There was a sound of something clicking shut. “I heard Aubrey say something earlier, and it kind of unsettled me.”
My heart began beating a little faster. “What did you hear?” Just the mention of her name was enough to make me nauseous, but the fact that Gallan had heard her say something – most probably something aboutme– it just…
“I heard her when she was on the phone,” Gallan began. “I don’t know who it was, of course, but it’s what she was telling them that…” he trailed.
“What did she tell them?”
He exhaled. “Zaira…”
“Stop saying my name, damn it!” I all but barked. “Tell me what she said!”
“Everything all right, Z?” Kenzie hollered.
“I don’t know; I’ll keep you posted,” I answered without looking at her.
“Okay…”
“Babe, come on; calm down,” Gallan said.
“You either tell me what she said, or I disconnect the call,” I told him. “The choice is yours.”
“Jeez, woman. Fine.” He huffed. “She said, and I quote:‘I’ll teach that obese, glasses-wearing cunt a lesson she’ll never, in her entire worthless life, forget.’Now, I’m pretty sure I’m wrong in assuming that she said those things in reference to you, and for that reason, and that reason alone, I didn’t wanna bring this topic up until we met in person.”
I was numb, shocked.
I didn’t know what to think, or to even think in the first place.
“Of course she was talking about me, Gallan. She used the words ‘obese’ and ‘glasses-wearing cunt’ in a single sentence. It’s sweet of you to think that maybe she wasn’t referring to me, but in truth, shewas.” My throat felt tight, and so did my chest.
“Baby…” I could hear the pain in Gallan’s voice. “You’re none of those things, and you know that.Iknow that.”
“But I am,” I said a little shakily. “And I can confirm that she was talking about me.”
The silence on the other end was deafening.
With a hand on the windowsill, and my forehead resting against the wall, I told Gallan about the locker room stunt Aubrey had pulled a couple days ago. He didn’t interrupt me, and as I finished relaying everything to him, my voice hitched, and I stopped right before telling him that I was a little scared of what Aubrey was doing. I wasn’t ashamed to admit it, because what was happening – it was terrifying me. I wasn’t used to this lifestyle or its various bumps and curves. I didn’t know things could be this way, and that I’d have someone who didn’t even know me personally come at me like this or think so negatively of me.
Aboutme.
And why? Because Gallan chose me and didn’t give her unnecessary attention?
It was so damn confusing.
“I’ll talk to Shane. He’ll know exactly how to handle this,” Gallan said. “If I confront her personally, which Ireallyfucking want to, she’ll turn things around and make you come across as a liar, and that’ll only blow my lid in the most unacceptable of ways.” Pause. “Am I right to assume that you didn’t take a picture of your locker before wiping it?”
I sniffed. “I was too hurt and shocked to do anything, and Kenzie was too upset to keep those words up on my locker any longer than I wanted them on there.”
“I’m so sorry, baby. You don’t deserve this, and even though I should be asking you why you didn’t tell me about it immediately after seeing it, I also understand how much something so despicable must have affected you. You had every right to let it sink in and get over it, and I respect that.”
I swallowed my tears and closed my eyes. “I’m scared, Gall,” I whispered. “Why is she doing this? Why is she like this?”
“She has a history of being a grade A bitch. She lucked out with this role inWaves That Hold Us. Before this movie, she hardly had any gigs, let alone a project in a different field. She sort of has a reputation, and doing what she did to you – it’s a norm for her. It’s sad, I know, but she thinks what she’s doing is right. Not this time, though.” Anger was clear in his tone. “Because this time, she messed with the wrong person. She hurtyou, and I’ll make sure she understands that if it happens again, the consequences will be crucial.”
I shook my head a little. “Gallan…”
“I know, Zaira.I know. I promise that I won’t do anything myself. I’ll let Shane handle her, but warning her to stay out of your way is necessary.”
“Shane is perfectly capable of doing that, too, Gall,” I said to him, and then opened my eyes. “You won’t engage in a conversation with her unless it’s related to filming. Promise me.”
