Project Publicity || l.h

Chapter 25// Exigent

FIRST OFF, THANK YOU FOR 10K! I LOVE EVERY ONE OF YOU AND YOUR COMMENTS NEVER FAIL TO MAKE MY DAY. KEEP DOING YOU ;)

ALSO: I KNOW. I KNOW, I'M THE WORST AUTHOR EVER, YESTERDAY WAS UPDATING DAY! Just know that if I miss updating day again, I'll update the VERY NEXT DAY.

Anyway, you guys deserve this long chapter (but it's a filler and it might be boring)

lol bye

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Jade's POV

"I don't know why he did it," I tell Hailey in the privacy of the 2nd floor girl's bathroom.

"Probably to ruin your reputation. It's what you tried to do to Ashton, anyway." Hailey says honestly. "And what would be a bigger image-ruiner than sleeping with the school's man hoe? Uh, pun intended."

I open my mouth to say something smart, but my efforts work against me. "Um. Logan is...?"

"Like I said, possibly the biggest man hoe in Cedarwood," Hailey finishes, rolling her pretty blue eyes. "I mean, apart from Ashton, of course."

She studies me for a minute, then asks: "Why do you always find yourself around man hoes?" As soon as it leaves her mouth, she seems to realize how blunt of a question it was. She flushes and moves on.

"Look, Jade," she says seriously, noting my miserable expression. "Who found you with Herbert that night?"

"It was Luke. He basically chased him away."

"Right. So if he was so desperate to get you away from Herbert, why would he take a photo and use it against you?" Hailey asks matter-of-factly.

That takes me a second to digest. "So...are you saying..."

"I think Ashton's lying. This is all him. I don't know what Luke's been up to, but no matter how big of a douche he's become...he wouldn't do something like this."

"You think so?" I ask hesitantly.

"I do," Hailey says with a smile, just in time for the fifth period bell. "Now walk out there with your head held high, and show Ashton you don't give a damn."

Then she pushes me out the door, and into the crowded hallway of students trying to get to class.

Nothing is too noticeable so far; a few girls are snickering at me, and a handful stop to look at the photos on the wall. But obeying what Hailey told me to do, I walk confidently down the hallway, picking up as many photos of me as I can find and throwing them away.

"Why the hell is she with Herbert the Pervert?" A girl asks in disgust, audible just as I pass by. "If she's given up on Luke, I want him," her friend pipes up. I stop short just to listen, while the two of them burst into uncontrollable laughter. I finally have to convince myself to move, and to look ahead the whole time.

It's funny, just yesterday these girls were sitting with me and my friends during lunch, trying to win over our affection. Popularity is a weird thing; people will like you, but suddenly hate you once you make the smallest mistake. 

And it's the opposite with Luke, I guess. He wass bullied all through middle school, but now that he's cool and has a band, everyone magically seems to adore him. I guess that's how high school works these days.

What a bunch of bullshit.

...

I finally get to class, and everyone's avoiding me like I've got a fresh case of STD's. There's literally a crowd of students on one side of the classroom, leaving only one chair next to Logan's. Not again, I think, and look to Kiera and Hailey for help. They shrug their shoulders and mouth 'sorry'.