Help Me Remember (COMPLETED)

Chapter 40 Part 1

Covers above by @whimsicalwillow

This story ends in... Chapter 42, I think? Just a heads up🙃

Chapter 40 Part 1

Turning

As it happened, there were only two people found in the auditorium that afternoon: Sarah and me.

I was correct in my assumption. The dean did get wind of the real event. It wasn't surprising, seeing as I got that info from a freshman. But with common sense, Sarah and I denied the whole thing. Sarah, shakily and me, firmly. It was an hour of the dean staring us down suspiciously while we tried not to squirm in our seats. And with our refusal to cooperate and his lack of evidence, there was nothing he could do but let us off with a last warning.

How I wish when we left his office, it was going to be the last of it.

And in the next week, closed up in the workroom, spraying varnish over the enormous painting, I'd almost forgotten about it. Almost.

"So, I heard things..." It was the freshman I was working with, Sienna that opened up the topic. She was looking at me, embarrassment and curiosity painted all over her young face.

Elise snorted, raising an eyebrow. "There you are again with snooping!"

I watched, waited, blinking slowly with an unconscious frown on my face.

Sienna turned red, immediately defensive "I'm not! Really, I'm n-not! But the whole class has been talking about it since Monday."

"It's okay," I smiled slightly, making sure to clear my face with all emotion. "Ask away."

"W-well, I..." Sienna bit her lip. "The Senior Scene that was cancelled last week, students are saying you're somehow involved. Like majorly involved. Not necessarily as the n-nude model but—"

"Could you stop it right there?" Elise suddenly whipped around to face the freshman. "You should already know the answer to your own question. Do you have any common sense in that body? How could Scarlett be involved in it? She wouldn't even have gone there in the first place had you not mentioned it last Friday! So annoying."

I should've given it to the student grapevine. I really should have. It would take a few small mouths to completely warp a simple story. My mind wandered back to my best friend. Sarah and I hadn't time together because of my project and we've only seen each other twice during lunch after the incident, where I was hurrying off after shoving in a few bites.

Subconsciously, my hands had fisted on my sides.

Sienna's face was quickly leeching of its newly acquired color because of Elise's blunt statement. "S-Sorry, I didn't mean... I just—"

"Let's get back to work. We can probably pass this painting by two pm if we work through lunchbreak."

There was a pause as my two juniors looked at me with suddenly wide eyes. It was probably something about my tone. But all I wanted was for the painting to be over so I could get much needed rest. I was drained in more that one aspect of my life and would like to shut off the world even if just for a few precious hours.

Elise sent a glare to the freshman, "Come on! I'm already itching to say goodbye to this monster." Scrambling back to their posts, the two girls worked at a quicker pace.

Make that one am. Two of our professors came in to view the painting, gave us the approval and told us to take a late lunch.

And speaking of lunch, I was wondering where Sarah was at this hour. I turned for the school cafeteria when Elise slinked an arm around my shoulders, "And where are you going? We should celebrate ourselves for a job well done!"