Page 22 of Fake It For Love (Faux Love)
“I don’t know who you are,” I said. “Not anymore. I don’t dislike you. I just don’t care to be around you and your friends. I don’t like your friends.”
“Fair enough,” she replied.
The girl looked defeated. I didn’t care for what her friend did to me or the way Claire stuck by Norah like I was the villain in the relationship, but whatever. Right now, Claire looked like she was having it rough.
“Boy trouble?” I joked.
She looked at me with sad eyes. A tear trailed down her cheek. The fact that her mascara was still firmly in place was a testament to the expensive cosmetics she used. She could probably go swimming and still look good. “You could say that.”
“Sorry,” I muttered.
I had no idea who she was seeing. I tried not to keep up with the soap opera those girls seemed to live in. I had always felt like I was an outcast because I chose to be. I didn’t like the same things my peers did. I didn’t want to hang out and toss a ball around for no reason. My idea of fun was learning something new about flying and how to fly.
“I’m sure there will be other guys,” I said. “We graduate soon. High school will be a distant memory.”
She made a choking sound. “If only my problem would go away after graduation.”
I looked at her. My first thought was pregnancy. She got knocked up and the guy wanted nothing to do with her. “Oh,” I said. “I’m sure you’ll get help from your family and friends. You won’t have to raise it on your own.”
She wiped at her tears. “I’m not pregnant,” she snapped. “I’m broke!”
The tears started in earnest once again.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
“My dad. I just can’t believe him. He completely screwed over his family. He’s a selfish man. It’s all gone! Everything is gone. We have nothing. I have nothing. No college fund. We have to sell the house. Mom has to sell her jewelry. If there is anything of value, we have to sell it.”
“The stock market?” I asked.
She scoffed. “I wish. That would be understandable. No. He gambled it. All of it. He’s been lying to my mother for months. Her car got repossessed and that was when he finally had to admit what he’d done to us. I’ll get to graduate from here, but then we’re moving upstate. I have to get a job. I won’t get to go to college. My mom has to get a job, too. How humiliating!”
“I’m sorry,” I said again. “That sounds like it’s going to be a rough road. It will be hard, but you’ll make it.”
Her head whipped around so fast I worried it would spin right off. “Hard!” she screamed. “Like you or anyone here knows anything about hard! Especially you. You’re the guy with his head in the clouds. You don’t even know what’s happening around you. You have no idea what it’s like to lose everything! You’ll never know what this feels like!”
I hoped she was right. I wasn’t taking her outrage too personally. She was upset and I was the idiot that sat down. She was venting her frustration on me. I sure as hell had nothing to do with what was really bothering her. I could take it. If it made her feel better, I would let her scream for hours.
Listening to her yell and insult me was better than being inside the gym.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I know it’s not much comfort, but I am legitimately sorry you’re going through this.”
She growled and clenched her fists before the sobs started once again. The girl sounded broken. Her sobs were deep and choking her. I did the only thing I knew to do. I scooted closer to her, wrapped my arm around her shoulder, and pulled her against me. She didn’t fight it. She sagged against my chest with deep, body-wracking sobs escaping her. I could feel my shirt getting wet. I didn’t care. I simply held her and let her cry.
I understood why she was sad. I didn’t think it was quite world-ending, but for a pampered girl like Claire, it was. The music from the gym spilled into the courtyard. I would sit here all night if she needed me to.
Finally, her sobs began to slow. She drew in shaky breaths and finally pulled away from me. I watched her take a deep breath and collect herself.
She turned to look at me in the shadowy courtyard. “I would appreciate it if you kept this to yourself.”
“Which part?” I asked like an asshole.
She glared at me. “All of it. No one knows about my father and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“Understood.”
“And this,” she said and waved a hand. “Please don’t tell anyone I cried out here. With you.”
“I wouldn’t dare. Besides, no one cares what I have to say anyway.” I smiled weakly at her, and she looked into my eyes for a few seconds, weighing me up, before she nodded.
Then she got up and walked away with her chin held high. I looked down at my tux. The white shirt was wet with makeup smudges. Her expensive stuff didn’t hold up to the total breakdown.
I felt like I had enough memories of this night. Instead of going back into the gym, I walked around the side and hailed myself a cab. I was done with high school bullshit. All I had left was the formality of graduation. Then I was out of here.
I was on to bigger and better things.
