“Don’t follow me. Don’t sit near me.” Maddox shoves his face an inch from mine, glowering until I can feel the heat burning me. “You don’t belong here. Leave or I’ll make sure nobody in school ever talks to you again.”
And that makes me laugh. “You mean, keep the status quo? Why don’t you leave?”
“Because this ismyschool and I’m actually going on to bigger and better things, unlike some people.”
His anger burns so hot I take a step back, reminding myself this is rage and fear and grief talking. I stare at the bandage on his wrist, wondering what he’s told his friends about the injury. If he’s bothered to explain himself at all.
“If you wanted to know why Addie hurled abuse at you, this is why. I know you care for me, the same as I care for you, but you’d do anything to hurt me right now, wouldn’t you?”
And I swear he grows an inch as he looms over me, encroaching into my personal space. “Don’t you dare say her fucking name.”
“Ant did it too, you know. The sex work. He wasn’t sitting back and pimping her out like they—”
But he’s gone. His long strides moving him away from me so fast he might as well be running. I sigh, hugging my textbook close to my chest and ambling to second period calculus.
Ms Kaihe frowns as Maddox requests a different seat. “Or you could just exclude Evie from class. A stripper doesn’t really belong here. I’m not sure the board of trustees would find it acceptable.”
Her startled glance quickly relaxes into her usual calm. “Anyone who’s enrolled belongs here, Maddox. A point you were insistent upon a month ago when you disrupted everyone’s schedule to enrol Evelyn in each of your classes.”
“Changed my mind.”
“Good for you. I haven’t.”
He turns, giving me a long stare from blank eyes. “You know she fucked my father for cash. If the school wants to continue receiving his generous donations, you might want to reconsider.”
When her sympathetic gaze lands on me, I’m sure she’s about to fall into line. Tiaki didn’t become one of the best schools in the country without pandering to the parents who foot most of its bills.
But she smiles. “I’m sure that information will come in handy if he tries to withdraw his support. Asking to exclude a student on such a basis could have disastrous reputational consequences for all concerned.”
For the rest of the day, he doesn’t challenge me, but it’s awkward as hell. So many students were listening to his tirade in class, I’m sure my name is besmirched all over school.
At lunch, I sit at a bench and the other occupants immediately stand to leave. I look over at Dahlia, who gives me a sympathetic glance, but shrugs and I understand.
“Maybe you should apply to skip straight to uni,” Ant advises when I complain bitterly at home. “Considering you got up to speed in a month, I doubt it’ll prove much harder. Especially with the maths classes, you could fast track through a lot of the curriculum.”
His optimism far outweighs mine but also misses the point. I’m not going to school just to go to school.
But perhaps he does understand because he says, “I’ll forever be grateful for the treatment, but I’m glad you’ve stopped dating him.”
The words flow in and out of my head, not really sticking, but when I glance over, Ant leans forward. “I’m serious, Evie. The money is good but you’re too vulnerable to date someone unstable. When you’re older and have your shit together, maybe, but not now.”
“I like him.”
“I know. Believe me, I get it, but you can’t shoulder another person’s problems on top of your own.” He grins at me. “Only I’m allowed to do that.”
My face must show the disappointment because he leans over to squeeze my shoulder. “What? Don’t you appreciate my newly sober lecture? I was thinking of turning it into a career.”
I stare at him with a glum expression, wanting to issue a quip, a comeback, but afraid if I open my mouth, I’ll cry.
“Fine,” he throws his hands in the air, sighing for theatrical effect. “Chase him if you want him back. See if I care.” Then his expression turns serious. “But you should steer clear of his dad. Addie had… other issues long before she got addicted. Probably the reason she was chasing a high in the first place.”
I haven’t told Ant much of what happened on that final day. The warning isn’t in response to what happened with me. “Other issues? What does that mean?”
He rubs the arm of his chair, picking at the fabric. Dad used to do the same thing, picking and poking until it looked like an animal had chewed up the fabric.
An arrow of pure grief shoots straight through my heart.
“She didn’t tell me who, but someone molested her when she was a girl. Addie said when she told her father, he sent her up to a school in Auckland.”
