Hard Boy ✔️

65

- brutal; Olivia Rodrigo -

Aurora Holland

"What if you and I were meant to part ways, only so that we could find each other again?" Quinn read the note aloud, her perfectly trimmed eyebrows scanning over the chicken scratch written on the ripped notebook paper.

"What?" I asked aloud, unsure of the words. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, that gives us a definite answer that it's not one of the guys you haven't had a thing with in the group. This has to be one of the Jackson brothers, right?"

"No, I don't think so." I shook my head, denying it immediately.

"Why not?" Quinn asked, putting the note down. "Think about it, Ror. Both Jackson brothers had a thing for you, something happened to separate you, and now they want you back!"

"I think you're looking too much into it." I denied, "Carter and Logan both had a thing and currently have a thing with someone else, it wouldn't be them."

"Well, who else could it be? You see Miles daily, so it's obviously not him. Cameron's got... shit going on or whatever he wants to play it off as. I don't see any other potential people." Quinn explained, tapping her fingers on the table. "Or maybe it's more than one person, you ever think of that?"

"I don't think it's either of them. I think it's someone playing a horrible, terrible prank." I shook my head.

"What's a prank?" The sound of someone behind me asked.

Quinn quickly gathered the scattered notes - including the one from today - together, shoving them into the shoe box I brought them in. "N-nothing." She quickly shook her head.

Guin sent Quinn a look but sat down anyway, occupying the spot next to me. "So what are you doing then?"

"N-nothing."

"I've been getting love letters in my locker since shortly after I moved here," I spoke at the same time as Quinn, who was still trying to act as if we weren't doing anything.

"Love letters?" Guin asked, looking at me. "What do you mean love letters?"

"Exactly what it sounds like, G, what else?" Quinn asked. "Look at this. Tell me it doesn't scream someone from the friend group."

I glanced at Quinn, who didn't look at me. I didn't know if she was going to bring up to Guin about the Jackson brother theory, but I really hope she doesn't as I don't want another person shoving it down my throat that it's either Logan or Carter. The last thing I need is that when I'm currently trying my hardest to get over what happened with both of them.

And knowing me, if I do find it out it's one of them I'm going to fall right back into that hole of suffering worse than now.

"Let me see," Guin ordered, holding their hand out. Quinn handed them the box, letting them look through the contents. After reading through a few of them, Guin looked at me. "This is one person, for sure. Do you recognize the handwriting at all?"

"I feel I've seen it before, but it's not something I remember. Knowing my luck it's probably a type of handwriting that I see often, something similar with many people." I explained, twirling my ring around my finger. "I don't know who it could be, it started before I became friends with anyone roughly."

"Really?" Guin asked. They glanced around before back to the table, putting the notes back in the box. "I have an idea. Let's head to ours."

Quinn and I glanced at each other but didn't say anything, obliging. We followed Guin out of the library and to Guin's car. I climbed in the backseat while Quinn got in the passenger's seat, Guin driving.