CALEB DELVAÙX SMILED yesterday. I can't believe this is the news that's being delivered to me at eight am in the morning, but it is.
"What do you mean he smiled?" I groan, not bothering to cover my mouth as I yawn. I turn over to face Bailey who's seated at her vanity, running her fingers through her damp hair.
She's just come back from a swimming lesson with Azriel who's laying on her bed with one of her teddy bears in his arms. I would find it endearing, had they not been the reason for disrupting my sleep.
"I mean he's been smiling a lot." Bailey murmurs, rummaging through her drawer to find what I'm assuming is her hairdryer.
"Is that not normal for a teenage boy?" I ask as I get up from my comfortable position, my sheets falling at my waist.
I turn my head and watch Bailey struggle to plug in her hairdryer. "Not one whose life is falling apart." She mumbles, before finally getting it in and sitting back in her chair.
"Good for him." I shrug, still disoriented from sleep.
Bailey whips around to face me in her chair, wet particles from her hair fly across the room at the action. "You don't care?" She asks, bewildered.
"Yeah, you don't care?" Az echoes.
"Why would I care?" It's not like Caleb's entire life intrigues me to the point where I'm completely absorbed by it.
"Maybe because you're nosy, and take an interest in everyone's life but your own," Az answers casually.
"Wow, tell me how you really feel." I scoff.
Az's grey eyes hold mine as if he's daring me to disagree. "Saamiya, you literally do."
"Yeah but like...not in a bad way."
"It's never in a good way." He says, I go to object but he starts talking again. "Especially if other people's lives don't concern us." 'Stop what you're doing with these boys and girls.' Is what I know he's trying to say.
"If the intention is good, does execution matter?"
"You tell me," Az shrugs.
The girls probably didn't mean to ruin these boys' lives, I understand that. But there's no redemption is there? Revenge is the only way out. The only way they can break even.
"You guys are being way too cryptic right now," Bailey says with an edge of laughter. I turn back to her with a soft smile before getting up from my bed.
"Sorry, Az gets like that sometimes. I'm going to take a shower, don't wait up on me." I grab my makeup bag off my bedside table and enter the bathroom.
I set the shower setting to scorching hot, there's nothing more I hate than cold showers. The only people that I even think genuinely enjoy them are athletes, and there is no other profession I could be furthest from than that.
Once the waters heated up, I step in turning to face away from the shower head. I'm not in over my head, am I? This plan isn't going to completely ruin the girls' lives, will it? It's just some petty revenge.
What if you're wrong?
My consciousness creeps in, intruding on me as I scrub away at my body under the blazing heat.
You're no better than them, in fact, you're worse.
No. You're doing this for a friend, a friend whose life has gone to shits because of what the girls did.
He'll be fine. They'll be fine, why are you doing this?
Because it's right.
Wrong.
I turn the tap off, feeling the water come to a halt so I can get out of the shower and reach for my phone. Once in damp hands, I turn the music to the loudest volume and then head back in.
I'm doing this because it's right, not because of anything else. No, I couldn't have other intentions.
🂱 🂱 🂱
Bailey waits up on me. Her hair is blow-dried and she's changed into casual clothes. A.K.A her favourite forest green oversized hoodie and white flare pants. I think she has a dozen of them hidden away in her closet.
"You waited." I point out.
Bailey shrugs, "not much else to do, is there?"
"Whitlocks a big school, there's so much to do!" I disagree, Bailey just shakes her head, turning away as I take off my towel and start to dress.
"Trust me you haven't seen half of Whitlock if you think anything else. I'm surprised Az hasn't shown you everything, being head boy gives him all the perks. He also grew up coming here before any of us so there's that."
"He's busy, plus I don't think he can stomach seeing me any longer than he already does. With swimming lessons and all."
"Nah, he definitely likes you," I reassure, tugging my jeans up one thigh before the other. I swear to God If I'm out of breath after doing this I will lose all dignity.
"You think?" Bailey asks, turning back to me. Her cheeks flush at the question.
"Of course! Azriel is the busiest person I know, he wouldn't just teach you how to swim because he felt obliged to. He definitely likes you."
I catch Bailey attempting to fight off a grin before letting her emotions win. "Oh, okay. Thanks."
"Anytime. Oh also, we are so going exploring today. I bet you haven't even had the honour to meet the spade's quarters creepy black cat!"
"Their what?" Bailey's shrieks, and if it weren't for previous conversations about our mutual love for animals I would've thought she'd hated them.
"Before Mayo existed, Solar did." I let her know, a matter of factly. "Solar belongs to some kids in the spade quarters and they're usually really protective over him but I'm sure I can get them to let you meet him."
"Do the teachers know this is going on?"
"You silly goose, Of course!" Bailey looks a little relaxed, I hadn't really pinned her for a completely good girl. "...they don't," I finish off, not paying attention to her alarmed look. I catch sight of her staring at me with her mouth agape as I pull my hair up into a ponytail. I look away from my mirror and leave the room, "Come on, Bailey." I call out, leaving the door open.
"If I get expelled my parents will actually disown me." Bailey's concerned voice draws from behind me and I smile, I didn't really think that would work.
"We won't get expelled for looking at a cat!" I promise. Bailey doesn't look so sure. I wonder if she was always like this back at Sterling, on edge. "If we do, we can just blame it on the Spades kids, they're scary enough."
"As if anyone is going to believe that! We're not in a movie."
"Oh no, I'm being serious. The spade kids are weird, a girl in their quarters went missing once."
"What!" Bailey practically yells as she turns to me. Oops, maybe I wasn't supposed to reveal that. I mean, I didn't even reveal the whole truth, what really happened was much worse but I've sworn to Az to never tell a soul so I guess I'll just tell Bailey the version that everyone else knows.
"Yeah, back when Azriel's mom - Mrs Whitlocks - dad was in high school. So, that was like the '70s? I'm still not sure. But yeah, Valerie Jane was her name. She was a scholarship student in the Spades quarter, and went missing her senior year."
"They didn't go looking for her?" Bailey asks, her brows knitted together with unease. I shake my head.
"What, why?"
"She wasn't a guy, wasn't rich, wasn't worth it to them I guess. Apparently, she was also linked with their son, Aurelius Whitlock. He went crazy trying to find her until he just stopped." He found her dead. "He gave up," I say instead.
"Oh, wow. That's..."
"Messed up?"
"Fucked." Bailey states.
"Tell me about it. But guess she didn't really hold that much over him because Mrs Whitlock was born only a few years later."
"That's-" Bailey's words come to a sudden halt and I don't know why until my eyes reach where hers have.
"Oh hey!" I mindlessly greet the girl standing in front of us before realising my stupidity.
"Hi." Valé Asters smiles, looking between Bailey and me. For someone who has a sure lot to be upset about Valé seems pretty content, that is until her eyes register Bailey and then there's some sort of unexplainable sadness that washes over her.
"Scout says you're a better roommate than me." I blurt out, feigning a scowl at the statement that had been said to me days ago. In all honesty, I don't really care that Scout said it, the tension between the two friends just started to become unbearable and if there's anything I hate, other than cold showers, it's tension.
Valé's smile grows wider, "apparently you were a messy roommate." That's the understatement of the century. I was fucking horrible. The only reason I pulled myself together was because I didn't know who Bailey was and didn't want to be judged.
"Or so I've heard, Scout is also a major clean freak. Can't function if one sock is out and not paired with the other."
"One sock out! The horror." Valé gasps, mock terror.
"Right!" I agree with the absurdity, I always did end up cleaning my share of the room - just when I wanted to and that never went over well with Scout.
"Bail-ey." Valé finally greets, slipping up on almost calling her ex bestfriend by her nickname.
"Valé," Bailey says, her voice almost thin. "How have you been?" She asks, careful not to pry.
"Good, a bit of a mess but what's different? You?"
"Good, as well." She says and I just stand there, grinding my teeth together at the sheer awkwardness of the conversation.
"How are the rest of the girls?"
"Good," Valé smiles, it looks almost painful. "Look, I really have to go but it's been nice. Hope you guys have a good day!" I hear Bailey mutter a 'bye' from beside me, but Valé's already turned her back so it goes unheard.
Bailey doesn't move for a little while after her old friend's departure. "I always thought Valé would be around." She says, and I assume it's more to herself but it's already said so another moment passes and then she's looking right at me. "She was a good friend you know, would let you talk about shit that doesn't interest her and then make you not even notice that she doesn't care because she's so invested in your happiness."
"What happened between you two?" I ask.
"I knew about it."
"About..." Bailey's eyes search mine as if she's saying 'you know what,' it clicks after that. "Oh." Oh. How could I forget? Sage had explained it to me a couple of weeks ago, when he had the whole blow-up that shocked Az, Bailey and me.
"Valé doesn't seem like the type to be mad over you just simply knowing, does she?" I don't know how much Bailey knows I know, but it's not a lot so might as well just act like its none.
The blonde shakes her head before she begins to walk, I follow despite knowing I probably should be the one to lead. "I outed them. Everyone knows it was them because of me."
The old information is still like a slap across the face. Of course, everyone knows about what the girls at Sterling did, I guess no one just ever asked about how we know. "What?" I say, not sure how else I'm supposed to react to the statement.
"I still don't know how it isn't out yet, I'm assuming it has to do with the fact that no one knows me."
"How did you even know what was up?" I ask, that must've required some level of intelligence. I mean, unless the girls were walking around flaunting their doings I don't see how Bailey could have just known.
Bailey's large blue eyes hold mine, and search as if she's trying to find something in me. I stand eerily still hoping I don't disappoint. "Valé's an open book. She's loud and funny and always keeps in contact. So when she stopped I-" Bailey's eyes don't leave mine like I think they will, in fact, they do quite the opposite - staring into my soul as if I can read her mind. "I started being more...attentive."
"You followed her?" I ask, not sure how I've come to that conclusion.
"No! I just kept tabs on her."
"On your bestfriend?" Maybe I've underestimated Bailey...no, the way she's looking at me now is telling me everything I need to know. She doesn't look guilty, she looks...sad.
"She was acting weird!" Bailey's voice grows louder, burying the other voices coming from what I assume to be the common room.
"So you didn't check up on her? You stalked her?"
"Nadia was acting weird too! And so was Jude and Billie's off in her own world and Ari wouldn't tell me anything even if she knew what was going on."
"You thought they knew something you didn't." I presume, pinning on that being the reason she went to the lengths she did. Why else would she stalk her friends?
"I thought my friends hated me." She admits instead, her eyes pinned to the floor as shame creeps its way to her. Oh.
"Bailey-" I start, embarrassed that I just assumed the worst.
She looks away now, embarrassed. "And I was so stupid. So, so stupid to get drunk at that party. I thought it was some random boy that found me, I thought it was Lotus," Lotus? Who is that? "But it wasn't," her voice cracks, and she drags her hands across her face groaning. "Everything's a mess and now I'm alone because I couldn't shut up."
"You aren't alone Bailey."
"I am. Those girls have been my friends since we were in diapers and I- I fucking messed up and now I'm alone. I know I have you and Az but you guys don't need me. You complete each other, I wasn't some missing piece once, I fit perfectly with them."
"I know," I say despite not knowing, but if Bailey talks about her old friends the way she does, I don't have a doubt in my mind that she fits with them.
"I'm sorry," she apologises lowly, "you were so excited to show me around and I've just gone on a self-wallowing rant."
"No, don't be sorry, not at all."
Bailey's about to respond but the double doors for the common room open and a familiar platinum blond-haired boy walks out.
"What's going in there?" I ask Spencer, not having time for formalities once I hear the voices growing louder. Both of the voices seem familiar enough but I don't have names to pinpoint them to. Maybe if I see their faces I will.
Spencer shrugs nonchalantly, slipping his phone into his pocket. "Catfight," he murmurs, visibly distracted by something.
"Between?" I ask, to him it might seem like I'm prying for information I could receive within two steps, but I'm actually trying to see if I'm delusional for thinking something's up with him. Where is flirty Spencer? Who is this?
"Cassie and Xemina." He answers bluntly.
"What? Aren't they like best friends?" I ask, I couldn't imagine getting into a fight with Scout, let alone in the common room where everyone else is bound to watch.
"Not after this, they won't be."
Spencer's phone begins to ring and he looks down brows drawing in frustration, "I've got to take this." He groans, swiping on answer and storming off.
I wonder who's got him all antsy, I'm about to ask Bailey but she's staring into space. "What's wrong?" I ask. Is something in the air today?
She shakes her head. "Nothing good can come from that."
"Tell me about it. But let's go watch."
"What?"
"The fight..." I drawl. "Nothing good can come from the fight so we're going to watch it."
Bailey doesn't say anything more, she just nods before following me into the common room where a crowd has already surfaced. There's a spilt separating the two sides though and we're confronted with choosing which one.
Cassie's backed up by Salem and some other girls I don't know. There are also a hand full of guys I don't completely recognise either, my best guess is them being Sterling's athletes. Xemina's got Aristotle Reyes standing behind her as well as some of Ari's other friends.
Population wise they're pretty even. Morality-wise, it's clearer who I should be behind.
"Cassie you're just a miserable person who can't for the life of her accept the fact that her friends are making other friends!" Xemina snaps and I hurridly move to stand near her.
"Okay Xem, you've said what you've wanted to say." Salem sings songs eyeing the growing crowd a little wearily. Salem strikes me as the type of girl who doesn't like to lose control, and right here at this moment, it seems like the exact thing she despises is happening as her friends begin to argue.
"I haven't said it all! Xem you've been hiding things from us forever and Salem and I are sick of it! Just tell us what it is." She pries, her eyes wide like a predator about to hunt prey.
"I don't owe you shit!" The lighter blonde-haired girl spits.
"You owe us everything! If it weren't for us you'd be nothing."
"Oh shut the fuck up Cassie, everyone has had enough of you! every day I'm subjected to your fucking antics and you're so repetitive it's boring!"
"Ari-"
"No, she knows what she wants you to admit. What are you going to do with the information Cassie? You've got zero loyalty, you have no moral compass and you're fucking crazy!"
"I am not!"
"Look around, no believes you." Ari shrugs.
Cassie goes to open her mouth but another person cuts into the scene. "What's wrong babe?" The gruff sounding voice asks.
I turn to my left looking at the voice holder and it's...Everette? Everette Law is dating Xemina?
"Babe?" Rain's the one to echo back his confusion.
"Rain, not the time." Everette seethes between clenched teeth. I didn't know Rain was here, I go to find him in the crowd but he isn't standing anywhere. I'm confused as to where he is until the crowd separates and gets up from the red couch.
Before Whitlock had the privilege of having Sage Evanders attend.
Everette Law was - and still is - Whitlock's resident artist. If you're taking any art subject here, you're sure to know him. He came in sophmore year and to everyone's surprise knew Rain from back home.
"Babe?" Rain says again. "You know what's funny with the word 'babe' Everette, it implies a relation of sorts. And not the platonic kind."
Everette visibly swallows but doesn't say anything in return, for a while. "Xemina's my girlfriend, do you have a problem with that?"
Rain smiles, but it isn't nice. He shrugs, "nope." But that's so obviously not what he means.
Still smiling Rain's eyes meet mine, I feel the need to back up but that's admitting defeat and I don't do that often - or at all. Even when I know it'd be good for me to do so.
The crowd starts to diverge once getting a hint of the fact that the fight isn't going to escalate since Everette's here, Rain gets to us quicker because of that.
"Where's my brother?" He asks looking between Bailey and me.
He's never called Az his brother to his face. The cruel thing about Rain is the fact he often says what people want to hear behind their backs, starving them of the affection they deserve to receive.
"Aren't you guys fighting?"
"We're always fighting."
"I don't know where he is." He's probably in his dorm.
"Saamiya! Saamiya!" The urgency of Scout's voice has all three of us turning to look at her. Her eyes are wide and her cheeks are flushed with liveliness. "You have to come back to my dorm, Vals and I are doing an interpretive reading of some book from the eighteen hundreds and it's hilarious."
"That doesn't seem very fun Scout." I drawl out, hoping the sentence isn't too mean. When did she get into old literature anyway?
"It isn't a normal book though!"
"It isn't?" What feature has the ability to classify a book as not being normal? It being fan-fiction? Having no capital letters? Drawings being etched into them?
Scout's eyes glimmer with mischief and her lips tug up into a sly grin. "No, It's a book that fell out of Mrs D'arc's bag."
"Christophers' mom is reading an old book, congratulations?"
"She's reading old ass smut!" Scout yells, and I shut my eyes out of pure embarrassment. When I open them again everyone's already diverged their eyes away from us.
"That's-"
"Fucking brilliant! Had I known this, I would've pined over Christopher this entire time." She interjects.
"Is it really that good?"
"It's brilliant."
That's how I find myself in Valé and Scout's dorm ten minutes later with Rain by my side, Bailey had dipped after the mention of Valé. I told her I wouldn't mind leaving with her but she rejected.
Ari is sitting down on the floor with Valé chatting when we enter, probably recounting what Valé had missed. The two girls look up and smile at us, guilt nags in the pit of my stomach.
"You were so fucking cool out there," Scout beams taking a seat on the floor with them, I look at Rain and he shrugs before joining them on the floor as well. I follow as well, of course.
Aristotle looks at Scout with a half-hearted smile before nodding in what I assume to be appreciation. "Nothing less than what the bitch deserves."
Rain turns to Aristotle, his hands supporting him as they're behind him whilst he sits. "She's that deserving?"
"That deserving?" Ari repeats, "Cassie DuVall has been a bitch since the day she was born. The only reason she doesn't get shit for it is because her dad is deputy mayor. But one day the bitch is going to get what's coming for her, and I'll be behind it."
"You don't mean that," Valé tsks.
"I mean every word." The other girl replies, getting up from her seated position. "Anyway, I've got to go. Detention calls." She sighs.
"Don't fucking remind me." Rain groans, getting up as well.
Valé looks at Rain and Ari sympathetically. "You've got detention as well?"
"When hasn't he got detention?" I'm the one to reply, half of Rain's schooling years consist of him sitting in Mr Raymond's history class with a half-bored expression and flipping through school-approved books.
They had the rule implemented of what kind of books were appropriate after he showed up with a magazine that almost caused his mother an aneurysm when she'd been called into the classroom to remove him herself.
"Every day this week. Kinda disappointed, I really was excited to read what turns Ms D'arc on." He sighs longingly.
"You told him!" Valé screeches looking at Scout with utter betrayal.
Scout glares daggers at Rain, "if Rain could've just shut the fuck up for thirty seconds I would've been able to explain to you why he was here. I was telling Saamiya when he overheard and then he just had to come - his words not mine."
"She told half of your guys' quarter." Rain says before leaving the room. The sudden dump of information has Scout stuttering out an explanation of the events to a scowling Valé.
The door opens again and Scout whips her head towards it, "Rain I swear to-" but it's not Rain on the other side, it's Nadia Baelene.
"Vals, you need to start packing."
My eyes flicker to Valé who looks equally as shocked as she does horrified. "What do you mean? What's wrong?"
I fear the worst. The boys have done something irreversible.
"We're all going back home," Nadia says, though the ultimate shock has disappeared and now she just looks gleeful.
"Winter's engaged."
_______________
a/n
so it begins again: the winter and reid show.
starring: mostly everyone
live footage: me remembering that i've published a book on wattpad that does indeed need to be updated
also, yes this is a face reveal and i am in fact kendall jenner!! surprise!!
(jk jk, pls don't sue me kendall you've already done me dirty by getting with harry)