Salty Licorice

Chapter 16

Liz's POV

Going into spirit day on Friday, I struggled to pick anything that I wanted to wear so I just went with a pair of simple gray jeans and my baggy gray crew neck sweater.

So that's what I'm wearing in first period listening to Mrs. Carson talk about optical illusions captured in photographs. I pull my sleeves over my hands and rest my chin on my closed fist, patiently waiting for the bell to ring. I look over to the clay room through the window to see Marisa sitting reading a new book. I wonder why she isn't on the wheel today, or drawing like usual, but maybe she's just really excited about the book she's reading.

I look back to the front to notice Mrs. Carson is finished with her lecture early leaving us with a few extra minutes till the bell rings. I quickly put all my stuff away and rush into the clay room, standing next to Marisa. She's hunched over her book and is reading intently. I'm not sure if she's noticed my presence or not, so I lay my head on her shoulder and close my eyes, sinking into the feeling of her relaxing into my touch.

I feel her turn her head slightly and feel her finger tips brush my skin as she tucks some unruly strands behind my ear. I feel her warm lips press onto my forehead, and hear her take a quick quiet breath and I know she is about to say something.

"You okay bunny?" Her soft voice reaches my ear with delicacy.

"Yeah, you're just warm and comfortable," I admit, adjusting my head more into the crook of her neck.

"Comfortable, hmm?" She hums in amusement, I hear the crinkle of her book page getting turned. "I'm guessing that was meant to be a complement?"

"Shhh," I shush her and speak in a whisper. "You're ruining the moment."

There was a moment of sweet silence before the screeching sound of the bell, making me jump out of my skin. I hear Marisa snicker next to me, and I push her playfully still trying to calm my racing heart. I trudge into the hallway following the flow of the student body, trying to avoid getting bumped into while I hear Marisa snickering and mocking me for getting startled by the extremely predictable school bell. I just rolled my eyes trying to tune her out. I was fighting with myself to not take the earbuds that were hanging around her neck and use those to drown out her mockery. Lucky for me, or maybe her, we entered the gym and I escaped her to rush into the locker room.

Emily was laughing with her cheer friends in her gym shorts and her pink lace bra. I can't tell what her goal is, but I notice that she almost never wears her shirt in the locker room, it's like the last thing she puts on before she is practically forced to go to the gym. She certainly enjoys the attention, more than I initially realized when I first met her. She is full of all sorts of surprises, and tricks too I'm slowly coming to figure out.

Avery walks in sporting a gloomy look as she makes it to her locker. I've already nearly finished getting dressed, all I had to do was put on my shoes. When she sees me she lightens up a bit with a soft smile, but you can still see the heaviness in her eyes.

She doesn't get dressed as fast as she normally does so when she pulls off her shirt, I don't mean to but my curiosity got the better of me. I follow her movements from her lower abdomen and slowly bring my eyes up her newly revealed skin of her torso and black sports bra. I was admiring her toned abdomen till I saw the fading bruises along her upper body. Remanence from Jared's fist into her stomach, and suddenly guilt washed over me. Almost like Avery sensed my eyes she turns around and I get a view of her back.

"You saw what you did to her. They might not be from your fists but she got hurt because of you," Emily whispers into my ear before walking over to Avery and running a hand up her back from the small of Avery's back to her strong shoulder.