It’s all because of Bells. She was the one who sat with me night after night explaining the same stuff over and over until it finally clicked in my brain.
I’m out of the classroom before Miss Mallory can say anything else, my heart pounding in a way that has nothing to do with nerves and everything to do with needing to tell Bells, right fucking now.
I pull out my phone as I walk down the hall, avoiding the usual school chaos of students standing around their lockers talking, laughing, and wasting time. A couple of guys from the basketball team are tossing a ball back and forth. Some freshman couple is making out against the wall like they’re the only two people in the building.
I don’t give them a second glance.
My fingers dance across the screen.
Jace:Fucking hell Bells, I passed. B-plus. I’m graduating.
I stare at the screen, waiting for those three dots to appear, waiting for her to respond with something enthusiastic, sweet, and totally Bells. But, they don’t appear.
She’s probably in that student council meeting or whatever nerdy shit she had scheduled today. Some committee about prom decorations, fundraising, or some other thing I couldn’t care less about.
But she cares about all of it—the committees, the planning, the stupid decorations that’ll get thrown away the day after prom anyway. So I pretend to care when she talks about it. I listen when she tells me about color schemes, budgets, and all the drama among the committee members. I nod in the right places and make comments that show I’m paying attention. Because that’s what you do when you love someone. You give a shit about the things they care about, even when it bores you to tears.
I slip my phone back into my pocket and keep walking. A grin creeps at the corners of my mouth despite myself.
I fucking passed. Bells is going to lose her mind when she reads that text.
My grin falters the moment I see Nicole. She’s standing alone by the lockers, her little group nowhere in sight for once.
Tia’s been flying solo lately too. Her crew is sick of the drama and pretending they care about whatever vendetta they’re nursing this week.
It turns out being a bitch eventually catches up with you.
I know she’s been talking shit to Lola. Aubrey pulled me aside two nights ago at the diner during a slow shift and told me about the things Nicole’s been saying to Bells. About how I willeventually get bored, and that girls like Lola don’t keep guys like me interested.
I need to tell Nicole to fucking stop that shit. Right fucking now.
I walk down the hallway, my eyes fixed on her, wondering, not for the first time, why I ever hooked up with her in the first place. She’s hot, sure. Has a tight body, the kind of girl who knows exactly what she’s doing when she bends over in front of you or leans in close enough that you can smell her perfume.
But that’s all she is. Hot. Nothing else. No sharp wit, quiet strength, or anything that truly matters when you’re not just trying to get off. Nothing that makes me want to stay after I’m done or get to know her.
She was a quick
fuck. That’s it. A way to pass time and satisfy the urge. And now she’s a fucking problem.
When Nicole sees me coming, she straightens up, pushing off the lockers and adjusting her posture in that way girls do when they want you to notice their tits. A smile spreads across her face, as if she thinks this is like old times and I’m walking over here because I want something from her.
“Hey, Jace,” she says, voice dripping with that fake sweetness she uses when she wants something. She gives her hair that little flick.
It doesn’t work anymore. Nothing about her works anymore.
“You need to fucking stop,” I tell her, not bothering with pleasantries.
Confusion flickers across her face. “Stop what?”
“The shit you’ve been saying to Lola,” I say, voice flat and cold. “I know you’ve been running your mouth. Telling people I’m going to get bored. That she’s not good enough to keep me interested and whatever other bullshit you keep spewing.”
Nicole’s expression changes, her eyes narrowing a bit. The fake sweetness fades away, replaced by something more serious.
“I’m just being honest, Jace,” she says, crossing her arms under her chest and pushing up her tits in a way that’s supposed to grab my attention. “But you should know, everyone’s thinking it. I’m the only one with the guts to say it out loud.”
“Is that a fact?” I step closer, and her back hits the lockers with a dull thud. I’m not touching her, but I’m close enough that she has to tilt her head back to gaze at me. Close enough that she knows I’m not messing around.
“Well, here’s some honesty for you, Nicole. I don’t give a fuck what you think. I don’t give a fuck what anyone thinks. So whatever fantasy you’ve got in your head about me getting bored and running back to you? Kill it. Bury it. Because it’s never gonna fucking happen.”
