Torn Apart

by Kayla Myles

  Excuse us for a sec, okay?” Spencer asked. He pushed Elliot back into the kitchen and Rebecca excused herself, saying she had to take a call, and the music was drowning out everything else. I looked down at my shoes and sighed, feeling a little abandoned and a lot lost. Now what was I supposed to do?

  I felt a tap on my shoulder, and I turned around and saw a guy with spiky hair dyed white, and a cocky smirk decorating his face.

  “Can I help you?” I asked, furrowing my brows.

  “I sure hope you would,” he said, nodding. “Because I have been wondering what a gorgeous girl like you is doing all alone in here,” he said confidently. I blushed and scratched the inside of my elbow in embarrassment.

  “I don’t really know anybody in here,” I said, and he stepped up closer to me, almost but not quite invading my personal space.

  “Then I hope you will allow me to keep you company,” he said. “I’m Ross,” as he extended his hand and I shook it.

  “I’m George,” I replied.

  “Short for ‘Georgina’?” he asked, and I shook my head.

  “Close,” I said. “It’s Georgiana.”

  “Beautiful, just like you,” he breathed, and I bit my lip, looking down on the floor and letting my hair fall over my face. He swept my hair back, tucking it in my ear, and I felt my cheeks flush from his touch.

  He handed me a red cup filled with brown liquid, and I grimaced at the smell. “What’s the matter?” he asked, as I gave him a half-grin.

  “I have never drank beer before,” I admitted. Actually I’ve never drank any alcohol, period, but that sounded more embarrassing.

  He chuckled and raised my arm holding the cup, egging me to bring it to my lips. “There’s a first time for everything,” he said.

  I looked at the cup, and then to Ross uncertainly, and then back at the cup again, peering at the dark liquid. I took a deep breath before raising it up to my lips, my toes curling as the liquid burned its way down my throat. I closed my eyes and chugged the whole thing before putting the cup down, making Ross whistle and whoop as he clapped his hands.

  “Alright, babe! That was awesome,” he praised, and I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand and gave the cup back to him. “You know what, babe? You are exactly…,” he leaned forward and I shivered as his breath tickled the shell of my ear. “My kind of girl,” he whispered.

  I smiled and turned my head to look at him only for my vision to start shifting all of a sudden, making the floor and the wall and the people spin on its axis. I lost my footing and clutched at Ross’s arm to maintain my balance, but my mind and body grew groggy, and my legs felt like jelly, unable to support my weight.

  My eyes grew heavy as I tried my best to look at Ross, and I thought I saw a dark smirk across his features until I lost my energy. I closed my eyes and everything went black.

  Chapter 9

  Spencer

  “Dude, what is wrong with you?” I asked, half-glaring at Elliot in annoyance.

  “Nothing! I was simply expressing my desire to go home,” he huffed, brushing at the invisible lint stuck in his clothes. “Your friends seem very nice,” he said.

  “Friend. Singular. I only just met the other girl, and she seems like a stuck-up bitch to me,” I said, scoffing. “Dude, I asked you to come with me so you could practice your people skills, not drive people away.”

  “I can’t help it! This place is too loud and too crowded, and I feel like we’re practically in a sardine can! And the music is probably higher than a hundred decibels, I’m afraid that if I stick around for long, I might lose a few brain cells! And my hearing!” he exclaimed. Two girls coming from the back door looked at us like we were crazy and I groaned.

  “That’s another thing I asked you to try out. Dumb it down a notch, will you? Not everyone is going to want to talk to you if they need a decoder to understand half the things coming out of your mouth,” I said harshly.

  “You’re quite rude tonight, Downing. Perhaps you’ve already had one too much to drink?” he said, cleaning his lenses with the end of his shirt.

  I gritted my teeth and made my way back to the living room. I was getting antsy because my decision to bring Elliot was seriously wrecking my job. I thought I could kill two birds with one stone, make an ally out of my roommate, while being able to watch over George at the same time, but I miscalculated on Elliot’s stubbornness. Maybe I shouldn’t have brought him along.

  I narrowed my eyes as I searched the crowd for George, spotting her chatting with some guy who handed her a drink. I tried to read their lips, curious to know what they were talking about. She raised the cup to her mouth, slowly lifting the container until the bottom was up in the air as she chugged all of it.

  I recognized the guy standing next to her as one of the men with Tyler earlier, the one with the white-colored hair. Ross, I think his name was. I shook my head at how ridiculous he looked. Seriously? White hair? The anime craze must’ve spread through the world, because who in their right mind would dye their hair white?

  I saw the guy lean over George and whisper something in her ear, and I tensed up, my fists clenching automatically. Who the fuck did he think he is to be all up in her like that?

  My eyes widened as I saw George start to sway in place, and I pushed against the throng of people to get to her. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head and her knees buckled. I managed to catch her before she collapsed all over the floor, my hand clutching her shoulders, and her back lying against my chest. Her head turned to the side, and I noticed how flushed her cheeks were. I looked at Ross with a glare and he glared back. I saw the cup George dropped on the floor and I realized something.

  “You,” I snarled. “You drugged her, didn’t you?” Ross scoffed.

  “Oh, please. The chick couldn’t hold her liquor. You can’t accuse me of anything!” he insisted. He looked over George’s face and smirked. “Besides, that girl was way too easy. I don’t need to waste drugs on a pathetic girl like...”

  I handed George over to Elliot, who was right next to me, and in the next moment, I had sent my fist flying straight to Ross’s mouth. He staggered backwards, crashing down on the couple making out on the couch, and making the girl scream. The sound effectively cut the music, and everyone in the party stared at us.

  Rebecca came in followed by Tyler, and they saw Ross’s split lip, George’s unconscious state, and the half-crazed look in my eyes.

  Rebecca walked over to Elliot and checked on George, while Tyler walked up to me, and Carlos going over to pull Ross upright.

  “What happened?” Tyler asked. I turned away from him and pushed Rebecca to the side before taking George into my arms, carrying her bridal style. I turned back towards Tyler, addressing him with a stormy gaze before glaring at Ross.

  “Ask your friend,” I hissed at him. I adjusted my grip and carried George out of there, Rebecca and Elliot following after me. The crowd parted like the Red Sea, and I could hear them muttering behind me as I walked out. I didn’t give a damn. My focus was all on this girl in my arms, and how I fucking failed my mission on the first day.

  I couldn’t stop my mind from thinking about the consequences that could’ve happened because of my inattention. That son of a bitch could’ve raped her, and it would’ve been my entire fucking fault.

  “I’ll go and fetch the school nurse,” Elliot called out. I could tell from the look on his face that he felt a little guilty for what happened, and this was his way of making up for it, so I just nodded. He ran towards the other end of the campus, and I kept walking towards Winston House.

  Rebecca led me up the stairs and into their room, and I placed George very gently on her bed. Other than her flushed face and sweaty forehead, she looked fine, but I wasn’t taking any chances. I didn’t know what that son of a bitch had given her, or if there were any lingering side effects, and I cursed myself again for my incompetence.

  I felt Rebecca’s hand clamp my shoulder, and I turned my head to the side, looking at
her from the corner of my eye. She casted her eyes downwards, her face mirroring the guilty look she probably saw on my face right now, too.

  “Listen, I’m at fault, too. I shouldn’t have left her alone to take a stupid phone call, when I knew how clueless she was about it,” Rebecca said.

  I bit my lip to keep from agreeing with her, because that would’ve been really shitty of me, and just prayed that Elliot arrived with the nurse soon.

  No sooner than that thought, there was a knock on the door. Rebecca opened it, and Elliot came with a middle-aged woman holding a first aid kit. She was followed closely by a tall girl, but I ignored her and focused on George, watching the nurse’s every move like a hawk.

  After a few minutes, the nurse told us there was nothing to worry about, and that the effect of the drug was going to wear off in a few hours. She also assured us that she was going to report the incident to the Dean, and the person responsible for giving George the drug was going to be punished severely for his actions. Rebecca continued to ask the nurse some questions while I stayed where I was, kneeling by her bedside.

  I took George’s hand and rubbed the smooth skin of the back of her hand lightly.

  “I’m so sorry,” I murmured.

  “Hey, Spencer?” Elliot called. “I’m going back to our dorms. Will you be staying here for a while?” he asked, and I nodded. “Alright. See you tomorrow,” he said, waving goodbye.

  “You can go back to the dorms, Spencer. I can take care of George,” Rebecca said. I opened my mouth to argue when the tall girl I saw earlier blocked my vision.

  “She’s absolutely right! Rebecca can take it from here. We don’t allow male students to stay in our dorms this late at night, so I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” she said firmly. I opened my mouth to argue with her, but she held up her hand, indicating she was not having it.

  “Who are you again?” I sighed, all of my energy seeping out of my system.

  “I’m Cassie, and I’m the Resident Aide here. Look, I assure you that Rebecca and I will look after her, and if you leave your number with me, I promise I will text you as soon as she wakes up,” she assured me.

  She gave me her phone, and I keyed in my number before handing it back to her. I stood up off the floor and looked at George’s face one more time, and a thought popped into my head.

  I had one more thing to do before I go.

  Chapter 10

  Georgiana

  My body felt really stiff as I opened my eyes slowly, and then the harsh sunlight flooding the room put a strain on my eyes. I heard rustling coming from the other side, and then I saw Rebecca’s face was above me with a mixture of relief and concern.

  “Thank goodness you’re awake!” she cried, and I winced as I got up, my back feeling all kinds of stiffness. Jesus, I feel terrible.

  “How long was I out?” I asked. Feeling like it was a hundred years of numbness from lying down so long.

  “About half a day, give or take a couple of hours,” Rebecca replied, and I groaned. “You missed the orientation.

  “What happened to me? I feel so sluggish,” I said. Her face turned grim at my question, and I realized whatever happened last night probably wasn’t good.

  “What’s the last thing you remember?” she asked. I worried my lip while I racked my brain for the events of last night.

  “I remember talking to this guy with white hair before I blacked out. I forgot his name though,” I said.

  “Do you remember what he gave you?” she pressed, and I remembered a red cup filled with beer.

  “He gave me a drink,” I answered, and grimaced. “Why? Is there something wrong?” I asked.

  Rebecca looked at me for a long moment, not saying a word. Finally, she shook her head and gave me a forced smile.

  “We don’t have anything to do after orientation, so do you want to go somewhere?” she asked.

  “Um, I was going to check out the writing center after orientation, but since I missed out on the latter…,” I trailed off and Rebecca nodded, getting the picture.

  “Alright. I’m going to go and meet up with a few club members. Let’s meet up for lunch, okay?” she said, and I nodded.

  I waved goodbye as she left the room before swinging the sheets off of me so I could stand up. I reached my arms over my head, stretching my stiff muscles.

  Thank goodness we scored the room with its own bathroom. I’m going to give myself a long warm soak in the bathtub before I leave. That would soften up these aches and pains right up.

  ***

  Cassie smiled widely as she saw me coming down the stairs, waiting for me at the last step. She laced her arm around mine, and we walked out of the house together, and she lowered her head to peer at my face.

  “It’s so great to see you finally up and about,” she said, and I nodded weirdly. She made it sound like I’d been in a coma, jeez. “You had a lot of us very worried!” she said.

  “It was no big deal,” I replied, although I still couldn’t remember what happened. “I just crashed so hard, that I’m still feeling pretty exhausted.” She looked at me all weirdly before shaking her head.

  “Do you not remember anything from last night?” she asked, and I shook my head in admission. “You were carried to your room by this really hot blonde guy,” she revealed. My eyes widened, my mind immediately going to Spencer at the mention of ‘hot blonde guy’.

  “I was?” I asked, egging her on. She nodded vigorously.

  “It was such a Prince Charming moment. He literally carried you all the way from the party and up to your room, and wouldn’t budge until the nurse said you were A-OK!” she cried.

  She took a deep breath and sighed dreamily, making me feel a tad annoyed, and a little more than a tad possessive of the person she was sighing about.

  “Oh my God, he was so chivalrous and mysterious at the same time, Georgiana. How I envy you for having such a boyfriend like that,” she said. My eyes widened at her remark.

  “B-boyfriend?” I repeated, stammering. “Spencer isn’t my boyfriend!” I exclaimed.

  “Really? He’s not?” Cassie asked, and I nodded.

  “He’s just an acquaintance of mine.”

  “Could’ve fooled me,” she said, shrugging. “He certainly acted way too concerned for you for someone who was ‘just an acquaintance’.”

  “No way,” I said, laughing uncertainly. She was probably exaggerating again.

  “Oh, and I just remembered that before he left, he kissed you on the forehead,” Cassie added, as if it was just trivial information. My eyes widened as I turned my head sharply at her, but she was already pulling away and waving her hand as she went back up to the house. I remained standing by the entrance, frozen in shock as my mind repeated Cassie’s words over and over in my head.

  He kissed you.

  He kissed you.

  Spencer kissed you.

  I snapped out of my thoughts and continued on towards the writing center, still pondering Cassie’s words. Could she be telling the truth? Was Spencer really that concerned about me last night? And did Spencer really… kiss me?

  I heard my phone ringing Darcy’s assigned jingle, and pulled it out from my bag, picking up the call. He was probably pissed off because I didn’t call him as soon as I got here like I promised I would.

  “Hey, I know I messed up, I’m really sorry. I just get really distracted,” I said instead of greeting. I heard him clicking his tongue on the other line, expressing his disappointment, and I bit my lip guiltily.

  “”Well, as long as you know you’re at fault,” he said petulantly. “I was really worried your plane may have crashed or something,” he said, and I rolled my eyes at the comment.

  “Sure, you were. You don’t have to rub it in, Darcy,” I said, and he chuckled.

  “Now that I know you’re alive, how was your first day? Anything interesting happen?” Darcy asked.

  My mind went to last night’s party and how I had to be carried home, and I shook m
y head. Like hell I was going to tell him that.

  “Nothing really. I’m just here at the writing center to fill up my schedule,” I told him.

  “Have you made new friends?” he asked, the eagerness evident in his voice. I had to laugh at how boyish he sounded, but at the same time it tugged at my heart a little. I wished my parents acted all excited for me too, but instead it was just Darcy.

  “What am I, in kindergarten?” I asked jokingly, trying to lighten the mood.

  “You were homeschooled,” Darcy reminded me.

  “Yes, Daddy. I made some new friends to play with on the sandbox during recess,” I said.

  “Don’t call me ‘Daddy’. It sounds disturbing,” he said. I laughed as I imagined Darcy’s disgusted face with his tongue half hanging out. “And that’s good. You’re actually mingling with other members of the society. Quite a feat, dear little sister,” he said proudly.

  “And now you’re making me sound like I’m an alien,” I spotted Elliot by the registration’s office, and I immediately raised my hand to wave at him. He waved back somewhat reluctantly, and I told Darcy I was going to call him back.

  I asked the registrar for the schedule of classes available this semester, before turning towards Elliot with a smile.