I'm unable to look away, despite my subconscious's warnings. I can't believe he would do this again, after promising he wouldn't.
Get out of there before he sees you!
This time, I don't argue with my subconscious.
"Um, guys. I think I'm gonna go find my date." I tell my friends.
They nod, obviously knowing better than to stop me. They probably feel sorry for me- the pathetic girl who was stupid enough to fall for her best friend knowing that he's way out of her league- that's what I think of myself right now.
"Hey, I was looking for you." Alex appears in front of me, two cups in his hands. I take a cup from him.
"Weird. I was looking for you too." I shrug.
Alex looks at me for a moment, then sighs deeply. "Wanna tell me what's bothering you?"
What? "What're you..."
"I'm good at reading people, Aubrey. Really good."
I cross my arms over my chest. "Have you always been like this?"
"Like what?"
"Egoistical. You're good at reading people, so what? Not everyone likes to talk about their problems." I know I'm being rude, but I can't help it.
Alex's eyes dart to something behind me, and I'm immediately aware of Zack's presence. I take a deep breath and turn to face him.
"Hey." He grins at me and I force one of my own. It probably looks like a grimace, and his sudden frown confirms it.
"Are you okay?" He asks. I am such an open book tonight.
"Um...yeah. You should probably get back to your date before she decides to murder me." I say as my eyes connect with Audrey's. If looks could kill, I'd have been six feet under a long time ago.
Zack sighs, leaning in to kiss my cheek. It's supposed to be a harmless kiss, but when he whispers "You look gorgeous" into my ear, pleasure shoots straight down to my core.
He pulls back and smirks when he notices my flushed cheeks, then walks back to his date, who just totally saw all that.
I probably shouldn't but I'm doing a happy dance in my head.
You're mad at him, remember? My subconscious remarks.
"I don't think your boyfriend likes me very much."
I turn back to Alex, who has an amused expression on his face.
"He's not my boyfriend." I lie.
He purses his lips, "sure", then stretches a hand out to me. "Do you wanna dance or something?"
When I shrug, Alex takes my hand in his and pulls me onto the middle of the makeshift dance floor.
His arms come around my waist and I rest mine loosely on the nape of his neck.
"You're right." He says suddenly. "Not everyone likes to talk about their problems, but I know that communication solves most problems. I'm sure you do too."
I know next to nothing about Alex, apart from the fact that he's a bit egoistical, but the best people to vent to are strangers, right?
I'm just not sure talking to Alex about Zack is a good idea.
"I don't..." I sigh, "have to tell you if I don't want to."
His jaw ticks slightly, like he's considering something, and then he forces a smile. "Yeah. Guess you're right."
I'm saved from the awkwardness and tension that follows afterwards when my phone buzzes in my purse with a message.
Pey💞:
Bathroom emergency!!!
I excuse myself from Alex and hurry towards the bathroom, silently thanking the heavens for saving me from the situation.
Bathroom emergency either meant one of us had just been through a bad breakup, or...
"She bled out." Peyton says as soon as I step into the bathroom.
"What?"
"Oh, stop exaggerating, Pey." Erika says from inside a stall. "It was just a little blood." Her voice sounds shaky.
"Yeah. A little blood which your date saw."
My eyes widen. "Um...what?"
"Oh, nothing too serious." Erika laughs nervously. "Just that I was dancing with Nick and um...he saw the stain on my gown probably because he was checking my ass out, and I...uh...just wanna die right now."
The entire situation clicks in my head, and my eyes go even wider.
"Oh my God! Didn't you know you'd get your period today? "
"It came early." Her voice is muffled.
"So what'd he say?"
"He looked so embarrassed, and I don't think I can..." She sobs.
I don't even know what to do. It's one thing for Erika to get embarrassed, but for her to...cry, it means it really was bad.
I exchange a glance with Peyton, who looks as helpless as I feel.
"Oh, come on, Erika. Nick likes you, and there's no way he'll stop because of this." Peyton speaks up.
"Yeah. Because stained girls are a total turn on." She snarks.
Peyton turns to me with pleading eyes. "Could you go get a tampon from my locker?"
I nod. "Sure. You try to get her out of there so she can get cleaned up."
I head into the girls' locker room and grab what Erika needs, rolling my eyes when I see the stash of new underwear under the box of tampons.
What doesn't Peyton have in here?
I exit the room, about to turn a corner, when I hear muffled voices.
"...see each other after today."
I shouldn't be listening, but I can't force my feet to move from their frozen spot, because the voice I just heard was Zack's.
"Why not?" A high pitched voice whines. It's unmistakably Audrey Lopez. What is he doing with her?
Don't move closer, Aubrey. Just walk away. My subconscious cautions me. You'll regret it if you stay.
I ignore the voice in my head, because I also know that I'd regret it if I don't listen in.
I peek around the corner, and my heart sinks when I see Audrey pressed up against him, trailing her hands up and down his chest.
"You know why." Zack replies weakly, staring down at her hand. He should be taking her hands off of him. Why isn't he asking her to get off of him?
Audrey's face twists in annoyance. "Don't tell me it's because of her."
Zack clenches his jaw in a way that I know that he just swallowed. Which means that he's either nervous, or he's withholding himself from doing something.
Something like giving into Audrey's temptation.
"You told me she's your best friend. You said she wouldn't be bothered if you and I dated." She continues.
"I was drunk, Audrey. I was drunk and I had nowhere else to go. You were the only one I could go to. I had to make you believe something." His tone is desperate.
What the hell are they talking about?
I watch as Audrey's expression changes into genuine... disappointment?
"Why the hell did you lie to me? I told you I'd never deliberately hurt even my worst enemy like that. That I'd never hurt anyone like that." She grits her teeth, fighting back tears. "I told you everything, Zack. I poured my heart out to you because I thought that we had something in common, because I thought you liked me."
Zack shuts his eyes tightly for a moment, and when he opens them again, they're red with guilt and regret.
"I shouldn't have come to you, okay? I'm sorry I lied to you..."
My mouth drops open when Audrey slaps him right across his face.
"You didn't just lie to me, you dick! You used me. You slept with me, you literally lived with me the whole of last week." Her voice turns softer. "You hurt me, Zack. I hope you know that."
Zack clenches his jaw again, seeming unfazed by the slap.
"I know. And I'm going to do everything in my power to make it up to you, but I just want you to...promise that you'll never tell Aubrey. I'll lose her forever."
I thought my heart couldn't drop lower than it did before, but it just did.
So that's where he was last week. With Audrey. He slept with her.
"You have to tell her. She has to know." Audrey says. I never thought that I'd ever see her act...concerned about something.
"And I will tell her, at my own time."
He's not even planning to tell me the truth anytime soon.
I don't even remember moving my feet, all I know is that I just have to get out of there. He told me that he couldn't stand being around me. I guess I know why now.
"What took you so long?" Peyton says as I push into the bathroom for the second time. Erika is standing in her underwear by the sink and when the both of them turn to face me, I know that they sense something is wrong. But I'm not in the mood to talk to anyone right now.
"What happened?" Erika asks, worry etched on her face.
I can't even bring myself to speak. I just toss the tampon to her, and run out of the bathroom.
He was with her.
I'm not even aware of where I'm going, until I crash into someone's hard chest. And I would've fallen hard if not for the hands that come around me.
"Whoa! What's the rush?"
I'm unable to respond, because all that's ringing in my head is the fact that he stayed with her.
He slept with her.
I push myself out of his hold, running through the mass of students towards the exit.
"Aubrey, what's going on?" Zack asks me the minute he catches up to me.
I still don't say anything, shrugging away when he takes my hand one more time. My attempt proves to be futile as he doesn't let me go.
"Just leave me alone." I say. In my mind, I'm yelling a thousand profanities at him, but in reality, my voice is calm. And I have no idea why.
"Not until you talk to me. Why are you so upset?"
His hold on me is firm, and soft at the same time. I hate the way my body responds to him. I hate how pleasantly intoxicating his presence is. But most of all, I hate how much power he has over me.
"I'm not upset."
I'm fucking wrecked.
I try to move away from him again, but he pulls me into his chest, and the impact of our chests colliding together makes me gasp.
"What have I told you about keeping things to yourself? Look at me, Aubrey."
He takes my chin between his thumb and forefinger, prompting me to look into his eyes.
I don't think I've ever seen him look this concerned in my life.
How could he not know what he did wrong? Why would he rather lie to me than tell me the truth, no matter how much it'll hurt?
Before I know what I'm doing, tears are streaming down my face.
"Did you sleep with her?" Is the first question out of a thousand that escapes my tongue.
His brows furrow slightly for a moment, before realisation creeps in and his worry is replaced by guilt.
This time, when I push myself away from him, he releases me.
"Aubrey, I can explain..."
"I saw the way you were with her. I saw the way she looked at you like...like you were the only thing in the entire world that mattered to her. Tell me what else is there to explain, Zack, because it all seemed pretty clear to me."
"It's not that simple." He starts, moving closer to me, making my anger to only intensify.
"Oh yeah? Well, let me make it simple for you. While you were out sleeping with Audrey for who knows how long, I was fucking Eric." I regret those words the moment they're out of my mouth, because nothing would have prepared me for the way he looks at me. But what's done is done. I can't take my words back.
"What?" His voice is barely above a whisper, and I will myself not to collapse there and then, and instead, focus on keeping a poker face, despite how messed up my insides are.
"You told me to let myself get angry, Zack. This is me doing just that." I pause, shaking my head slightly. "Things were so much easier before our feelings got in the way."
And then I'm walking away from him, taking my phone out to dial Alex.