And then she pulled me away from him.
Chapter 33
Mady
The cake in my hands was still warm, which was because I had taken it out of the oven half an hour ago and then driven straight here.
Maybe it really was a bit too cheesy, but it was exactly the kind of thing I’d want when I’d been lying in bed for days.
Larissa had told me after Bayla hadn’t shown up on campus for days. At first, I had thought she was avoiding me, like all the girls who were friends with Grace, but Larissa had brought me back down to earth. Bayla was sick and needed people to take care of her.
I took a deep breath before pushing down the handle to her room. It was just as open as the front door downstairs.
I put on my best smile, which didn’t disappear when I saw Grace in the middle of the room floor and Julie leaning next to her at the long desk.
The latter looked at me insecurely, then at the cake and finally back at her phone.
I bit my tongue. The fact that we weren’t talking anymore still hurt my heart.
Grace looked at me and jumped up. Only now did I discover the bowl of flowers in front of her, with little colorful gemstones around them.
I knew the Blairs were a little crazy, that they didn’t let anyone in their home except for their closest family, and I also knew they all wore these strange crystals around their necks that they called lucky charm.
“What are you doing?” it blurted out curiously, which I immediately regretted as Grace’s expression darkened.
“Nothing that’s any of your business, Campbell.”
I bit my lower lip, used to Grace avoiding me, showing me her suspicion as soon as we met, but with Campbell we had reached a new level in our co-existence.
“Larissa’s not here,” it escaped Julie, almost hesitant.
“I’m here for Bayla.” Smiling, I lifted the cake. “This is for her.”
Grace frowned at the cake. “Are you still sucking up to others until they realize you’re a false snake?”
My smile disappeared for good.
After all this time, Grace still saw me in the same light as she did then, and that despite the fact that I was really doing my best to prove that Nash hadn’t made me a worse person.
“What’s your problem, Grace?” I began in a firm voice, even though I would have preferred to turn on my heel. “I’ve never done anything to you. Never.”
“You are my problem, Madelin,” she hissed, pointing her index finger at me. I felt like the green crystal around her neck was sparkling, but I’d probably been out in the sun for too long.
“Just the way you are. Even back then... The Sunshine Girl...” She drew quotation marks in the air. “I should have known that was your cheap exterior before you went behind our backs like that.”
“Grace...” Julie began cautiously, but her cousin interrupted her straight away.
“No, Julie. You should be just as mad at her for allowing Nash to bully us like that.”
Startled, I looked into Grace’s upset eyes until I couldn’t hold her gaze any longer.
She was right. All that Nash had done for me had made me repress that he hadn’t treated the girls well. However, Vivienna and Grace had also contributed to the fact that it had escalated so often. So many times, I hadn’t understood why they were literally banging their heads, and neither Nash nor his friends had been willing to give me a comprehensive explanation. Every single time. Since I had lost my circle of friends for Nash, everything had gotten worse. I should have seen it coming, but I had been blind. My time with Nash had blinded me, but I knew that without him, I would never have gotten out of that hole.
I looked at the blonde girl who had eventually become the most innocent victim of all these rivalries. “I’m sorry, Julie.”
“Too late, Madelin!” Grace snapped at me in a rage. “You chose him, and something like that is permanent for us.” She took a step toward me. “You think your sorry is going to change anything about the way that asshole treats us?”
“I can’t help your hostilities, Grace,” I tried again in a calm voice, but inside I knew it was too late.
“Go now!” she bluffed back. For her, this discussion was over.
I looked at the cake with remorse. “Let me see Bayla, please.”
“She’s not here.” Confused, I peeked around the corner and sure enough... The bed was empty. “Take your cake and go. And best never come back.” I felt tears gathering in my eyes, but quickly managed to stifle them. “Bayla won’t want to see you in the future either, so I’ll say it right now.” She snatched the cake out of my hand like an upset child. “Stay away from all of us!” And with those words, the chocolate cake with the heart sprinkles landed in the trash can next to the door. The frosting layer shattered.
My throat tightened, and I wanted to scream at her, but I just took a step back, ignoring the shocked face of Julie in the background, and stared at Grace, stunned.
I really wanted to say something, but nothing came out. I couldn’t just let out my anger like they all did, because there was none. All I felt was bewilderment, sadness, and regret. Regret that I kept trying.
I turned and rushed down the stairs, leaving the house as if after a robbery. I just ran through the woods back to campus toward the parking lot, where I leaned against my car, out of breath. My gaze fell through the windowpane to the gym bag adorned with lilac-green flowers that I had packed into the back seat.
Actually, I should have been going to cheerleading practice. Instead, I’d been sitting in the university library for two hours now, on my third cup of coffee, wondering why my concentration had waned so much over the years. Added to this was the urge to just lie down and sleep. However, I was sleeping way too much. The medication I was taking certainly had a part in it, but I didn’t want to find out, because without the pills I could completely forget about my psychology studies along with a normal life.
I tried to forget the conversation between me and the Blairs by turning back to the flashcards I had just made. But after only ten minutes, I caught myself drawing green hearts in the margins, and my mind went back to the cake.
Sighing, I rose to my feet.
When my concentration faded, exercise helped. I probably should have gone to cheerleading practice after all, but seeing Vivienna and her friends there would probably have given me the rest. So, I just decided to take a few laps around the huge library.
