He smiled and fist pumped Maddox. “The whole school is talking.”
My lips flattened in a straight line. “They need to stop gossiping.”
“That’s their job. To gossip,” Maddox said with a lazy smile. “What’s so bad about being my girlfriend, Garcia?”
“Because I’m not.”
“You sure?” Colton shot back.
There was one thing I learned during these three days.
Colton and Cole were twins, but they were nothing alike. Cole was more reserved, the quiet type. He didn’t always hang around with us, and he was less of an asshole and more of a gentleman. In fact, you’d think Colton and Maddox were twins because… they were both pompous jerks. Attitude and personality, both were fuckboys and infuriating.
Now that Maddox and I were friends, that meant his friends were mine. Poor Riley got dragged into this mess, too.
Riley was ready to deck Colton any time now, and I wanted to raise my white flag in defeat, but refrained from doing so. My mama didn’t raise a quitter.
“If you two are going to gang up on me, I’m going back to the front row.” I went to stand up, grabbing my bag with me.
Colton raised his hands up in mock defeat, and Maddox grinned. “Keep your ass seated on that chair, Garcia. I’ll drag you back if I have to.”
I plopped back on the chair. “I’m not your pet, Coulter.”
He leaned closer, his lips next to my ear, so he could whisper while Mrs. Levi started her lesson. “You’re kinda cute when you’re pissed off.”
“Shut. Up.”
He sat back in his chair, looking quite satisfied with himself, like he had just tamed a dragon. As if. I ignored him and focused on the lesson instead. Sure, he was distracting, but I wasn’t going to let him affect my perfect GPA.
***
Hours ticked by, slowly… so goddamn slow...until the final bell rang. It was a long day of being scrutinized and glared at, and the whispers followed everywhere I went. It didn’t matter if Maddox and I were enemies or friends; I was an outsider, always had been and always would be.
Some were curious, some were just plain mean about it.
I heard she’s poor. She’s probably just fucking him for money.
Desperate whore.
She’s not even that pretty.
Do you think she’s fucking Maddox’s dad too? I wouldn’t be surprised if she has a sugar daddy.
Oh my God, that’s so funny! Both father and son. Her hole is probably so stretched out.
She might be fucking her way through the whole football team.
They didn’t understand why Maddox was so fascinated by me, their words, or why me and not them. Honestly, neither did I. Maddox was somewhat a mystery even to me. Why did he put me on his radar?
Riley let out a huff, her face red with anger. “What the fuck is wrong with them?”
“Just…ignore it,” I said, breathing out a tired sigh. “They’ll eventually grow bored and choose another victim.”
“It’s not fair.”
No, it wasn’t, but I was learning to accept my fate.
Riley, bless her heart, looked ready to attack someone, but I pulled her back.
“You have dance practice, right? Don’t be late.” I nudged her toward the door.
She let out a sigh and gave me a sad look. “You can’t them walk all over you, Lila. I did that. I let them bully me to their satisfaction and they took everything from me. My friends, my popularity, my pride… until I had nothing left. They are like vultures. They won’t stop until they break you apart. You need to show them who’s boss because you are.”
After all, I had nothing to be scared of. Maddox was on my side now. His friend. His only friend who was a girl. I had more power than any of the girls he slept with. He was king, and as much as I hated it, that made me the unofficial queen. Berkshire Academy was my kingdom.
But no one wanted a cold queen. The last thing I wanted to do was have them despise me any more than they already did.
Once Riley left, I walked into the bathroom since my bladder was close to exploding. The bus wasn’t going to be here for another fifteen minutes, so I had enough time.
I was washing my hands when it happened.
When they rounded up on me.
In the mirror, I caught sight of four girls. I recognized two of them. Bethany, probably the most popular girl in Berkshire, and her best friend, Suraiya. The other two girls were familiar, but I didn’t know them well enough to know their names.
They circled around me, and I shut off the tap, shaking away the droplets of water from my hands.
“Can I help you?” I asked, suspicious of their sudden appearance.
“She can speak,” Bethany mocked, with a fake innocence.
“If you’ve got nothing to say, I’m leaving.” I walked past her, and she grabbed my arm, digging her long nails into my skin. I didn’t flinch, but it stung like a bitch.