The Virginity Pact

25 - brunch and beratings

Spotted: Harper and Trevor in a massive display of PDA. And that's exactly what Holden Frasier is. Pretty. Damn. Angry.

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The car ride back home is completely silent. I sit in the back seat, chewing on my lip, thinking about the night and waiting for someone to say something. We're off the hook, but it doesn't feel like it. This--this feeling right here is why I used to take Xanax.

We pull up to the townhouse and Derek parks. Still silent, we each exit the car and make our way inside.

"So?" I shrug, standing in the foyer as the front door is closed and locked behind us. Are they going to say anything? Or just give me the silent treatment? Surely I'm in trouble. I have to be.

Aunt Lindsey looks at me and sighs. "Are you sure you don't need to go to the hospital?" She asks. There's actually a dull ache in my arm but it's not that bad. Barely noticeable now, actually.

I nod. "I'm sure."

"Okay. We'll talk about this tomorrow, then. Right now I just want you to go upstairs and take a shower. That place was trifling," she dismisses with a wave of her hand. I wonder if that was her first time in a jail. Probably.

I nod and turn around slowly.

"Harper?" She calls when I'm a few stairs up. I turn around and look back at her. Her face is wrinkled up slightly.

"Yes?"

"We're also going to have to talk about Holden tomorrow."

My heart skips a beat. She looks at me like I have every idea what she's talking about and I'm hoping I'm wrong. How would she know?

"Okay," I shrug like it means nothing, and give her a nod. She purses her lips, and with another look, her and Derek walk off, allowing me to continue my ascent up the steps.

When I get upstairs and turn the hall, Elijah is coming out of his room. He's out of his tux and wearing just a plain white t-shirt and basketball shorts. He seemed like he and Becca had fun tonight. I wish I could say the same.

"Hey," he says softly.

"Hey," I say.

"I just wanted to make sure you were alright. Everyone was gone when I got home after dropping Becca off. And then my mom called and told me what happened," he explains.  I shrug and then let out an unwarranted sigh. I've never been so exhausted in my life. The concern is etched all over his face.

"I'm alright," I say. He nods.

"Why was Holden here earlier, Harper?" He asks. My eyebrows furrow in surprise. That's definitely not the question I was expecting next.

"He wasn't," I lie, giving him an incredulous look.

"Harper," Elijah repeats sternly. His tone says, "cut the shit." I know because I've heard it quite a few times. "I saw him. Leaving out the back door when I got here."

I guess Holden had decided to wait until Aunt Lindsey and Derek had left so he could slip out unnoticed. Obviously, he failed, not realizing Elijah had come home, or thinking he'd snuck past him.

"And you snitched?" I scoff. Really? How old is he? So Holden was here with me alone; who cares? He's the one with condoms in his nightstand drawer. "Maybe he wanted to, I don't know, talk? He is my ex-boyfriend, after all," I sneer angrily.