Runaway

Chapter 28

"I guess... Okay, fine." She sighed before she started explaining. "It was a bit of a big deal for me. The girl, Laila, who's hosting the party and I were pretty close since our first year of high school. Not as close as Helena and Olivia are, but we still spoke pretty often. She always hosted these amazing parties, and not the kind that were too trashy or too classy either. There were so many people and it was just... fun."

"Then she started talking to me less and less once we got into our fourth year. I didn't know what was up with her. When I'd try to talk to her, she'd just sneer at me like I was a pair of Dylan's smelly gym socks." Andie covered her mouth in an attempt to hide a laugh. "Sorry, didn't mean to over share. And she'd say these things about-" She shook her head.

"What did she say?", I pressed on. "And don't say it's nothing."

"Just some rumors. None of them are true, but they still hurt." I was thinking about asking what the rumors were, but Andie beat me to it. "She- she told everyone in school that I was a slut sleeping around with all three of Dylan's friends; Brody, Nolan, and Garrett. I mean, I haven't even had a proper boyfriend yet."

You could clearly see now that Andie was shaking and I thought I saw a tear drip off her cheek. "I don't know why she said that. Then came the rumour that I was in an incestuous relationship as well." It took a second to click what that word meant.

"What? No, that's just not right", I said, my nose crinkling. "You would never do anything like that."

"I know. I love all of the guys, but none of them in that way. They're like big brothers to me. Okay, one of them is actually my brother but you know what I mean." She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know why she would say something like that." Andie pulled her legs up and rested her chin on her knees.

I thought for a moment. "You know why?" Andie turned to me. "I think she's just jealous of you."

Andie let out a short laugh. "Jealous? Of me? Why would anyone be jealous of me?"

"You're too modest sometimes, Andie. You're always so happy and smiling, you're pretty and smart, you get along with every single living being, you know how to fire a gun, and you can kick some serious butt if need be. Not to mention you have an amazing bunch of friends. That girl's probably jealous of you. You have a good life."

"I guess so. I mean yes, I know I'm fortunate to have what I have, but she seems to have it even better than me. She's an honour roll student, gets whatever she wants from her parents and people in general, and she does hold a certain bit of power over everyone else in school."

"Why's that?", I asked.

"Laila Sanders is the mayor's daughter", Andie said. "And-"

"And Luke's sister", I filled in. Andie nodded. A whole afternoon spent together, and Luke hadn't bothered to mention he had a younger sister? Though I suppose a couple having only one child was unheard of in Silver Creek, with the exception of Cassandra.

"So you can see why I don't understand why she would be jealous of me of all people. She's got everything", Andie said with a troubled expression.

"Maybe that's just what she wants you to think", I said slowly as my conversations with Luke rolled through my head. Maybe their parents put the same kind of pressure on Laila as they did on Luke.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that maybe Laila's life seems good, but in reality it's not. She might be having a hard time with her family life, or struggling with school, or she's being pressured." I shook my head. "Just a thought." And after a moment of thinking, I said, "You know what we're going to do?"