by Callie Rose
“Yeah.” Maggie shook her head before turning to me. “But wait, didn’t you say Cole was the one who went after Oliver?”
“Sure, but that’s not saying much.” Leah arched a brow at her. “He’d take any excuse to beat someone up.”
“That’s true.” But the blonde girl still looked thoughtful. I wasn’t sure she was convinced that was all there was to it.
I didn’t want to talk about Cole, or any of the Princes for that matter. This was the longest conversation I’d had with Leah in months, and although I’d gotten used to life without her around, I still missed her. She had a bright energy about her that had been one of the only things that’d made my first semester bearable.
The tension between us wasn’t really gone—the distance that had developed couldn’t be banished with a few short words of apology.
But I’d meant it when I’d said I was sorry. I had felt a combination of guilt and anger toward her for a long time, but it was the whole fucked up situation with the Princes that’d driven the wedge between us in the first place.
I wouldn’t let them do it again.
Seventh period was well underway when the three of us emerged from the locker room. We ditched eighth period too, went back to Prentice Hall, watched a movie on the big TV downstairs—and for a few hours, it was just like old times. I’d changed back into my uniform before we headed across campus, throwing Cole’s shirt in the trash on the way out of the building. I’d been afraid if I left it in my locker, his scent would somehow ingrain itself in the space, and I couldn’t handle that.
I’d already had too much. Too much of Cole today.
Besides, just like the chunk of hair I’d cut off his head that first week of school, a lost t-shirt was replaceable. Fixable.
And I still owed him something he couldn’t fix.
Father is abusive.
I shoved the thought away and concentrated on the movie. It was a rom-com—Leah had lobbied hard for horror, but Maggie and I had overruled her—and the leads had just met in a stalled elevator.
The thing I’d told Cole about not being able to take something back once you put it out in the world sat like lead in my stomach. It was true.
What was I prepared to put out in the world?
After the movie ended, Maggie went upstairs to her dorm room, and as soon as she left, Leah made a quick exit too. Things definitely weren’t back to normal between us, but at least we were able to hang out with a buffer present. That was a step in the right direction.
I took another long shower before bed, trying to wash the entire day off me. To scrub away Oliver’s unwanted touch, and the caress of Cole’s fingers against my cheek that had felt too good.
The next morning, I felt jittery as I walked across campus toward Craydon Hall. Oliver was in my second period class, so I’d have to face him sooner than I was prepared for. I was still on the fence about going to the dean, but even if I did, it wouldn’t be until later in the day.
Jesus. So much for trying to go for a nice, normal boy.
Did I really have that bad of taste in men? Or were they just all assholes?
I’d actively worked to make myself feel something for Oliver, had seen him as the type of guy I should be going for. But in the end, he hadn’t been any better than the Princes. He’d lied to me about what he wanted, played the “nice guy” card until he realized it wasn’t getting him into my pants like he’d hoped, and then tried to force me.
First period went by in a blur, and I held my books tightly against my chest like a shield was I walked into room 229 for Trigonometry, bracing myself to see Oliver’s face. It’d been a mess of purple bruises and smeared blood the last time I’d seen him, just before he’d fled the dance studio.
He wasn’t in the room when I arrived, and I picked a seat in the back row—somewhere that felt protected and defensible. But when Mrs. LaVaunne began lecturing five minutes later, he still hadn’t arrived.
I sat on edge all through class, and when the period ended with no sign of Oliver, I tapped the girl in the row ahead of me on the shoulder as we gathered up our books.
“Hey, um, do you know where Oliver Hedelston is?”
The girl, Beth, glanced over at me. “Oh, yeah. You didn’t hear?”
I shook my head, nerves roiling in my stomach.
“He transferred out. Can you believe it? Senior year, and he just left. I heard he’s going to go to Hilton Prep.” She scoffed. “Guess he felt like taking a giant step down the social ladder.”
Hilton Prep was a rival school, and I was sure it was still a way better institution than Sand Valley Public High. But… Oliver had transferred? Just like that?
The classroom was clearing out, and Beth slung her backpack over her shoulder. As we headed for the door, she added, “I heard he got jumped in Roseland last night. Maybe that’s why he decided to leave.”
She turned and headed down the hall without another word, leaving me staring at her retreating back. A few students jostled by me, but I couldn’t get my feet to move.
Jumped in Roseland?
Was that just the excuse he’d given for the bruises Cole had left on his face? Or had he been attacked again?
And if so, by whom?
I didn’t have to think too hard to come up with a guess on that, but I didn’t let my brain go there.
In a daze, I wandered down the hall to my next class and sat through Spanish without hearing a single word.
Oliver was gone.
Mixed feelings filled me as I processed that fact. First came an overwhelming sense of relief that I wouldn’t have to see him in the halls or sit in the same class with him ever again. But it was also a vivid reminder of how powerful the Princes were—because I was sure at least one of them was behind this.
They had way too much influence and control, and what they’d done to Oliver was essentially the same thing they’d tried to do to me. They’d gotten rid of him. Rearranged his whole life to get him out of theirs. Out of mine. It seemed so fucked up for them to have power over someone’s entire existence like that.
But a part of me was glad they’d done it, and I couldn’t quite face what that said about me.
At lunch, Maggie waved me over to sit with her, Leah, and Dan. Leah didn’t object, and Dan smiled brightly at me. I was pretty sure Maggie hadn’t told him what’d brought the three of us girls together in the locker room the day before, and I was glad. More people knew about that incident than I was comfortable with already.
“You look better,” Maggie said encouragingly as I sat down.
“Thanks.”
“I heard Oliver’s gone.” Leah shot me a meaningful look as Dan’s confused gaze bounced between the three of us.
“Yeah, I heard that too.” I met her stare, my next words almost defiant. “I didn’t ask for that.”
She snorted. “I figured.” Then she shot a glance behind me, her brows pulling together. “I mean, I’m not really sorry he’s gone.”
I didn’t have to turn to know what she was looking at—the table across the room where four boys sat like royalty presiding over their kingdom. But as the conversation around me turned to other, lighter subjects, I couldn’t stop myself from glancing over at the Princes.
Finn looked up as I did, catching my gaze. His honey-brown eyes were stormy, and we stared at each other in silence for a few seconds before he finally pulled his attention away. He turned and murmured something to Cole, and the larger boy nodded. The small bruise on Cole’s face was lighter today, but I was sure if I got closer, I’d see cuts and scrapes on his knuckles.
Mason hadn’t spoken to me since that day in my dorm, and in fact, the brown-haired boy’s back was to me now. He’d called off the school-wide attack on me, but he still seemed to hate me so much he could barely look at me.
Maybe he hadn’t had a hand in it. But one or more of the Princes had made Oliver leave.
Why?
Chapter 12
I made myself go back to the st
udio the next day.
Oliver was gone, and there was no way I would let him steal this haven from me. The small, bare room was one of my favorite places on the entire Oak Park campus—one of my favorite places in the entire world—and I wouldn’t let fear keep me out.
But when I pushed the door open and stepped inside, I froze, my heart kicking in my chest like a startled animal.
What the fuck?
Finn sat on the floor with his back against the wall in his usual spot, elbows resting on his knees as he scrolled through his phone.
Goddamn it. I stared at him in shock for several seconds, but before I could do anything, he spoke.
“Just go about your business. Pretend I’m not here.”
I’d done that before. I’d done it for weeks during my first semester at Oak Park. But why was he back? Why now?
I hesitated for another several seconds, torn between walking out, trying to shove him out, and just saying fuck it so I could dance.
The urge to practice won out, and I slipped inside the room and crossed toward the barre, keeping my gaze purposefully averted from Finn. I did notice a small pink smear on the floor where Cole had whaled on Oliver the day before, and I stopped to scuff at it with my shoe.
“Yeah, sorry.” Finn’s voice came from behind me, but I still refused to look at him. “I tried to wipe it up, but it was all dried out. Cole’s not really great at cleaning up the shit he breaks.”
I didn’t answer. Finn had told me to pretend he wasn’t there, and that was exactly what I intended to do.
Leaving the patch of stained floor behind, I found my way into first position at the barre and then did a quick warm-up. I’d been slowly starting to choreograph a piece to use for my audition, so I planned to spend the period working on that.
Finn sat silently against the wall, and when I cast a few furtive glances at him out of the corner of my eye as I began dancing, I always found his gaze focused like a laser on his phone. It was almost like he was consciously trying to make himself as inconspicuous as possible, to make himself invisible by stoically ignoring me. Like he really did want me to forget he was here, to be able to practice in peace.
A thought occurred to me that was so stupid and insane I immediately pushed it down.
Is Finn here to make sure nobody else tries to fuck with me while I practice?
I was angry at myself for even considering it. Old Talia might’ve thought that, but Old Talia had gotten her ass kicked and her heart broken. New Talia needed to be smarter. Needed to stop assuming things, stop creating good intentions where there were none.
So I just threw myself into dancing.
Or I tried to, anyway.
I kept falling out of step, missing counts, and forgetting bits I’d added to the choreography. Finn wasn’t doing shit, but he still took up too much space in the room, flooding my head with memories I didn’t want.
Finally, after twenty minutes of attempting to work through my routine, I missed the same step for the third time and whirled on him, my foot coming down hard on the wooden floor.
“What the fuck are you doing here, Finn?”
His gaze flicked up to mine and then back to his phone. “Nothing. I’m serious, Tal. There’s no thing going on here. Just ignore me.”
“Well, if you’re not doing anything, go not do it somewhere else.”
“Can’t. Sorry.” His gaze was still on his phone, but I could tell it was taking him extreme effort not to look at me.
“Why the hell not?”
I stalked toward him, enjoying being the one standing while he sat for once. When my feet were next to his, Finn finally looked away from his screen, his gaze trailing up my legs and torso to my face.
“I think you know why,” he said softly.
My jaw clenched. “Because of Oliver.”
He dipped his head once, a flash of some strong emotion flaring hot behind his brown eyes.
“Jesus. Why? Are you pissed because he fucked with what was yours?” My lips twisted on the last word, and I spit it out like a poison dart.
“No. I’m here because you should be able to do the one thing you love without someone trying to attack you.”
My throat tightened. “That’s rich, coming from you. Did you forget all of last year? What you did last semester?”
Keeping his gaze locked on mine, he rose to his feet until we were standing a foot apart.
“No, I didn’t forget. It wasn’t all a lie, Talia.” His voice was low. “Not for me.”
“What?” The word scraped past my vocal cords, my whole body tensing like a piano wire.
“I know you think we made it all up. And that was what we meant to do. But it didn’t work that way. What I felt for you was real.”
“Fuck. You.”
My breath was coming faster, my chest rising and falling as my fists clenched. I had punched Mason in the face once, but I hadn’t punched Finn yet—maybe it was about time to change that.
He flinched at my words, almost as if I’d already hit him, then held up his phone between us. “We didn’t use all of it.”
“What are you talking about?” I demanded through gritted teeth.
“The footage from that night at the beach. Your birthday. We didn’t use all of it.”
“Why?” I spat. “Saving some in case you needed more blackmail later? Well, I already told you, it’s too fucking late for that. There’s no one else you can turn against—”
“No. That’s not it.” He swallowed. “In the water… when you kissed us. I didn’t put that part in the video. Because it wasn’t for other people to see. It was real.”
I laughed, the sound harsh and too loud in the small space. “No, it wasn’t. It was an illusion. A stupid girl falling for a lie.”
He shook his head. “You’re wrong. Look, Tal. Look.”
Before I could say anything else, he swiped across the screen of his phone, bringing up a video. When he pressed play, the soft rush of waves met my ears, and my stomach flipped over like an undercooked pancake. I knew exactly what this was. And I didn’t need a video to remind me of it. Every fucking moment of that night was imprinted on my soul like a brand—one I would never be able to scrub away.
“You… kept it?” Anger burned in my voice.
Finn’s gaze flew to mine, and he shook his head quickly. “I deleted everything else. The guys don’t even know I still have this. I just… couldn’t let it go.”
“You’re fucking sick, you know that, right?” Ignoring the image on the screen, I shoved at his chest. “That’s like—like a serial killer getting off on pictures of his victims! You wrecked my life, and now you’re holding onto this one video? This one moment? Because it felt real to you? Well, you know what felt real to me, Finn? Getting slapped in the face by my fucking grandmother! Getting kicked out by the only family I have left in the world! Hearing four people I cared about tell me they did it all on purpose!”
I pushed him again, and he held his hands out, still gripping the phone tightly. “Talia—”
“No! I don’t care if it felt real to you, Finn! Don’t you get that? Because that’s worse! That means you did all this to someone you claim you have feelings for, and you know what that makes you? A fucking monster! Worse than Mason! At least that asshole admits he hates me. Why are you trying to pretend you don’t?”
My shoves had barely budged him—he was used to getting tackled by two hundred pounds of solid muscle regularly—but they’d brought us closer together, and now we stood nearly chest to chest. My head was tipped up so I could meet his eyes, but for once, I didn’t feel smaller than him. My anger made me feel tall and indomitable, and I wondered for a second if this was what Cole felt like when he seemed to puff up with rage.
“I’m not pretending, Tal.” Finn looked a little sick as he shook his head. “What we did was fucked up. I know that. But I’m not lying. Look.”
He held the phone up, the video still playing, and against my will, my gaze tracked over to the
screen. It was dark, difficult to distinguish between the night sky and the dark ocean, but the figure standing in the water stood out, her pale skin shining in the moonlight.
Me.
She tilted her head back, hair stirring in the breeze as she seemed to taste the air.
Then she turned, and the camera panned to follow her as she walked over to a boy with perfectly styled brown hair. Elijah.
Lithe as a sprite, like some kind of creature born of water and air, she rose up onto her tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his lips. His hands settled at her waist, gripping tightly as their lips moved together.
Mason had been the one filming, I realized. Of course he had. He must’ve passed the phone off to someone else before I turned to him.
When the girl on the screen stepped away from Elijah and turned to Finn, my chest squeezed so hard it felt like it was collapsing in on itself. Moonlight hit his face perfectly, illuminating the angle of his nose, the twin dimples in his cheeks as something like surprise, awe, and hope crossed his features. When the water sprite with the pale skin and dark hair stepped into his embrace, he wrapped his arms around her possessively, curving her body against his as he kissed her.
The image wavered in front of me as tears blurred my vision, but I couldn’t look away as the video continued to play. The landscape jostled roughly as the phone changed hands, and then the girl stepped up to the broad-shouldered boy with jet-black hair and pressed two light kisses to the corners of his mouth. Cole.
Before she could press a third kiss, his arms banded around her and his lips devoured hers.
The sound on the video was still turned up, but even the waves seemed to have quieted, as if the whole world had held its breath in that moment.
When the girl who was so open, uninhibited, and happy that she couldn’t possibly be me turned toward Mason last, I stopped breathing. She stepped toward him before hesitating… and it was his hand that reached out for her, his tug that pulled her the rest of the way, closing the distance between them until their lips met.
