The Homecoming Benefactor

17 | the roses

"Why are you on my property?"

"I have to make things right."

"The right thing to do would be to go home."

As I made my way down the stairs from the loft, I walked in on a tense exchange between Nick and Bryce. The bouquet in Bryce's hand was mainly composed of burgundy roses and baby's breath. It was dark and somber, just like his presence. I could hardly look him in the eye after what had transpired last week. Swallowing a lump in my throat, I approached him.

"I wanted to say that I'm sorry, Francie," Bryce said dryly. "You probably don't want to see me, but I want to explain."

Bryce was dressed in fairly nice clothes; there was no telling why. I never found out if I was the reason he came back to town. A few days ago, I would have felt flattered, but I almost felt threatened now. Were there others here?

When I chose not to say anything, Bryce pleaded. "Francie... just hear me out."

I sighed, finally bringing myself to make eye contact with him. The light in his hazel eyes was gone; I knew he was at least feeling something. I just couldn't make myself feel bad for him. What if this was another act?

"And how am I supposed to trust you? After everything, how can I do that?" My voice cracked in pain as Thursday night flashed before my eyes.

"Well, we can work on it," Bryce replied, trying to reach out for my hand. "I know I fucked up."

"I believed your act. I fell for it. I'm not falling for it again," I lamented, pushing his hand away. "Where were you when those guys broke into the room?"

"I couldn't bear to watch it," Bryce mumbled, shifting his feet. "I didn't want to see the outcome of what I did. It was all part of Holden's plan, but I couldn't follow through."

"You knew this was going to happen, and you still brought me there? All along? The whole time?" Frustration washed the melancholy right off my face.

Bryce's shoulders tensed up, and everyone watched awkwardly from the living room area. He stared down at the bouquet of flowers that were supposedly enough to compensate for my pain. On any other day, they would make me feel flattered, but his selfishness even reflected from the colors in the bouquet. He apparently hadn't even cared to listen to the conversations we had together.

"I guess I'll hear you out," I muttered, crossing my arms. "But it's only because I want to know what the hell you were thinking."

"It started before we even met," Bryce began, looking up. "Holden wanted to do something to Eta Pi to show the Greek Life office that we should never be paired together for anything ever again. He knew I was paired with Timmy for that psych project and told me to use him
to get access to the house. I was told to find out who the homecoming chair is and make her think I like her."

"That's why you went with us to dinner..." I gasped.

"Even though I don't like waffles," Bryce continued. "I had to do what I needed to for the frat. I started to think that I might as well try to hook up with you if I was gonna be spending all this time with you. That's why I picked you up from the gala... it wasn't part of the plan."

I narrowed my eyes. "Who wrote the notes? Was it you?"

Bryce paused, shifting his feet again. "No, Holden did. Pledges delivered them
to your dorm. I had no part in that."

That was what I really wanted to know, and finding out the truth was world-shattering. Sure, we had pretty much figured out that the notes were a prank, but hearing the confirmation had soured my self esteem. It had made me feel special to see someone write about me that way. Discovering that it was all a lie, just like everything else, brought me back to a series of times where I wasn't pretty or skinny enough. It sounds dumb now that I even let these people get under my skin like that, but the situation was too volatile for me to stop and think rationally.