Axel had the kiss and I was fine with that, I thought about as I entered school. He would most likely be The Holy Kisser since there was only three weeks left of school and he - obviously - wouldn't be kissing anyone other than me. It was odd but relieving, knowing the kiss was gone and I was taken.
Smiling to myself, I walked to my locker. My mind was on what went down in the hotel room. We had kissed and then napped together in each other's arm for an hour. He then drove me home, hugging me at the doorstep, and the both of us said we had the best night ever. It meant a lot that he felt the same way.
At my locker, I opened it and pulled out the textbooks I needed. I then turned around to go to class, but suddenly, I noticed that everyone in the hallway seemed to be staring at me. I froze at that and frowned, wondering what they wanted.
Some were whispering, others were giving me dirty looks, but most were just staring. I had a feeling everyone knew I had given the kiss away, but I didn't understand this reaction. What were they judging?
"Zoey," I heard my best friend say next to me. "Come with me. I need to talk to you."
I looked at Hannah who had appeared out of nowhere and frowned when I saw that she looked serious. She rarely was so I knew something was wrong. My gut twisted at that.
"Okay," I said.
Hannah grabbed my wrist and dragged me into the nearest empty classroom. She shut the door behind us, leaving me anxious as I wondered what she would say. It was obviously personal, but I had no clue what it was.
"Can I ask you a kind of personal question?" Hannah asked, whirling to face me suddenly.
"Yeah," I answered, frowning.
"Did you sleep with Axel after prom?" she asked bluntly.
My jaw dropped at the question and immediately, my face turned red. I couldn't believe she had asked such a question.
"No," I said, but I blushed harder when I remembered I had made a move to. "I mean I was drunk and I wasn't thinking very clearly, but I didn't. All I did was kiss him."
Hannah looked relieved. But she then sighed and shook her head, leaving me worried. Something was definitely wrong.
"Everyone thinks you slept with him," she said, looking sympathetic. "That's why they're giving you those looks."
"Wait, what?" My eyes flew wide with horror. "They think that? Why?"
"You two were in a hotel room alone." She shrugged. "Things usually happen and there are some rumours..."
"Rumours?" I frowned. "What rumours?"
Hannah looked away. She looked upset and that left me feeling sick. Things were already messed up as they were, so I prayed they wouldn't get much worse.
"People say that Axel is only with you for the kiss. They say he just wanted it and maybe even some more from you, so now that he's got it he's going to forget about you," Hannah said, unable to look at me. "They're saying he fooled you, but I honestly think he really does like you. I believe that you chose the right guy to fall for."
I remained silent as I thought about what she said. It had been my worst nightmare that Axel was using me, but I had told myself that I trusted him. He genuinely did like me and I had faith in him. That was why, I told myself not to let these rumours bother me.
"Let people think what they want," I said defiantly. "I know my boyfriend. He would never hurt me."
Hannah smiled at me, looking genuinely happy. I smiled back, happy that she seemed to be on my side. The both of us trusted Axel, which I knew he needed.
"Good," she said. "Don't let others affect how you feel."
"I won't."
Hannah and I then decided to leave the classroom because our actual classes would start soon. As we left, all of the sudden, nerves hit me. As I saw that my peers were still giving me dirty looks, I wondered about Axel suddenly. I trusted him, right?
*****
Axel hadn't talked to me all day. I hadn't seen him all day and I was beginning to get nervous. If the rumours were true, Axel was actually forgetting about me.
Shaking my head, I told myself not to let rumours get to me. I trusted Axel. I knew he did like me. But at the same time, did I really know Axel?
We had only started talking a few months ago and before I knew it, I was falling for him. I didn't know anything about his family or much about his dreams, all I knew was that I liked being with him. His personality was attractive and so was his face. But that didn't mean I knew what lay hidden within his heart.
Shaking my head, I told myself I was overthinking things. I was confident. I knew myself and my choices well, so I knew I didn't make a mistake with Axel.
Walking into English, my eyes flew straight to Axel's seat and they widened when they saw him sitting there. He was facing the board, seeming deep in thought.
I walked over to my own desk, but I kept staring at him. My heart was pounding and I wished he would look over at me. I hoped he would somehow prove to me that the rumours were just rumours. But, he never glanced my way throughout the entire period.
*****
I stood outside and heard the rumours. Everyone was snickering about how Axel had used me and I closed my eyes, hurt. He hadn't acknowledged me at all so I knew everyone was right. Once Axel got what he wanted, he left. He had forgotten me and my heart ached.
Fighting back tears, I found myself feeling stupid. I had trusted him. I had opened up about the idea of love for him. He had changed me and it was all for nothing. Axel had never wanted me and I was an idiot. A tear ran down my cheek.