“You know it, too, James. If Mom had aborted you, we’d all be better off,” Austin finished, before leaving.
A chill swept over me, leaving me out of breath.
I looked at James, who didn’t seem to bat an eye, and only after did I realize that the teddy bear was hiding a shiny knife. The knife was small but really sharp.
“James.”
I tried to call his name, but he started walking with long strides toward the back of the building.
“Where are you going?” I shouted.
“Leave me alone!”
I saw him get rid of the stuffed animal and throw it on the ground. Then he threw a punch at the public bathroom door.
James’s hand, still the same, filled with blood when his wound reopened.
“Calm down, please,” I whispered, coming up behind him without touching him. I immediately picked the teddy bear up.
But James turned to me with pain on his face and rage etched into his eyes.
“Why are you pretending?”
“What?”
For a split second, I saw his gaze drift to my lips.
“Why do you pretend you care about me?”
The warmth from his voice made my skin shiver.
“I’m not pretending, James.”
Without saying anything else, I put the teddy bear under my arm and grabbed his bloody hand. I don’t know what got into me. I brought it up to my cheek. I shivered with pleasure. His cold thumb caressed my lower lip tenderly.
“What happened?”
We heard Jackson’s voice followed by Marvin’s.
“Oh, fuck, go get the alcohol wipes that I have in my car,” Jackson ordered Marvin as soon as he realized the circumstances.
“This sucks. Do I have to go all the way back to the parking lot?” he griped.
“Move!” demanded Jackson, gazing at James’s hand, covered in blood.
“What are you doing?”
William’s voice thundered and vacillated more than usual. Even though we were already distanced from each other, James and I moved even farther away.
“Nothing.”
But William’s eyes darted quickly between his friend’s hand and my blood-spattered one.
“June and James,” Will said, then began to laugh mirthlessly. Clearly, he was drunk. Right then a bitter cold washed over me, making me shiver.
“Will, what the fuck, have you been drinking?”
James surveyed William’s expression, and I couldn’t understand if he was angry, having fun, or just sad because he kept laughing, but the mask of fake amusement soon turned into a look of hate.
