That Night √

38» That Painting

Grace's POV
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I looked down at my untouched tray of food, the cafeteria already filled up with the usual chatter around me.

However, it was quite silent at the table I was sitting at since it was just me.

The silence left almost immediately when someone slammed their lunch tray on the space in front of me and sat down.

"All right, spill." It was Alice.

I looked up at her in surprise. "What?"

"You can explain to me what it was that I saw last night, Grace." She raised her brows at me before grimacing as if she hadn't quite meant to say that.

I didn't want to think about last night. And that wasn't even because Fraser had kissed me. No. It was mainly because of what Luca had told me.

He must be lying.

I felt my face heating up once again when I thought back to his words.

"I don't know what you're talking about." I stated, looking away from her towards the people around the vending machine.

My life was already a mess. I didn't want to fuck it up even more, but lately it seemed like the universe really wanted to do that.

"Oh, come on. I deserve some explanation, don't I?" She asked, crossing her arms on the table and looking at me with her pleading eyes. "I sure as hell did sense the tense atmosphere around you three when I came there to call Fraser."

I regarded her with a blank expression.

She laughed at that. "Did Fraser do something? Geez, I can't even wipe off the look from my head."

"What look?"

"The look Lucius was giving him." She laughed again.

I gritted my teeth and looked down at my hands. Anything but her. "Whatever, Alice."

She picked up the apple from her tray and took a bite. "All right. Since you aren't telling me, I might as well just make something up."

I just ignored her, running my fingers through my hair, pressing them against my scalp. So many thoughts were fighting against my head. It felt like they would suffocate me.

"What I feel like, is that Fraser kissed you." She started, waving the apple in the air as she talked. "Or maybe you kissed him."

I inhaled deeply, still not looking at her.

"And Lucius must've seen it. That may explain why he was glaring at Fraser."

"This is not funny, Alice." I snapped at her with a glare.

Her eyes widened almost instantly, alarmed and suddenly apologetic before wincing and taking another large bite of her apple. "Sorry. But...why don't you just like, apologize to him?"

I just inhaled deeply and closed my eyes, knowing clearly well how she won't stop.

"He clearly holds a grudge against you for not telling him that you were leaving off to Manhattan." She added.