Page 96 of Colton

Sophia rolls her eyes. “Yes. Don’t worry, I’m following your instructions perfectly.”

“Speaking of her wedding,” I say, sitting up on my bed. “We need to prepare a bachelorette party.”

“Way ahead of you,” Sophia scoffs, as if it’s the most obvious thing. “A week-long trip to Bali. The three of us and Lila.”

I glance at Grace. “You don’t want your sister there?”

Grace sneers at the question. “I’d rather travel the Appalachian Mountains during Friday the 13th, in the middle of the night, alone, than ever invite that cunt.”

“That’s an overreaction if I ever heard one,” I roll my eyes.

“It’s not an overreaction if it’s the truth,” Grace folds her arms in front of her chest. “Besides, she wouldn’t come if I invited her. So, no family members, or I’ll die.”

“Alright, alright, we get it,” Sophia says. “I booked everything for the last week of July. All you need to do is show your asses to the airport.”

“Anyway,” I clear my throat. “I’ll be gone this weekend.”

“With Colton?” Sophia asks, and I nod. “Next week’s our graduation, so you better be here. I want us all to be together.”

“I’ll be there, I promise,” I smile.

To absolutely no one’s surprise, Sophia graduated top of the class, with Soren one spot below her. Whether he did it to appease her, or if she’s that much better than him, will forever remain a mystery. But she’s happy, and he’s happy that she’s happy, and that’s all that matters.

Grace opens her mouth to speak, but clamps it shut when her phone rings. Then, Sophia’s rings next, mine following suit. We exchange a glance, and there are no words needed. Only one thing would make all our phones go off at the same time, and it’s not the group chat. It’s that damned website.

With a sigh, I grab my phone, unlock it, and open the email. It’s none other than Sinners and Saints, and quite frankly, I shouldn’t be surprised anymore. Their posts have been far and between after the dust has settled between these two couples, and there was nowhere as juicy as that kind of gossip to report.

My eyes narrow a little when I skim through the title, though I continue reading, sliding my finger across the screen, gliding it down.

What better way to end the school year than to report the juiciest gossip of them all?

The question’s staring back at me, the massive headline shimmering — yes, it has an actual shimmering effect. The letters are in bold, a pretty shade of pink, with a white outline and the shimmers.

‘Ever since the academic year began, we’ve been slowly compiling evidence and have decided to end the year with quite the loud bang. Though, we’re not as innocent as to let it go on until the actual end, as we’d like to hear everyone’s opinion on this.

No one can deny just how amazingly good looking our dean is. Well, what if we told you he’s captured a student’s heart? One of our very own? And that it’s reciprocated?’

The moment I read through the first two paragraphs, my grip on the phone tightens, and my blood runs cold. My heart starts beating in my chest, and every single fear I’ve had over the course of the past months resurfaces, stronger than ever.

Because when I scroll down, it’s all there.

The first couple of pictures are from the beginning of the year, when I was sneaking through the teacher’s part of the dormitory, either late at night or early in the morning. In each one, Colton’s right there with me, holding my hand, leading me out of the hallways.

The other images are from that damned weekend at Saint Valley — the very first one I spent with him. Pictures were taken from the outside window of the boutique and the restaurant, and they clearly show how cozy Colton and I were.

Then, the images from New Year’s, with Colton’s suit matching my dress, and him holding me closely. If it weren’t for this situation, I’d find the image very pretty. We’re facing each other, my smile’s wide from ear to ear, and Colton’s hand is on my waist, his lips kissing my forehead.

And most recently — the images from the lake, where he has the small box open, and my face filled with shock. It was taken from a distance, so you can’t zoom in on the jewelry inside the box, but to anyone seeing this, it definitely looks like a proposal.

My hand is trembling by the time I reach the final paragraph under the images, and I’m barely holding everything in. My heart physically hurts, as if I’m about to get a heart attack.

Unlike the image that resurfaced at the beginning of the school year, this onedoesn’t have my face blurred.

‘We’re almost certain that it’s not what it seems,’ the paragraph starts, the condescending tone evident through the words, ‘because there’s no chance the Dean who fired a teacher earlier in the year for being involved with a student would be doing the exact same thing. Right? We’ll let you decide. Happy graduation, C & A!’

By the time I’m finished reading, the screen is blurry. The tears silently stream down my cheeks, and even my head starts aching. I’m not moving, except for a slight tremor in my body, and when the phone drops from my hands and lands on the floor, both Sophia and Grace are on either side of me.

Sophia’s arms wrap around me, and she’s holding me in such a tight embrace, as if she’s afraid I’ll disappear. The warmth of the hug makes me hiccup, and the tears freely roam down my face, staining my cheeks.