The Ineffable Ruth Rhodes

15 movie theatre

ruth

Ruth unlocked her phone quickly, reading Sumaiya's three messages as they came in.

1:33pm maiya ☀️

what class do u have next

half your classes are without them, you'll be fine

see no evil hear no evil 💜

1:37pm me

girl

they're in this class too 😭

2:12pm maiya ☀️

LMAO good luck not being eaten alive !

ur in my prayers 💜

also i hv smth to tell u after

Ruth pursed her lips, brows creasing as she typed in 'is everything oka'-- before someone called her name.

"Hey, Liora."

Ruth turned to the caller slightly, eyes landing on a boy and girl, both smiling at her kindly. That was maybe the second time that day.

"Hey," she said, putting her phone in her locker.

The girl spoke second, walking over and sitting on the bench beside her casually. "Have you talked to Millie lately?"

"Millie..." Ruth said, trying to recall. She nodded once. "Aaah! No, I haven't. Why?"

"Oh, she's pissed," the boy chimed in with a raise of his hand.

"Right..." Ruth said quietly, grabbing her shoes. They must've been friends. "You're all angry because I'm with Vincent."

"Nah," the guy said, looking to the girl as if they shared an inside joke. "I don't think that's why she's mad..."

They both laughed and the girl snorted.

"Why, then?" Ruth asked. She hated that she even asked.

He leaned against the locker beside him. "Well, she heard about the whole thing yesterday."

"How was he, by the way?" the girl asked, a genuine expression on her face.

"What?"

"Vincent told her about the whole thing."

Ruth blinked. Then she closed her locker softly and bent to tie her shoelaces. She tied them, and finally stood up. "What thing?" she asked calmly.

The girl laughed like Ruth was really funny. "C'mon! The whole spending the night thing."

"Who told you guys about that?"

A shoulder raised. "Pretty sure Vincent told her. That's what she told us, at least."

Ruth didn't know why, but she stiffened for a second, and her heart sort of did a skip. Yes, it wasn't like they'd done anything physically, but he had told her things she thought were important to him. She didn't really see why he'd go around telling people, especially when she wouldn't, even if it was for the purpose of furthering their fake relationship. She wondered if he'd told her all that because he wanted to be able to tell people— not because he wanted to tell her.

'Why would he tell her that?' Too forward. Ruth creased her brows slightly and plastered an impressed and surprised expression on her face, smiling kindly. "It's sweet that they're close enough to share that. Did he tell her about the other times too...? Or..."