Bad Girls

Chapter Six

SINCE I WAS young, I had been a pampered girl, the princess of my family. My parents, though divorced, loved me and showered me with absolute care and concern no matter what I did. They supported me in a way that a best friend would, yet they were stern and wary of the guys I hung out with as parents should be. They were wrong about one thing, though. They would always warn me about other boys, how they would want to lure a poor, innocent girl, but not once did it run through their minds that perhaps my best friend was the one that would hurt me in the future.

Sitting at the back of the class watching Charlotte and Blake make sickly sweet eyes at each other was already enough to make me regurgitate last night's dinner. What I heard near the locker rooms was wrong, apparently. Blake was not looking for the picture, thank God. He was looking for a ring. I didn't know what type of ring, but the idea of rings made me sick. Anything that ever reminded me of Blake made me sick. When we were around six years old, I rolled out a small plastic ring from a gumball machine and gave it to Blake since he made a huge fuss about it. He probably lost it the very next day because he never mentioned it again. The memory still burned in the pits of my mind, causing my stomach to flip nauseatingly whenever I was reminded of it.

"What's got your mood down in a ditch, princess." Wesley poked me with the tip of his pen, and I glared at him. It only took a little convincing with the principal to get Wesley transferred to my last class. That way, I wouldn't be left alone to spectate Blake and Charlotte's exchange of love notes right before school ended.

"I'm just not overly fond of puking in class." I gestured to Blake and Charlotte before turning my attention back to Wesley.

"Really? Gosh, Ava. I can't believe you would let jerks like him dictate how you would feel for the day. It's not a bad day just because you have to face a bad person." Wesley laughed, his voice a little too loud, which caught the attention of the teacher in front.

"Is there a problem, Mr. Jerald?" The teacher raised an eyebrow in our direction, and Wesley smirked, winked, and saluted the teacher.

"No problem here, Mr. Lee."

The teacher didn't question Wesley back but only shot him a deadly glare before he returned to scribbling on the blackboard.

"Really, Ava. You need to start loosening up. Keeping tabs on them constantly isn't going to be healthy for your mental well-being." Wesley gestured toward me, and at that moment, the bell rang. I gathered my things, shoved them all into my bag, and trudged out of the class, leaving Wesley rather dumbfounded at my sudden departure.

"Avery!" I heard a voice from behind me once I neared the lockers. I spun around slightly and came face to face with Charlotte Brooke. I blinked twice to make sure I wasn't hallucinating.

Damn, she already poisoned my classroom life. Did she have to destroy my lockers too?

"What is it that you want, Brooke? I don't have time for thieves like you. Not today at least. So get out of my sight," I snapped, turning back to remove certain items from my bag.

"I don't know what is it that Blake and I did to offend you—"

I scoffed slightly, placing my textbooks in the locker.

"But I want you to stop bothering the both of us. I know what you did to Blake's room and his car. I know it was you, and if you don't want me to...to go to the teachers, you'll learn to keep your nose in your own business." Charlotte's face resembled a red tomato by the end of her speech.

I laughed. Hell, it was probably the first time in forever I had laughed so genuinely.

"Really? You don't know what is it you did? Why don't you figure it out, nerd? And while you do that, keep it in your mind that you have absolutely no right to threaten me. I can destroy you faster than you can run into Blake's arms. Hell, into any other guy's. Only God knows what a slut you truly are." I spit the words out like poison, sparing no mercy, and slammed the locker door shut, leaving her gaping at my words as I strutted out of the school's front doors. Not for a moment did I turn my head back.