“I won’t hit him,” I told them.
I noticed Jeff had Rhett backed against the wall, not letting him get away.
When my friends let me go, I walked up to Gigi.
“You’re a fucking cunt,” I told her. “What were you doing with Rhett?”
“N-n-nothing. We were friends. We were just hanging out.”
“What. Were. You. Doing. With. Him? You were my supposed girlfriend!” I screamed at her.
“Because you were in love with her! Because you paid more attention to her than me!” Gigi screeched.
Before I could do something, Delia was there, yanking Gigi’s hair and slapping her. They fell on the floor while Delia was on top of her, hitting her.
“You’re a cunt!” she told her. “And a liar. You got drunk when you were supposedly pregnant!”
What?
“What did you say?” My voice was lethal.
Ollie was there in an instant, pulling Delia off Gigi.
Gigi sat up, her face red from where Delia had laid into her, and I couldn’t have cared less.
“Did you drink while you were pregnant with my kid? All these fucking years, you led me to believe that it was my fault.”
Gigi cried. I felt no sympathy.
“Fucking answer me! You fucking led me to believe my kid dying was on me, but you were fucking partying while my kid was in your belly!” I could barely control my rage. I was so fucking close to hitting a woman for the first time in my life.
“I’m s-so s-s-sorry. I d-d-idn’t know what to do. I wasn’t ready to have a kid,” she wailed.
Everything inside me froze. Pain like I had never felt before hit my chest.
“What did you do.” I knelt in front of her. “What the fuck did you do!” I looked at her with so much hate. “Did you abort my kid, you selfish bitch?”
“Was it even Gavin’s?” Quincy said.
And in my fucked-up state, the thought hadn’t even crossed my mind.
Gigi looked at me like she was scared of me, and she couldn’t even fucking deny the accusation. My hands were shaking from rage. I felt like I was coming out of my damn skin.
“Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck!” I screamed at Gigi. I felt my friends get close to me again. “I can’t fucking look at you, you selfish fucking bitch. I never knew you could fall in love with the idea of someone, then have your heart broken beyond repair by losing them when you’ve never got a chance to hold them… I…” My voice broke off a bit. “I loved that child, I fucking mourned that child, and all along it was another one of your fucking lies. I hope you get what’s coming to you and it has no fucking mercy.” I spat at her and got up, turning to Rhett. “Have fucking fun in jail.”
I turned to walk back to Scarlett, who still was having a breakdown at the same time ambulance sirens got near.
“Someone call Nick,” I told whoever heard me while I scooped Scarlett into my arms.
Everything I thought I knew was a lie except for her.
The only reason they let me ride in the ambulance with her was because of my football status. I had to watch as they sedated Scar. Thanks to having the pledges following her around, I was able to provide the doctors with info on her therapist.
The doctors said the sedative would help her rest. When Nick made it to the hospital, his eyes were bloodshot. He went to the cops while I stayed with Scar.
“They didn’t deny it,” he spat. “He was fucking drunk, swerving coming fast and his headlights off. By the time my dad noticed, it was too fucking late.”
There were no words I could say that would take his pain away right now. Shit, I was still trying to wrap the fact that I had been mourning the loss of a child that was never mine to begin with. Both Nick and I sat on chairs just processing everything that had happened.
When life fucked you over, it did it raw.
Scarlett
The first thing I smelled when I became conscious again was the sterile environment. When I opened my eyes, I saw the hospital room layout, but I didn’t freak. In fact, I felt eerily calm.
“Scar.” Nick was right there looking tired and disheveled.
“What happened?”
“God, Scar.” Nick put his head on my lap and cried.
I held my brother’s hands while he grieved. All these years and I’d had the answers with me. I turned my head, already feeling tired again when I saw Gavin sleeping on the other side of the room. I wanted to stay awake, but I couldn’t keep my eyes open. I was hoping like hell everything wasn’t fucked-up when I woke up again.
Unfortunately, life didn’t work that way. Once again, my life had spiraled out of control from one wrong decision—this time it wasn’t my own. Just like I had all those years ago, I woke up wrapped in Gavin’s arms, except now we were in a hospital bed.
“Hey, sleepyhead.” He gave me a sad smile.
“I kind of hoped none of it was true.”
“Fuck, baby, if I could take the pain away, I would.”
“What happened?”
Before he could talk, my therapist walked in with my brother.
“How are you feeling, Scarlett?”
“Like I lost my parents all over again,” I croaked.
She wanted to talk to me, but I told her whatever she had to say she could do it in front of Gav and Nick. I didn’t want him to stop holding me. Not when once again, he was the only thing keeping me steady.
According to my therapist, I had suppressed my memories. The death of my parents, Gigi’s betrayal, and her involvement in the accident was too much for me to cope with. My brain had prioritized the memory that was more important, repressing the other two that caused me pain—until I was strong enough to handle the truth.
Just like junior year, I lost my shit again. Only this time, because the sight of Gigi and Rhett was enough for my suppressed memories to resurface.
“You didn’t think I was crazy?” I asked him.
“No, Scar, I never thought you were.”
Gavin confronted them, and when Gigi started to shout hysterically, they knew I was telling the truth. That was not the only thing that came to light. Gigi had lied all along. She’d never had a miscarriage, but an abortion. And the real fucked-up part was the baby was never even Gavin’s; it was Rhett’s. I held Gavin a little tighter at that moment. He’d carried a child in his heart; he’d mourned the loss, carried the guilt, all for it to be a lie. God, how could Gigi do that?
I had lost my best friend way before I thought I did. I’d made decisions in my life thinking of her, and all she cared about was about herself.
“Are you okay?” I asked him.
“Seriously, babe? Your whole world got ripped apart, and you want to know if I’m okay?”
I didn’t answer.
He pressed his forehead to mine. “I hate her, Scar, I fucking hate her with all I am, but if I let this anger and pain take over me, it’s going to consume me, so I’m going to let justice take care of her and him. And I’m going to make sure that we are okay—that she doesn’t win. It might take time, but with you by my side, I’ll be fine.”
“It hurts so much, Gav,” I whispered, burrowing closer to his touch.
He held me tighter.
“I know, babe. But you’re not alone; you have me.”