Legitimately Us ||H.S||

Chapter 8

Numb can't even begin to describe the way I've felt this entire week. I went to my exams looking like a zombie, made small talk with Kate and only Kate when I saw her at school, before going straight back home. I avoided everyone like the plague, decided it was best not to look anyone in the eye and kept my head down or in a text book walking down the halls to hide my tired eyes from prying ones.

By the time our English exam had come at the end of the week, I had ignored and deleted several texts from Harry, that he simply just knew not to even try talking to me in person. I was thankful for it, because I was unsure as to how I would react if he said even one word to me. I had gone through so many waves of emotions over the last few days and dealing with the stress of exams on top of everything else didn't make anything whatsoever easier on me.

Plain and simple, I was a mess. A recipe for disaster waiting to happen, and it was very unclear as to when I might explode. I just knew at some point, I would.

I took my time to clear out my locker, plugging earbuds in my ears to listen to some music and drown out the sounds of the few people who littered the hallways. I allowed myself to be in my own little bubble, taking down the pictures for the very last time of my high school days, wondering why on earth I still had pictures with Maddy in them taped to the door. One by one, I ripped her out of each picture before ripping her face in two and then a few more, until there was a small pile of ripped up pieces of Maddy sitting at my feet. Surprisingly, it made me feel a little better.

As I unstuck the picture of my Grandma, I stared at it for a long time. I felt the need to apologize to her for things not going the way she would have wanted for me. She'd be devastated to know everything that's happened recently, but I can only promise her right now, that for her, I'll leave this town hopefully sooner, rather than later.

"Happy that exams are over?" I hear to my right. I look over to see Maddy standing there, unlocking her locker two doors down from mine. I don't bother to take the earbuds out, not wanting to have a conversation with her right now-or ever-and continue to pull down the pictures and place them neatly inside one of my notebooks. "I know you can hear me, Jayde."

"Doesn't mean I want to talk to you," I mumble, without looking at her.

To my surprise, she pulls an earbud from my ear and glares at me with her big blue eyes. "Seriously?" she asks. "We're graduating! We probably aren't going to see much of each other over the summer before I leave for college, the least you can do with an old friend is make small talk."

Is this bitch for real right now? Granted, she has no idea that I know what happened and how much she's hurt me because of it, and yet I look at her as if she had planned this all along. I wish I could rip her to pieces like I just did her pictures. Maybe then I'd feel a whole lot better.

"Apparently it isn't obvious to you that I'd rather not," I say, rolling my eyes, when I notice her stare burning further into me.

"What is up with you all the time?" she asks. "This is the end of high school! You should be happy!"

"Please stop talking, Maddy," I say, trying to keep my composure. The more she talks, the more I want to punch her in the face. I can feel my blood boil having her standing next to me, knowing that she had a hand in making my life fall to pieces. I can't stand the sight of her.

"You should come to Niall's party tonight," she says.

I look at her with furrowed eyebrows. Why is she even mentioning this to me? I clearly told her to stop talking. Instead, "Why would he even want you at his party?"comes out of my mouth. "After everything that's happened?"

Her eyes widen as she looks back at me, and I only realize then what I've said. "How do you know what happened?"

"I'm done with this conversation," I try, leaning down to zip up my backpack.