In My Skin

CH 11 || Only A Single Regret

I quickly walked up the steps but Lucy caught up to me in a second. "Hey, where were you the last few days?"

My fingers around the straps of my bag. "I wasn't feeling well..."

"Oh, I hope it's better now? I counted you in on Friday."

"Friday?"

"Eric's housewarming party. I already talked to Alex, and he said you guys were coming. Don't tell me your boyfriend forgot to clue you in."

"He didn't say anything to me," I finally ground out, trying to ignore the guilt swirling in my stomach.

Lucy frowned. "What's up with you, lately?

My heart thumped. Time to bite the bullet. "We decided to take a break. Alex and I."

She drew back, her eyes wide. "Wait, what? Every time I asked him, he told me you guys were fine. But then again...I guess it's just a break, right?"

"I suppose someone can't be satisfied, huh?" A snide voice cut in. Nicole had come up next to us, a faint smirk tugging at the corners of her peach-colored lips.

"Hey," Lucy warned but I wasn't surprised. Nicole had had her eyes on Alex from the start and only started dating Eric after Alex and I'd gotten together.

"What?" Her voice rose. "She's always everyone's favorite darling. Ever since she disappeared to the hospital she's barely around and Alex keeps defending her. Now, look at her. That's how she repays him." Her cold gaze swept over me. "You are lucky he even stayed with you after all that and you don't even know how to appreciate it."

The others gathered around us, and my ears grew hot from the sudden attention.

"But it's not her fault she had to go to the hospital," another girl from our group said.

"Oh, please. You are really buying that she went to a hospital for a month for some sickness she didn't tell us about? Use your brain. Sounds more like rehab to me."

A buzzing filled my ears as the group lapsed into a stunned silence. A few people stepped away from me. I hadn't realized my scratched wounds were infected until my temperature had spiked to over 104 degrees and I'd resembled a patient with chickenpox. Alex had been the only one who saw me like that. And it hadn't ended pretty.

"I mean, look at her. It's either that or you need to moisturize more," Nicole continued in her nasal tone. "Are those wrinkles? Aren't you too young for that?"

I looked at my feet, fighting the urge to pull my hood up.

For weeks, my skin had been feeling like sandpaper and taken on that sickly brownish color especially prominent around the eyes. No moisturizer in the world seemed to help. Deep down I had hoped nobody would notice.

"Tay," Leo said in a small voice. "Is that true? Did you go to rehab?"

I clenched my teeth so hard, the muscles in my jaw felt strained.

"Nicole has a point. I mean look at her..." Somebody else whispered loud enough for everyone to hear.

What was even the point of hiding this? For people to think I was doing drugs?

"What's going on?" A confident voice broke my trance. Just what I needed... "Tay? What's wrong?"

Everyone parted like the red sea as Alex's tall frame entered our encirclement. With his chiseled features and athletic build, he fit the stereotype of a popular college jock. Something I had found endearing...at the beginning.

Nicole puckered her lips. "You should have told us that you guys were on break."

Alex's eyes snapped to me but then his features smoothed into an easy smile. "Guys, please. We're good, it was just a short-term thing. Every relationship has that sometimes."