I didn’t know how much time passed, but eventually my tears stopped. Wiping under my swollen eyes, I breathed deeply in and out, trying to regain a semblance of calm. Then, I did probably the worst thing I could do. I opened my phone to the AHS gossip account.
My fears were proven correct. The image was there, too, plus another of me kissing Carter. The accompanying caption said:
RAINE LAURENT HAS BEEN A BUSY GIRL. LOOKS LIKE THE FOOTBALL TEAM SLUT SCORED THE ULTIMATE PRIZE - THE TEAM CAPTAIN. SHE’S BEEN HARD UP FOR CASH SINCE HER UNCLE LEFT, SO THE QUESTION IS, HOW MUCH DID HE PAY HER?
I couldn’t even bring myself to look at the comments. My stomach rolled with nausea, followed by outrage. As if Carter would ever need to pay anyone for anything sexual. Why was that my first thought? The second thing that crossed my mind was the fact that the room we were in had been locked. Which meant that someone had planned this. Had Carter planned it? But why would he implicate himself? He was always careful never to be seen with me around school. But who else would have a reason to do this? One thing I was sure about though—whoever was targeting me, and whatever reason they had, I knew it had to have something to do with Carter.
There was only one thing I could do. I needed to confront him.
I made my way through the silent hallways, back to my locker. Staring at the huge word “SLUT,” I steeled myself, and then I opened the door. Inside, everything was untouched, which I was beyond grateful for. Now I just had to make it through the rest of the day, and I could escape. This was going to be painful, though.
The sound of heels on the floor alerted me that I wasn’t alone. “Ah, Raine, there you are.” I turned around to see Mrs. Rushton, school secretary, standing behind me with a folder clasped in her hands. “The headmaster would like to see you in his office, please.”
My stomach sank. This had to be about my locker.
As I followed her in the direction of the office, I felt a prickling sensation down my spine. Someone was watching me.
When I turned around, there was no one there. The hallway was completely silent and empty.
Hurrying to catch up with Mrs. Rushton, I brushed it off as my wild imagination. After everything that had happened at the party, and my subsequent nightmares, it wasn’t really a surprise that I was so jumpy.
Seated in a buttery-soft leather chair, I looked across the large mahogany desk at Professor Sharpe, attempting not to let my nerves show. The one and only time I’d been in the headmaster’s office was after my uncle had divorced my aunt, and there was a question of how my remaining school fees would be paid. Thankfully my uncle had come through in the end, although he was going to be washing his hands of me once the school year ended, which meant relying on student loans for my university education. I still felt the sting of the betrayal, that he’d thrown a twenty-year marriage with my aunt away for an affair with his work colleague, and had moved in with her at the first possible opportunity. His new family was his priority now, and he’d essentially lost all sense of responsibility towards me. My aunt had been devastated, but lately, she seemed herself again. And I actually had Carter’s parents to thank for that in part, because they’d been there for her while she picked up the pieces.
My thoughts returned to the present as Professor Sharpe cleared his throat, eyeing me carefully from behind his glasses. He was a tall, imposing figure, with grey, swept-back hair and a permanently severe expression on his face. Today, though, his eyes were full of sympathy as he looked at me. He cleared his throat. “Miss Laurent. I have been made aware of your…situation. Here at Alstone High, we have a zero-tolerance policy regarding bullying. Can you give me the name, or names, of anyone you believe may be behind this?”
I couldn’t. Because I didn’t know. And even if I did, giving him names would only make me more of a target. There was no winning in this situation. “I-I’m sorry. I don’t know.”
A huff of disapproval came from his mouth before he cleared his throat again. “I see. Rest assured, your locker will be back to normal by lunchtime today. If you have any inkling of who may be involved, or if you have any other concerns, my door is always open. I will not allow my students to be harassed within these walls.”
“Thank you, sir.” I gave him a small smile, which I hoped was believable, although I had the feeling that it was more of a grimace.
He nodded, dismissing me. “That’ll be all. See my secretary on the way out, and she will give you a slip to excuse you from your missed class.”
As I made my way to my class, my stomach churned. Everything was spiralling out of control in my life, and it all led back to one person. Carter Blackthorne.
27
Everything in my head was so fucked up. What I’d done with Raine, both at the party and afterwards, had been completely unplanned. That wasn’t what was fucking with my head, though. Sex had always been about mutual pleasure, but there had never been a connection like the one I’d felt between me and Raine. And afterwards I’d had a sudden, instinctive need to take care of her. I wanted to stay with her, to make sure she was okay. That wasn’t something I’d ever experienced before. If I was honest, the whole thing had left me shaken.
Fuck. Between my dad banging on about her all the time and making me resent her, all the shit that had happened so far today, and
