he weight of people staring at me–those cruel, biting comments–pressed down on me, making it hard to breathe.
I buried my face in my knees, leaning against the cold steel of the car–Kaiden’s car–parked behind me. The school parking lot was nearly empty now, except for a few scattered cars and the weight of my humiliation hanging heavy in the air. My sobs were muffled, but the ache in my chest felt loud enough to echo across the entire lot.
The asphalt beneath me was rough, scratching against my jeans as I sat huddled in the shadow of a vehicle, wishing I could disappear completely. The sharp sting of the crowd’s words still echoed in my head, each comment a dagger carving deeper into my pride.
Those comments were cruel and absurd, but what was more absurd was my mind telling me I did deserve it, whereas my heart said I didn’t deserve it. The toxic debate between my heart and mind was suffocating me more than the weight of those cruel comments. Neither can I blame them completely, nor can I support myself either.
I didn’t even hear footsteps approaching until a familiar voice called out softly, “Lucy, here you are, my girl.”
I lifted my head slightly, my tear–filled eyes meeting Barbara’s. Her brows were drawn together, and she held her phone loosely in one hand, as though she’d forgotten she had it. My throat tightened at the sight of her concern.
“Go away,” I whispered, turning my face away and hugging my knees tighter. “I’m fine.”
“You’re not fine,” she said firmly as she stepped closer. “You don’t have go through this alone. I’m here for you, Lucy”
Before I could protest, another voice cut through the silence.
“She’s right. You’re not alone.”
I blinked through the tears, watching as Rubina appeared beside Barbara, her hands crossed over her chest, her expression set in such determined way that told me she was ready to take on the world for me.
“We are here for you, love,” she said, crouching down beside me, her voice softer now. “Amber and her little circus are just jealous. They’ve got nothing better to do than tear other people down.”
I shook my head, my voice barely audible, as I stared down at my trembling hands. “It’s not them… it’s me. I should’ve been more careful. I didn’t mean for this to happen.” My words cracked like fragile glass, betraying the weight of my guilt.
Crouching down beside Rubina, Barbara grabbed my hand, squeezing it tightly. Her touch was warm, grounding me even slightly. “No, Lucy. Don’t let them win by blaming yourself. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I agree with Barbara on this one,” Rubina chimed in, her tone blunt but oddly comforting as she crossed her arms over her knees. “Yeah, having a steamy dance in public, especially in front of everyone, was wild, but considering the fact that you were stoned, I’m shocked you didn’t do more than that.” Her voice carried a teasing edge, though her gaze softened as if trying to lighten the tension.
“Rubina,” Barbara hissed, narrowing her eyes as she elbowed her. “You are not helping.”
“I am not the sugar–coating type,” Rubina said, her tone sharp, almost cutting. She leaned slightly toward me, her piercing gaze never leaving my face. “I’m going to say exactly what it is, and the only mistake you made was getting stoned. Beyond that, none of this was your fault. Honestly, just look at Thor.” Her eyes gleamed with a mix of frankness and mischief. “If you didn’t wanna do him, then I might have thought that either you have unrealistically high standards or you’re a lesbian.”
“Lucy!” a new voice cut through Rubina’s bold declaration, instantly drawing everyone’s attention. It was Thor. “Thank God I found you.” He came near me and crouched down, his presence grounding me a little bit. “Luc,” he said, his voice low but steady. “I’m sorry you’re going through this. It’s all my fault. I shouldn’t have given you that candy at all.”
I shook my head vehemently, my voice trembling under the weight of everything. “It’s not your fault, Thor. I should’ve-”
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“Yes, it is his fault,” Rubina cut in, her voice laced with an unflinching sense of accountability. She turned her attention to him, her eyebrows furrowed in a disapproving glare. “You’re the only one to blame here. How could you bring drugs to a family–included party, huh?”
Thor bristled, his defensive tone snapping through the tension. “Hey, you don’t have to this rude. I know I fucked up, but my intentions were good, okay? I was just trying to help, Lucy,” he said, his hands gesturing as if to deflect the blame. “She looked sad, like she wasn’t ready to face reality. I thought maybe she needed a little push to escape.”
“Yeah, but instead, you pushed her to this,” Rubina shot back, her voice firm clearly hinting no room for excuses.
“I know, and I’m sorry for that, okay?” Thor’s voice held a raw edge, guilt laced in every word. His eyes flickered with frustration, but when they settled on me, his tone softened, the weight of his remorse apparent. “Deeply.”
He exhaled sharply, running a hand through his tousled hair before muttering a curse under his breath. “That’s motherfucking Queen Bee!” His hand paused mid–air as if caught between fury and restraint before he placed it gently on my shoulder, his touch grounding and cautious.
“Luc,” he said, his voice low but resolute, “I swear, I’ll fix this. Give me two weeks–just two weeks—and I’ll find out who the hell this Queen Bee is. I’ll make her pay for what she’s done to you. I’ll make sure she never messes with your life again.” His jaw tightened as his determination grew, his hand squeezing my shoulder slightly. “I’ll kick that bitch out of West Sterlingo. You just wait and watch.”
“How will you find her?” Barbara asked, curiosity pouring out of her words. “She’s untraceable. I mean, whoever she or he may be, if it was easy to catch them, then Kaiden and Lucy’s mom would have caught them right after they posted that disgusting sex scandal of her and Brendan.”
“I know,” Thor nodded his head with deep thought. “But I will work day and night and find her, him, or them—whoever this motherfucker is. First of all, I will start with the guest list of yesterday’s party. The way she wrote so in detail hints that she might have been at the party. I’ll ask for the guest list from Kaiden and hire a private investigator to keep an eye on each of them.”
“Wow! Then you might need hundreds of PIs,” Barbara said.
“Wouldn’t even matter if I needed millions of them. I will do everything to catch that bastard gossip bitch.”
“Well, you should thank me. I just reduced your cost by two people because I and Sheela were not at the party,” Rubina replied.
“So was I,” Barbara added, raising her hand. “In fact, it was this morning I knew that there was a party at your house.” She said, looking at me, her voice and gaze screaming that she was a bit–or maybe more than a bit–mad and disappointed at me for not inviting her to my party despite being my best friend.
“I… I… I am sorry, Barbara. It was a surprise for me too. I didn’t know about the party until I arrived home.” Though I haven’t moved on yet from the pain of those comments and the deranged feeling the post made me feel, I pushed my pain aside and began to give her explanations. She deserves it. “I am so sorry. I am sorry that I forgot you.”
“If you had invited me, then…” She gave a side–eye to Thor. “You would never need that obnoxious candy.”
“Yeah, I know.” My voice was low, filled with guilt and regret. Suddenly, I just wanted to leave. Now, though Barbara, Rubina, and Thor were helping cheer me up, all I felt was more worthless. I just wanted to run away from here and go somewhere eerie where nobody would talk to me about the possibility of a different present if I had made a different decision in the past.
“It’s okay, babe.” Barbara removed Thor’s hands from my shoulder and placed her own. “I will never—”
“Stop it,” a voice sharp, familiar, laced with anger and frustration interrupted. Everyone’s, including mine, head snapped towards the source, and there he was, Kaiden, standing before us. He didn’t say a word. He just approached us swiftly, and as he reached near me, he crouched down and swept me into his arms in front of everyone.
Rubina and Thor let out a soft gasp as he stood up and took me to his car. He was holding me with one hand while with his
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free hand, he opened the car door before placing me on the front passenger seat. He didn’t even look at the three of my friends staring as if they just saw an alien dancing to a jazz song. He just swiftly walked over to his seat and closed the door. He didn’t even bother to honk to tell them to clear the way. The car’s engine roared to life, and he pressed the pedal further two to three times, making a loud roaring sound that was enough for the people before us to clear the space. And then, the vehicle sped off, as if escaping me from them and my reality.
To be continued…
