“And she is my girlfriend.”
“Hoes before bros,” she smiles proudly. “So I come first.”
Heath scowls hard. “I met her first.”
Marie opens her mouth to argue, but no words come out.
“Okay, settle down, you two.” Sebastian comes behind her and presses her back to her front and sets his chin on the top of her head. “Let’s ask Hope.”
All at once, three pairs of eyes focus on me, and my nerves coil.
I look at Marie, her eyes sparkling with stars, then at Heath, whose fierce gaze burns as if being apart from me is unbearable.
“I’m fine anywhere,” I say.
Sebastian shakes his head playfully. “You gotta pick.”
My chest expands from pressure.
I can’t make a choice.
Because the truth is, I like staying with both of them, but I miss home. I admit I hate living there most of the time. All I feel is fear and anxiety, but it’s also the place that is mine. No matter how comfortable, cozy and homey their mansions feel, a part of me misses my old bedroom.
“Look, if it isn’t the girl whose dad reported her boyfriend.” Jason, a football player on the team, makes a comment as he walks past us with his group of friends.
I stiffen and spare a glance at him. His eyes hold amusement, as if what happened to me is funny and not a serious matter that ruined my weekend.
It’s been weeks now, but if he is talking then others must be too.
No one has said anything to my face, but I’ve heard whispers in hallways and classrooms. People watch me with gazes full of questions that make my skin crawl.
“What the fuck did you say?” Heath reacts fast.
Jason stops abruptly with a smile dancing on his face. Five of his friends stand behind him forming a circle. “You heard me.”
“I want you to say it to my face.”
He grins. “Rumor has it your little girlfriend’s father — ”
Heath grabs him by the collar and yanks him closer in one powerful move. “Shut your fucking mouth.”
“What? Did that hit a nerve?”
Heath glares at him with such bitterness, it’s a surprise that he doesn’t crumble into dust.
Sebastian sidles up beside him and makes him let go of the guy. “Don’t do it.”
Jason grins. “People have been talking about it. Everyone knows.”
My heart stops beating.
Everyone knows.
Why didn’t I think of it? Of course, the word got around. We live in a small town where news travels fast.
“How was the night in the cell?” Jason prods.
Sebastian places himself between them and backs up Heath. “He is lying.”
