Chapter 5

The next morning, I called Grandpa to drive me to school, but I had ulterior motives for the meeting. 

“ My favorite grandkid. Hurry or I will leave your late ass here.” He shouted from outside. 

I hurried with a box and put it in the back seat. 

“ I am your only grandkid. Gramps. I don’t have competition, unlike someone.” I teased him.

“ Touche.” 

“ Ask your assistant to donate the box at the back.”

“ Will do.”

The only reason I asked Grandpa is that he would not ask me the reason behind it. 

“ Julian wants to talk to you. He has something important to discuss with you.” 

I groaned. 

“ Don’t tell me you threw me under the bus again?” This is what my grandparents do. They pull up some crazy shit and blame it on me. Last time they took me to an illegal poker night which got busted by the police. Uncle Julian reams a new asshole out of us. 

He smirked at me. 

“ I wish kid. I wish. Guess you have to talk to him on this matter.” 

When the school building came into my view. My breath halted, and my heart shuddered. I knew I could not do it yesterday, I think even today I cannot take it. 

“ Hey, Kid. Are you okay?” concern laced his voice, he was worried, I could see it in his wrinkled eyes. 

I took a deep breath. 

“ Stagefright” I replied, kissed his cheek, and swiftly moved out of his car. 

I can do this. I don’t need fake people to survive school. 

I took a deep breath and hoped that my radically beating heart could beat more normally. So I don’t have to hear it thumping in my mouth. 

When I reached the hallways. Nobody was looking at me or paying any attention to me. 

Which was good. Everything was normal. 

But what about me? 

I guess, now I have to find a new normal for myself. 

I opened my locker and as soon as I opened it. I was surrounded by people. 

Unwanted people. 

Liars. 

“ Not here,” I said calmly and locked it after taking my books. 

I got inside the empty classroom and turned to look at them. All guilty faces, but one was still missing. He won’t be coming and now I don’t even care. 

“ We are sorry but we had no option left.” Hannah started.

I sat at the table and crossed my legs to hear the guilty pleading. 

“ Zander was sick of your clinginess and Emma’s parents would never send her anywhere with you. So we thought that what you don’t know won’t hurt you.” Hannah sighed and rubbed her temple. 

To be honest it hurts. It fucking hurts so much. 

“ So what’s the problem now? Everything is in the open now. You guys don’t have to lie to me and no longer be afraid that the others would get mad at you. So why this apologizing thing.” I rolled my eyes at them. So I came out as a non-caring person. Because from the inside I am breaking. 

“ We never wanted to hurt you,” Trent said standing in the far corner of the room. 

“ It doesn’t matter.” I sighed. 

“ It does.” He replied and took a step toward me. 

“ Them or me?” I said. 

“ Don’t you think it’s partly your fault? You kept harassing Zander and one day he decided he didn’t want to be around you. You are constantly poking him to notice you is what brought us here.” Emma said, even though her voice was small her statement was well thought out and practiced. 

I looked at her and looked at her for real for the first time. She looks kind of familiar. But what’s there not to be familiar I have known her from the age of eight, we were best friends. But she looks eerily familiar to me now. I am not grasping the familiarity which is creepy. 

“ Ok fine. You're all right.  I will apologize to Zander but what about your homophobic illiterate fools of parents? What am I supposed to do with them? That’s not even my fault and you all should be ashamed that you went through with all this thing without any problem.” I didn’t break eye contact with Emma. It's the battle of will that she lost. She looked around her. 

“ My parents might be fools but your friends did choose others over you. If it was anybody else. Say it was Hannah, they wouldn’t agree to go along with a plan for so long. But only because it was you, they didn’t care. And trust me I am with you. I don’t know why we are saying sorry to you. But that’s the thing right. We do know why we are saying sorry. Because nobody wants to upset the Princess.” Emma sneered at me. 

“ You are so damn right, Emma. I always knew you were smart but I wish you were a little less..um, coward. She is fucking right, you all took me for granted.”  I shouted at them.

“ I think we should forget all this and start over. A fresh start with no lies or deceit.” Trent said. 

“ Yeah, because what you think is what really matters right. The king of the school has said the matter is over so the matter is over. Newsflash Trent Ashford, Daphne Viola James has zero fucks to give.” 

“ I am sorry. We all really are. But..” Hannah said. 

“ It doesn’t matter now. I don’t care. If you want forgiveness, yeah, okay fine. I don’t believe in grudges but nothing can go back to the way it all was before.” I moved toward the door which was firmly blocked by Trent. 

“ Please, I am begging you.” Trent's voice held such desperation that my heart shook. 

“ Time is what we need. You can get my acquaintance but I don’t think you can ever get my trust.” I didn’t look at him and he didn’t move. 

“ I will not back down,” he whispers and I am sure it's only for me to hear. 

“ You can try.” By saying this I left the classroom and came face to face with the person who brought hurricane to my life. 

I visibly gulped but decided it was my best bet. 

“ I am sorry, I did bad to you. I never thought you were not into me like I was. It was my fault for mentally harassing you and I would like to apologize.” I said and left him without waiting for his answer. 

I know my apology feels like a formal letter but right now I don’t really care. I can hear my blood rushing in my veins and my heartbeat in my ear. My cheeks warmed and my fingers got stiff. 

I locked myself inside the washroom stall and took a shuddering breath. I have to move on. From heartaches and betrayals.