Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 87152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87152 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
It doesn’t matter. All that matters is getting away and regrouping. One thing is for sure: I’m not stepping foot on campus tomorrow. I’ve been burned enough today. Maybe enough for a lifetime at this point.
He steps back to let me pull out, but I’m still shaking with rage and fatigue—not a great combination.
It’s a shame I don’t think about that before turning the wheel too soon and sideswiping the car next to me.
“You’re kidding me!” It’s a cry that comes from my soul, one filled with all the pent up shame and fury festering inside. Of all things, I had to go and do that. Like this day needed to get any worse. The adrenaline is still flowing as I unbuckle my seatbelt and fling my door open, silently praying to whoever might be listening. Don’t let it be bad. Please, don’t let it be bad.
“Way to go.” Easton’s voice is dripping with sarcasm, because of course he’s still here. It would be too much to ask for him to leave me alone and let me deal with this by myself.
I’m a little too concerned with the scratches I left on the Lexus to react. My heart’s in my throat, and I’m pretty sure I’m going to throw up yet again, thanks to the ugly marks on the otherwise pristine, pearl white exterior.
“She’s going to be pissed.” Easton sounds anything but sorry for me, standing by my side with his arms folded. It would be so nice if I had a friend, somebody who would at least commiserate instead of basically laughing about this. “I wouldn’t want to be you right now.”
And I wouldn’t want to be him ever. “You said she’s going to be pissed. Who is she? Whose car is this?”
Why does it seem like he was just waiting with bated breath for me to ask that question? His eyes light up, twinkling when he looks from the Lexus to me. “Her name is Brittany. She’s not somebody whose bad side you want to be on.”
Brittany. I don’t recognize the name. Not like I’m going out of my way to make friends or anything, either. “I don’t know her.”
“She hangs out in a group of girls. Maybe you know Tiana—she’s kind of the leader or whatever you want to call her.”
Tiana. That name, I recognize. “You’re kidding,” I whisper with a sinking heart.
“Oh, you know her? Now you know why you’re basically fucked.” The son of a bitch even has the nerve to chuckle like there’s anything funny happening. “Good luck.”
Okay. Time to be logical. This isn’t Tiana’s car, for one thing. For another thing, the damage is completely cosmetic. It won’t take anything to get it fixed up. If she wants me to pay for it… I mean, this isn’t exactly something I budgeted for, but I can probably make it work. It’s amazing the things we need to tell ourselves in a moment like this. Especially when we’re trying to keep it together in front of somebody as vile as the heartless jerk snickering at my misery.
And the hits just keep on coming.
“Oh, I know you didn’t hit my car!” It’s like the screech of a dying bird filling the air, piercing my eardrums. “What the fuck? What is wrong with you? Don’t you even know how to drive?”
Wouldn’t it be nice if the ground would open under my feet and swallow me whole? The world is spinning around me as I slowly turn in the direction of that shrill voice.
What a surprise. She’s not alone. If she was, I might have to think there was something seriously wrong. My luck never goes that well.
“It’s not just hair you’re missing, is it?” Tiana’s nasty little smile makes my molars grind. “Your eyesight is shit, too. But I mean, who cares if you’re driving an ugly piece of crap like that, right?”
“You shouldn’t even be allowed to park next to a car like mine!” Brittany’s face is beet red by the time she shoves a hand into her bag and pulls out her phone. “You’re nothing but trash! I’m taking pictures. You are going to pay for every cent of what it costs to get my baby fixed.”
I was going to, anyway. “It was an accident. I’ll—”
“Do you think she even has the money?” Tiana asks, looking me up and down with a smirk. “I would say start a payment plan, but it would probably take a hundred years for her to pay it off. Who’s got that kind of time?”
In the middle of everything, Easton’s voice sinks into my awareness. He’s still standing close to me, murmuring softly enough that only I hear him. “You know, it’s a real shame you haven’t been nicer all this time. I might speak up for you, make an excuse. I could at least calm her down.”