Bullies Love and Lies

by liberty freer

  “No problem. And I’ll be back in a second to help you cook.”

  Mary swats the air. “No, no, no. You finish your homework and then relax.” She smiles, pulling out a large silver pot from the cabinet. “This is my job. You go be a kid.” Winking, she pops earbuds into her ears. “I’ve got my sexy romance novel to keep me company while I work.”

  “Okay, Mary.” I laugh, scooping up my papers. “If you need help, let me know. I’ll be in the basement.”

  The bell chimes again as I’m pulling the door open. A middle-aged man in a brown suit is on the other side.

  Gripping a briefcase in his left hand he holds his right hand out to me. “You must be the lady of the house. I’m Dr. Boone.” Seeing my confusion, he elaborates. “Arden said you might need medication. You’re Emma, right?”

  I give his hand a quick shake. “Oh, right. The… Yes, come on in.” Stepping out of the way, I open the door wider.

  “I usually use Arden’s office for visits. Does that work for you?”

  “Sure,” I say, shutting the door behind him. “After you.” I gesture for him to lead the way.

  “Is Arden at work?” he asks, and then laughs. “It’s only four o’clock, so I’m assuming he is. Arden has a robust work ethic.”

  “You’d assume right,” I say as we walk side by side. “You make house calls? I figured I’d have to go to an office.”

  “I’m a concierge doctor. A few families pay me a yearly salary to only work for them. I’ve been working with Arden for about ten years. I don’t come as often now that the boys are grown.”

  “Wow, that’s awesome. I didn’t know there was such a thing as a concierge doctor.”

  He nods and smiles as we step into Arden’s office. “I find working with a few families is a much more personal experience.” He sets his briefcase on Arden’s desk. “Now, Arden mentioned birth control?”

  I blush. “Yes, I’d like to start that.”

  “There are several options available. Are you sexually active now?”

  “No,” I blurt out, like having sex is a bad thing. “Well, I had sex a few days ago, but it was with a stranger. I know it still counts. I just… I’m not sexually active besides that. There was a party, and I might have been under the influence,” I admit. “I don’t normally drink or do drugs. Well, I used to smoke weed occasionally, but I haven’t since I’ve been here. I’m on probation, so smoking weed probably isn’t a good idea. Not that the drinking and ecstasy I did at the party was a good idea.” I laugh nervously. “Sorry, I’m rambling. I do that sometimes.”

  “I’m not judging you, Emma. And HIPAA applies to everyone I work with. What you say to me I’m bound by law to keep private.”

  “Okay.” I nod.

  “Normally, for sexually active women, I would advise a pelvic exam, but I don’t think that’s necessary in your case. When you become sexually active, you should schedule a yearly exam.” He opens his briefcase. “There are different types of birth control. For someone as young as you, I’d recommend the shot or a nonhormonal IUD. Both come with side effects, and neither is a hundred percent safe.”

  “I researched the different types online, and I’d like to try the shot.”

  “It’s good for three months, and I can administer it here if you’d like?”

  “Yes, please.”

  He pulls out a few things from his briefcase and sets them on the desk. He hands me a small white package. “I’ll just need you to take a pregnancy test.”

  My face pales. “I’m not pregnant. I just had sex that one time, and I took Plan B.”

  “One time is all it takes, and the test is just a precaution. There are instructions inside. Come back here to get the shot when you’re finished. Oh, and bring the test with you.”

  Squeezing the package tightly in my hand, I head across the hall to the guest bathroom, where I follow the instructions on the test. After waiting three minutes, I carry the negative test back to Dr. Boone, and he injects me with birth control. He also goes over a list of side effects and tells me to call him if I have any questions.

  ***

  A couple hours later, I’m lounging in the guest room downstairs when Arden walks in, looking upset. Setting my book down on the bed, I sit up. “What’s the matter?”

  He sighs. “Emma, I’ve been informed about the party.” He stares at me a moment, making me worry. “Are you using drugs, Emma?”

  “What?” I ask, wide-eyed, wondering if Ryan set me up.

  “I heard you might have a drinking and drug problem and you’re making questionable decisions while under the influence.”

  I’m off the bed now. “Who said that?”

  “Emma, I’m worried about you. There are options, outpatient rehab or, depending on the severity, inpatient.”

  “I’m not an addict, Arden. Who told you I was?”

  “Someone overheard you with Dr. Boone.”

  “Someone?” I rack my brain, trying to think of who would have told Arden what they overheard. It doesn’t make sense for Ryan to because of our truce and the united front. “Who?”

  “It was me,” Rachel says, stepping into the room with her chin held high. “I came by to grab paperwork and overheard your conversation. I thought Arden should know. I just want what’s best for you, Emma. You’re so young. Rehab would give you the help you need. If you want to be closer to family and friends, I’m sure there are some in Ohio.”

  I stare at her in complete shock. I don’t even know what to say. I could accuse her of lying, but she isn’t lying. “It was one night,” I mumble. “One stupid night.”

  “Rachel, if you could wait for me upstairs like I asked,” Arden says.

  “Of course. I just wanted Emma to know that if she needs a woman to talk to, I’m here.” She gives me a sad smile. “I bet your mother would love to be there for you as well.”

  “We’ve got it under control, Rachel,” Arden says, almost sounding angry.

  She leaves, wobbling away in her high heels without another word.

  “Emma.” Arden rests his hands on my shoulders. “Hey, kiddo. Is there something you need to talk to me about?”

  “No. I’m not an addict.”

  “I want you to talk to someone, Emma. This isn’t negotiable anymore.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It’s time to see a counselor.”

  I search his face. “And if I don’t?”

  Arden shakes his head. “You can’t live here and go down this path.”

  I clench my jaw, feeling like I’m going to combust. “I’d like some privacy please.”

  “I’ll give you time to think about this, but I want to talk to you after school tomorrow.”

  As soon as Arden leaves the room, I search for Sully. He, Ryan, and Silex are in the theater room with a few friends. The girl who was with Sully at the party is sitting next to Ryan and sees me first. Her eyes widen, and she nudges Ryan.

  He follows her gaze. “What?”

  Sully jumps up from the couch. “What’s the matter?”

  “Rachel,” I hiss, feeling angrier than ever. “She… she told Arden about the party.” I lower my voice as Sully steps in front of me. “She told him about Jones and the ecstasy.” I glance at the brown-haired girl who’s staring me down. The blond-headed boy next to her is giving all his attention to his phone. I move my focus back to Sully and Ryan. “Can we talk over here?” I gesture toward the hall, not waiting for them to follow me as I walk out of the room.

  Sully’s the first to walk out, but Ryan’s right behind him. “Rachel made it seem like I have a drug and drinking problem. I think Arden’s going to kick me out. He mentioned rehab.” That diminishes some of my anger as fear takes its place.

  “He’s not going to kick you out,” Sully says.

  “He said if I wanted to continue staying here, I had to see a counselor.”

  “He gave you an ultimatum?” Sully runs his hands through his hair. “I’ll talk to him, but seei
ng a counselor might not be a bad idea.”

  I narrow my eyes. “Why, because you think I’m a drug whore too?”

  Sully grabs my arm, pulling me further into the hall, Ryan following us. “No, I don’t think that. I think your past wasn’t the white picket fence type of shit and maybe talking to a counselor could help you. Just like it helped me.” He shakes his head. “How did Rachel find out about the party?”

  “Dad wants us upstairs,” Ryan says, holding up his phone for us to see a text from Arden. He gestures toward my temporary room. “Lock the door until we’re done. Do not let Rachel in. Keep your mouth shut. I knew shit was going to go down.”

  “It’s not like I told her,” I snap. “She overheard me talking to the doctor.”

  “Doctor?” Sully asks, lifting my chin to look him in the eyes.

  There’s that stupid chemistry that’s going to prevent us from being friends. Every time I look him in the eyes, I feel it. “I met with Dr. Boone.”

  Lines crease Sully’s forehead. “Is something wrong? Did something Jones did—”

  “No.” I push his hand away. “I’m fine,” I whisper.

  “Boys!” Arden’s voice booms from the top of the stairs.

  “Come on,” Ryan says. “Brent’s already up there.”

  Ryan looks like he’s about to explode as he and Sully rush upstairs. I wouldn’t be surprised if I hear shouting from up there any minute. Although, if Arden’s talking to them about kicking me out, then it might be celebratory shouting.

  “Look, it’s the whore.”

  I glance over my shoulder and see the brown-haired girl smiling at me, and it’s not a friendly smile. A girl with shoulder-length black hair is standing next to her, looking at me like I’m trash. They’re both wearing tiny dresses with knee-high boots.

  “Did your cooties scare Sully and Ryan away?” Brown Hair asks.

  “Now, now, Laura, play nice,” Silex says, slipping between the girls to stand next to me.

  The girl with black hair glares at me as Silex rests his hand on my shoulder. “Come on, let’s go to your room,” Silex says. “Ryan messaged me.”

  “Really, Si?” the girl with black hair says, putting her hand on her hip.

  The blond guy who was glued to his phone steps next to Laura. “How about I take you to your room, Emma?” He wags his brows.

  Laura gently swats his arm. “Gross, Max. She probably has an infected coochie from all the guys she’s been with.”

  Max laughs as Silex pulls me down the hall. “Nah, Jones popped her cherry last weekend. Everyone knows that.”

  “What!” I shout, digging my heels into the carpet and pulling away from Silex.

  Laura shakes her head. “Yeah, right. She’s like a prostitute or something.”

  “Jones showed me the video. He said she’s got a tight little cunt,” Max says, winking at me.

  “Hey!” Silex barks. “That’s enough!”

  Max laughs nervously. “What?”

  Silex marches over to him, standing a couple inches taller than Max. “You fucking heard me. It’s time to go.” He looks down at the girls. “All of you.”

  I back up, slipping into my room and closing the door. My heart pounds against my chest. There’s a video?

  Ryan barges into the room, tossing a duffle bag at me. “Pack your shit. It’s time to go.”

  Chapter 25

  The duffle bag falls to my feet. “Time to go?” I say, repeating what Ryan just said.

  “Yeah.” He snaps his fingers. “Pack what you need and hurry up.”

  “Arden wants me to leave?” I croak.

  “We’re all leaving. I’ll come get you in a few minutes.”

  “Where are we going? What’s going on?”

  The muscle in Ryan’s jaw flexes. “Rachel has Dad thinking we’re troubled teens. He’s talking about us spending weekends and the holiday break in California. She overheard Brent talking to Silex about some shit that she shouldn’t have, and she spun that too, so we’re leaving. We’ll come back when she’s gone and he’s thinking straight.”

  Brent comes into the room with a bag over his shoulder. “You guys ready?”

  “I still have to pack,” Ryan says. “Make sure she packs. Or maybe do it for her.” He wrinkles his nose. “She looks like she’s going to puke.” Ryan slams the door.

  While I stand frozen, Brent rushes around the room, filling the bag with my things. Shouting down the hall has me fighting to stay in the present.

  A scream rips its way out of my throat as something crashes outside the bedroom door. I search the room for a weapon to protect myself, but there isn’t anything that I can use. A hand on my shoulder has me stumbling to the side to get away.

  “Whoa, it’s just me,” Brent says. “You okay?”

  Silex slips into the room, shutting and locking the door behind him. “Damn, Ryan’s hot.”

  I take the duffle back from Brent. “Where are we going?”

  “My house,” Silex says with a smirk. “And we’re leaving now.”

  The doorknob moves back and forth as someone attempts to get in, but the lock stops them. “Emma,” Arden says from the other side. “Come out and talk to me.”

  I move to unlock the door, but Silex steps in front of me. “Sorry, sweet girl, but Ryan said not to let him in or you out.” Silex points to the window that’s at least seven feet from the floor. “Let’s go.”

  “Isn’t it going to make things worse if we all leave? Maybe we should sit down and talk with him,” I say as Silex and Brent move the dresser from one side of the room to set it below the window.

  Brent shrugs. “Everyone’s too heated, and we’ve already decided that if Rachel’s in the house, we won’t be.”

  The pounding at the door intensifies, making my heart leap into my throat. “Emma, open this door.”

  “I have to,” I say to Brent, not able to hide the emotion from my voice.

  He frowns. “I know it feels bad not to, but you can’t.”

  “Come on, Emma,” Silex says, gesturing for me to climb on top of the dresser with him.

  “You guys go. I’ll stay and talk this out with Arden.”

  “Emma, you are going out this window. Do you want me to force you?” Silex says, jumping down and stalking toward me.

  I cover my ears as Arden pounds on the door again.

  Bang, bang, bang.

  “Emma!” Arden yells. “Brent!”

  Bang, bang, bang.

  Cool air blows in from the open window, and suddenly, I need out. I push past Silex to scramble up the dresser. I place my palms on the window ledge and thrust myself up, but I’m not tall enough to get out. I try again, and this time, someone’s arms wrap around my legs, giving me the boost I need.

  I claw at the grass, pulling myself completely out the window. The night air cools my sweaty skin. Brent crawls out as I’m dusting off my jeans.

  Silex tosses us our bags before he climbs out. “Hurry before Arden realizes she went out the window,” Silex says, scooping up my bag and ushering us forward.

  Arden’s rushing out the front door as we make it to the white SUV that Sully’s standing in front of. He gestures for me to get into the back. I scoot to the middle, and he and Brent take either side of me. Ryan’s already kicked back in the front passenger seat, and Silex takes the driver’s seat.

  I’m buckling my seatbelt as the SUV lurches forward, the tires squealing.

  “That was exciting,” Silex says, grabbing a bottle of whiskey from the middle console and taking a swig.

  “Can you fucking believe him?” Ryan growls. “She’s got his head so full of bullshit.”

  “How the fuck was she able to find out so much in the three fucking days she’s been here?” Sully says.

  “What else did she find out?” I ask.

  “Nothing,” Sully growls.

  “Max brought up the tape. She knows,” Silex says.

  They all know about the tape? Feeling mortified, I shrink
into the seat. My eyes widen in realization. If Rachel found out about it… “Arden knows?”

  “Rachel overheard Brent and Si talking about it,” Ryan says. “She made it sound like…” He clenches his jaw. “The bitch made it sound like you participated in a sex tape and that we were pimping you out.”

  I feel like crawling into a hole. I glance at Sully. His fists are clenched and his jaw is tight as he looks out the side window.

  “Don’t forget she brought up how your school thinks she’s a prostitute,” Silex adds, handing the bottle to Ryan. “How’d she find that out?”

  “Bitch probably looked us up online,” Brent says. “There were jokes about Emma’s prices. Remember? Max started a thread about it.”

  “Fuck. I forgot about that,” Ryan says. “We were bullshitting… Fuck,” Ryan growls.

  I glare at the back of Ryan’s head, hating him all over again. “Why am I here?”

  “A united front,” Ryan says. “And Sully insisted.”

  “And me,” Brent says.

  “Me too,” Silex quips.

  “Shut up, Si. You had no say in it,” Ryan barks. He leans his head against the seat and sighs. “Dad’s less likely to kick the bitch’s ass out if you stayed.”

  “We weren’t going to leave you there by yourself to deal with all this,” Sully says.

  Silence falls, but my brain is nagging me to ask about the video. How many people have seen it? How much of me can be seen? Did Jones record it, or was someone else in the room? I need to talk to Jones. I might have willingly slept with him, but I didn’t give him permission to record it.

  It doesn’t take long until we’re pulling up to a house that’s bigger than Arden’s, but I can’t appreciate the beauty because I feel numb. My numb legs follow behind the guys as we climb out of the SUV and up stairs that are attached to the side of the garage. We stand on a wide porch while Silex punches a code into a little box by the door.

  “Don’t judge my studio apartment,” Silex says. “It’s temporary.”

  Everyone nods, and then we trudge in.

  “I thought you said this was a studio?” I question, taking in the living room and kitchen.

  “It is. It’s only two bedrooms,” Silex says. “There’s a bathroom down the hall on the right and an office off the kitchen.”