“Okay. If that’s your story and you’re sticking to it, I’m going to give you a pass to your next class. The bell will ring in about ten minutes.” She handed me the pink paper with her flawless signature on it. I pushed out of my chair and thanked her out of habit, though I didn’t think she was doing me any favors.
On the way out of the counselor’s office, I saw Mrs. Point sitting in a waiting room chair noting things on her clipboard. I slipped out quickly, not wanting to call attention to myself. I had had enough of the third degree from Mrs. Wales, and Gaze and I hadn’t even really gotten our stories straight. So much had happened in such little time, we were unprepared. I remembered a text and pulled out my phone as I made my way down the shiny tile walkway.
Got in-school suspension. No game. See you at dismissal. They are taking lunch from me.
I exhaled and looked at the ceiling. The thought of going to the cafeteria without Gaze sucked. I decided right then to buy some snacks from the vending machine and then go to the library to read. I didn’t need to see my own picture standing outside of the school on every screen in the place. It was a nightmare enough.
I decided to duck into the bathroom and give myself a few minutes to get my head on straight. I hated confrontation like I’d just had with Mrs. Wales and didn’t do great lying at the drop of a hat. And I wasn’t sure protecting Ashlin and her douchebag friends was the right move.
The bathroom door squeaked open and the one voice I didn’t want to hear echoed off the tile walls. “And then I said to her if she wanted to start that shit with me…”
Around the corner, Ashlin, Megan, and Beccy stopped in their tracks.
“Holy crap. Look who had the balls to come back to school after her strip show yesterday!” Megan got a spring in her step as she advanced on me.
Ashlin took out her phone and flipped it in my direction. I quickly glanced and, of course, it was a screenshot of me holding my chest with a side boob popping out.
“I’m actually surprised how big your tits are. I mean, do you strap them down or something? All told, you have a nice body. I bet Gaze had fun going to town on you last night. You learn a lot from your stepfather? Hard for those old guys to get it up, so you have to really put in the work.”
And I saw red. The shame from yesterday jumbled into her words right then and made my personality change. Or reset. I stepped up to her and reached for her phone. She hid it behind her back, squealing and laughing.
“Oh, fuck you.” I hauled off and smacked her hard across the face.
It was three versus one, but I was done hearing things come out of Ashlin’s mouth. I just wanted her to shut up. She turned back at me, holding her face. “How dare y—”
I punched her this time, right in the nose. I heard what sounded like someone stepping on a box of toothpicks and Ashlin’s eyes rolled up into her head.
“Oh my God. You killed her!” Megan pushed past me as blood seeped around Ashlin’s fingers as she held her face.
I waited for a moment to see if either of the other girls was going to take up the fight, but they didn’t.
I flung my backpack over my shoulder and headed straight back to the counselor’s office. Mrs. Point looked up from the waiting chair that she’d turned into a makeshift mobile desk and smiled at me. She had no idea.
“Yeah. You might want to call the nurse to the bathroom down the hall. And I’m pretty sure I’m either going to be arrested or get ISS.” I sat two chairs down from Mrs. Point as she keyed her walkie-talkie and asked for an emergency visit to the bathroom.
“So I won’t have to go looking for the guilty party?” She stood up from her chair.
“She said it for the last time. I’m not looking for a fight, but Ashlin will have another one if I have to listen to her again.”
Mrs. Wales stepped into the hall. “Did I just hear that we have a student injured in the bathroom?”
Mrs. Point disappeared out of the office door, taking off quickly despite her high heels, in Ashlin’s direction.
I turned to Mrs. Wales. “Yeah. Remember what I said about it not being a problem? I was wrong. I just decked that evil bitch not two minutes ago.” I pointed my thumb in the direction of the bathroom.
Mrs. Wales’ eyes went wide and she rushed off as well. I stayed sitting in the waiting room because they were going to need me today. I couldn’t imagine it going down any other way.
Chapter 48
Gaze
I DIDN’T EXPECT to see Pixie in the ISS classroom holding an ice pack on her right hand.
“What the hell?” I stood and walked over to her despite the teacher’s complaining.
“She said a few things.” She shrugged and walked over to the seat next to mine.
“Ashlin?” I guessed correctly.
“Yup. I clocked her in the face. Not even sorry. Maybe the guilt will come later.”
“Couldn’t happen to a nicer person. Honestly. Is your hand okay? You need that shit.” I lifted her hand so I could see it better. It was already bruising.
“Did you knock her out, because I hope there is a bruise ten times worse on her face right now.”
“I don’t know. I didn’t see much after I got out of there as soon as I had a window to get by them. I swear this school is cursed right now.”
“You all have work.” The ISS teacher slapped a ruler on his desk.
Pixie was just put in here, so she didn’t have work sent yet from her teachers. Plus, she had to ice her hand. She was happy to just sit and stare out of the window. Every once in a while she would exhale loudly and tip her head back to look at the ceiling.
I was starting to see glimpses of my Pixie coming through this one. The Pixie Rae I knew would’ve definitely punched a girl in the face from being a bully to someone. I’m glad she’d decided she deserved the same protection as everyone else she cared about when we were growing up. Including me.
We were allowed to get up and stretch and have lunch—but without talking. By the afternoon, Pixie’s teachers had sent work in with other students who scanned the room like we were dangerous criminals and then left. She stuck to the reading portions of her work, obviously to give her hand a rest.
By dismissal time, we were good and ready to get the hell out of the small classroom.
Pixie picked up her books and put them in her backpack, slung it over her shoulder, and waited for me. Just the sight of her made something in me okay.
I held out my hand and she looked at it, puzzled. I dipped my chin down and lifted my eyebrow until she slid her bag off her shoulder. I took it from her and threw it over mine. Then I held out my hand again. She slipped hers in mine and I walked out of the building with her. There would be talk. It would get back to Ashlin that Pixie and I were holding hands, at least I hoped.
I pulled Pixie closer in the crowded hallway, making sure she had a path out the door that didn’t smush her. Tall guy perks.
I heard my name and her name getting said by those around us. Or maybe I just imagined it. When we cleared the front door and got a block or so away, Austin jogged up to us.
“Butterflies. How was school? No practice, Gaze?” He separated Pixie and my hand to slip his arms in ours. We were three wide walking down the street. “Pretty girl, what happened to your hand?”