Song at the side kind of describes this chapter. --------->
Prepare yourselves....
Chapter 32 - Foolish
Justine walked across the school parking lot with her books clutched tightly to her chest. She had been worrying about what she was about to do all night and after debating intensely if she should do it or not, she realised that it was the only option.
When Tori had approached her a few weeks ago, threatening that if she didn't find out all the gory details about Morgan Peters, she would make sure that Justine's life was a living hell and that she would make every single one of her friends turn against her. And at first Justine hadn't really taken her seriously until Tori had spread that rumour about Justine having slept with one of her best friends boyfriend. The only way to stop the bitchy blonde from completely ruining her reputation was to agree to her demand. And even then her friend had never truly forgiven her for that untrue rumour. Justine never wanted that to happen again.
So now here she was, about to meet Tori and betray her brother. Scott would be beyond pissed when he found out. Justine had never seen him act the way he did when he was with that Morgan girl. She didn't know what was so special about Morgan but her brother was definitely smitten and everyone who knew him well enough had seen it.
And Justine knew that that was one of the many reasons Tori resented the new girl in town. That and the fact that the school had accepted Morgan as the sweetheart that she probably was. This fact made Justine doubt her decision for about the million time today. Morgan didn't deserve this. Tori would most definitely use this information against her in the worst way possible. But then Justine realised what was at stake for her as well and her selfish side won her ever present inner battle for what she was about to say.
Tori was waiting against the bike shed of the school, her skirt riding up her tanned legs and tight top showing a part of her bra. She was chewing gum and popping it obnoxiously as she clicked away furiously on the phone.
"Ah, there you are. I thought you'd chickened out." She grinned like a cat seeing a mouse as Justine got close. She was about to speak when another figure stepped out of the shadows revealing itself as Chloe. She stood looking totally bored while her foot was in plasters and she held crutches in her hands.
"Let's just get this over with." She sighed, joining Tori by leaning on the wall. Justine felt herself falter. This was definitely not what she was expecting to happen.
"I thought it was just going to be you." She addressed Tori, trying to ignore Chloe's presence. She had never liked the brunette ever since back in middle school when Chloe had made fun of Justine for have braces. Everyone had caught on to this and she had been called 'Brace Face' for the entire time she had her braces. And even now when they had been taken off and her teeth were stunningly perfect, people still sniggered harsh words when they passed. She never really forgave her for that.
Tori popped her gum again and stepped away from the wall. "Chloe and I share a common interest. We both want to see that little bitch Morgan lying in the gutter where she belongs." Her eyes were full of hate as she spoke Morgan's name and Justine knew at that exact moment she was going to regret this. Unfortunately Tori continued. "So what's her secret? Has she got a boyfriend that no one knows about? Has she had like a sex change operation?" Tori grinned as her guesses grew more and more outrageous.
Justine shook her head furiously, wanting to spit this out and get away as fast as possible.
"No, that's not it." She cut in, wanting Tori to shut up so she could think. Chloe hobbled forward as she grew more interested in what was about to happened and fixed her gaze on Justine.
"So? Spit it out!" She snapped, seeming impatient to get information about Morgan. Both of them were like hungry dogs, waiting for their next meal. They disgusted her. How could people live like this? They fed on the misery of others and that seemed the saddest thing of all. They would never be happy in life if they could not let others be happy. She pitied them. But she had come here to get them off her back. And if she just told them this one thing, then she would be rid of them once and for all. Justine took a deep breath and began to talk.
"She has narcolepsy." Her voice wavered for a moment while the other two girls looked at her with utter confusion. Finally Tori spoke.
"Narcolepsy? Is that like a skin condition?"
Justine felt her whole body sag. She knew that they wouldn't have known what it was because even she had to Google it when she got home after the ballet recital. But she had thought that they would at least have a little common sense. But what did she expect? Tori and Chloe were not usually known for their brains. More like what they were known for doing.
"She can't control when she sleeps. It could happen anywhere, anytime. I'm surprised she had kept it secret for so long. Someone was bound to notice her falling asleep all the time..." Justine trailed off as she pondered how Morgan had done it. She must have had help. No one could pull that off without someone noticing that she was asleep. Her brother knew. Maybe that was how she kept it a secret for so long. Justine felt immediate guilt that it was her fault that this girls carefully guarded secret was going to be found out all because of her.
Chloe's face slowly pulled into a vindictive smile that made Justine's insides crawl. On the other hand Tori just looked shock and Justine thought she saw even some sympathy in her wide blue eyes.
"That's a serious condition right?" She asked, her delicately plucked eyebrows pulling together. Justine nodded her head, hoping against hope that Tori would see that Morgan didn't deserve to have her condition used against her in such a cruel way and would back off. But then again she hadn't counted on Chloe being the complete bitch that she was.
"That's awesome! So she's some kind of a freak? Oh my goodness, I can't wait to tell everyone. Her face will be frickin' priceless!" She gushed, turning to Tori and full heartedly expecting her to share her glee. But weirdly, Tori looked uncertain. The two girls stood silently looking at each other until Tori turned to Justine.
"You can leave now." She dismissed. Justine didn't need to be told twice. But before she left, she needed confirmation that she had not just done this for nothing.
"Are you going to leave me alone now?" She asked the blonde. Tori gave her a long look before nodding her head once. Relief flooded through her body and with that, she scurried away, already regretting what she had done to her brother's first love.
Morgan's POV
Buzz
Buzz
Buzz
I heard myself groan in exasperation as I squinted open one eye and watched my phone vibrate on my bedside table. Whoever is calling me so early in the morning better have something good to say because if not, I will not be responsible for my actions. With a sigh I reached over and grabbed the phone and flipped it open without looking at the caller ID.
"What do you want?" I snapped my voice still gruff from just waking up making me sound like I had suddenly turned into batman overnight.
"Hello? Wait is this Morgan?" A confused Tessa spoke hesitantly over the receiver. I coughed a couple of times until my voice returned to its normal pitch and replied.
"Yeah, I just woke up." I explained, sounding more like myself. I sat up from my bed and leaned against the headboard. There was bound to be a reason why she was calling me this early so I decided it would be better while she explained whatever it was that I would be comfortable.
"Oh." She replied sounding a little nervous. I waited for her to continue but was met with silence.
"Was there a reason why you're calling me this early in the morning Tessa?" I asked, tucking my loose waves behind my ear. I heard her take a deep breath and then another. That was when I knew something was definitely wrong and I felt a tightening in my stomach.
"Something happened last night." She uttered while exhaling a breath. Her words came out in a rush but I heard every one of them. Thousands of possibilities about what she could mean ran through my already pounding head. Did someone get hurt last night? Was she telling me I needed to go to the hospital? And why the hell did I feel like I needed to throw up?
I threw the covers of my body and sprung out of my bed, holding the phone to my ear while I paced the room. After taking a moment to prepare myself for what was coming, I replied.
"Tessa what happened?" I asked, thankfully keeping my voice from shaking.
It seemed like forever but finally my friend spoke.
"I'm only telling you this because I don't want you having to hear it from anybody else-" She rattled on, irritating me to my wits end. I would rather have her throw the bad news at me and get it over with rather than tip toe around it.
"Cut to the chase please Tessa." I interrupted, reminding myself to feel bad about being rude to her later. Finally she got the message because she spoke straight away.
"There was a party last night and Scott was seen going home with some girl." Again, her words came out in such a rush that I had to strain to hear them. It took me a while to let the words sink in but when they did, it felt like someone had broken into my room, kicked me in the stomach and crushed my heart with their bare hands. It definitely wasn't what I was expecting but it was equally as devastating. I felt myself sink back onto the bed, my legs too wobbly to stand.
My mind felt like it was going to combust with the amount of questions running through my brain. Why did he do this to me? What had I done wrong? I thought he liked me? What did this girl have that I didn't?
A pair of double D's presumably, my sub conscious hissed rather cruelly.
"Morgan? You still there?" Tessa asked tentatively. I felt my body jump slightly, totally forgetting that I still held the phone to my ear.
"Yeah, I'm here." I mumbled, feeling light headed all of a sudden. I listened as she began to talk in a soothing tone, telling me that he was not good enough for me anyway and how I could do so much better without even trying. But I was only half listening. The truth was, I didn't want someone much better, I wanted Scott Williams. I wanted his cute half smile and his stunning green eyes that looked at me with laughter. For some reason I foolishly thought that he was changing because of me. For me.
But like a hard slap to the face, the truth was painfully thrown at my face. Tessa continued to talk on but I really just needed to think for a while on my own before I went to school to face him. Oh god. My stomach clenched at the thought of seeing him. Of seeing his face and wanting so badly to hit him and at the same time wanting to kiss him just as much.
"Tessa I've got to go. I'll speak to you in school." Without another word I ended the call and gently sat the phone down.
Just breathe Morgan. Just breathe.
I took in a huge breath and exhaled, repeating this for several moments before I felt my body begin to shake and my breaths became wobbly. Soon tears were trickling down my cheeks and the dam broke. There was no point in trying to hide it. My first experience with a boy and in the end, it was my heart that was so brutally broken.
With a small pathetic whimper, I threw myself back onto my bed and sobbed like I have never cried in my life.
After I don't know how long, my tears finally dried up. But not for long. With a quick shower I let the tears mix into the running water of the shower. I went over everything in my head. Wondering about what I had done to make him do what he had done. But then what was I expecting to happen? This wasn't some fairy tale where the Prince sees the error of his ways and comes running to the princess. I was just Morgan. I wasn't strong like Pocahontas or beautiful like Cinderella. I liked to eat Nutella straight from the jar and fell asleep at random times of the day.
I stepped out of the shower and dressed for school. A pair of my comfy jeans and a white camisole shirt would do just fine. After I threw my hair into a ponytail at the top of my head, I headed out of my room. I wasn't sure how I felt at the moment. Although I still felt like I could be sick at any moment just thinking about Scott with another girl, but also I didn't know whether I had the right to be upset.
He had never said that we were exclusive. So why had I just assumed that we were? Was I one of those overly attached girls who just wanted a guy so much that she made up a whole relationship in her mind?
With that thought I shivered at the thought of being one of those girls. I would not be like those. I would go into school and show him that his actions didn't bother me at all.
After a quiet breakfast, Chase and I were on our way to school. He continued to give me worried glances, as if he couldn't understand why I was being so quiet. My guess is that Tessa hadn't told him what Scott did yet. Because if she had, my brother would waste no time in ranting about Scott and telling me much of a douche he really was. When his curiosity finally got the better of him, he asked me why I was so quiet. I mumbled a response, something about being too tired for school. I knew he didn't buy it but I didn't care. I was too busy preparing myself for when I saw Scott again. I decided on the calm and collected approach. He would see that I wasn't so bothered with what he did in his spare time and I would gently let him know that whatever we had, it was over. That way I wouldn't make a scene and I wouldn't get so emotional and fall asleep during an argument.
When our car pulled into the car park, Tessa was already waiting for me with a sympathetic look on her face. When I stepped out of the car she pulled me into a delicate hug before giving Chase a kiss on the cheek. To say he looked confused by both of our behaviour was an understatement.
"How are you honey?" Tessa asked tentatively, looping our arms together as we walked towards the front doors of the school and leaving my brother behind us. I got a few stares and whispers from people who had obviously heard what happened but I ignored them. For some reason I felt oddly numb and could easily forget that everyone was looking at me like my puppy had just died.
"I'm fine." I lied, nodding my head and trying to smile. She raised an eyebrow.
"Are you really?" She pushed. I turned to look at her, tears beginning to brim in my eyes as I shook my head slightly. She nodded her head and pulled me into another hug just as we stood beside the double doors leading into the school. We walked to our lockers in silence. I saw Chloe standing in her crutches, giving me a smug look which I so badly wanted to slap off her face. How dare she act as if she had won something? This wasn't some kind of competition of who could make the others life more miserable. I felt as if I was in some kind of teen movie where the 'it' girls decide to make the heroine feel like the scum of the earth.
I rolled my eyes and ignored her. What is the worst she could do? This made me smile lightly. She couldn't hurt me. I had been hurt enough today. Chloe's sucky attitude would not hurt me today. Other things were more important. Such as making sure that Scott Williams wish he never was born.
Tessa turned to me as we reached the lockers with a determined look on her face.
"So how are you going to play this? Go bat crazy and make a scene or play it cool and ignore him?" She questioned, raising an eyebrow as she not so subtlety looked around the crowded hallway for Scott while I thought about her question. I hadn't really thought about what I was going to do. Truthfully I felt mentally and physically exhausted. I would have been happier if I didn't have to deal with Scott altogether but since the world didn't usually work that way, I needed to figure out what I was going to do.
I shrugged my shoulders and opened my locker door, pulling out the books for my first class, mathematics. "I don't want to make a scene. Plus I have nothing to say to him at the moment. So I'll go with the ignoring plan." I told her warily. She nodded her head and just then, her eyes focused on something behind me. I didn't need to turn around to know who had entered the hallway. The sympathetic looks I was getting from people passing by told me everything I needed to know. Not to mention the fact that I could feel it. It sounded stupid but I could feel him enter the room. Everything felt heightened and I had the sudden urge to turn around.
"Morgan!" His voice carried down the hallway, making me since. I guess the scene I was trying to avoid would happen whether I liked it or not. Tessa turned to give him a glare before speaking to me.
"You go ahead. I know you don't want to talk to him right now. Plus, I also want to have a few words with him myself." She pursed her lips and nodded with her head for me to leave. I had never seen her so fierce before and at this moment in time, I appreciated it more than ever. I gave her a small smile of thanks and hurried past her, not sparing a glance behind me even though every part of my body wanted to catch a glimpse of him. But luck was not on my side because just as I began to fast walk away from him, I heard him call out my name again. Then I head Tessa arguing. And before I knew it footsteps were running towards me.
I felt my stomach drop. I couldn't do this right now. I couldn't pretend that I didn't care when I cared far too much than I liked to admit. He would want to talk. And that was the last thing that I wanted to do. To be honest, all I wanted to do was run home and crawl under the covers of my bed and wish that I had never come to this place. I wish I was at home, back in Colorado, sitting in my bedroom while Ashley, my friend from home while we gossiped about what friends of hers were having a secret relationship and who was lying to who. Life had been easy. I hadn't had to worry about backstabbing blondes (and a certain brunette) coming after me at every turn. I'd never woken up in a cold swear like last night at the thought of getting up in front of a huge audience and singing my heart out. And I certainly did not have to worry about a player who I had inadvertently fallen for.
And just like that, I realised that I had fallen for him. I had opened myself up to his charm and somewhere between getting to know the real him and finding the real me, I fell in love with him. I literally fell. Because now, I had fallen hard on the ground and I didn't know if I could pick myself up again.
"Morgan! Wait up. I need to talk to you!" He called out from behind me. I stopped. I didn't know why but suddenly I knew that there was no escaping this. I had to face this straight on. There was no other way. So, after taking several deep breaths I turned on my heel to see Scott Williams, jogging towards me. And not only did he not look guilty, he actually looked proud. How dare he? How dare he! He was proud of the fact that I felt like my heart had been suddnely thrown into the shredder that Chase and I had bought for our dad on his birthday a year ago.
Suddenly my plan for acting calm and feigning that I didn't really care was over. Because I was pissed. Beyond pissed in fact! How did I ever think that I had fallen for this jerk? What the hell was I thinking? This player was going to wish he never set eyes on Morgan Peters in his life.
But by God he was beautiful. My resolve weakened as soon as I laid my eyes on his sparkling green eyes that were glittering with excitement. And his hair looked like he had just stepped out of bed and he looked so incredibly cute that I wanted to run my hands through it and never let go. He was a definite heartbreaker and I was probably just another in a long list of girls that had their hearts broken by this boy. And I was probably not the last either.
"Hey." He breathed when he was standing in front of me. I noticed a few people had stopped in their tracks and were openly gaping at what was going to happen next. And I couldn't blame them. I felt like a ticking time bomb. One wrong word from him and I was going to blow. And it would not be pretty.
I decided to skip the pleasantries and get straight to the point. "What do you want?" I asked, trying to sound as bored as I could possibly manage. His lopsided grin fell in a split second as he finally took in the fact that I looked furious. His brow furrowed as he looked at me with concern.
"What's wrong?" He asked, completely ignoring my question. Why was he acting so oblivious? Didn't he know that what he had done would hurt me? Could he be so cruel as to think that I wouldn't be upset?
"What do you want?" I repeated, deciding to ignore his question as well. If possible his eyebrows pulled together even more. If I wasn't so angry, I would say he looked simply adorable.
"Uh nothing." He stumbled, seeming utterly perplexed. "I just wanted to talk to you." He seemed uncertain which wasn't really something anyone would normally choose to describe Scott. I felt kind of liberated that I was the one to make him flustered when he made me feel that way all the time. The tables had turned. Even though this wasn't exactly the way I would have wanted it to turn out like.
"Then talk." I urged, my voice keeping surprisingly even. He looked at me then and I nearly lost my calm. He continued this for another couple of seconds, probably trying to decipher what was going on and if this was some kind of test. I suddenly wanted to slap him. He should be on his knees and apologising, not acting as if nothing was wrong to begin with.
His eyes glanced around the hallway, very aware about the fact that nearly the whole school had gathered to see what would happen when the notorious player and one of his newest playthings had it out in the middle of the very public hallway. And if I was one of them, I would be exactly where they were, watching wide mouthed to see what drama would happen next. Never had I thought that I would be that girl who everyone pitied and secretly laughed at for falling for his charms. I had thought I was different. And now I was paying the price for my stupidly. But I'll be damned if that ever happened again.
"I'm guessing you heard about last night then." He mumbled, having the decently to look down at his feet. I shifted my feet and nodded my head, even though he couldn't see me. My silence must have encouraged him to go on because he lifted his head and looked at me with his kissable lips pulled into a unhappy line. I nodded my head again now that he could see it and watched as he swore under his breath and took a step towards me just as I took a step back.
"Morgan, please listen to me. It's not really a big deal, I swear." His voice sounded wary and a little panicked but I hardly noticed. It wasn't a bit deal? I could feel myself about to explode. No big deal? How did he think that him leaving with another girl at some party while I sat at home giggling like a school girl about the fact that someone as good looking as him actually liked me, was no big deal?
"No big deal?" I repeated quietly. He began shaking his head, trying to reach for me again but I dodged his touch.
"No this is coming out all wrong. I didn't mean-" He began but at that moment, the ticking time bomb inside me exploded. All thoughts of keeping my dignity and walking away flew out the window because in seconds I was right in his face and prodding a finger in his chest.
"No. I think you do mean exactly what you're saying. Because I mean nothing to you Scott Williams, do I?" Before he had a chance to object, which I knew he was just about to do, I interrupted him. "I was just another challenge. Something to keep you entertained. And I stupidly thought it was different. That you were different from all the things I had heard about you. But you weren't. You're exactly what they say you are. And the joke's on me because I fell for it." My voice began to waver and I had the sudden urge to cry. But I was not going to break down in front of him. I would save that little scene for later on, preferable in private.
"That is not true." Scott bit out between gritted teeth. He looked pained and annoyed at the same time. Good. Let him feel that way, then times it by a hundred then he will know how I felt at that exact moment.
"You don't have to pretend anymore Scott." I said softly, feeling incredibly tired. "You don't have to pretend you care." I managed to choke out. As soon as the words left my mouth he jerked his head up so fast that I worried that would get whiplash. His face showed anguish that nearly gave me hope that he actually did care about me. But then I realised that it was that sense of hope that got me here in the first place. That led me to grab that hope and stomp on it as hard as I could managed. I was done with him. That was it.
"Don't you dare act as if I don't care about you Morgan." He stepped forward and this time I let him. But I didn't allow him to continue trying to work his way out of this situation.
"Stop. Please stop." I warned, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. And with that I turned and walked away. Immediately a hand wrapped itself around my arm and spun me back around. Scott looked more determined than I had ever seen him.
"Morgan this is ridiculous. I came here to tell you that nothing even happ-" His rushed words washed over me but I wasn't hearing him. I felt numb, that was until an arm gently touched my arm and I looked up to see Piper. She gave me a nod as if she knew exactly how I was feeling at that moment and moved her arm around my shoulders. Her eyes turned to Scott who had stopped talking and was watching me with worried eyes.
"Are you okay?" He asked and I knew that he was talking about my condition. With that thought I felt a wave of nausea wash over me. Oh God. I had even told him about my condition. I had told him my darkest secret, foolishly believing that I could trust him but obviously I couldn't. Before I could nod, Piper turned to him.
"I think you two should do this another time. Like somewhere private. Morgan doesn't look too well." She said softly. I was quite surprised at how grown up she sounded and was so glad for her voice of reason right now. I was so grateful that I had friends like Tessa and Piper. Both strong women who would never get themselves in a situation like this and were good enough to help me when I was. I needed to tell them more how I much I appreciated them more.
Scott nodded and stepped away looking horribly deflated. I wanted to reach out to him but not this time. I was hurt and quite frankly humiliated. Thankfully Piper began to lead us away and like the child I felt like at that moment, I let her. And just as we rounded the corner, I couldn't hold it back any longer. I gently pulled away from my friend and ran into the nearest bathroom. When I was safely locked away in a bathroom stall and sitting on the closed lidded toilet, I let myself cry. And I was definitely not an attractive crier. It was quite hideous in fact. So I was glad that I didn't need to worry about people seeing my ugly emotions.
That was until I heard the door open and footsteps entered the bathroom. I tried to stifle my sobs but it didn't work out so well when I continued to sniffle and snorted like an excited pig.
"Morgan?" Pipers voiced inquired. I stopped sniffling just in time to hear her stop outside the stall door. I mumbled a reply which didn't even sound like English to my own ears and I dreaded to think about what she heard.
"Can I come in?" She asked softly. I licked my dry lips and wiped away a few tears.
"Just give me a minute." I tried to be polite but to be honest I just wanted to be by myself. I planned on finding Chase when I finally decided to leave the bathroom and ask him to drive me home. But first I needed to try and make myself not look like a blubbering mess in front of my brother. I dreaded to think about what my overprotective brother would do if he found out that his little sister had just gotten her heart broken. I shivered at the thought of Chase and Scott in a fight. Both had the muscle and ability to cause each other serious damage and even thought I was thoroughly finished with Scott, I didn't want his beautiful face being damaged. It just seemed like a crime against nature.
As my mind wandered off, I heard a sigh from Piper and before I knew it, hands appeared between the gap at the bottom of the stall door. I watched in shock as Piper wiggled her way under the door and due to her size and obvious talent for worming, by some miracle she got through. She stood to her feet and began to pat down her jeans with a grimace on her face.
"I dread to think about the amount of dirty ass bacteria that is clinging to me right now." She muttered to herself. When her little rant was over she looked over at me with her hands on her hips.
"Now what should I do with you?" She mumbled to herself again. My eyebrows furrowed.
"Didn't I tell you that I needed a minute?" I sighed, not really feeling as annoyed as I should. She lifted her shoulders and dropped them in a delicate shrug as if she didn't care.
"Didn't you know that I never listen?" She shot back with a raised eyebrow. I let out a laugh but then what happened not only five minutes ago came back to me and suddenly I was crying again. Piper moved forward and soon I was sobbing on her shoulder as I silently thanked her for being her stubborn self and for crawling along the bathroom floor. Even if I thought it really was disgusting.
Sorry for the depressing stuff guys. But I promise that from now on it shall get more fun. Let's just say that Morgan is going to get her own payback. And we all know that our girl Morgan doesn't like to do things small.
Next update should be soon. Sorry for the long wait, I had alot of exams to revise for. But I'm back to my writing. Yay!
Anyway...until next time lovely readers. ;)