Senior Squad

32| "Maybe He's Somewhere."

Aria

"Hey, I heard your friend's missing." Audrey addressed immediately before sitting next to me while I wrote down my assignments.

"So?"

"There's a lot of rumors going around."

"Well I'll let you know now, none of them are true."

"So his parents didn't walk in on him screwing that new guy? Or catch him jacking off to guys on the football team?"

She's not going to let up, is she? I stopped writing and faced her with a firm, closed smile plastered on my face. "You can't believe everything people say especially since not too long ago, I seem to remember them talking about you this way."

"Oh, I really don't believe them." Audrey scoffed. "But trust me when I say this, I've been on the wrong end of those rumors and if you don't respond fast enough, they become facts."

"No they don't."

"They do for the people with unanswered questions."

"Okay fine." I grumbled. My eyes checked for other chatty people until looking her in the eyes. "You really wanna know the truth?"

"Uh, yeah?" Audrey chuckled.

"Well I'm afraid I don't have the answers. I want to know where Lyle is just as much as the next guy."

"But aren't you close friends?"

"Of course." I forced a wide smile. "It's not my fault he sent a message letting us know he was going to be away for awhile then stopped messaging altogether."

"That must've hurt."

"It still does hurt."

After saying those words, both Audrey and I got silent. She didn't know what to say and frankly, neither did I. For a few straight minutes, we sat in place quietly while the room filled up with the rest of our class. Once everyone was seated, Audrey cleared her throat and leaned in toward me. "You know, I remember when I was still with my ex and how the rumor mill was just blazing up over him."

"Weren't you dating Seth Kaiser?"

"Yep." Audrey nodded. "Every time, someone even implied he was gay, he always got all shaky and sweaty."

"Because it was true?"

"Unfortunately, yes." Audrey admitted. "Luckily, my girls were around for the fallout and you know what really sucked?"

"What?"

"I wanted to be pissed. I wanted to literally knock him right in his perfect face and let him know how much of a weak-minded bitch he was being for using me as his beard."

"And you couldn't?"

"Nope." Audrey sighed as she crossed her arms. "I knew how much it killed him inside to keep that to himself. Somehow, I managed to forgive him. Especially now that he's getting to some place."

"What place?" I asked as her quivering tone caught my attention.

"One of those camps."

Oh dear god, I felt a chill go through my veins as a terrible thought crossed my mind. "Uh, y-you don't think that Lyle–"

"Of course not." Audrey shook her head. "I'm sure whatever's going on, is his business."

"I guess you're right." I begrudgingly agreed as our teacher walked in and began to teach. Though it didn't matter what she said, my head was clouded by this unnerving sense that something was very wrong with Lyle. Something just didn't feel right at all.