To My Future Cheating Husband

IV. Selfish Bitch

Ava's POV:

"You've been staring at me the whole period," Shelbie said. She packed her books inside her bag.

I tilt my head, "Do you like plumbers?"

Shelbie laughs, "Where is that coming from?"

"Just wondering."

Shelbie shrugs, "I don't know. Probably not."

"Probably not?" I'm not certain why I asked that. Most likely, I'm curious.

"I mean, plumbers are...dirty. Plus, I've seen the plumber that came to my house," she shudders.

"Hm," I replied, collecting all my stuff.

"What about you?" Shelbie threw her backpack over her shoulder.

I did the same, "What about me?"

"After you-know-who left." Everyone knows I don't like talking about Luke, so they avoid bringing him up. "You've been hanging out with your brother's nerdy friends. What are their names? Key? Pen?"

"You almost got one of them. It's Eli and Ben." I made my way to my locker.

She follows me, "Close enough." We dodged other students in the hallway, "But seriously, I heard something is going on between you and one of them. Is it true?" I should've known better. Gossips never cease when you're one of the people in the spotlight.

I smile, "What do you think?"

"I think you're dodging my question." She's sharp. I give her that much.

"So what if I'm interested in one of my brother's friends?" I question, making a turn. Five minutes is not enough to collect my things and head to my next class. "Does it change anything?"

"Of course, it does." She leans against the aisle of lockers as I twist in my code. "You're Ava Makee. You can't exactly date a nerd."

I open my locker, "Says who?" I unzip my backpack and put my book inside. "I'm Ava Makee. I'm me. I believe I can date whomever I pleased. Other people should mind their own business if they think otherwise." I shut the locker and turned towards her, "Don't you think so?"

Steadily, her lips curve into a smile, "With what you just said, does what I think matter?"

"Well, not really." I lean against the locker, "But, I'm curious about whether you're with or against me."

Shelbie chuckles, her fingers dig into the books. She's feeling pressured. "Of...Of course I'm with you. With how you put things, who would go against you?" She's still too young. Similar to everyone in this school, she's too easily persuaded.

I smile, "I'm glad you can see things my way." When I said that, I felt a bit of my past self resurfacing.

After a few more words of exchange, Shelbie went to her class. Shelbie is a nice girl, but she's too easily influenced by others. Hopefully, she won't get pressured into slipping Winnie's life.

I halted in front of the classroom door. The hallway is nearly empty. With a deep exhalation, I turned my legs and made my way down the hall. Once I was at the back of the school, I found Winnie to the right behind the gym.

She held the cigarette between her lips and exhaled the smokes. Her eyes closed as she allows the soothing sensation to take over.

"You shouldn't be smoking," I said.

Her lips parted, and she turned her head towards me. She took another inhalation, "I believe what I do doesn't concern you," she said.

"I heard something today from one of the girls." It's better to confront her instead of beating around the bush. "She saw you getting beat up by your mom's boss."