When my aunt said we were going to pick Chaya up from school, I thought she meant an ordinary-looking school and not the freaking white house. Because that's what this place was.
Like, do you have any idea how many levels of security and the acres of land we drove past before I even got a glimpse of the school building? And, may I add, it was no ordinary structure; it had at least seven floors and appeared to be large enough to house over five thousand people.
Aunt Rhea parked her car right in front of a shrub that was trimmed to form a cupid. I didn't know how I managed to avoid eye contact with her throughout the ride; I could feel her eyes boring holes into my temple. I thought I was going to scream because I could not take anymore of the silence.
Why was she so quiet?
Why was she staring at me?
What was going through her mind?
"Go in there and find Chaya."
Okay, maybe I preferred when she was silent.
My lips formed a frown as I tilted my head backwards to get a good look at the top of the building. I wish she would give me more hints about where Chaya could be because it would take all day to find her. Besides, couldn't she just call Chaya to meet us here? I considered suggesting that idea to her, but something told me she was doing this on purpose.
"I don't have all day, Nyx!" She snapped, and I was out of the car in a heartbeat. As I pushed open the doors of the elegant school, I was immediately met by a long hallway. The students were not in uniform, much to my relief. I was worried I was going to stand out.
Yes, I still did.
Somehow, I managed to catch everyone's attention. Some even stopped their conversations just to get a good look at me.
I could tell what made me different the deeper I walked into the halls.
It was the style.
Each person wore something that was worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars; most of my clothes were gotten at Target. It felt like I was doing the walk of shame.
After several minutes of walking, my eyes fell on a familiar dark-skinned girl with scary eyes. "Faizah!"
I yelled—perhaps a little too loudly.
She turned to face me with a frown that made me stop in my tracks. But when she realized it was me, she smiled and said, "Hey, little chipmunk."
I came to a stop right in front of her, and I didn't know whether I was to be upset with her or not; she wasn't the one that forced me out last night. But she was our driver. Did she even notice I wasn't there when they left? It doesn't matter anyway; I didn't know her that well, so it felt weird holding a grudge against her.
"Do you know where Chaya is?" I asked, and she did nothing but stare at me for a while. I could see the war going on inside her as she contemplated whether to tell me or not. But then there was a bit of mischief in her eyes. What exactly was she thinking?
"She's on the fifth floor, the first door to your left. You can't miss it," she finally said, but for some reason I didn't trust her smile.
"Thanks…" I said, not bothering to hide my uncertainty. I could feel her eyes on me as I walked away. I could only hope I wasn't about to get dumped with a bucket of paint.
By the time I reached the fifth floor, the pain in my legs was unbearable. I walked for hours just yesterday, yet the ache I felt now could not compare; how was that even possible?
I turned to my left, and sure enough, there was a door. But then I could not help but notice how empty this floor looked. There wasn't a soul in sight. It only increased my anxiety as my hands neared the handle of the door.
When I made contact with the cold metal, it sent a shiver up my spine. The thought of going back down and telling my aunt I couldn't find Chaya crossed my mind, but my conscience would never let me do such a thing.
Pinching my eyelids shut, I pushed open the door, but after a few seconds, I was certain I wasn't going to get dumped over the head with paint. But when I opened my eyes, what I saw made me wish I was actually decorated with paint.
Anything would have been better than the sight I was unfortunate enough to behold.
Chaya was on her knees directly in front of a guy who had his pants down. His member was shoved deep down her throat, making a gurgling sound as she bobbed her head up and down. But yet somehow, that wasn't even the most shocking part.
No, the shocking part was that it wasn't Samuel who was receiving head from my cousin.
It was Jedidiah.
The tall male had his head rolled back and his mouth slightly ajar as he continued to relish in the pleasure my cousin gave him. I seemed to have lost control of my body because I had no idea when my body had slammed into a nearby table. Something must have fallen off it because the both of them suddenly froze and looked at me.
I quickly averted my gaze once Jedidiah's cock was in full view. I could feel my cheeks heat up, but it wasn't from embarrassment.
No, I was hurt.
Badly.
"Oh my God. Nyx, you are oka-"
"Your mom and I are waiting for you outside," was all I was capable of saying before rushing out of the class and heading down the stairs. I could feel my eyes sting with tears, but I dared not let them fall. Why would I be upset about something like that anyway?
Maybe because Jedidiah was someone I had actually had fun with for the first time in a while, even though I was not completely clear of the events of last night, I still felt good.
Or maybe it was because my cousin, my blood, left me stranded in a place I didn't know and was here giving some guy a blowjob.
Disgusting.
"Hey, did you find her?" I heard Faizah ask once I reached the bottom floor. I didn't look at her because if I did, she would see the threat my tears posed to escape.
"Yes," I said quickly before rushing toward the exit.
Before I was completely out of hearing range, I could have sworn I heard Faizah mutter an "I'm sorry."
I made sure to wipe my face before entering my aunt's car. "Did you find her?" I heard her ask.
"Yes, I did. She'll be out any minute," I whispered, making sure not to meet her eyes as I spoke.
Not more than three minutes later, Chaya joins us in the car. I would be lying if I said her very presence didn't irritate me; it's like she keeps doing things to hurt me intentionally.
"How was school, sweetie?" Aunt Rhea asked her daughter.
"Fine, Mom," Chaya answered, but I could feel her eyes on me.
The entire ride back home, or rather, their home, was spent with Aunt Rhea scolding me about how "irresponsible I was for sneaking out on my own last night."
A part of me wishes that Chaya would jump in and explain everything, but she didn't. Once the car came to a stop in their driveway, I was the first person to get out.
The last twenty four hours have been an absolute pain.
I stepped into my room, but I felt a presence behind me after the door shut. "Okay, let me explain," Chaya started, but I wasn't giving her that chance.
"It's clear as day that you don't want me here; if you want me out of your life, then say so because..."
I was cut short when Chaya suddenly wrapped her arms around me. I wanted to push her away, I wanted to scream at her, I wanted to break stuff but I couldn't. Instead, I melted into her arms and began to sob.
"I'm sorry," she whispered against my neck as she held me tighter. Sadly, I found myself doing the same.
"Why did you leave me?" I sobbed.
"I looked everywhere for you, I swear. To make things worse, I didn't have your number to call you. Then someone told me they saw you and Jedidiah leaving the club together. I called the bastard, but he didn't pick up. When I went home, I thought I'd find you there, but you weren't. I'm sorry."
Her story didn't make a bit of sense to me.
"Then what were you doing with him? Why were you cheating on Samuel with him?" I seethed, taking a step away from her just before she froze.
My eyes caught sight of her fist clenching before she said, "I'll tell you. But first swear to me that you'll never go anywhere near him."
I nodded slowly and wanted to tell her that she was the reason I even got to know him in the first place, but didn't.
Chaya took out her phone from her bag and began to scroll through it. When she faced the screen towards me, I wanted nothing more than to jump off a balcony.
On her phone was a picture of me lying completely nude in the room I had woken up in this morning. I broke down into another series of sobs after hearing what Chaya said next.
"He threatened to post these photos all over the internet if I didn't give him what he wanted. So yes, I cheated on my boyfriend to save your ass."