Page 3 of Intolerable Bishop

“She ruined my laptop, and I was in the middle of sending an important document,” Theo growled.

“I’m sorry, but I didn’t know we were going to get hit with turbulence,” Ivy said, her eyes filled with tears.

“Theo, why don’t you go sit with the guys. I’ll sit with Ivy the rest of the flight unless, of course, you’d prefer for me to come sit with you?”

He angrily stuffed his computer in his bag. “I’ll move.”

He looked like a pissed-off hornet ready to sting anyone who got in his way. He stood, glared at me, and then flopped down dramatically beside Blake, who was trying very hard not to laugh. I gave Ivy’s arm a squeeze as she continued to stare at Theo. She looked devastated.

“Sit by the window,” I said softly, and Ivy did as I asked.

“I didn’t mean to ruin his computer. I was just trying to be nice and got him a drink. My first chance to hang out with the Kings, and I’m blowing it. I’m such a loser,” she whispered.

“No you are not a loser, don’t say that. Theo takes time to warm up to anyone. I’ve been dating Myles since Christmas, and I’m still not sure if we’re friends.” She sighed and put her head against the window. “Hey, what’s going on? You have seemed off the last couple days, and I know Theo can be a jerk, but I think it’s more than that.”

Ivy’s bottom lip trembled, and a tear slipped free and slid down her cheek. I quickly moved to the middle seat and pulled her into a hug. She softly shook as she fought not to cry.

“Ivy, talk to me, what’s wrong? Is it your dad? Did he do something before we left?” She shook her head no.

“Zigzag broke up with me,” she whispered and began to cry. I held her tighter. “He said I was annoying.” Well, I knew whose balls I was ripping off next year. “And that he didn’t want to be with a loser like me.”

“That doesn’t sound like Zigzag. He didn’t seem interested in status stuff at all,” I said, and she shook her head.

“He wasn’t until he started hanging out with this new group from Meadow Grove. It’s like his whole personality changed, and I don’t think it helped that I took him to see my home. I guess when he said money didn’t matter to him, it was a lie.” I didn’t know what Ivy’s house looked like, but that was still no reason to break up with her. “I know it’s stupid, but I thought that if I could make friends with the Kings, then he would be sorry for breaking up with me.”

“He doesn’t deserve you. Who you’re friends with, where you live, or how much money you have shouldn’t be the reason he chooses to date you.”

Ivy glanced over at Myles, Theo, and Blake and sighed. “It’s not that I want to date the Kings, I want to be clear,” she said, her voice dropping to a whisper. “I just…I know it’s stupid, but for once, I didn’t want to feel like I was being punched in the face for who I am, who my dad is, or what we don’t have because he gambles and drinks all our money away.” Ivy sat up straight and wiped away the tears. “It’s so easy to feel like you mean nothing at Wayward.” I knew exactly what she meant. “Getting to hang out with you and them…it makes me feel special, but instead one of them now hates me.”

“No one hates you. Besides, you can forget all about that for the next month. You’re going to meet Lizzy, and it’s gonna be a blast. We’ll make sure that Zigzag knows you’re not sitting around pining for his jerk ass.” She smiled.

“Thank you for letting me tag along. I really am excited. I know it’s hard to tell at the moment.” Ivy pointed to her puffy eyes, and we laughed.

We chatted and giggled until the captain announced that we would be landing soon. My stomach flipped and twisted with the nervousness and excitement of coming home. Yes, I wanted to do this, but there was unresolved pain here that I was going to have to face. I wasn’t even sure if I could walk into my mum’s old room without turning into a sobbing mess, but it was something that I would eventually have to face.

Clapping ensued as soon as the wheels touched down, and with each passing second, my nervousness rose a little higher. I stood, but it wasn’t until Myles rubbed his thumb across my cheek that I realized I was staring into space.

“Are ya good?”

I nodded. “Yeah, I am.” He pulled down my carry-on suitcase for me but held onto the handle until I reassured him again that I was okay. I wasn’t sure where to head once we exited the plane, and we just followed the crowd until we reached customs. I showed my passport and said that I was going home. The words were like sucking on a lemon and then taking a spoonful of sugar separately.

Baggage was a nightmare, and none of this seemed to help Theo’s disposition. I got why he was coming, but I wished he’d stayed behind if he was going to act like this was a death sentence.

The moment we exited the baggage area and I spotted Lizzy’s blonde hair bobbing as she bounced from foot to foot, all the nervousness was wiped away.

Squealing, I ran to her, and her eyes lit up as we collided. We ended up hugging and spinning around in a wild, shrieking, jumping mess of excitement.

“Oh my god, you’re actually here,” Lizzy practically screamed in my ear. “I never thought I was going to see you again.” Lizzy pulled back and gripped me by my shoulders, looking me up and down. “You look freaking incredible. God, I’ve missed you, Boo.”

“I’ve missed you too.” I smiled wide. “Soo, I have a confession. I brought some people to meet you.”

“You didn’t?” Lizzy’s mouth fell open as she peered around my shoulder. “Shut the front door and smack me stupid. You brought eye candy,” she squealed and then leaned in and whispered in my ear. “Holy shitballs, you could’ve warned me. I look like a homeless person.”

“You do not,” I said as she smoothed down her already perfect hair. I shook my head at her.

“Come on, let me introduce you to everyone.” I held out my hand to Ivy. “This is Ivy, and she has been a godsend since the first moment I arrived at Wayward.”

Ivy held out her hand, but Lizzy yanked her into a hug. “Thank you for looking out for Ren. I was so worried about her. She really needs someone watching her back.”