20. Sarah
‘What?’ Sarah couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Theo was bullied? Not possible.
‘I don’t remember that,’ Levi said, frowning at his friend.
‘How?’ Sarah asked. ‘How could anyone bully you?’
Theo looked like he regretted mentioning it. He tried his usual, charming smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes.
‘I’m Korean,’ he said as if it explained everything. He looked at Levi, ‘Why do you think I clung to you so much? You were the only person who didn’t care about my heritage.’
Levi looked as dumbfounded as Sarah felt, and maybe a little ashamed. How could he have not known?
‘I thought Australia was—’ Alexis started.
‘Not racist?’ Theo snorted.
‘You were so popular at school,’ Levi said. ‘All the girls practically fell over themselves to get you to notice them.’
‘Is there anything to drink?’ Theo asked, standing and looking around.
‘I brought beer,’ Alexis said.
‘Perfect,’ Theo replied and sat down again as Alexis went to grab it.
Sarah didn’t know what to say. She had never been bullied. Sure, there were people who hadn’t liked her, but she’d never been in a position where she had been the victim of teenage tormentors… the stalker notwithstanding.
Did having a stalker compare to being bullied?
She slid her hand into her pocket and wrapped it around her phone.
Have a nice trip
How the hell had the bastard found her new number already? That meant she’d have to change it again. And how did he know she was on a trip? Had he followed them? Was he watching them right now?
Sarah looked around, but it was too dark to see. He wouldn’t be here, right? He probably just saw her leaving. It was easy to tell they were going on a trip. Following her here would make it too obvious. Seeing someone she knew in a place like this would absolutely point fingers at them, but so far, everyone had been strangers.
The thought put her at ease. If he had followed them, she would spot him in no time, and then this nightmare would be over.
‘I still don’t understand,’ Levi said, leaning forward to look at Theo. ‘I thought everyone loved you.’
‘Not so much,’ he replied, accepting a bottle of beer from Alexis and taking a long swig. ‘The female students might have liked me when I was a bit older, but that only made the male students hate me even more.’
‘But you never behaved like…’
‘Like what? Like someone who got bullied? Yeah, well, I figured the best thing to do was to pretend like it didn’t bother me. It didn’t stop the beatings, though. Or the name calling.’
Levi shook his head as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Sarah could understand Levi’s disbelief. She couldn’t believe it either. She wasn’t ignorant enough to think that bullying didn’t happen. Kids could be cruel. But Theo? How could anyone want to hurt him? He was the sweetest guy. A little arrogant, but in a way, that was part of his charm. Sarah had known enough arseholes in her life to recognise one, and Theo wasn’t it.
‘Well… you certainly showed those bastards,’ Sarah said, not sure what else to say.
Theo turned to her and lifted a brow.
‘I mean… you’re a model, and not just any model. You’re internationally recognised. You just won a fucking award, for God’s sake.’
Was her voice rising? Yes. Yes, it was, and she didn’t give a good goddamn. She was so fucking mad. She was livid. The fury churned in her until she felt like she was going to explode. How dare those little shits pick on Theo? If she ever found out who they were, she was going to… she would… maybe she should take up capoeira. It was good for fitness and it looked fun, and then she could go and beat up those pricks for being mean to Theo. She could also possibly be fuelling this rage attack with a bit of her own frustration over the stalker situation.
‘Ah… shit,’ Alexis said, looking at Sarah’s face.
‘What?’ Levi asked.
‘Sarah’s got her butt-kicking face on.’
‘What?’ Levi repeated and then looked at Sarah. ‘Ah… I see it now.’
‘Who are they?’ Sarah asked, looking at Theo. ‘I want names, numbers, addresses, places of work, and… and… license plate numbers.’ If she couldn’t deal with her own tormentor, then she could certainly take it out on his.
Theo watched her for a really long time before the corner of his lips tipped up in a sad smile. ‘Settle down, Slugger.’
‘How are you so calm about this? You should be wiping the floor with those fuckers.’
Theo tipped the bottle up and took another long drink. ‘I’m over it.’
‘Are you? I don’t think you are.’
He tried that smarmy smile of his again. He did a better job this time, but Sarah could see how fake it was, and she realised just how many times Theo faked his smiles.
Fuck.
The guy had been fooling all of them. He wasn’t the happy-go-lucky playboy that everyone thought he was. He wasn’t the casually arrogant, charming supermodel he pretended to be. Okay, he was a supermodel, and he could be both arrogant and charming—both at the same time sometimes—but it was all a front. He wore it like the makeup his mother sold.
‘I feel like a shitty friend,’ Levi said.
Theo slapped him on the back before dropping the empty beer bottle and reaching for another. ‘Hey, I didn’t mean to bring the mood down.’
‘Stop it,’ Sarah said.
He looked at her with wide, innocent eyes. ‘Stop what?’
‘Stop pretending to be okay. Stop bullshitting us. Is this the first time you’ve told anyone?’
Theo tipped the bottle back and ignored her question as he drank.
‘Does your mother know?’
Theo coughed, choking on the mouthful he’d just taken. ‘Do you really think I would have told my mother about it? It would have broken her heart, and she probably would have gone apeshit at the school, not to mention the kids and their parents.’
‘Yeah, well, maybe she should have.’ Sarah crossed her arms, still pissed off, but she had nowhere to vent her frustration.
‘You could have told me,’ Levi said.
Theo smiled sadly. ‘You were too wrapped up in your own world to care. I was happy enough that you tolerated my presence.’
‘That’s bullshit,’ Alexis said, and Sarah could see she was as angry at the past as she was.
‘I know I can be oblivious at times, but I honestly didn’t know. I wish I had known. I would have done something.’
Theo chuckled darkly. ‘There was nothing anyone could do. I survived, didn’t I?’
How could he be so blasé about it… except he wasn’t really blasé, was he? He was still hurting. Sarah could only imagine how much he had overcome to be where he was now. How did he find the confidence to put himself out there in front of the camera for all the world to see? Sarah couldn’t have done it.
She put her arm through Theo’s and laid her head on his shoulder. ‘I, for one, think you are fucking amazing.’ Her voice was gentle. ‘You are beautiful and smart and kind and talented, and those arseholes can go to hell. They’re probably all unemployed or… or… or deadbeats.’
‘One of them works for a rival modelling agency,’ Theo said casually, staring into the fire.
‘Did that bastard try to recruit you?’ she asked, appalled at the idea.
‘He did.’
‘Well, I hope you told him where he could shove his offer,’ Alexis said.
‘I did one better. I strung him along for a while. Told him I just had to finish a contract and then I would sign with him. When I renewed with my current agency, he was pissed. Got in trouble with his bosses too, especially when I told them why I decided to not sign with him.’
‘I hope he got fired,’ Sarah growled.
‘Unfortunately, no. But he took a hit.’
They were all quiet for a long time. Sarah was struggling to deal with what Theo had revealed. The urge to do damage to the ones who’d damaged him was strong. She wasn’t a violent person… okay, maybe she could be when provoked. Not in a bad way, but she was willing to go to the mattresses for her friends. Yes, that was a Godfather reference. Yes, she’d seen it… several times.
‘So, Sarah, I think it’s your turn.’
‘Huh?’ She blinked at Theo, not comprehending what he was saying.
‘Two truths and a lie? What are yours?’
It took her a minute to shake off the pall of the previous conversation. But if Theo wanted to change the subject, then she would. She cleared her throat.
‘Okay… um… I know how to pole dance. I was in a movie once, and I used to have an invisible friend who looked like one of the Doctor Who actors.’
‘Which Doctor?’ Levi asked.
‘Ten and fourteen,’ Sarah replied immediately, her mind still on Theo.
‘Well, that’s obviously true,’ Levi grouched.
‘So it’s between pole dancing and being in a movie?’ Theo asked, waggling his eyebrows. ‘Did you perhaps pole dance in a movie?’
Sarah shoulder bumped him. ‘Be serious.’
‘I am. I’m very intrigued to know if you actually do know how to pole dance, and I might need a demonstration to prove it.’
‘Pole dancing is great for core strength,’ Alexis said, drawing Levi’s attention.
‘Do you know how to pole dance?’
Alexis just smiled in response.
Levi and Theo exchanged glances, and Sarah giggled. The heaviness of the moment before had lifted, and that had been her goal. No, she didn’t want to sweep it under the rug and forget about it, but she also didn’t want Theo to dwell on it. The past was in the past, and he had done an amazing job of overcoming it. She couldn’t change what had happened. She could only make sure that going forward, Theo was secure in the knowledge that he was a phenomenal person, and she was the exact right person to show him that.
‘I vote for pole dancing,’ Theo said.
‘Ddaeng,’ Sarah said, making a buzzer sound. ‘I was in a movie.’
‘Damn,’ Theo muttered.
‘What movie?’ Levi asked.
‘Do you remember H2O?’
‘The mermaid show?’
Sarah nodded. ‘I was in the movie. I was an extra.’
‘Were you a mermaid?’
‘Sadly, no,’ Sarah said with a large sigh. ‘It was my dream to be a mermaid, but I was too short.’
‘So you became a hairdresser instead?’
‘It’s actually when I fell in love with hairdressing. I spent more time in the stylist rooms than on set.’
‘You should be my stylist,’ Theo said.
‘What?’ Sarah laughed. He couldn’t be serious, could he?
‘Why not? Exciting travel destinations that are all paid for, not to mention the impressive salary. Plus, you get to work on a face so perfect that even a leading plastic surgeon refuses to touch it.’
‘Fuck off,’ Levi grumbled. ‘You don’t need plastic surgery.’
‘No, but I do need my own personal stylist. What do you think?’
Sarah gaped at him. He wasn’t serious, was he? The boost to her business would be incredible but… but a personal stylist? To Theo? Surely the modelling contracts he had included stylists. Each company would have their own, wouldn’t they?
Theo turned away from her. Was that hurt on his face?
‘Don’t sweat it, Sarah. I was just kidding.’
Except he didn’t sound like he was just kidding. He sounded genuinely hurt by her hesitation.
‘I’ll… think about it,’ she said, trying to sound casual. ‘Are you sure you can afford me?’
It was a lame attempt at a joke to lighten the mood, and it fell flat.