Broken

• Chapter 60 •

I made sure I woke up early to avoid my mom. I took a quick shower, pulled on my uniform and a turtleneck sweater, grabbed a protein bar and rushed out of the house undetected. 

I sigh as I look into the campus, spotting a few of my classmates hanging out in the courtyard.

I pay the taxi driver and step out, hoping no one would notice I've missed almost a week of school considering we're such a small class. My stomach drops when I make eye-contact with Aya. Her jaw drops as she runs towards me, my heart practically jumps out of my throat.

She tackles me to the floor and I do my very best not to show any signs of extra pain.

"WHERE THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN?"

I shove her off of me and stand up, dusting myself off. "Can you chill? You almost killed me," I huff.

"Why haven't you answered my texts or calls? I thought you died! You left me alone with these idiots!" she bellows, pointing at Hana.

I snort as Hana's face contorts into a frown.

"I'm sorry, I haven't been checking my phone at all. I've been sick all week," I explain.

Aya sighs loudly and rolls her eyes, "Whatever. Next time you decide to ditch I'll kill you."

I laugh as we make our way towards a bench. Everyone is minding their own business, and no one is noticing anything. I relax, everything seems... Normal.

"Clem!"

I groan internally at the sound of his voice. I hope he doesn't throw a fit. I give the girls a shrug, "Gotta go."

I stand and turn to walk towards Adrien, giving him a sheepish smile, "Hey..."

His eyebrows are knitted together, eyes fixed on mine. It feels like ages since I've seen him, he looks different. His face isn't shaved, maybe that's it. He studies my body, and I suddenly begin panicking. I nuzzle into my turtle-neck sweater and keep my eyes on the floor while he finishes his examination.

"You have the flu or something?" he finally asks.

My heart collapses in relief. I nod my head, "Yeah. I feel a lot better today but I couldn't get out of bed the past few days. I'm sorry I didn't text or call, that was shitty of me."

He nods thoughtfully and pulls me into his arms, "I'm just glad you're okay."

My heart hammers against his chest, I feel so guilty. But I shouldn't, right? I can't control what happened. So why do I feel guilty? Is it for not texting or calling him? How I ended the night with him? Not being able to open up to him? What is it? Why can't my brain wrap around a simple answer?

I sigh into his chest and pull back slightly, looking up at him with a soft smile. I've missed him. I press my lips to his gently. I really have missed this. Feeling normal. Being a normal high school girl kissing her boyfriend. This is how it should be.

We pull apart when the bell rings. He smirks and wraps his arm around my shoulders as we make our way to class.

"I know how you can make it up to me," he informs me.

I cock my eyebrow, "Is that so?" I look up to him as we reach the classroom door.

He looks down at me with a smile and nods, pressing a kiss to my temple. "There's a party at my place on Sunday. It's your duty as my girlfriend to be there," he states matter-of-factly.

I nod my head towards our class, "I'll think about it. Come on, we're gonna be late."

My heart and face fall when I see Ashton. It feels so different. A week ago, I would've walked into the class and seen a stranger. Another classmate. Today, I walk in and see someone who knows more about me and my life than anyone in the class. My brows furrow at this.

Eric's not here.

I pull out my phone as something clicks in my head, and my suspicions are confirmed. Eric hasn't called or texted once in the past week. Knots begin forming in my stomach, that's so unlike him. Is he okay?

"Hey," I say passively as I take a seat next to Ashton, sending Eric a quick message.

"You okay?"

"Huh?" I look up at him and see that he's asking if I got any sleep.

I smile gently and nod, "I'm fine, Ashton."

He studies my face attentively, and I roll my eyes at him. Why isn't he believing me? I really am okay. I slept fine last night. I'm not some fragile flower or something. He opens his mouth to say something, but thankfully gets interrupted by Ms. Shanice's voice. I smirk at his distaste.

"Take your seats, everyone. We're about to start a new lesson. Turn to page 323—" she sighs in disappointment when she realizes Dustin still has his head in the clouds, "Dustin! Get your butt in your chair!"

I laugh at this, so do several other classmates. Ashton's eyes are still focused on me, and I'm avoiding his gaze at all costs. He's ruining this for me and making me annoyed. I told him I was okay. Why can't he just let me feel normal, and not a lab rat under observation?

Ugh.

"Mr. Ashford, would you mind lookin' up here? I know I ain't as pretty as Miss Clementine, but you have to deal with it," Ms. Shanice says, and it takes a moment to register her words because of how fixated on not looking at Ashton I am.

The class laughs, and I glance towards Adrien. He's staring at Ashton, and he doesn't look amused. My cheeks flame as her words sink in, but Ashton remains unfazed. I look up to meet his eyes, and he slowly turns his attention back to Ms. Shanice. Earning him a thank you from Ms. Shanice and a fuck you from me.