The parent project - Chenry

Chapter Two | All I need to know

| H E N R Y |

"20$"

"Nope."

"40$?"

"Are you kidding?"

"Okay fine... 50$! That's my final offer."

Piper crossed her arms over her chest standing in the doorway of my bedroom. We were deep into negotiating whether or not she would inherit the best room in the house or keep suffering in our renovated basement with no AC. And where the fuck is a 12 year old getting 50 bucks from?

"Throw in helping me pack, cleaning up, taking the trash out and you've got yourself a deal."

I shrugged, sticking my hand out to her.

"Touch your dirty underwear? Gross! You can keep it!"

Piper wrinkled her nose in disgust. Just as she turned to leave, I slammed the door shut behind her.

"And with an attitude like that you'll never get a boyfriend, Pipes!"

My entire closet was on the floor in front of me and everything else in between was spread out everywhere. Empty soda cans, dirty clothes overflowing from a broken laundry basket, all of it mixed into a meas of comic books, old homework, a science project I never finished, vapes, candy wrappers, and water bottles.

"Fuck,"

I muttered, folding my hands and tucking them solidly behind my head. Charlotte. Charlotte fucking Bolton of all people to be married to in the class, Shapen chose the one girl I fucking hate. I hated her stupid smug expressions, her piercings, her hair. She was an outcast. She didn't belong at Swell View high and she never would. It was my job to make sure she understood that. Late into the night, I gave up on packing and pushed everything off my bed to lay down, the screen of my phone lit up as my head hit the pillow.

"Babe?"

"Charlotte and Jasper? Are we being Punk'd right now?"

"Bianca-"

"What the actual fuck, Henry? 250,000$ is at stake, the college of my dreams.. Is this some kind of sick joke?"

She replied, her voice wavered. She sounded on the verge of tears.

"Listen to me... I didn't pick the couples- It wasn't my choice, trust me if I could you know who I'd pick."

"Do I?"

"What?"

"Don't play stupid, Henry Hart."

When did this become my fault? I stared down at my phone before placing it back over my ear. Bianca continued.

"I'm so sure you just can't stand being partners with Charlotte, you two used to be joined at the fucking hip!"

She said. The sheer suggestion of what she was trying to say left silence swinging in the air between us. She said this as if I hadn't been right there by her side, bullying and harassing Charlotte mercilessly in class day after day.

"I fucking hate that bitch and you know it, don't be dumb, Bianca."

"I'm so sure."

"You heard Ms-"

"-I bet you wanted her as your partner. You wanted all of this to happen. I knew you wouldn't speak up for us. I fucking knew it."

Bianca cut me off, becoming thoroughly saturated in her own conspiracies. Shifting to a sitting position in my bed, I pinched the skin between my eyes, my head was throbbing from the shrill tone of her voice.

"This isn't happening. You're fucking nuts."

"I can't believe you."

She said, fuming now. Bianca's tone was growing angrier and distant with every word, as if she was getting closer but moving away at the same time. I sat there, listening. Letting her rip into me, until she mentioned something about how I was always putting Charlotte before her.

"Bullshit!"

"Denial is a river in Egypt, Henry!"

"When have I ever did anything for fucking Charlotte?!"

"You never even think of me!"

"For Christ sake, Bianca!"

"Prove it!"

"You know what I had to do to get you that fucking necklace around your neck? Instead of acting like a selfish brat you should be thanking me for not letting Jasper knock the shit out of you!"

"Oh, really? That's rich! This piece of junk? You can have it back because as far as I'm concerned it's cheap scrap metal!"

"Good! I'll give it to some other bitch who doesn't complain as much as you!"

"You could have convinced that old bag to change things around and you know it Henry!"

"What the fuck was I supposed to do, Bianca? Dangle her out the window by her ankles until she paired us up? You're crazy!"

I scoffed at her.

"Anything would have been better than going back and forth with that little goth troll from the ghetto!"

She snapped.

I paused, ready to hang up on her entitled and snarky sounding ass. Any other girl, this conversation wouldn't exist. Not in this world. Not even in this dimension. Since I was dating the hottest, most popular girl at my high school, Bianca's only flaw had to be the fact that she was out of her fucking mind.

"Tough. I didn't, so suck it up. It's a couple of months and not our whole lives and if it comes down to you or me winning we split the money and go to an Ivy League college together."

I reminded her. The aching in my head began to worsen the longer she ran her mouth.

"Whatever... I should have known you'd be a pussy about it."

"I'd rather be a pussy than a pain the fucking ass."

"I'm so sorry I wanted to be paired with my goddamn boyfriend in the most important completion of our entire high school careers!"

"I think you know what I mean, Bianca."

"I think that means you wanna break up, don't you Henry?"

Bianca replied, her voice had lowered significantly. She'd given up on her rant against me and was now assessing the damage.

"It's late... B, I'm tired of talking about this shit it's useless."

Bianca was quiet for a long time, so quiet I wasn't sure if she had fallen asleep or not. I waited and listened, inhaling a large breath and exhaling it nosing through my mouth.

"I've seen the way you look at her, Henry."

She spoke finally, almost to herself. I felt my eyes narrow, and  swallowed the lump of guilt that had formed in my throat.

"How do I look at Charlotte, Bianca? Huh? How do I look at her?"

I asked, genuinely curious.

"I didn't even say who I was talking about... but that's all I need to know."

3 beeps and she was gone. I tossed my phone down, slumping backwards. Shit. Closing my eyes, I spent the next half hour drifting in and out of consciousness with her last words ringing in my ears. . "That's all I need to know..." My eyes opened once more, and I sat straight up. Why didn't I say anything? Why was my first reaction relief when Shapen called my name next to hers. I despise her. Was the evident enough? Maybe I need to prove it, like Bianca said. I need to show her Charlotte isn't on my mind, at least not in the way she thinks. On the other hand, I felt sorry for Jasper. I downright pitied him.

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Xoxo Leesey -