LOCKDOWN

Chapter 32

PEYTON'S POV

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I watched as Zara stood up from the bench and ran towards the building, and I had no doubt that she was crying. I felt bad, I really did, but she really fucking hurt me. She doubted my feelings after I forced myself to open up for her, and that had pushed me over the edge. I hadn't even allowed her into my heart, she just kicked down the walls and settled herself in there before I had the chance to say no. She had my heart before I even realised, but she doubted me. It took so much for me to open up, to trust her, and to allow her to touch me the way she did took a lot. She knew it was a first for me, and yet she doubted me. That hurt more than I could've ever anticipated.

I could see her friends faces glaring angrily at me from the bench, and I knew I deserved it, although I also knew they had absolutely no idea what had truly happened between Zara and I. Timmy approached me and held out his arms, and I kicked the ball to him for him to catch.

"Long time no speak!" he said casually, "Where have you been mate? I tried calling you but you never answered."

"My phone broke after I got home, can't get it fixed until the Apple store opens!" I lied easily. The truth was that my parents had taken my phone from me the moment I had gotten home and they still hadn't returned it. They said it was punishment for not replying to their text asking me when I was coming home, but I knew they were just doing it to cut me off from my friends. They knew I'd elected to stay at Zara's for a reason, that reason being that I hated being with them. It's as if they enjoyed belittling me, punishing me, and making me feel like my existence was a burden. My dad regularly told me that if they'd had a son instead of a daughter, he would be far more successful than I could ever be.

I tried to avoid Laine, Lisa, Katelyn, Josie, and Siobhan as much as I possibly could throughout the day, but I could only do so much. By recess they had found me, and hadn't stopped talking since about how excited they were to get their hair, lashes, and nails done.

"I personally think that they are all essential services. If therapists can stay open, why can't salons! That's my therapy!" Siobhan had stated, and the other girls nodded enthusiastically in agreement while I fought hard not to roll my eyes.

"Daddy says the virus is just a big hoax and it's not actually dangerous at all. According to him, the deaths were all faked and the so called 'dead' people are paid actors who are now in hiding in Bora Bora! He says we won't be getting the vaccine when it's available in Australia as they'll actually be injecting us with tracking devices," Lisa spoke, and this time I actually did roll my eyes. The fact that she still called her father 'daddy' was enough to make me gag. Besides, her 'daddy' was an idiot, apparently.

Class sizes and duration had been halved so that students could fit into classrooms without breaking social distancing rules. This meant that we had double the amount of lessons in the day, but for half the amount of time. By 11:30am, it was already the fourth lesson of the day and I was exhausted. As I walked into the English classroom I hoped that Zara wouldn't be in there so I wouldn't have to face her, but my luck could only extend so far. There she was, seated in the far corner of the room with her eyes cast down to her desk. Her hands were clasped tightly in her lap and tip of her nose was red. It was obvious even without seeing her face that she had been crying, and I knew I was the cause of it.

Part of me wanted to go over to her and pull her into my arms, kiss her, and tell her that everything was okay, but the other half was still hurting. I didn't know why I was so indignant on avoiding her, but I was, and I did. I took a seat at the opposite end of the room, and spent the entire lesson glancing towards her. Was I hoping to catch her eye? I didn't even know. But I was just so drawn to her, I couldn't help but look.