Passionate Exchange

Chapter Sixty-Two

I turn to leave but he takes my hand in his. I whip around, ripping my hand out of his grasp. "Don't touch me." I seethe. "Don't lie to me." I stare into his eyes and see nothing but darkness. "And don't come near me ever again."

I turn around before he can respond and this time, he doesn't try to stop me. I walk out of there with my head held high. A triumphant smile plays on my lips, I've won this time. I burst into the hallway and, once I've had time to relax, I suddenly realise what he said. I know you want revenge on Archer, and I do too. What could he possibly want revenge for? Does he want revenge for Archer beating him up at the party or is it something more than that?

*

I stare at the wall blankly. The only sound ringing in my ears is the clock ticking as the seconds turn into minutes. There's only one other girl in detention with me, I don't know why she's here, but I imagine it has something to do with the marker on the wall across from her. It says the typical 'Jess was here'.

Her dark eyeshadow's smudged under her eyes and her pointed nails sticking out of her fingerless gloves are scratching at the desk. I look at the white wall past her, trying my best to avoid eye contact. Only another twenty minutes to go.

A knock on the door catches my attention. My ears perk up. "Can I speak to Madison please?" A voice that I know all too well asks. My head snaps towards them.

I blink repeatedly, trying to work out if what I'm seeing is true. Is Brody actually walking towards the teacher's desk asking if he can speak to me?

"Please," he clasps his hands together and sticks his bottom lip out. "It's really important, it'll only take five minutes tops."

The teacher furrows her eyebrows. It seems she's just as shocked as I am at what he's asking. "You know that would be against the rules."

"Come on," he begs. "Just this once."

She rolls her eyes before nodding her head towards me. I take this as my signal to stand up, following Brody out of the door wearily. "Don't make me regret this." She calls to us as we leave.

"Thank you." He sings.

I shut the door behind us and search his face for any clue as to why he wants to talk to me. After what I did, I was sure he and Penny would avoid me for the rest of senior year. Although, Penny isn't here so that might still be the case for her.

"What are you doing here?"

"I needed to talk to you." He's leaning against the locker so casually that, to an outsider looking in, it appears there's no tension between us at all. You wouldn't think I'd betrayed him only days ago.

I tilt my head in confusion. "And you couldn't have just called me?"

"I needed to talk to you face-to-face."

Whatever it is, it sounds serious. I sigh. There's no way I'm giving up this chance to talk to him for what could be the last time. He could tell me that he never wants to see me again. He could tell me that Penny isn't comfortable with me being here and I have to go back to London. It was only the other day that I was debating staying in London but, now I'm here, it would break my heart to leave under these circumstances.

"Wait, what are you doing in detention anyway?" He asks. My eyes hit the floor, suddenly overcome with insecurity.

"I was late," I respond, ashamed of the reason behind my words.

I look at him through my lashes, seeing sympathy in his eyes. He gives me a tight-lipped smile. He understands that I was late because Penny wasn't there to give me a ride. But that doesn't mean it's her fault. It's my fault I was late just like it was my fault she wasn't there this morning.

"So," I start to get the attention away from me, "what did you need to talk to me about?"

He doesn't prepare me for the bomb he drops. He simply states, "Penny's pissed." That was something I always admired about him. He doesn't beat around the bush; he just says it how it is. Now, I find myself wishing that he didn't.

My guilt grows. My gaze is rooted to the floor again. "I knew she would be." I breathe.

"But she's more pissed at the situation than you." A crease forms between my eyebrows at his words and he notices. He elaborates, "she hates that you didn't tell her."

I swallow hard. "Right."

"She would never admit it, but I know she understands."

My eyes widen. "She does?" He nods although my hope is short-lived once I come back to reality. "Even if she does that doesn't mean that what I did was right."

"Definitely not, you should have told us. But I'm not an animal. I understand that people make mistakes. God, I've made tons. More than I'd like to admit. I'm far from perfect." I give him a grateful smile.

The door creaks open behind me causing me to jump slightly. "Times up." The teacher folds her arms across her chest, eyeing me expectantly.

"What? I said five minutes, it's barely been two." Brody protests. She narrows her eyes at the rude tone of his voice. He stuffs his hands into his pockets and huffs, "fine."

I start stepping back towards the classroom. "Give her some time." He advises. I nod in understanding before rounding the corner.

Sitting back down in my seat, I'm submerged in silence once again. I understand that she needs time to come to grips with what I did. Hell, I need time to come to grips with it. I still can't accept that I went against their trust like that. I had so many opportunities to tell them and I didn't. But what Brody said gives me hope. I find myself smiling at the possibility.