Find a Penny, Pick Her Up

Chapter 15

It was quieter than it had been all night. The mood dropped instantly, and I stared back at Annie - feeling empty and cold and full of rage all at once. 

Aaron let out a whistle. "I thought this was supposed to be a fun game." 

Justin, looking pissed, shook his head. "Annie, you're such a bitch." 

Hampton put a hand on my thigh, but I barely felt it. In a low murmur only I could hear, he said, "Are you okay?"

 My head snapped to his, and I searched his face for an ounce of surprise. Confusion. Anything that suggested he had no idea what Annie was talking about. "Why are you acting like you already knew?" 

Hampton glanced to the sand, took a breath, and then back at me without a word. 

"You're joking," I croaked out, my fingers trembling. Hampton was just shaking his head, putting a hand over mine to try and stop me in my tracks. But it wasn't working. Hampton was just like them; vindictive and manipulative and immature. Why did I think he would be any different? 

Right then, I felt my walls come up once again. I stood, crossing through the circle and away from it all. 

"Penny!" Hampton yelled after me, but I kept walking. My shoes were back by the coolers, but there was no way I was going back for them. 

"Penny, wait," he said, grabbing my hand. 

I pulled away, and there were tears streaming down my face. "You knew this whole time? Who told you? Was it Annie? Justin?" 

"I didn't tell him anything," Justin suddenly jogged into view. 

I threw up my hands, feeling humiliated that my mascara was probably streaming down my face. "Great! Just what I need right now." 

"What does that mean?" Justin asked. 

"It means that you're always there, and I don't want want you to be." I was talking fast and without a thought of repercussions, but I didn't care. 

"Penny," he paused. "Annie is just a bitch who has no idea what she's talking about-"

"You weren't there," I yelled, cutting him off. All the trauma left untreated from months of not visiting Dr. Yao were surfacing. It felt like every part of me was trembling. 

Justin looked like he'd been slapped. "So that's what this is about? You broke up with me because you're mad that I didn't come out and save you from making a mistake?"

I forgot Hampton was standing there, watching the explosion between the two of us. It only made me feel more humiliated. I took a breath, shaking my head. "No. But it sure would've helped." 

"Unbelievable," he muttered, throwing up his hands in surrender. "Have a nice life, Penny." He back stepped and headed toward the fire. 

"Do you want me to drive you home?" Hampton asked, reaching out to me.

 I pulled back. "How long have you known? About Jack?" 

He shrugged. "Since the first week of school." It was like the wind was knocked out of me. The first week of school? So all that time...he knew that I was killer. 

"So, what?" I laughed shortly without humor. "Did Annie put you up to this? 'Oh, let's play a joke on Penny and have the new guy hang out with her. It'll be hilarious' ." 

"What?" He looked confused. "That doesn't even make sense." 

"If you knew Annie the way I did, it does." 

"I would never do something like that," Hampton said. "And I knew that there's a different side to every story. I'm not stupid." I didn't answer, because I couldn't trust anyone. "Do you want to talk about it?"