“Yep, I’m in,” I say immediately. “That night never happened.”
Saint shoots me a look that I can’t fully decipher, but I think he’s annoyed. I didn’t mean our time together that night never happened, but if that’s the way he wants to look at it, what can I do if he doesn’t give me a chance to explain?
“I agree.” Rosalind bobs her head furiously and fans her face with her hand. “It never happened.”
One by one, we all agree to keep our lips sealed.
As soon as we make our strange little pact, it feels as though some of the tension has evaporated from the room. Not all of it, but enough that I feel like we’ll be able to look each other in the eyes once we’re back at school.
It’s a start.
“Okay, anything else?” Loni asks, clapping her hands together.
After a beat of silence, Saint shoves the back of Gabe’s shoulder.
“Alright, fine,” Gabe snaps. Facing the rest of us, he clears his throat and says, “I’m sorry for being such a fucking asshole, okay? It was shitty, what I did.”
“It was.”
He narrows his eyes at Loni. “Like I said … sorry.”
“Apologies are easy,” she counters. “What matters is what you do to follow them up.”
The resentment wafting between them is palpable.
My eyes slide to Saint. It’s not like I don’t have my own shit to work out, though.
“Can you two hate fuck each other another time?” he barks, avoiding me. “We’re all in agreement that the shit we learned about each other that night stays buried, and Gabe’s apologized for being a fuck-up. Whether you accept it or not is up to you. Since we’ve got that all covered, I’m done here.”
He turns for the door without another word and Liam and Gabe follow after him, both looking a little caught off guard by his abruptness. I don’t blame them. I’m a little thrown myself.
“Your boy is crazy,” Loni says.
“That’s just him being a dick. Don’t take it personally.”
As the front door slams shut, we turn back to my room to get my stuff packed, and I can’t help but wonder if maybe I should be taking Saint’s attitude personally. I put on a happy face, though, and don’t say a word as we hurry to prepare to leave this godawful break behind.
It’s strange how at-peace I feel when we finally get back to campus. I should be more freaked out, knowing just how badly Saint’s dad wants to get rid of me, as well as Nora’s threats against me which I’m sure she’ll double down on once she figures out I went to Hawaii with the boy she specifically told me to stay away from. And yet, I’m strangely calm. Hell, I’m even looking forward to being back in the familiar setting of my dorm room. Despite the week away, I’m exhausted and feel like I need some downtime after my vacation.
Loni and I walk to our building together, then part ways in our hallway, promising to meet up in the morning for breakfast before class like usual. I open my door and let out a relieved sigh, my eyes falling to my bed immediately. Calling it an early night sounds like just the thing I need.
My phone suddenly buzzes in my pocket as I drop my suitcase in the corner, deciding to wait until tomorrow to actually unpack it. Grabbing my phone out, I check the caller ID, immediately recognizing the 706-number as it swirls around my memory.
Why’s he calling me?
My heart races as I debate whether or not I should answer it. Whatever Dylan wants, it can’t be good. Curiosity eats at me, and as I nibble my lip and debate what to do, the buzzing stops but then immediately starts back up again. Damn, he’s being persistent, which only makes me more interested.
With a groan, I give into temptation and answer the call.
“Hello?”
“I need to talk to you,” he says without preamble.
“Okay…” I tug at the hem of my t-shirt. “What about?”
“Not over the phone,” he says. He sounds anxious and breathless. What the hell is he doing? Running a marathon?
“What do you mean not over the phone? Isn’t that why you called me?”
“I called to ask you to meet up with me in person so we can talk,” he clarifies. “As soon as possible, Mallory. I swear to you, this is important.”
“Why can’t you just tell me now?” I don’t want to be alone with him face-to-face. Not again. For all I know, this could be some elaborate scheme to trick me into something. Like a recorded confession of what I did.
“Anyone could be listening,” he snarls.
“You sound paranoid,” I huff. “Who could possibly be listening right now?”
“Don’t be so naïve, Mallory. You go to a school with kids who have parents with connections. Major government connections. Major government agency connections. You don’t think they could bribe just the right person to do a phone tap?”
It sounds crazy, but in this world, crazy tends to be plausible.
“Fine. Fine. When and where?”
“My classroom, tomorrow morning before classes start. Okay?”
Looks like I’ll have to cancel my breakfast plans with Loni. Or, maybe I should ask her to come along?
“Can I bring—”
“I will lose my shit if you bring Saint Angelle with you, do you hear me?” he barks before I can finish speaking my request. “Don’t tell anyone else you’re meeting me. I swear, Mallory, this is important. I’d never dream of calling you if it weren’t.”
That makes sense, actually.
“Whatever. I’ll meet you in your classroom. This better not be a fucking trick, Dylan, or I will make you regret it.”
“I already regret everything about you,” he replies bitterly. “I don’t see how you could improve upon that.”
Without another word, he ends the call. After a second of stunned silence, I slowly sink onto my bed and drop my phone onto the covers. I can’t believe I just agreed to this. Am I that big of an idiot?
I pinch the spot between my eyes as a headache begins throbbing there.
What have I gotten myself into now?
The next morning, I make my way to Dylan’s classroom, exhausted and so anxious, I’m shaking. I didn’t sleep well at all last night as I anticipated what this meeting might be about. I told Loni about it—just so someone would know my whereabouts—and though she vehemently objected to me going, I convinced her it would be better just to get it over with. If she doesn’t see me by the time we have class together, though, she should send some kind of rescue party.
It was a joke, but only kind of.
Campus is quiet this early in the morning. Most everyone will be making their way to the dining hall for breakfast. That’s probably for the best, though. I don’t need anyone seeing me and spreading rumors that actually hold a glimmer of truth.
When I reach the academic building, I kind of hope the door is still locked. It’s not, of course, and now I’ve really got no choice but to see this through.
I make my way up to Dylan’s classroom and pause for a moment before going in. It’ll be okay. He won’t do anything to me. Not here.
Taking a deep breath, I walk inside the classroom.