Worth Fighting For | Book #1

Chapter 13

My hands began to shake rigorously with the thousands of thoughts clouding my mind and vision. Josh continued to hold my gaze, sadistically smiling with victory due to my stunned expression. He was torturing me with the knowledge of my parents' martial issues, something that was still fresh in my mind.

Every single person sitting around us had been cast out of my attention as I continued to glare across at Josh, forgetting that anyone else existed. "Come on, Savannah." Valentina's voice entered my senses as she forcefully pulled me up and away from the stupid game we were playing.

"Did you tell him?" April immediately questioned once the three of us had escaped into Henry's downstairs guest room, away from the hearing of anyone else. I froze and sat down on the bed, only just coming to the realisation about what was said.

"He doesn't know anything." My mind searched for a time when Josh would be able to know about my parents, but I came back blank. "We haven't even had a proper conversation." I lied, although it was part of the truth with Josh being one of the most difficult people I have ever experienced talking to. I struggled to get a singular sentence from him, let alone a proper conversation.

"Is it ok if I come in?" I heard Tom's voice as Valentina looked to me for confirmation. I nodded with ease as she opened the door for him to come in. "Can I speak to you privately, Savannah?" Both April and Valentina took the obvious hint and walked back out of the room, leaving Tom in front of me, guilt spread across his features.

"How can you even consider being friends with that jerk?" I was now pacing, mumbling various curse words to describe Josh. I didn't even want to look at his stupid, smug face again.

"I'm so sorry Savannah."

"Sorry for what?" I questioned. "You weren't the one that just humiliated me in front of all those people." The overwhelming shock from what Josh had said, had now transformed into a fiery rage that needed to be let out on someone, and I desperately wanted for Tom to avoid that wrath.

"It was me." I sat down on the bed, my anger still heavily present and making it more difficult to listen to what Tom was attempting to tell me. "I told Josh about your parents, Savannah. I'm so sorry."

"You what?" I finally drew my awareness back to him, my eyebrows furrowing with the next wave of anger that took over my body.

"He asked about you the other day. And it just came out, I really didn't mean for him to turn it against you." I stepped back, unable to look at him and see someone who could betray me in a way I never thought he would. I had told him about my parents with the promise that he would keep it to himself and now Josh had used it against me and basically told everyone around us. And I was pissed.

"Leave me alone, Tom."

"I really am sorry." With that, he left me to keep my eyes down and somehow collect my thoughts with what had just happened. As angry as I was with Josh, Tom was the reason why he had that leverage over me. He broke my trust.

The music continued at its loud volume whilst I stared down at my hands for longer than I had thought. "Savannah?" Valentina walked back into the room on her own and sat down beside me. "Tom told us he was the reason Josh knew. And trust me when I say that he will not be opening his mouth again anytime soon."

I laughed for the first time in a while, knowing that Valentina had most likely completed the hard work of giving Tom a piece of her mind, ensuring that he would never do anything like it again. But I couldn't help the pain I felt when I thought about the broken trust between us, and the fact that it was now based on the principle of him telling rather than the actual stupid secret about my parents.

"You should come back out." She stood and outstretched her hand for me to follow with her. "Don't let Josh think that you're crying into a pillow about this shit. You're better than that."

Valentina was thankfully just the right person to bring me back out into the party. She was like my own personal anchor, keeping me from floating away and pretending like I don't exist. Therefore, I linked my arm with hers and finally walked out of the guest room, heading straight towards the kitchen and hoping that everyone had remained in their positions on the couches, away from where I was going to be.

"Look who finally came back out of hiding." Tyler attempted to joke, but I simply sent a glare his way, the situation still proving a fresh cut to me. "Ok, I'll be tame. If it makes you feel any better, Josh left with Leah."

Once Tyler had told me, I'd expected to feel a little more relieved than I did. The added fact that Leah had left with him, sent another flame of anger through me, most likely because I didn't want him to enjoy himself after what he had put me through.

"I hope the condom breaks." I muttered and filled a cup with water, consuming it quicker than I needed to.

The rest of the party was rather uneventful and resulted in Tyler and I helping both Henry into his bed at the end of the night, and Tom into my car. Valentina had left a little earlier to meet with Finn whilst April had hurried back to meet her curfew requirements. "Thanks." I confessed to Tyler whilst starting up the car and speaking to him through the opened window.

"I hope you're not too hard on him." He referenced to Tom, now dozing off against the back seats. "He really does love you like a little sister. And Josh did more or less pressure it out of him."

I blinked my eyes a little more, hating Josh even more with every word someone would utter about him. I'm not sure how he even managed to get any of the girls he did with the destructive personality he was blessed with. Although, I guessed that his looks were the only successful feature in that department, unfortunately.

Tyler left after ensuring that Tom wasn't going to vomit all over my back seats, and I gave him a quick hug goodbye before driving the both of us home.

I was exhausted and felt somewhat hungover after helping Tom get to bed, and I hadn't even drunk anything remotely alcoholic tonight.

*

Saturday mornings for me seemed to drag like no other, and I could only guess that it was God's twisted way of prolonging my thoughts about the night before, especially last night. Tom walked down the stairs with a caution that I'd easily expected. "Coffee?" I suggested, motioning to the large cup I was holding. "There's more if you want it."

He stared with wide eyes before walking closer and pulling up a chair opposite me. "I really just want to say I'm sorry again, Savannah." He pleaded, holding his hands tightly together. "You trusted me with this, and I shouldn't have told him. It's such a dick move, I—"

"I think I've tortured you enough." I spoke with a smirk and lifted my cup up to my lips. "I forgive you, Tom." I spoke after lowering it again. "But if you do something like that again, I will wash every single thing you own in toilet water." His eyes widened but a small, soft smile crept onto his lips after a couple seconds.

"As soon as I have my apology from Josh, I will be happy." I knew I wouldn't be, but an apology from him would be a start.

"You're not serious, are you?" Tom deadpanned as he poured himself a cup of coffee and stalked back over to me, now with two aspirin in his hand to fix the hangover that I was struggling to see from him.

"Deadly serious." I furrowed my eyebrows with confusion about what the big deal was. "He owes me one after the way he spoke to me." Tom scoffed and I set down my coffee with a loud sound, my hand suddenly twitching to begin my payback with replacing his drink with the promised toilet water.

"Josh doesn't apologise for anything."

"Very funny."

"Am I laughing?"

I washed out my cup in the sink after finishing it and loading it into the dishwasher, the thoughts clouding my mind about Josh never having apologised. I couldn't imagine never saying "sorry". It was like an instinct for me, ever when I wasn't even in the wrong.

"He's really never apologised?" I questioned, although by the somewhat serious tone and look from Tom, he was most likely telling the truth. And his short nod only confirmed it.

Now this was interesting.