The Double-Tap Accident

Chapter Thirteen: It Didn't Happen.

dedicated to FlavierRocky for the cover above and below! thank you <3

Chapter Thirteen: "It Didn't Happen."

I DESPISE THE name Ashton.

PCR and centrifugation machines buzzed in the biomethods lab that dull morning but they faded in the background of the chatter coming from the other groups as they discussed their own projects. Around me were the three boys I was forced to work on our report due sometime after the break. 

I didn't know how long it took me to deduce that Ashton was the leader of the other two boys in our group. Somehow, he led the interruptions while the other two mindlessly agreed. I wouldn't have initially cared.

But Ashton had no idea what the hell he was saying.

"We need to write the abstract." His slithering voice made me hold back an eye roll.

"You can't write the abstract when you haven't even finished writing the discussion." I reminded him for the hundredth time.

He pretended that I didn't speak, turning to one of the other guys. A part of me refused to know that person's name too. Maybe because this guy was the one who wanted to bring up hockey 25/8. In my head, his name was Tweedledee One. "Can you do it?"

"Sure." So, I would be looking over and redoing his work. Great.

Ashton turned to the other guy. The same one who has been laughing at a video on his phone for the past twenty minutes. You'd think he'd get over the video in two minutes or come back to it later but the one he kept watching seemed to be on loop.

His name was Tweedledee Two.

Ashton's attention slid to me. "Nice job editing the introduction."

It was said in a masked condescending tone, resulting in me suppressing my anger and faking blankness.

He didn't mess with the introduction, did he? He wouldn't. My fingers were on the mousepad of my laptop before I even think about it, pulling up our shared document and my teeth dug into my bottom lip at the crossed-out lines on my work.

"The TA said what I had written was fine."

"I added in a few extra details." Ashton shrugged, closing his own laptop. He started to take off his lab coat. "The paragraph didn't have anything about the previous studies."

Yes it did. I looked at the screen to see that Ashton crossed out my lines mentioning addressing two previous papers. While he claimed to add a few extra details to the paragraph, all he did was reword what I already had. And add nonsense.

He was already waving bye, heading out of the room along with other people. The Tweedledees were quick to follow suit while I walked over to one of the TAs, asking them if the info dump Ashton included was necessary.

When they told me no, I didn't even feel delighted. Any chance of complacency was shot down by the feeling of hostility and there was no way I was going to release that onto Ashton.

Clutching onto my backpack, I stomped through the freezing wind over to Morris College while texting Yasmeen.

Me:

I hate men. 

yasmeen:

I know. Me too.

A snort left me as I told her I'd talk to her later tonight while grabbing the key Laurence had given me last Monday.