I Despise You: A Dark High School Bully Romance Page 11

  As soon as I enter the room, Brittany runs at me through the parents and students who are already there.

  “You bitch!” she yells, shoving me back.

  I catch a glimpse of tears in her eyes before she storms off.

  I have no idea what I’ve done, and since it made Brittany cry, I almost wish I’d actually done something because then I’d know how to repeat it.

  But then my gaze lands on a familiar figure standing close to one of the tables.

  “Mom?” I call, almost sure I’m imagining things, and this is just some woman who looks like my mom from behind.

  She turns around, a smile spreading across her lips. “There you are, honey! Surprise!”

  I fling myself into her arms. “Mom! I can’t believe you’re here.”

  But as I hug her, I notice Brittany’s father standing close by. I pull away from my mom, glancing from her to him.

  She’s come here with him. What Brittany said about the two of them may be true.

  “Um, Mom, can we talk for a moment? In private?” Now I finally have the chance to ask what I need to know.

  “Yeah.”

  We find a quiet place just down the hallway, and when I’m sure no one’s there to overhear us, I turn to her.

  “Brittany told me something, and I need to know if it’s true. She said you and her dad are... um, together, I guess. And that the reason he’s paying for my tuition fee is because—”

  “Honey, you know I’d do anything for you.” Her eyes are glassy.

  “Yeah, I do, but I know you don’t like your boss at all. If I have to leave the school, I’ll do it. But I don’t want you to be with him and do things you don’t want to do because of me.”

  “Maybe you’ll understand one day when you’re older or if you have kids on your own. Your future is the only thing that matters here. Don’t worry about me. I’ve made my choice. You have an opportunity of a lifetime. Don’t throw it away.”

  “I’m doing my best, but the competition here is crazy. If I fail, everything you’re doing will be for nothing.” It still feels wrong that she has to do any of it just so I can go to school here.

  It’s wrong on so many levels. I should pack my bags and leave. But it’s not what my mom wants, is it?

  We’d both end up with nothing then.

  “No, it won’t. Even if you don’t get the scholarship, it doesn’t matter. We’ll figure something out. You know that graduating here means a lot already.”

  “I do.” I cross my arms. “But what happens then? What are you going to do if he doesn’t want to let you go?”

  “You should worry about you, and I’ll worry about both of us, okay?” She reaches out and brushes her knuckles against my cheek. “I know I complained a lot about my boss, but he’s not as bad as he seems. Sometimes, people can surprise you.”

  I don’t know if she’s saying that just so I’d stop feeling bad about the whole thing or if she really means it.

  “Brittany’s not happy,” I say. “What if she convinces her father to stop paying my tuition?”

  “If Brittany’s bothering you, just let me know. Her father won’t tolerate her outbursts. He’s already made that clear both to her and to me.”

  I debate if I should tell her what Brittany has done, but I can’t.

  “Why don’t you tell me how’s school going? I get all the info about your grades and everything, but how do you feel about it? We’ve never really talked about it over the phone.”

  She doesn’t want to talk about Brittany’s father anymore, and I decide not to press any further because I don’t think it’ll achieve anything. I’m here now, and fighting for the scholarship is the only thing my mom wants me to do.

  “It’s great. I love everything about it.” It’s not a lie.

  “I’m glad to hear that. Have you made any friends? Got a boyfriend, maybe?” She teases.

  “Yeah, I have a few friends. No boyfriend.” I don’t want to tell her about Chase or officially introduce her to him like that just yet.

  “What about that sweet boy who took you to visit your dad’s grave?”

  “Um, he’s just a friend.” I don’t know if Chase said he was my boyfriend when he called her, but since my mom didn’t ask me anything about it, I assumed he hadn’t mentioned anything about that.

  “Ah, okay.”

  I notice movement out of the corner of my eye.

  Chase. He’s just overheard me say to my mom that he’s not my boyfriend.

  Shit!

  “Mom, I need to do something. Can you give me a moment?” I ask.

  “Yeah. I have to go back in there anyway.”

  Brittany’s father is expecting her, and I hate that, but I only nod. When she’s gone, I go after Chase, but I can’t see him anywhere.

  I pull out my phone and text him, but I get no response. Shit! I have to explain everything to him, but I don’t want to do it over a text.

  I dial his number, hoping he’ll pick up, but he doesn’t. Maybe his father showed up too, so I head back in the room to see if I can spot the two of them somewhere in the crowd.

  My mom waves at me, and I wave back at her.

  Once I search the whole room, I realize Chase’s not there. He must’ve gone back to his room, so I hurry to find him.

  When I reach his room, I pause because the door is cracked open. I peek through the crack and have to stifle a gasp.

  Two big men are holding Chase by the arms. There’s a scowl on Chase’s face, and his father is standing not too far away from him.

  “You’re going to break up with that pretty little gold-digger. Do you understand me?” Chase’s father says.

  “I can date whoever the fuck I want!” Chase yells.

  “You’re a Campbell, boy, so no, you can’t. She’s a pretty piece of ass, and you can fuck her all you want, but she’s not going to be girlfriend or your wife.”

  My eyes widen. Wait a second.

  He’s talking about me, isn’t he? Eww!

  I need to stop this somehow.

  I take a few steps back, until I’m farther down the hallway.

  “Chase! Are you there?” I call, pretending I’m just looking for Chase and haven’t overheard anything.

  When I come closer and push the door open, his father is smiling at me and his bodyguards are standing next to him.

  Chase is glaring at all of them, his arms crossed.

  I’ll be damned, but his father could be an actor. They staged the whole thing in seconds when they heard my voice, and it was so effortless, as if they’ve all done it before.

  “I’ll see you later, son,” Chase’s father says, tapping him on the shoulder before going for the door.

  His bodyguards follow him, and I step out of their way.

  “What happened?” I ask softly when Chase and I are alone.

  “Nothing,” he snaps.

  “I came here to apologize. I know you overheard me when I said to my mom that you’re just my friend. I just didn’t want her to start asking questions or think that you’re distracting me from schoolwork.”

  “Whatever. I didn’t hear anything. I don’t know what you’re talking about. And I don’t care about what you tell or don’t tell your mom. It’s between the two of you.”

  He’s lying. I look at him, and I’m sure he’s lying.

  “I’m sorry. If you want, I can go find her right now and tell her the truth. I guess I panicked a little too because I never really had a boyfriend, and I have no clue how she’s going to react. I don’t want her to worry about me more than she already does.”

  “I told you, it’s fine.”

  “Chase—”

  “I accept your apology, or whatever the fuck you want. You should go. Your mom is waiting for you.”

  I open my mouth to argue because he’s clearly still mad at me, but maybe it’s best to give him some space. Maybe it’s not about me at all.

  Who knows what his father told him that I didn’t hear? Maybe that’s
what really bothers him, but I don’t think he wants to talk about it right now.

  “Okay. If you want to talk or something, text me,” I say.

  He nods.

  I glance at him before leaving, but he’s already turned away from me. If only I knew what he’s thinking.

  Chapter 20

  I DON’T REALLY GET to see Chase for a few days, until we get the results of yet another one of the tests that count toward our score for the scholarship.

  Since I have a one-point advantage over Chase, who is second, I can’t help but be excited.

  But when I look at Chase’s serious face while he’s staring at the score list as if he can’t believe it’s real, I instantly feel bad.

  This is a complicated situation. I want to be happy for my success, but my win also means that my boyfriend sort of lost. I’m not sure how to handle that.

  “There are still more tests left,” I say in the end because I can’t bear seeing him sad.

  “Whatever. Only one of us can win anyway.” He turns away from me.

  “Hey, wait.” I catch up with him before he can stride away. “Um, is everything okay between us? I know we were both busy studying, but now we can talk and maybe—”

  “There’s nothing to talk about, and we’re fine.” Except, judging by the look in his eyes, we’re not fine.

  He’s not fine.

  “I heard there’s a party tonight,” I say. “Everyone’s going to try to sneak out. Looks like the administration decided enough time has passed and that there have been no incidents, so they’ve eased up on the security at night again.”

  I know Chase likes to party, so if I have to sneak out and take a risk to get to the club to make him happy, I’ll do it. Maybe all he needs is a break from thinking about school and the scholarship, or from everything else.

  “Do you want to go? With me?” I ask when he doesn’t say anything.

  “I’m tired.”

  “Um, okay. Can we talk later then?”

  “Sure.” He walks away without another word.

  I stand there in the middle of the hallway.

  Something’s wrong. I can feel it, but if Chase doesn’t want to talk to me, I don’t know what I can do to fix it. Maybe he just needs time.

  “Lil!” Vanessa says with a smile on her face as she approaches. “Congrats! I see you’re number one!”

  “Thanks.” I smile back.

  “How does your boyfriend feel about that?” She eyes me carefully.

  “I think he’s a little upset.”

  “Bah! He should be glad he has a smart girlfriend. Oh, are you going to the party tonight?”

  “Looks like I’m not. Chase is tired and—”

  “Whoa, stop right there, girl.” Vanessa lifts her finger. “You should celebrate your win. If Chase wants to mope around, let him. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t have fun. I don’t want to go alone to the party either, so you should come with me.”

  “I don’t know. If someone catches us—”

  “They won’t. We’ll be more careful. Do you know Brad?”

  I shake my head.

  “He’s a very smart guy. He actually secretly put up cameras in the hallways. The cameras are well hidden and they’re connected directly to a website. So before we go anywhere, all we have to do is check the website, and we’ll know if we can go or if we have to wait. Cool, right?”

  My eyebrows shoot up. “Wait, is this guy recording everything that’s going on—?”

  “No, it’s not like that. He’s going to take the cameras down after the party because he doesn’t want the principal to find out or someone else to find them. And the cameras aren’t recording anything. They’re turned toward the ceiling. Since it’s dark, and the guards use flashlights, we’ll see them. Our phones don’t provide that much light, and we’ll keep them pointed at the ground since all we need to do is see where we’re going. Even if someone messes up or their phone light is too bright, it doesn’t matter. We shouldn’t all walk together anyway or someone might hear us, so it’s better to wait.”

  I have no idea if that’s going to work, but at least it’s some kind of plan.

  “So, are we going?” Vanessa grins, gently elbowing me in the arm. “Please!”

  I think about my options. If I stay in my room, all I’ll think about is Chase. It’ll drive me crazy.

  I’ve spent too much time studying these past few days, and I don’t want to burn out. A party would be a good distraction.

  “Okay,” I say.

  “Yes!” Vanessa squeals in excitement. “I can’t wait! We’re going to have so much fun!”

  AS SOON AS VANESSA and I start to dance, I feel better. For a few hours, I want to forget about everything and just have fun.

  My problems won’t go anywhere, and they’ll be right there in the morning.

  Two guys approach us. One of them is eyeing Vanessa, and she smiles as she moves closer to him. The other guy is inching closer to me.

  “Wanna dance?” he yells so I can hear him over the music.

  I’m sure I’ve seen him somewhere at school, but the lighting here is so shitty that I can’t see much except that he has dark hair and dark eyes.

  “I’m already dancing,” I grin.

  He gets even closer, and I take a step back as I keep dancing.

  The guy smiles at me, and I wonder if I should tell him I have a boyfriend, but I have a feeling everyone already knows Chase and I are dating. It’s impossible to keep something like that a secret. Even people who don’t give a damn have probably heard about it.

  Someone roughly grabs my arm from behind, yanking me back. I yelp, my heart jumping into my throat.

  “Stay the fuck away from her!” It’s Chase.

  He rushes the guy before I can even process what’s going on.

  “Chase!” I shout.

  Now, everyone’s looking at Chase and the guy and moving out of their way. Fists fly, and I can’t believe what I’m seeing. I don’t know where Vanessa is, but I can’t see her anywhere.

  “Chase! Stop it!” I run to him, trying to pull him away from the guy and get them to stop, but it’s like trying to move a mountain.

  “She’s my fucking girlfriend, you son of a bitch!” Chase yells.

  A few more guys show up and manage to stop the fight.

  As the guy is being dragged away, he’s yelling something at Chase, who turns to me, his face a mask of fury, his nostrils flaring.

  “Come with me.” He grips my arm again, too tightly, and I wince.

  “Chase—”

  “Shut the fuck up!” he snaps, and I’m stunned into silence.

  He takes me into the hallway that leads to the restrooms. A few people are there, but when they see Chase dragging me with him, they leave.

  “Let go of me.” I find my voice, trying to free myself.

  He doesn’t even acknowledge he’s heard me.

  “Let go of me now! You’re hurting me!” I stop.

  His grip loosens, and I pull my arm back, rubbing the spot where he held me.

  It hurts. It fucking hurts.

  “What the hell is wrong with you?” I glare at him.

  “What the fuck is wrong with you?” He raises his voice. “What are you doing dancing with my friend like that?”

  I blink. “Your friend? I didn’t even recognize him. And I wasn’t doing anything with him. I was just dancing with Vanessa, and then he and some other guy approached us. He didn’t even get that close to me.”

  Chase hasn’t been hanging out with the guys much lately, and when he does, I’m usually not around.

  “What are you even doing here?” There’s something in his eyes that I don’t like.

  Something scary. Something wild. Something I don’t recognize.

  “You said you were tired and didn’t want to go. Vanessa needed someone—” I pause, meeting his gaze. “You know what? This is crazy. None of this matters. It looked like you wanted some space from everything and from m
e, so I went to the party. Do you think I need your permission to do that or something?”

  “Yes! You’re my girlfriend. You shouldn’t be here without me!”

  I stare at him and involuntarily burst into laughter.

  I can’t help it. The whole situation is absurd. “You know what? If the scholarship thing is bothering you so much that you’re losing your mind, then maybe we shouldn’t be dating.”

  I spin on my heel and walk away, tears prickling the corners of my eyes.

  A loud crashing sound behind me makes me jump, my pulse accelerating, but I don’t look back, just quicken my steps.

  I don’t know anything anymore. My chest hurts, and my arm too. I’m sure I’m going to have bruises. I stumble through the crowd like a zombie until I spot Vanessa.

  Her brow is creased with worry, and when her eyes land on me, she rushes to me.

  “Oh, my god! I’ve been looking all over for you! Are you okay?” She looks me up and down.

  I nod. “I need to get out of here.”

  “Yeah. We’re leaving. Come on.” She winds her arm around me, and it takes all my willpower not to break down in tears.

  I SIT ON MY BED AND stare at the wall. Even a hot shower didn’t help me clear my mind. It’s like I’m on a roller coaster that’s speeding like crazy and I end up upside down every five seconds.

  A knock on the door startles me. I get to my feet and crack it open.

  Chase is in the hallway, and I almost slam the door shut. But he doesn’t look angry anymore, just sad.

  “Can we talk for a sec?” he asks quietly.

  “Yeah.” I step away from the door and let him in.

  “I’m sorry.” His eyes find mine. “I don’t know what came over me. It’s been a shitty day, and a shitty week, and I just... Getting that text sent me over the edge.”

  “What text?” I furrow my brow.

  “I got a text that you were making out with my friend.”

  My jaw goes slack. “What?”

  Who could be so vile to send such a blatant lie?

  “I know now it wasn’t true, but in that moment, I just lost it.”

  “Who sent you the text?” I ask.

  “Brittany.”

  I scoff. That bitch. Of course, it was her.