Divine Blue [Book One]

Chapter Twenty-Two

It was a chilly Monday morning, and a fog still hung in the air. Taylor was driving to school. Her mind raced. She wasn't sure how this day was going to go in the aftermath of what happened on Friday night. Between neutralizing the mugger, getting picked up by Sarai and Samuel for anything but a joy ride, and then having to do the worst thing Taylor felt she had ever had to do—breaking up with Adrienne—she hoped it couldn't get much worse. She spent much of the day before relaxing around the house with Sandra, who had been relentless in her efforts to keep Taylor distracted.

The dread was even more palpable as she turned into the school parking lot. She noticed Adrienne's black car in the lot a few spaces away. Taylor's heart skipped a beat, wondering whether Adrienne was still in her car. As she pulled into her own space, however, Taylor could see the car was empty. She wasn't sure what she was expecting because she knew she would see Adrienne inside the school at some point.

Taylor turned off the car and grabbed her backpack next to her in the passenger seat, placed her keys inside, and got out. She headed for the side door that opened into the back of the gymnasium. She walked across the gym floor over to the bleachers closest to the hallway where most students had gathered in their groups of friends. She immediately spotted Lizzie who waved her over, without smiling. Adrienne and the rest of them were nowhere in sight.

"Hey, Taylor," Lizzie said to her.

"Morning," Taylor replied.

"How are you?"

"Really not wanting to be here."

"I didn't want to pry, but I heard about what happened between you and Adrienne."

"Yeah."

"Why did you break up with her?"

"I'm not really in the mood to talk about it anymore, to be honest, Lizzie."

"You hurt one of my really close friends, and I even consider you to be one of my friends. I'm just trying to figure out what to do to keep the peace and keep everyone happy."

"Did they not tell you what happened?"

"Only that you kept repeating that your relationship wasn't right, that you couldn't talk about why because of something going on in your life, and that it was to protect Adrienne."

"Then you have the full scoop."

"Taylor, forgive us for being incredibly skeptical here, but you pushing out all these vague responses isn't really helping anyone."

"You have no idea."

"Then give me an idea."

"I can't. You know as much as you can."

"This is complete horseshit, Taylor!"

The entire gymnasium fell silent. Everyone's eyes landed in their direction.

Taylor felt her mouth slide open in surprise. "It's not... horseshit... Lizzie. It's the truth," Taylor whispered, after recovering.

Slowly, the students around them returned to their own conversations.

"Look, I'm really hoping you come to your senses about all of this because I really like you, Taylor, and I want you to be part of our group. But until then, it's probably best if you keep your distance. That includes lunch," Lizzie told her. The school bell rang and Lizzie walked off.

Taylor stood in that spot for a moment longer, trying to absorb the news she had just been given. Other students gave her quick glances as they moved past her, their curious faces trying to discern why she continued only standing there. Taylor looked down at her feet, memorizing the way her shoe laces draped across each side, every streak of dirt, every thread of the fabric. She wondered how she was even able to keep walking around. They felt as if they would collapse under the weight.