29. Chapter 29
Chapter twenty-nine
Bexley
"W hat's that?" I ask, amused.
I shove back a laugh as Soph frantically waves a flyer in my face. Arch and I are at our usual lunch table on Friday in the cafeteria, joined by Parker, Millie, and Abby. They don't seem surprised either at Soph's insane arrival, Arch moving down to make room on the bench next to me.
"It's our annual dance," Soph replies, throwing herself into the space. "You have to come. Please."
"A dance?" Abby gasps excitedly, and Soph squeals at her enthusiasm. New friendship incoming.
Arch starts choking on his Caesar salad, reaching for his bottle of water as he attempts to clear his airway. That boy will do just about anything Abby asks, but dancing? That's going to take some convincing. For as long as I've known Archie, he's had a strict no dancing policy. Go figure that he ends up in a relationship with a cheerleader.
"It's themed too," Soph says, elbowing me. "You have to come, Bex. I've never been and it's our last year here."
"Why haven't you been?" I ask, deflecting. Me and dancing? I'm kind of on Arch's team here. Pretty certain I was born with two left feet and the last thing I need is to fall over in front of everyone at Willowbrook.
Soph falls quiet for a second, seemingly embarrassed. "I didn't have anyone to go with. But now I do! You'll come, right?" she turns to Abby. "New person…"
Abby laughs warmly. "I'm Abby. And you are?"
"Tai Beckett's twin sister," I interject playfully.
Arch has already met Soph, but I see the rest of our group stare on in disbelief. Soph, on the other hand, elbows me again, making me wince. Unbeknownst to everyone at the table, I'm currently sporting some interesting bruises from my fight with Rylan.
"Don't associate me with that asshat," she grumbles. "And don't think I know that you two had some type of argument. He got home with the pups and I realized your car was gone."
I shrug nonchalantly. "To be fair, I have arguments with everyone."
"It's true," Arch interrupts. "It's a right of passage. You have to have at least one argument with Bexley before graduation."
Millie pipes up, intrigued. "I haven't had an argument yet."
"That's because I'm a little scared of you," I joke. "And Parker too."
"Oh, please." Millie rolls her eyes. "I've seen you fight. You could handle me. Speaking of fighting—when do I get my turn?"
Parker's face hardens. I can see the battle behind his eyes but he's out of luck. A deal's a deal.
"Next fight night," I answer, glancing over at Sophia. I wonder if she knows that her brother's best friend arranged the best damn cage I've ever seen in my life.
My cheeks heat up at the memory, deliberately knocking my fork off the table so I have an excuse to duck underneath. As I reach for the fork slowly, I catch sight of Arch and Abby's hands linked in her lap, and I snicker, tickling his hand with the prongs. A foot swings at me in retaliation, and I reappear from under the table, grinning at his annoyed look.
"Way to change the subject," Soph mumbles, turning to Abby. "I'm Sophia. Bexley's new BFF."
"Only because we share a common enemy and I can use you for intel."
"What common enemy is that?"
The whole table turns at the sound of the deep voice, eyes landing on the three men who haunt my nightmares in different ways. For a second, Rylan and I lock eyes, his blue irises dancing slightly. Quickly, I look at Tai, replying, "You. Obviously."
His mouth snaps shut, glaring at his twin with some weird loving-hateful sibling glance. "Traitor."
Surprisingly, there's zero malice in his tone, but he's still annoyed at her presence at our table. Sharp eyes grab my attention and I cock an eyebrow at Hunter, who lingers on Tai's left.
"Lannister," I greet coolly. "Got something on your mind?"
His eyes narrow, a stark contrast to his blue-eyed friend. I'd almost say that the hatred comes from fucking his best friend, but I'm fairly certain it's just pure hate.
"This isn't over yet, Duchess," he quips. "Not by a long shot."
My lady boner at Rylan's presence is instantly eradicated, anger taking its place as I stand up from the bench. Hooking my leg over, I stand toe-to-toe with Hunter, silently telling myself not to throw hands.
"You started this mess. Don't blame me because you don't like the consequences of your own actions."
His bicep flexes as he pushes back his hair, the red tips melting into the obsidian mess. "You'll have to do better than a little glue. I'd sleep with one eye open if I were you."
Smiling, I gently press the tip of my nail into his chest—today's color is a bright shade of pink. It reminds me of the pink hues on our skin after our tumble in the new cage, but I'll never admit that to anyone.
"I sleep soundly, Lannister. In fact, my dreams often feature tubes of superglue and your ass on Mrs. Smythson's desk."
I can feel Rylan's gaze on the side of my face, but I ignore it. I don't trust myself to break character if we lock eyes.
"Are you going to the dance, Sophia?" he asks, and I can still see him watching me through my peripheral vision.
She jumps up, picking up the flyer and waving it excitedly again. "Hell yes. We're all going. Aren't we, Bex?"
Is it possible to get away with murder? I mean, I know I have a room full of witnesses, but a little homicide can be disguised… right?
"Soph," I warn.
"Oh, come on," she whines. "Senior. Year." The words annunciate with such force that I break my gaze with Hunter to look at her over my shoulder.
"You haven't told us the theme yet."
She grins. "Villains and sinners."
I roll my eyes, noticing that Arch does the same. Could the Willowbrook administration be any more obvious? I'm surprised they are even still holding a dance with our attendance here. It seems like the last thing they would want is to have all of us in one big room together—probably with spiked beverages.
Rylan plucks the flyer from her hands. "Villains and sinners, you say."
My eyes turn to him on their own accord, finding brief release as he scans the paper. When he looks up, his eyes dart to me. I turn back to Hunter. We're in some weird fucked-up version of I-Spy.
Thankfully, he doesn't seem to notice. Hunter sneers in disgust, finally turning away to read the flyer too. "The cheerleaders certainly have a weird sense of humor."
"Cheerleaders?" Abby asks, piping up with interest. "They picked the theme?"
Soph nods. "The staff give them a list of options and they pick one they like. It's a fundraiser for them."
"You omitted that information," I grouch. "Count me out. I'm not donating to those psychos' funds."
"Oh, come on," Soph groans. "We can hang by the food table. They don't come near it."
At the table, I catch sight of Abby giving doe-eyes to Arch, and when he sighs in resignation, I know we're both screwed. He turns his face, pursing his lips together in a silent conversation that says, "Well, if I have to go, you're fucking coming too."
"Fine," I relent, folding my arms. "But can we get to the purpose of this visit so I can return to my cheeseburger?"
Tai hands the flyer back to his sister, who snatches it for no reason other than she can. He holds up his hands in defeat before turning to me.
"Fight night tonight," he says. "The new cage is ready. No point waiting," he finishes with a grin.
Millie gasps excitedly behind me, and I swear I hear Parker curse under his breath. "Fine," I nod. "I'll let my people know."
"And don't think I've forgotten about the project," Tai grumbles. "We only have a week left. I'm not letting you be the reason I fail."
I raise an eyebrow. "Seriously? You're the idiot that near cried when seeing the equation."
"I had something in my eye!"
Soph leans closer to me, lowering her voice but ensuring Tai can still hear her. "Not true. He's been raging all week about it."
"Shut up, Sophia."
"Make me, Tai."
"Alright," I sigh, intervening before the siblings can draw any more attention to our small crowd. There's already a bunch of eyes watching the exchange. We can save that for tonight. "We can meet Monday after school."
Tai shakes his head. "We need more time than that. We're running out of time."
"Just take what you can get," I snap suddenly.
The table falls silent. I'm surprised that even the Three Musketeers are also biting their tongues at my random outburst. A flash of concern crosses Rylan's face, but it's quickly hidden with expert precision. We've been texting again this week but even he doesn't know why I've had a moment of weakness.
A hand touches my shoulder and immediately, I know it's Arch without looking. Mom's funeral is tomorrow. Rylan doesn't know. A part of me feels guilty, like I've been playing a persona all week in our conversations, purposely hiding a secret and making sure only to put forward the best parts of me—if they exist anymore. Only Arch knows the intimate details—just how I need it.
Mr. Morrison was nice enough to accommodate my schedule. After missing my fair share of classes lately, I was grilled by Dean Lannister at the start of the week and warned that any more absences would affect my graduation. I know I had ammo, a genuine reason, but I kept it to myself. If I was still at Cedar Heights, I probably would have owned up to my secret. But not here. So, we organized for a small service to take place at the Ridgeview Community Gardens over the weekend. Originally, I was going to go with Sunday since it's meant to rain tomorrow, but Arch made a good point—I'll want Sunday to myself, to grieve and come to terms with shit.
All in all, their suggestion of a fight night couldn't have come at a better time. I've been in a daze this week, doing everything I can to distract myself. But I can only run until tomorrow. At least tonight, I can find peace again… even if it's only temporary. I probably deserve to be locked up in an asylum. What sane person finds peace in violence? Humans are meant to have emotions, but I run from them like a person with commitment issues. It's the only cardio I'm good at—well, besides fighting. And I'm keen to get my knuckles bruised tonight.
Our card is already getting full. Between Mills and me, it won't take much to fill the other spots. Hell, Parker looks ready for round two as well.
"Alright, Monday," Tai concedes, staring at me as if I've suddenly spouted two heads and turned green. "But no more funny business."
"Fuck yourself with a cactus, Beckett," I whisper angrily, clearly still not in control of my temper as I grab my bag, abandoning my now-cold cheeseburger. "Arch, start spreading the word. I'll take care of the rest."