I inhale sharply, forcing myself to meet their eyes. “It’s—it’s not the first time.”
Lilia’s breath catches. Bea grips the sink behind her, knuckles going white.
I don’t want to do this. I don’t want to see their reactions. I don’t want them to get involved. But a part of me—some small,battered, exhausted part—knows that lying to them now feels even worse.
“I’ve been stalked. For a while.”
Lilia gasps, shaking her head. “Addie, that’s—” She stops, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Why didn’t you say anything?”
Bea lets out a hollow, empty laugh. “No, actually, I want to know why we’re just finding out about this now?”
I shrug, looking down at my hands, the uneven polish, the way they tremble slightly. “I didn’t want to drag anyone into it.”
“Drag anyone into it?” Bea repeats, incredulous. “Addie, someone broke into your house. You’re already in the middle of it.”
Lilia swallows, and when she speaks again, her voice is quieter. “Have you told anyone else?”
I nod once. “Kai, by force. And Naomi called Liam when it happened so… he knows too.”
Bea lets out another sharp breath, muttering something under her breath. “Of course, those idiots knew before us.”
Lilia reaches out then, hesitating for a second before squeezing my hand. “What did they do?”
I lift my fingers to the deep, angry scar cutting across my face, and Lilia’s eyes widen in horror. “Oh my god, is that from a knife?” Her hand flies to her mouth.
I nod, looking down, unable to meet their eyes.
Bea swears under her breath. “And what happened… here?” She gestures vaguely to the rest of me.
I don’t answer right away. Because I don’t know how to.
“I fell,” I lie, my voice a second away from breaking. “Down the stairs.”
The laugh I force out is brittle, sounlikea laugh, splintering in my throat before it can sound anything close to real. And when I meet Bea’s gaze in the mirror, I know. She doesn’t buy it. Not for a second.
“Who?” Her voice is a demand, not a question.
I swallow, my pulse hammering in my ears. The truth pushes at the edges of my lips, clawing to get out.
“Naomi and I got into an argument,” I sniffle, my voice trembling. “She pushed me.” The words feel surreal even as I say them aloud. I leave out the part about the intruder intentionally. The fewer people who know, the safer everyone will be.
Bea gasps, but it’s Lilia’s reaction that worries me the most. I look away for a split second, and she’s already gone.
“What is she doing?” I ask Bea in a panic.
Bea doesn’t answer. Instead, she crouches slightly, gesturing for me to get on her back.
“Hop on.”
“What?” I blink at her, sure I must’ve misheard.
“Unless you want us to limp our way over there together, come on.”
For a second, I stand there dumbly, my eyes as wide as saucers. Then, with a grimace, I climb onto her back, and she takes off down the hall.
Whatever Lilia is doing, it seems like Bea knows exactly what’s about to go down.
By the time we reach the caféteria, I already regret this. “Put me down,” I whisper, my voice uneven.
