Chapter Eighteen Kami
Chapter Eighteen
Kami
I didn’t want to go to school. In fact, I never wanted to set foot inside that building ever again. Call me a coward, call me insecure, tell me to toughen up, but when everything around you starts to feel like a threat… This was the first time I understood what it truly feels like to be bullied.
Stuff like this had always been so foreign to me.
I’d never understood how kids could kill themselves.
I’d never truly believed it until I started to feel like anxiety was chewing me up inside.
It made me want to run away, just escape everything.
I didn’t feel safe. And Danny was the one behind it all. I was sure of it.
Mom came to wake me up. Not that she needed to—I was already at my desk drawing, in such a trance that I hadn’t noticed what I was sketching, really.
“I’m going to take you to school today,” she said. She was already dressed, and my little brother was holding her hand.
“No need,” I said, thinking what a terrible idea it was.
“It’s time for me to talk to the principal.”
“Absolutely not!” I exclaimed. “Mom, you have to stay out of this!”
“Oh, I have to stay out of it? I’m supposed to just let people bully both my children? Are you aware of what’s been happening to Cameron?”
I looked at Cam. He was groggy—the poor thing hated having to get up early.
“Of course I know. They called you and Dad to tell you about it, and you didn’t even bother to come in. That’s why they called me instead.”
“How could you not tell me?”
“Why? It’s not like you would have done anything.”
“Of course I would have!”
I shook my head. “Your besties’ little golden boy Danny Walker is the one behind it. If there’s anyone you should be talking to, it’s them.”
“You’re telling me Danny Walker is harassing you and encouraging kids to beat up your little brother?”
“Cameron, you tell her,” I said. “Tell her who’s hitting you.”
He blinked. He was so scared he could barely get a word out. “I can’t.”
My mother seemed unable to believe what she was hearing. “What do you mean you can’t? You better tell me right now!” she shrieked.
“What’s all this shouting?” my grandmother asked from the hallway. She was still in her bathrobe and matching silk pajamas.
“Mom just found out that both her kids are getting harassed at school,” I said flatly, although deep down I still didn’t see myself as a victim.
Where had all my strength gone? I’d always considered myself to be so confident.
Until Danny and I broke up, at least. That was where everything had gone wrong.
How had I been so blind not to realize he was the one behind it?
He’d told me loud and clear! He’d enjoy watching me fall, although he’d never been specific.
“Cameron too?” my grandmother asked indignantly. “Anne, why haven’t you done something?”
“What do you think I’m trying to do? I was on my way to the principal’s office!”
“Mom, this isn’t something you can solve by going to the principal!”
Just when my mother was about to protest, the doorbell rang. “Who could that be?” Grandma exclaimed, marching downstairs.
“Kamila, get your things and get in the car,” Mom ordered me. “I’m not going to say it twice.”
I didn’t really have an option anyway. Outside, snow still covered the ground, and there was no way I would make it on my bike. I could try to hitch a ride with the Di Biancos, but the way things were with Thiago, even walking would be better.
“Kamila, you’ve got a friend here!” my grandmother shouted.
As I made it down the final step, I saw Julian had two to-go cups of coffee in his hands. Part of me felt relieved.
“I thought you could use a friend today,” he said with a sweet smile, and I couldn’t help smiling back as I invited him in.
Mom came down with my brother. “I’m taking Kamila to school today,” she said sternly.
After looking at me for a second, Julian murmured, “OK then. I had just thought I would.” He didn’t know what else to say.
“Mom, let Julian take me, OK?” I asked. “I need to handle this stuff myself.”
“Kamila,” she objected, “I don’t like this one bit.”
“Are you just going to let her disobey you like that?” my grandmother asked.
“What do you want me to do, Mother? Force her into the car?” I could see Mom was frustrated, but I could also tell I had won. “Either way, Kamila, I am going to talk to the principal, and there’s not a damn thing you can do about it.”
I asked Julian to wait, and I went upstairs for my coat and bag.
“Let’s go,” I said, rushing past my family and slamming the door behind me.
Julian and I looked at each other for a few seconds.
“I’m sorry,” we both blurted out at the same time, breaking into smiles.
So we’d had a fight the day before everything went to shit.
It had been stupid—there had been no need for it.
I’d started to realize Julian was one of those people who couldn’t help saying hurtful things when he was angry.
I wasn’t that way, but I could forgive it, especially when he’d tried so hard to be there for me.
“Come on,” he said, pulling me in for a comforting hug. We got in the car. “How are you?” he asked.
“Bad,” I admitted, feeling the warmth from the hot coffee spread through my body. Outside, it was freezing cold.
“Your mother’s right, Kami,” Julian said after a moment of silence. “You should talk to the principal. You need to turn Danny in. What he did…”
“I don’t know… I just want to put all this behind me. He knows we know it’s him now—he’ll have to stop. But I’ll tell you one thing: If my brother shows up at home with so much as a scratch on his face, I’ll kill Danny Walker. I swear to you, Julian, I will.”
“Kamila, he uploaded a video of you naked onto the internet…”
Those words cut like a knife. I think a part of my brain had tried to make me believe it hadn’t really happened. Because if I thought about it, it made me want to vomit.
“I can’t talk about that right now, Julian. I need time to absorb it. To really grasp that he was capable of doing that.”
Five minutes later, we were in the parking lot at school. Right away, I noticed people turning toward me. I could feel the weight of their stares. They weren’t looking at me, they were seeing that naked body they’d viewed online.
I didn’t see him coming. I didn’t see him because he came out of nowhere. But then, there he was, grabbing my hands—touching me!
“Please, Kami. You’ve got to believe me. It wasn’t me!”
“Get outta here!” Julian shouted, pushing him away, before I could even react.
Danny tripped and almost fell backward. He looked horrible.
The beating Thiago had given him had left him looking disfigured.
Both his eyes were black and swollen, and his lip was split.
“I need to talk to her!” Danny insisted, looking at me with pleading eyes.
I’d never seen him so desperate. “I would never do anything like that! How could you even think that?”
“Don’t come near me,” I said, feeling the hatred inside me grow.
But did I truly hate him? Could I?
“Kamila, your mother called the cops on me! Fucking A, you’re going to ruin my future!”
“Hey!” someone yelled behind me, and I heard the slamming of two car doors.
“Get the fuck away from her!” Taylor shouted. Thiago didn’t say a word. But his eyes clouded over.
Shit. This was going to end badly. Really badly.
Danny raised his hands in surrender and started walking backward. “Kamila, you know me. You know I wouldn’t do something like that.” He looked me straight in the eye.
“That’s the sad thing,” I said, tears in my eyes. “It turns out you would.”
The principal appeared. “What’s going on out here?” he demanded.
We all turned to him. His presence was at once frightening and a relief. I looked at Thiago. He seemed more relaxed knowing now he’d have to keep his hands off Danny.
“Everyone, get to class. Right now!” The students who had been standing around us dispersed. I couldn’t believe the crowd a fight could draw; in a matter of seconds everyone had come to watch. All that was missing was the popcorn.
“Walker and Hamilton, come to my office,” he shouted. “As for the rest of you, stay out of my sight.”
Holy fucking shit.
Thiago was still staring Danny down.
“I’m not leaving Kami with that creep,” Taylor said, walking up beside me.
“Di Bianco, I’m not going to repeat myself. Get to class!”
“No,” Taylor replied, and the principal’s face turned even redder.
“Di Bianco, either you leave now or you’ll have a week’s detention.”
“Can Thiago come?” I asked.
I didn’t want to be alone with Danny either.
I barely trusted anyone right now, and certainly not him.
Besides, everyone knew he was in a class of his own because he was the mayor’s kid.
If he was going to try to weasel out of this using his parents’ reputation, I wanted to be sure there was a witness.
“Well, I need to talk to him anyway; yes, he can come,” the principal grumbled.
I looked back at Julian, who asked if I was going to be all right. I nodded, and Taylor grabbed my hand. “When you’re done,” he said, “let’s get out of here.” He gave me a hug in front of everyone.
Pressed against his chest I could smell his cologne, and it made me smile.
“I don’t want you to get into trouble because of me. Things are bad enough for all of us already, don’t you think?”
“I couldn’t care less. You’re all that matters to me,” he said, drawing me back into his arms and kissing me.
“Get to class now,” Principal Harrison repeated.
Taylor and Julian walked off together. Danny, Thiago, Principal Harrison, and I headed toward the office.
I had no idea what was coming next. Once inside, I saw Lowell and Kelly Walker, Danny’s parents, looking at me like the embodiment of their worst nightmares.
To think just a few months before, their dream had been for me to marry their son…
“So, now that we’re all here together…” the principal said, sitting at his desk.