Chapter 7
My heart raced in my chest. This was a game, and I knew I had to speak to Jess before things spiraled any further.
“How about we wash up?” I suggested with a smile, trying my best to appear casual and hoping she'd go along with me.
“Sure! Let's go,” she replied as she stood up. “Oh, perfect! I really need to use the restroom too,” Jess added as we reached the restroom. She dashed inside, and I followed her into a single stall. “Hey, what are you doing? I can handle this alone,” she joked.
“Listen, there's something I need to tell you,” I said, gripping her shoulders. She looked at me, a mix of confusion and curiosity on her face.
“What is it?” she asked, impatience creeped into her voice. I hesitated, unsure of how to begin, and silence hung between us. “Oh please, don't tell me you two…” she implied.
“Oh no, not at all,” I replied, her expression relaxed. “Did you forget what I told you about the break-in at school and the bullies behind it?”
“Yes, and?” she said, still not connecting the dots.
“One of them is Zane! I told you this!” I explained, urgency in my tone.
“You never mentioned his name!” she retorted.
“Yes, I did!” Or did I?
“No, I would remember. You mentioned someone named Jake, a girl named V, and a couple of other guys, but not him,” Jessica pointed out.
“Well, now you know,” I said, and felt the tension rise.
“Okay, so what? They broke into school and had some beers. We're all kids,” she said, rolling her eyes as if it didn't matter.
“What? Don't you remember my name being written everywhere?” I asked, as my frustration boiled over.
“Oh, that? Just a dumb prank,” she dismissed.
“And what about Emily?” I asked, unsure if Jess knew anything about her situation. I wasn't even certain it was my place to tell her.
“What about Emily?” she replied, brows furrowed in confusion.
“Do you know where she went when you said you lost her?” I pressed.
“She was fine! She texted me that she met a guy from her school. She seemed into him, so I left her alone. Why do you ask?” Jessica waited for my answer, and I felt a wave of guilt washing over me.
If Jessica had slept with Zane, he might have recorded it.
This whole situation was twisted. I needed to tell Jess.
“Listen, at that party, Emily hooked up with Jake, and he recorded it. Now he's blackmailing her, which is why she hasn't talked to me. It's all just a game to them. Zane might have a video of you too,” I said, as my anger and concern spilled out.
“No, he doesn't,” she shot back, her confidence unwavering.
“You can't know that! Emily didn't believe it either,” I urged, trying to make her see the reality.
“I'm telling you he doesn't. We just made out, that's all. We talked most of the time. Nothing more,” she insisted, her disbelief turned to anger.
“Okay, that's a relief,” I sighed, feeling drained. She stared at me, taken aback. She didn't like my reaction.
“Excuse me? Anyway, it's none of your business. If Emily got herself into trouble, that's her problem, not mine or Zane’s,” she said defensively.
“But did you hear what I just said?” I asked, incredulous at her dismissal.
“Yes, I heard you loud and clear. Now, can you please leave? I need to use the restroom,” she said, opening the door to usher me out.
Things didn't turn out the way I had anticipated. Why was she so defensive when it came to him? She didn't really know Zane. But did I? Sure, he was part of that Vipers gang, and there's a reason for that—it was definitely not because he was a stand-up guy.
He may have written my name on the classroom wall; he could have been the one who broke into my room. Or it could have been Clous, V, or even Jake. Or maybe I was just losing my mind, and it was all one big strange coincidence. That was a possibility, right?
I couldn't just sit back and act like everything was fine, pretending that I enjoyed his presence while I actually despised him—and all of them, for that matter.
If it hadn't been for Emily, I might have already reported them... What they had done crossed the line; they broke the rules, and people were suffering as a result. I couldn't just stand by and watch, or even worse, put on a smile.
I had never been very skilled at concealing my feelings; no matter how hard I tried to manage or hide them, it always proved to be a struggle. Marco knew me all too well—how could he not?
When we took our seats again, the air was thick with tension. Marco turned his inquisitive stare toward me. “I'll ask again: is everything okay? You look like you might explode. Should I run away or attempt to deactivate the bomb?” he teased, leaning in to whisper.
“Everything's fine; we just had a disagreement with Jessica. Can you drop it? It's starting to feel awkward,” I murmured back, a hint of annoyance crept into my tone.
“So, what's on the agenda, everyone?” Zane interjected, grinning as he glanced between the three of us. Just then, our orders arrived, and we all began sipping our hot drinks in comfortable silence.
“So, Zane… you go to school with my Luna, which means you probably see her more than I do,” Marco said, attempting to lighten the mood with a joke.
“Yeah, you could say that,” Zane replied, returning Marco’s gaze.
It was clear that we had been in the same school for a long time, but I never paid much attention to him.
By the end of last year, I vaguely remembered him joining the Vipers, but before that, he seemed like a ghost—someone who had either slipped through the cracks or transferred to our school recently.
I didn't have the best memory for faces, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I knew nothing about him. But he did; he did remember me.
“And what's your major? Fashion?” Marco threw out another joke, his irritation evident.
“Architecture,” Zane replied curtly.
“Oh, so you're planning to design skyscrapers?” Marco pressed on.
“Mostly. I hope to move to New York one day. People there don't care about who you are, what you do, or where you come from. It's a city full of dreams, vast opportunities, and fresh starts,” Zane said, his eyes shifting to me with a wry smile.
“I've always wanted to visit New York; it's so stunning. Maybe it should be my next adventure, or we could go together once school wraps up.” Jessica suggested, her gaze lingering on Zane as if inviting him to join her.
Jessica was acting as if our earlier conversation had never happened. How could she just brush it off like that? Didn't she care at all?
“I want to be a writer,” she declared, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “That way, I can live anywhere I choose, maybe even travel. I could spend no more than six months in one place writing novels—thrillers, especially. I love thrillers!” She gestured animatedly, lost in her dream.
“Don't you need a degree in communications or journalism to pursue writing?” I interjected, my tone sharper than I intended. Her smile faltered as she replied, “There are plenty of independent writers who do it as a hobby.” Her eyes locked onto mine, challenging me.
“But you just said you wanted it to be your career, not just a hobby,” I shot back. I was definitely in a mood to pick a fight.
“I know what I said. Do you have an issue with that?” she retorted, her voice rising with frustration.
“Not at all, just having a discussion,” I replied, trying to keep my tone neutral. The atmosphere grew tense again, and Marco and Zane exchanged uneasy glances.
“Are we ready for the movies?” Zane asked, forcing a smile. Jessica shot me a look that clearly said no.
“Sure, I'm ready,” Marco answered first.
“I guess it's movie time then,” I said, still focused on Jessica.
“Wait for me outside; it's my treat today,” Jess said, managing a tight smile.
As the three of us headed outside, Jessica stayed behind to settle the tab.
“Oh shit, it's raining,” Marco exclaimed. “Stay here under the awning while I grab the car,” he said, running in a hurry. I couldn't even say a word. Fantastic.
“Well, this was fun,” Zane said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
“Absolutely,” I replied, mirroring his attitude.
“We should do this again sometime,” he suggested with a grin, which only made me scoff.
“Why are you messing with Jessica?” I asked, glaring at him.
“Messing with her? I'm just going out with a beautiful girl,” he shot back. Well, I couldn't argue with that.
“You know exactly what I mean,” I pressed.
“No, I really don't. Care to clarify?” Zane challenged.
“You're just playing with her feelings, lying to her. It's all part of your sick little game. Look at what you did to Emily!” I snapped.
“I didn't do anything to Emily, did I?”
“Not directly, but you're still involved.”
“I'm not,” he insisted, clearly irritated.
“You broke into the school!” I accused.
“No, Clous did that. I was just along for the ride,” he defended himself.
“Didn't you bring alcohol and drink it while doing who knows what?”
“As a matter of fact, I didn't bring anything. I just accepted what was offered to me,” he replied, trying to justify his actions as if he were innocent.
“Oh, come on. You're impossible to talk to,” I said, exasperated.
“But here we are, having a conversation, don't we?” he smirked.
I was pissed. It felt like anything I said would only lead to a clever comeback. He had annoyed me far more than I anticipated. Just then, I seized the chance to ask one last question.
“Who wrote my name in that classroom?” I inquired, watching for any shift in his utterly relaxed demeanor.
“I did,” he replied. My jaw dropped, and I could feel the tension in my body rising.
“Why?” I pressed for more information.
“And I'll tell you the next time we meet,” he said with a playful smirk. I rolled my eyes in frustration.
“So you can come up with a decent lie?” I shot back with a half-smile, half-scowl.
“Unlike you, I don't tell lies. I might not tell the whole truth,
but I never lie,” he countered, leaning closer to me.
“I don't lie,” I retorted, pulling away, feeling slightly offended.
“Really?” he challenged, turning his attention to Marco, who had just pulled in.
“Oh great, I didn't know it was supposed to rain today,” Jessica said, appearing from behind us, clearly annoyed.
“Let's hurry; we'll be late,” she urged, strolling nonchalantly into the downpour, with Zane’s car just a few steps away.
“Luna, are you coming?” Marco called out, cracking open his car window slightly.
My mind was a whirlwind of confusion. I didn't have to question it; I already knew. But did I really? Was Zane being honest with me? Why would he suggest that I was lying? I hadn't mentioned the Vipers recently to Marco. I simply didn't share the entire truth.
“Do you have any idea who did it?”
“No, I don't.”
That was a lie.
The drive to the cinema took about fifteen minutes. Ten minutes in, and we hadn't spoken a word. I could still see the tension etched across Marco’s face.
“Is there anything you want to tell me?” he finally asked, his gaze fixed on the road. Crap. Here we go.
“Like what?” I feigned ignorance.
“Clearly, there's something I'm missing. You know you can trust me, right? You can share anything with me.” He kept glancing at me, his anticipation palpable. I knew I had to come clean. I had to. I loved him—didn't that mean I should be completely open? Why would I want to hide anything from him?
“Remember I mentioned that group of bullies called the Vipers last year?”
“Yes…”
“Well, Zane is one of them, and I was trying to give Jess a heads-up, but she just isn't interested.” I spoke truthfully.
“Did he do something wrong?” That question caught me off guard.
“I mean, they all just pull some dumb pranks together.”
“What exactly did he do?” he insisted. Damn it.
“Nothing specific…” I trailed off as he cut me off, raising his voice.
“So why do you care?”
“I don't!” I nearly shouted back.
And just like that, we had arrived.
October 6th
Love and trust; one cannot exist without the other. You can't express love without a foundation of trust, and you can't truly trust if you're suppressing your emotions.