Connected [Luke Hemmings]

• Chapter 30 •

super short chapter :(

• Chapter 30 •

It's been a week since the incident with Sawyer and Quentin happened. Now, I'm in the big New South Wales court and we're hearing if Sawyer and Quentin are charged with anything.

My parents, and siblings are behind me. Liz and Andrew are here as well, Mum's idea. They were both very upset to hear it, and promised to only tell Luke if something bad happens. But for now, Luke doesn't know.

Belle went to their show this past week, and told me that Luke cried on stage while singing The Only Reason with Michael, and Disconnected. I didn't know how to react, but I didn't react well. I was mad at the world, and I was convinced that everything bad happening was a sign to just let everything go. But that's the thing, I don't know what to do.

"Sawyer Jenkins, pleaded not guilty but will pay a fine of $3,500 for trespassing private property," says the judge.

I shut my eyes in anger, but I nod. I understand, technically he attempted an account of sexual assault and it was stopped before anything more could happen. Though, this is stupid, he basically assaulted me, and he could do it again. "Your honour, what about the restraining order?" asks my lawyer, well actually my god-father, Daniel Javier.

"He was pleaded not guilty Mr Javier, so the restraining order cannot be fulfilled. This case is over, there is an intermission for 15 minutes before we hear the custody battle of Roman Knight," says the judge.

Once I turn around, I see Luke's parents, my own and Verona. I start to cry, why do so many bad things happen to me? And why does it have to happen to me now?

I wipe my annoying tears away and Verona wraps an arm around me. Unfortunately, a part of me wishes it was Luke's arm, and I wish he pulled me close to him, letting me rest my head on his chest as his steady heartbeat keeps me calm.

But no, it's my older sister, and it's all I'm getting for now. Liz and Andrew were invited by my parents, and promised to talk to Luke about what happened if anything got serious. They still care about me, even though what's happened, and I guess that's the best thing I can ask for right now.

******

"What do you mean you're thinking of dropping out?" asks Jana. It's true, I might just blow uni off this year.

"I only took these courses so that I fit into the boys' schedule. But now that Luke and I aren't dating anymore, I can just stop. My dad's got me a job at his office, so I can make some money while I'm not in school. Then probably next term, I'll try something new," I say.

"Oh come on Renn, this is stupid. You're doing really well in those classes."

"I failed my last exam and the professor let me do a retest, and I did a little better. Now I'm graded at a 79%. I'm leaving."

Jana shakes her head. She has no say in this anyway, so she should just shut up. I go into my room and take out my laptop, logging onto Tumblr.

Luke

I unlock my phone and scroll through Instagram as my mind drifts into different thoughts.

A lot of people are talking about how bad my performances have been so far. It bothers me, but it's hard to change their opinion. At our last show, I couldn't sing, ended up crying. The boys pitched in to sing for me as I just played. Tears streamed down my face so fast I couldn't see, but I didn't care, there were so many people watching me, I tried to shake it off but my voice was so coarse.

We have 15 minutes until tonight's show is on, and we need to play. I hope to perform really great today, and I want to show people that Renn is the past, and I've moved on. But it's hard, because I still love her, and I haven't got any feedback from Bianca. Did she even give it to Renn? Probably not.