POLAROID (PAUSED)

Chapter 2: Rumors

Let me rephrase, the sight I saw in front of me would've been enough to give me a coronary.

If...he wasn't he, and I wasn't I. A frown took over my face and I pushed him away. "Get off, Wright."

But Aston didn't look like he was planning to remove his paws off me anytime soon.

"Oh it's you." A look of recognization flashed in his eyes. But that was only for a moment. A smirk took over it fast enough. "Amelia is it?" He said, knowing pretty well it wasn't.

"You and I both know that's not it so stop wasting our breath and let me go."

The sadist shook his head. "Can't do mi amore."

I made a face at the last part. "Did you finally hit that stroke and lost some brain cells?" I asked him, the corner of my lips went up unconsciously. "I knew you were older than me, but I didn't know you were that old."

"You.." before he could finish the sentence footsteps approached from behind him. It was Connor and his other friend, Aiden. And far across the hallway was...Toby.

I opened my mouth but he shook his head furiously and pleaded with his eyes, as if telling me not to call him.

'I'll explain everything later,' he mouthed and ran to the other direction.

I scoffed. What made his panty twisted?

"My love, as much as I like this position, you and I both have classes that none of us can't help but attend, so let's be done with this."

I rolled my eyes and turned to face him. He was over a head taller than me. And with his muscular body, he was towering over me.

"What is it then? Why are suddenly interested in playing cat and mouse with me?"

A look of amusement washed over his face just when I realized his brain might take my words to other direction. But lucky for me, it turned serious once again. He narrowed his eyes and took a few steps back so that Connor could hand me a...

Paper? I looked at it carefully. It looked like our school magazine.

"Turn it around." I frowned but did what he said. What can possibly in the school paper that he made him so mad? The president giving me Nobel prize? Picture of him robbing the national bank? His baby pictures? Pictures of him wearing braces? (I MADE that one up, but it's a possibility, no one has teeth that can be this perfect and pearly naturally).

But whatever my wild imagination was it was nothing close to reality.

"What the—" I blinked a few times and looked at the paper more carefully. For once I thought my eyes were deceiving me.

The very unmentionable picture I took accidentally when Toby tripped over me last summer was right there in front of me, printed in the back to school magazine.

But this can't be it. I-I thought I destroyed it miles away from here nearly two months ago.

I looked between the picture and Aston only to remember something very important.

I didn't destroy it. I told Toby...

Oh no he did not.

I was about to open my mouth to explain everything to Aston and co when I remember those pleading look Toby threw at my direction while ago. He said he would explain everything later. That means he knew what they were after.

That bastard! Wait till I get my hands on him.

"And that's not all," Aston's other friend, Aiden, said. "The picture is all over Instagram."

"So did you or did you not take the photo?" Aston asked with his jaw clenched.

"Look, I can explain," I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "Yes, I visited Brazil this summer and yeah, I took that picture. But it was by accident. I also threw it away instantly when I saw what it was. It was way too gross for my liking." Aston snorted and said something like 'you wish'. I was about to enquire him what he meant but there was another question running in my head. "How to you know it was me who took the photo?"

"We didn't at first," Connor said. "We went to the student council who publishes the school paper and asked that President guy where he found this photo."

"And he told you it was me?"

Connor grinned, among the three of them he seemed to be the most chilled one. "Not really, he said they had a Mail request last week under your name, it contained the photo and a letter. Apparently in the letter you requested the council to publish it on their summer of the school column."

"I did no such thing." What the heck are they talking about?

"You're saying the council guy was lying?"

"I don't know!" I said. "I just know I sent no such letter."

"Also you uploaded tons of pictures in Brazil over last summer," Aiden added. "That verifies his confession."

Oh yes, I almost forgot we follow each other in instagram.

"Wait you guys follow each other on Insta?" Conner asked in confusion. We all ignored him.

I turned to face Aston. "Do you think it flew from Brazil just to show the world your true color?"

Aston growled and pulled me by the collar. Boy, was he manhandling me now? But I'm a girl, he couldn't beat a girl.

Only, the look in his eyes screamed otherwise. Perhaps my gender was the last thing on his mind right then.

I glanced around. There was no one around except for the four of us. Everyone was probably still at the cafeteria. Or thought of staying out of Aston's business. I don't blame them.

The warning bell went off, reminder that the lunch break will be over in few minutes. However, Aston didn't seem like he was letting me go anytime soon. But I also couldn't give guaranty of my life if I stayed  there another few minutes.

So I did the most immature thing I ever did in my life.

Before Aston could decide rather he should kill or hand me over to some mafias, I kneed him right between his legs. Let's just say it hit the bulls eyes since he started growling right away and his grip on me loosened. He continued growling while clutching between his legs.

Connor and Aiden were instantly by his side.  I could've stay and enjoy the show, but then I remember that I was still too young to die.

So before any of them could recover from the shock and bury me alive, I grabbed my stuffs and skipped to my next class.

"See you in the afterlife Jerk-face." I shouted over my shoulder and ran down the hallway.

Maybe I shouldn't have done that. After all, no one wanted to get into Aston's bad side.

Well, it's too late regret the decision. So I shrugged and skipped to my class, hoping I would never cross path with Aston again.