Accidentally

Chapter 12

Well, I'm back. Hello friends

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Thank goodness I didn't have my next class with Perrie. In fact, it seemed like she was going out of her way to avoid me. I passed her once in the hallway, but she was talking and laughing with a group of friends as she leaned against a locker. As if she felt my gaze on her she glanced up, her eyes hardening as they locked with mine. I sighed and glanced away, my heart twisting as I continued to make my way down the hall. 

"That's a far cry from the party."

I looked up, surprise shooting through my system. There was a jock standing in front of me who looked vaguely familiar. Probably one of Alex's friends. 

"I'm sorry, who are you?" I asked. "And what are you talking about?"

He ignored my first question and shifted his weight so he was leaning against the wall. "That party, y'know, the one a few weeks ago where Alex was out of town. You two were getting pretty cozy. Closer than ever, I reckon." His expression was smug, challenging.

I felt the hairs on the back of my neck raise, but chose to ignore it. "I'm afraid don't understand what's so wrong about having fun with my friend," I replied, my voice smooth, relaying how unbothered I was. 

"Yeah, my favorite part was where you guys started climbing the stairs," he said, raising his eyebrows. My breath caught in my throat, my eyes involuntarily widening. His mouth curved up in a grin, as if he'd just caught me in a trap. "Lost you in the crowd after a bit so I never actually saw you guys reach the top, but a guy can wonder."

I forced my heartbeat to calm as I stepped closer. "What's so wrong about us climbing the stairs?" I asked, my tone light with innocence. "Like you said, there were so many people on the stairs, so it's not like they were, like, off limits or something. We were just having fun, running around. We were both drunk."

He nodded, but it was clear that he didn't believe me. "You know what they say about drunk actions," he said, his tone mocking. Before I could retort he slipped around me and walked away. I turned around, desperately trying to locate him in the bustle of the hallway, but he'd disappeared from sight. 

I dragged my hands through my hair as I broke into a run. I beelined toward the nearest bathroom and threw myself in front of a sink, staring at myself in the mirror. My stomach was turning, my head spinning. I felt sick. 

Someone else knew what had happened that night. 

I spent the rest of the day in a daze. I rushed home before I saw any of my friends. Once home, I shut myself in my room for the rest of the evening, claiming to need time for the extra homework. In reality, I was curled up on my bed, trying to make sense of the feeling of everything crashing down around me. 

I somehow fell asleep, that sleep full with fitful dreams of my exposed secrets. I woke up covered in sweat and locked in the same position as the night prior. I sat up slowly, wincing and stretching my stiff joints as I went. I glanced at my clock, relieved to see that I was on time. I went through the motions of getting ready for school and was out the door before my mam could ask any questions. 

At school my day was more of the same, but this time with added paranoia. I looked for him everywhere, convinced he was always just out of my vision, watching me, waiting for me to make a mistake to confirm his suspicions. 

Alex was home sick today, so while I was grateful he wasn't in school with more questions, I resolved to see him after school. As soon as the last bell rang I made a mad dash for the doors and was out of the parking lot before the usual traffic backed up.