I Despise You: A Dark High School Bully Romance Page 12

  She’s not done messing with me.

  “And you believed her?” I say.

  He may not know everything Brittany has done, but he knows her. He knows how shitty she really is, and yet he believed her.

  “I know. It was a dumb move, but I wasn’t thinking.”

  Anger fills me at the thought of Brittany.

  “I don’t want us to be over,” he says softly.

  I don’t want us to be over either, and not just because I don’t want to see Brittany win. She wants us to break up. She wants to ruin my life completely.

  “I want to make her pay,” I say through my teeth.

  “We can.”

  I meet his gaze. “How?”

  “Her birthday party is coming up. It’s the biggest party of the year. She’s been throwing those since she was a freshman. And she invites everyone, including her enemies, so they can see her as the queen of the party. We can mess it up somehow.”

  I chew on the inside of my cheek.

  Mess up Brittany’s birthday party? It sounds appealing, but I want more than that. I want to be done with Brittany and make her truly pay for what she’s done.

  “I think I have an idea.” I flash him a smile.

  Brittany is going down.

  Chapter 21

  IT TURNS OUT BRITTANY is as predictable as Chase expected. The whole school is invited to her party at the club she’s rented, and it looks like Brittany also has a special kind of agreement with the school administration because it’s easier to get out, and there are no guards in sight.

  Still, a lot of students leave their TVs or laptops on with a TV show playing so that the school wouldn’t seem too quiet.

  Chase and I go to the party together, and I hold onto his arm as we enter the club. There are so many people, and I don’t know yet if my plan’s going to work, but I’m willing to give it a try.

  Chase’s friends are right in our way, and I take a good look at their faces. The one who wanted to dance with me is here too.

  He winks at me, and Chase winds his arm around me, pulling me closer to him. I catch Chase shooting a warning glare at the guy. I don’t know if they’re still friends, but what matters now is Brittany.

  I spot her in the crowd. She’s wearing a black leather cocktail dress with lace, a small silver tiara on her head. The grin on her face is huge, and it looks like she’s having the best time of her life.

  I have to fight the urge to stride over to her and spill a drink all over her. But that would be satisfying only for a few moments, and I want a real payback.

  “Let’s dance,” I say.

  Chase and I find a spot for ourselves from which I can see Brittany and her friends clearly.

  I wind my arms around Chase’s neck, and he wraps his arms around my waist. The song isn’t a slow one, but I don’t care because I keep an eye on Brittany over Chase’s shoulder.

  I need to be patient and wait for my moment, even if it means I have to dance until my feet hurt. If my plan works, it’ll all be worth it.

  “Can I borrow your phone?” I yell into Chase’s ear.

  “Why?” His brow creases.

  “Mine has a shitty camera.”

  He pulls his phone out of his pocket and hands it to me. I hold it in my hand as I press myself closer to Chase again.

  As we dance, I point the phone at Brittany. Chase’s phone camera is like a billion times better than mine, and I’m grateful for it. If I record Brittany, no one will have trouble recognizing her in the video. It’s exactly what I need.

  Brittany claps her hands together as she and her little group of friends—I guess they’re all her best friends and belong to her inner circle—prepare to drink some shots. It looks like they’re having a game of some sort.

  Maybe they’re trying to see who’ll drink the most. Brittany keeps downing shot after shot. She brings her hand to her mouth at one point, and I expect her to get sick, but she doesn’t.

  Soon, she’s dancing, swaying her hips and lifting her hands up. A guy approaches her, and she snakes her arms around him.

  They dance very closely as he runs his hands all over her, and she rubs herself against him.

  I keep filming, glad that no one is blocking my view, when the guy kisses her. Their kiss turns heated in a moment, and the guy lifts her dress up, almost exposing her underwear.

  She rakes her fingers through his hair as they kiss again, and this time, her dress hikes up even more, but she doesn’t notice or care.

  I don’t stop recording, tugging Chase with me, as Brittany and the guy pull to the corner of the room. They’re still making out when I stop recording.

  “What are you going to do?” Chase asks, his lips brushing my ear.

  “You’ll see. Let’s go.” I think I have enough footage.

  At this point, it’ll either be enough or it will never be enough no matter how much of it I record.

  Chase and I head back to the school.

  “I need your phone,” I say as we sneak through the hallway.

  “Can I stay with you or do you want to come to my room?”

  “Your room’s closer.” And I can also immediately return the phone to him when I’m done. “Can I borrow your laptop too?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Okay. Then let’s go to your room.”

  “Are you going to blackmail her?” Chase asks once we’re in his room.

  I grab his laptop and sit on the bed. “No.”

  Chase settles on the bed next to me while I’m transferring the video from his phone to his laptop. I play the video, focusing on the footage.

  It’s really good, and a small smile spreads across my lips. There’s a chance Brittany’s father won’t care about what she’s doing, but I hope that he will.

  Maybe he knows she’s having a birthday party at the club but doesn’t want her drunk out of her mind and making out with some random guy.

  But even if he doesn’t give a damn, there will still be some trouble for Brittany, because I intend to send the video to the principal too. If it turns out she can get away with it, I’ll switch tactics.

  I edit the video so that the faces of other students who show up are blurred. If anyone’s going to get in trouble, it should be Brittany and no one else.

  When I’m done with the video, a smile spread across my lips. I turn to Chase to show him my work, but his eyes are closed and he’s asleep.

  I don’t want to disturb him, so I get to my feet as quietly as possible after I transfer the video to my phone.

  Thanks to Brittany, I don’t have any problem sneaking out of the school. Since I don’t want the video to lead to me, I have to be super careful. I can’t send the video from my phone or from the school’s network.

  Quickening my steps, I rush down the street and keep my head down. Maybe I should’ve woken up Chase because it’s not exactly perfectly safe for me to walk alone at night like this, but there aren’t many people out anyway, so I hope I’ll get lucky.

  I find a bar that’s open and go straight to the bartender. Some people stare at me, but I ignore them.

  “Hey, I need a favor. Do you have a computer that I can use to send an email? It’s really important.” I give the bartender my best pleading look.

  The bar is only two blocks away from my school, but even if someone figures out whose Wi-Fi was used to send the emails, I don’t think anyone here will remember me.

  It’s late and many people are drunk, and I don’t see any cameras. The bartender probably sees a lot of people every day, and I’m just another brunette. I don’t think he’d be able to tell for sure it was me.

  But maybe Brittany’s father will care more about what’s in the video than about who sent it. I know I’m risking everything if he finds out it was me, but I’m so done with Brittany.

  “We have one over there for customers.” The bartender nods in the direction of a computer in the corner. “But you’ll have to order something first.”

  “Yeah, sure. A cok
e, please. Thanks!” I’m glad I have some money in my pocket.

  A computer that any customer can use sounds perfect, because Brittany’s father won’t have it easy to figure out who sent the email.

  I look around before I take a seat in front of the computer, but no one’s looking my way anymore, and I don’t see any familiar faces. Everyone’s at the club anyway, and they don’t have a reason to be here.

  I make a quick throwaway email account and transfer the video to the computer. After I attach the video, I stare at the screen.

  Should I write something or not? I decide to include the details about when and where the video was taken. Nothing else.

  Next, I go to my school’s website to find the principal’s email. I don’t have to search too long for Brittany’s father’s email because it’s on the website of the company my mom works for.

  My finger hovers over the enter key, and for a second, I hesitate. This could end up either very good for me or very bad. I guess I’m going to find out which one it is soon enough.

  I press the key.

  Done.

  Now all I have to do is wait.

  Chapter 22

  WHEN I WAKE UP, THE first thing I hear is the noise coming from the hallway. I get dressed as quickly as possible and poke my head through the door.

  “What’s going on?” I ask Vanessa, who’s standing in the doorway of her room.

  “Brittany,” she says.

  “What about her?” My pulse speeds up.

  It has to be something about the video I sent, but I don’t know if it’s a good thing for me or a bad one.

  If Brittany is just furious and is looking for the person responsible for the video, then I’ll probably be high on her suspects list.

  “From what I heard, someone filmed her at the party and sent the video to the principal, and I guess to her dad too. Her dad freaked out and I guess he thinks this school isn’t good enough for her, so he’s sending her to a new school somewhere overseas.”

  “Really?” My eyes widen.

  I hope I’m not dreaming, because if this is true, it’s even more than I’ve been hoping for.

  She nods. “The principal is freaking out too, but it looks like the video is only showing Brittany, so the rest of us aren’t in trouble. I still think the school will up the security, so sneaking out may become harder, at least for a while.”

  “What about Brittany? Does she want to leave?”

  “Of course not. She’s been crying and begging her dad to let her stay, but I don’t think he’ll change his mind. Someone said she’s already packing her things.”

  “Wow.” I’m really glad I won’t have to see Brittany here ever again.

  I’ll never forgive her for what she’s done to me, but now that I know she’s leaving, I feel a whole lot better.

  I still feel like I could’ve done more to make her pay, but it would’ve only dragged me deeper into it all, and this is way better. Even though I won’t admit it out loud, I hope karma gets her.

  “Yeah. Now she won’t even be able to go to the Richerville University. She had a guaranteed spot there because of her dad and her good grades, but because the University sees this incident as a sign of immaturity and bad character, they won’t accept her.”

  My eyebrows shoot up. I didn’t know about any of that. “And there’s no way she can change their decision if her behavior and grades are perfect at her new school? Or if her father pays double or triple for her spot?”

  “Nope. You only get one shot. She’ll have to go to some other college.”

  “Wait, does that mean there will be two free spots at the University? I mean, for the scholarship.”

  “No. It doesn’t work that way. They’ll just pick another person from their waitlist. It’s usually some legacy student with exceptional grades. The scholarship for one student from our school is a special thing. It’s a reward for the best student. There can’t be two number ones.”

  I guess it makes sense that they’re not offering more scholarships. Most students who can afford to go to this school have enough money to pay for the University too.

  The scholarship is intended just for prestige rather than for those who actually need it, and for those who know they can’t make the list for some reason.

  “Have you seen Chase? I need to talk to him.” I want to tell him about Brittany, and maybe talk about the scholarship with him so we can finally move past our problems.

  “No.”

  “Okay. I’ll go look for him.” I give her a small smile and head to Chase’s room.

  Maybe he’s still there. It’s early anyway.

  I knock on his door, and when he opens, my lips part in surprise. His hair is a mess, his eyes bloodshot and filled with anger.

  I want to ask what’s wrong, but I don’t get a chance. His hand shoots out and grasps my shirt, yanking me inside.

  He slams the door and advances on me.

  “Chase, you’re scarin—” My voice is cut off when his hand wraps around my throat.

  He shoves me against the wall so hard that I cry out.

  “Why the fuck did you do it, huh?” he yells, his breath reeking of alcohol, his grip on my throat tightening.

  “Let go of me. You’re hurting me!” I catch his hand with both of mine, but I’m not strong enough to fight him off.

  My stomach does a nervous flip, my chest tightening with terror, as my heart resonates in my head.

  “Did you think I wouldn’t find out?” he hisses.

  “What are you talking about?” I choke out.

  “Did you like fucking him?”

  “Chase, please! You’re not making any sen—” I cough, tears filling the corners of my eyes.

  He lets go of my throat, and I suck in a breath, my chest heaving.

  “What did she tell you?” I ask, because I’m almost sure Brittany has done something, especially if she guessed it was me who sent the video.

  But I don’t understand why Chase would believe her.

  Chase’s face is red with fury, and he catches me again, pulling me to him. I try to fight him, but he envelops me with his body, his hands ripping at my clothes.

  “Do you want me to be like this?” he shouts. “Do you like pissing me off?”

  My skirt falls to the floor. Panic grips my insides as I want him to let me go, but he’s too strong. His hand dives under the waistband of my panties.

  “Stop!” I scream. “Let go of me!”

  “Is that what you told him too, huh? Before you let him fuck you?”

  My gaze catches the pill container on the desk. “I didn’t have sex with anyone! What is wrong with you?”

  “Don’t lie to me! My friend saw you sneaking out last night! He saw you going to a bar.” He rips my panties off and throws me on the bed.

  I want to get up, but he’s faster, pinning me under him. My hand flails, trying to get a grip on something on the nightstand, but I can’t reach anything.

  He forces my legs apart.

  A strange, calm feeling comes over me, and I stare deep into his eyes, which makes him pause for a moment.

  “So you’re just going to rape me again?” I blurt out, tears spilling out of the corners of my eyes.

  Chase blinks at me, his brow furrowing. His grip on me loosens as he pulls away.

  “What are you talking about? I never raped you.”

  “If you weren’t on whatever you’re on right now, maybe you would’ve noticed.” I can barely see through the tears in my eyes, but I stumble to my feet and run to get my skirt.

  “No.” He keeps shaking his head as I put on my skirt. “You’re trying to mess with me. I never—”

  “But you almost just did it again! Fuck you! We’re done! We’re fucking done! Don’t ever come anywhere near me again!” I scream at him and storm for the door.

  Everything’s a blur around me as I race to my room.

  When I get there, I lock the door behind me and collapse to the floor. Sobs rock my bod
y, and I don’t know how I’ll ever stop crying.

  There’s no one to comfort me. No one to tell me it’s going to be okay. No one who I can talk to about any of this, not even my mom.

  I’m all alone.

  All alone with my pain.

  Chapter 23

  I DON’T GET OUT OF my bed unless I really need to. It’s a good thing there are no classes today.

  I’m not even hungry because I know if I have to go out to the cafeteria, there’s a risk I’m going to see Chase. And I don’t want to see him because it will only hurt more.

  I’m also mad at myself for even giving him a chance and staying after his first outburst. Whatever is going on with him, it’s something serious.

  At this point, I won’t be surprised if it turns out he killed Kayla. I didn’t believe it before, but now I see that he’s capable of a lot of things.

  The biggest problem is that I can’t stay in my room forever.

  A knock on the door makes me jump, and I hold my breath. I turned off my phone so Chase wouldn’t be able to contact me. I don’t even know what he thinks or what he might try next.

  “Lil, are you in there?” Vanessa knocks again.

  The tension leaves my shoulders.

  It’s not him.

  I’m safe.

  “I spilled coffee all over my notebook and I really need to copy some stuff,” she adds.

  I push myself up and rake my hand through my hair.

  When I open the door, Vanessa’s smile fades and her eyes widen.

  “What happened?” she asks, and I step aside so she can come in. “Did Chase do that to you?”

  I close the door and follow her gaze.

  Bruises. I have bruises on my arm and probably on my neck.

  Shit! I’ve been so out of it that I haven’t even thought about covering them up.

  “I’m going to call the cops and the principal and—” Vanessa starts for the door.

  “Wait!” I catch her arm. “No. No cops or anyone, please.”

  “But he hurt you! He shouldn’t get away with it. I won’t let him. Not this time.”

  I give her a pleading look. “I broke up with him. It’s done. Just leave it, okay? I don’t want to deal with the whole drama.”