Paper Hearts [Book I: Homecoming]

f o u r t e e n

a big thank you to  @orange-3211 for the beautiful cover she took time out to make! <3 the cover is attached above.

onto the last chapter of this book! :)

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I REACH SCHOOL HALF AN HOUR EARLY AND THE CORRIDORS ARE ALMOST EMPTY, WITH ONLY A FEW STUDENTS ROAMING AROUND. Some of them wave at me, and I force a smile on my face. My mother's message rings in my ears, as I walk towards the lockers.

When you're back from school, we want an answer Rora, she had said when I left, unable to make a decision. She had asked me the same question a year ago, and I had firmly said no. She had asked me the same question again three months ago, and I had refused again. This time, the final time, she asked me again this morning, and I wanted to refuse, but I didn't see any reason why.

As I took out my books for the first class, I finally decided that I'd give this day eight hours to help me make my final call. Eight hours in the school, and I would get my answer.

I shared my first class with Wilhelmina, and when I made my way inside the class, she was already seated on her designated place near the window. She looked like she had been crying a few minutes ago, and I wanted to give her a hug and tell her that everything would be okay. But I couldn't do that, especially not after yesterday. At the start of the senior year, I had hated her with all my might. Now when I think back of how cold I was to her a month back, it makes me feel pathetic. But I didn't know that she thought I was the villain after all this. And all the anger and hate that had subsided starts to come back again and it takes all my will to calm back down.

I make my way towards her and sit down beside her. She looks up at me, and all the pain in her eyes is immediately replaced with anger, hate, and all things worse.

"What do you want?"

"I want to talk about yesterday, and everything that has happened. There must be a misunderstanding." I say, tears welling up in my eyes. I want everything to be okay.

I want Wilhelmina to give me the first reason to refuse.

"I don't want to talk about it anymore. If it pleases you to hear, I don't like Tobias anymore. But I want you to know that if there's any person who least deserves to be by Tobias's side, it is you. I just wish I had realized this soon enough. The four of us loathed Ginny, but now I am here saying that she deserves Tobias's love. You're a selfish, backstabbing bitch." Wilhelmina says, her soft tone emitting hate, "I know you're lying. You didn't break up with him, did you? He did, because he got so tired of you. Do you look how happy he is right now? I hope you do. You just want to cover up this fact and that is why you brew up all the bullshit yesterday. Do me a favor; stay away from me. I don't want anything to do with you. You're as good as dead to me."

Wilhelmina goes back to staring out of the window. I quietly make my way towards the other end of the classroom, and as the school bell rings, the class starts filing in.

PRIOR TO LUNCH BREAK, I SHARE MY MATH CLASS WITH HARPER. Our designated seats are next to each other, and a month ago, we were giggling like crazy when the professor placed us next to each other. And now, Harper looks like she wants to be anywhere else but here.

If this was any other fight, I would have not spoken to her. I would wait for her to break the ice. But today, I was desperate to find reasons to refuse my mother. With that thought, I tapped on Harper's desk, waiting for her to look at me. But she doesn't.

"Harper, please, talk to me."

"There's absolutely nothing to talk about, Elise. Leave me alone."