his arm back and punched Hunter square in the face.
He staggered, tripping over his girlfriend, both collapsing to the ground.
I blinked through tears that continued to drip from the corners of my eyes.
Blood gushed from his nose, through his fingers as he tried to stem the flow.
I pressed against the wall, curling tighter into myself.
This is why I hadn’t wanted to come on this trip.
People.
If I’d learned anything over the last year, it was that people sucked. If they could take the time to tear someone down, they would—just to feel that tiny bit better about themselves.
I squeezed my eyes shut.
Too much.
It should have been me.
It was painless.
My breaths turned from barely there gasps to heaving breaths that sawed in and out in quick succession. I tried to hold my shattering pieces together, as voices started yelling.