Broken

Chapter 9

I drew a deep breath and nodded. "Ok, I don't remember exactly what she said, but she was mad at the other girl, Lucy. Something about staying away from a boy, I don't remember if she said his name. Then Jasmin said she didn't believe Lucy was sorry, and that she'd kill her if Lucy didn't stay away from him."

Brandon nodded slowly, "The boy's name's Ben. I'm not sure why she's fixated on him the way she has, or why she views Lucy as such a deadly threat to her chances with him, but it's essentially that simple."

I felt like my head should be reeling from the sheer stupidity. Even in a town this small, it didn't seem like the competition for the available males should be a matter for death threats. Brandon took my head shaking as denial of what he'd said, rather than disbelief regarding the situation.

"I promise that every word I just told you is true. More importantly, I promise I'll make sure nothing terrible happens to you."

Looking into Brandon's caring eyes, I almost couldn't believe any of it. Being threatened, and then having the perfect man come to your rescue didn't happen in real life. Then again, maybe I was due for some happy endings. With a sigh, I thanked him for the ride, and we parted ways.

The only thing of note that happened in Biology was that for a few moments at the beginning of the hour it almost seemed the near-constant stares had somehow changed, had taken on a more sympathetic tone than they had previously.

It seemed silly to even entertain the idea. People my age don't really do sympathy very well. We're much more inclined towards ridicule and hasty, usually-unfair, judgments. Still, something had changed. I held onto that hope right up until I saw Mrs. Sorenson joining everyone else in staring at me whenever I looked down at my book. There was no mistaking the look on her face; it was utter distaste, possibly with a dash of disdain.

I was so tired of it all. By the time English rolled around my natural embarrassment had given way to actual anger at Britney for starting it all. She tried to catch me at our lockers in between classes, but I pretended not to hear her, and made it safely into Mr. Whethers' class before she could catch up.

Part of me acknowledged how petty it was, but I avoided her attempts at a whispered conversation during class. Mr. Whethers unknowingly helped my cause, when he crossly silenced a couple of girls on the far side of the classroom. He was normally so even tempered that even his moderate rebuke instantly shut them up. I probably shouldn't have felt quite so happy about it, but I was pretty sure from the way they'd been looking at me, that I'd been the source of their gossip.

When the bell finally released us, I couldn't avoid Britney any longer.

"Adri...ana, why didn't you tell me?"

I didn't answer for several seconds, not sure I'd actually heard her right. "Tell you what?"

"Fine, play coy. I just think you should know it's pretty lame for me to find all that stuff out second hand. We're best friends; you should totally have trusted me enough to tell me."

Apparently I'd only thought the anger was under control. It frothed beneath the surface right now, anxious for a reason to bite someone's head off, and Britney was the preferred target. Only I needed her. Not enough to completely dismiss what had happened though.

"I don't know what you're talking about, but I honestly wouldn't have told you anything I wanted kept a secret. Not after the way you told everyone about my panic attacks."

Britney looked like she was having a hard time getting enough air. She gasped a couple more times, and then managed to get some words out. "I'm so sorry. I didn't realize you'd care. I thought it would be ok."