Grace

November 19, 2016

So Julia decided to finally show her face today.

Not at school or my house, though. She didn't try to find me after a class or come knocking on my door. No, she came to my work, where she would be sure to have plenty of witnesses. Smart.

I was in the middle of handing an order slip to our cook, Remy, when I heard her say,

"Tessa?"

She sounded so timid and innocent. An act that quickly fell away, I assure you.

"Can we talk?" she asked.

I said sure, so long as we could talk outside. She didn't seem very happy about that, given that she'd picked a public place for a reason, but agreed anyway. So I told Randy I was taking my break and followed her outside.

As soon as the door shut behind me, Julia said, "I think there's been a huge misunderstanding."

I couldn't help it. I started laughing. A huge misunderstanding? Seriously? That's what she decided to call lying and having Grace admitted?

I told her that much, and she just shook her head. "I didn't lie." A lie.

Now I was pissed. "Do yourself a favor and drop the act," I snapped.

And just like that, the sweet, simply misunderstood Julia disappeared, replaced with a Julia that curled her hands into fists, looking as though she would punch me if she could. She glowered, and I couldn't help but smile. Finally. The real her.

"Listen," she said. Any hint of kindness and search for understanding had disappeared from her voice. She sounded—and looked—threatening, like she could ruin my life in a heartbeat. I wonder if this is how she looked at Grace that night.

According to Julia, I'm going to leave her alone. I'm going to tell her friends what I did, and I'm going to leave Grace out of it. I'm going to back the hell off, or she—

"Or you'll what?" I asked. "Have me shipped off to St. Montgomery's?"

She denied it, of course. But the look in her eye said differently. If I don't back off, if I keep coming after her, she's going to stick me in St. Montgomery's, just like Grace.