Afterglow ❃ l.m.j

• chapter fourteen •

The harsh pinching of my arm was the only sensation I could register as one of my favorite blondes pulled me into her office the next day.

"Ow! Is everything okay? Why are you grabbing me, what's wrong?" I quipped, looking down at my joint that was temporarily turning red.

"I'm sorry, I found out who's on the footage."

My eyes nearly popped out of my head. My voice dropped down to a whisper as if whoever did it could be in the room. "Oh my god, who?"

Ally hunched over her office chair, typing a few things into her keyboard. In a moment's notice, the screen filled with static and then footage with the resolution of a 2009 YouTube video.

In the video you could see a woman with blonde hair peeking out of a baby pink hoodie, gliding a key across my car. A black purse with rhinestones glistened in her wake.

"Who is that?" I pointed, looking between Ally and the screen. She held up a finger to silence me as we both kept watching.

After a few minutes, there was a split second head turn, but it was too quick for me to identify the face.

"Who is that?" I asked again, looking from Ally to the screen and back.

She rewinded the clip about two times. Still, my face was as perplexed as ever. She huffed, typing into her keyboard with more force this time. "Lauren."

At the sound of my name, I straightened myself out. I looked down at her with my eyebrow raised. She thumped the space bar to pause it and pointed at the assailant.

"I've only seen one person walk outside of my office in a similar outfit."

"That could literally be any of us, I've seen like eight of us dressed like that today." I huffed, holding my hand up in anguish.

"Yes, but this night? I know who it was, I remember." The house mother said, moving around her chair to reach for a folder on her desk. She started mindlessly fixing up some papers as she spoke. "She was one of the last to leave that night. It's literally my job to know these things."

"Okay." Bumps raised to my arms. A small pit of fire erupted in my chest at the idea that I was potentially hearing something I didn't really want to know. "So who is it? Just tell me already, you're making me really nervous."

Allyson took a deep breath and side eyed me. "Before I tell you, I need you to understand that this doesn't leave this office. I shouldn't even be showing you this, but because I know that I can trust you, I am."

I nodded gingerly. "Yeah, okay, you know I wouldn't do that to you. Who is it?"

She paused as if to contemplate her decision one more time. Her voice was on the quieter side so that only the two of us could hear it. "Cherry."

The fire in my chest got richer as my eyes squinted in her direction. "I'm sorry?"

The short blonde shook her head as if she already wanted to burn the information from her brain. "Yes."

"I— Wha— No way. Why? What did I do?"

"I don't know. But I do know I need to do something because this isn't going to fly in my club." Ally sighed. "Which is also why I'm bringing it to you. She doesn't know that we have this footage yet. Are you comfortable with us saying something?"

"I mean..." My eyesight scoured the floor as I tried to come to terms with the news I just heard. I looked around the room frantically before setting into a nearby chair. My hands ran over my face and into my hair. I sunk my head into my lap. The best I could do was steady my breathing in an effort to calm down. Whispers of, "Oh my god..." wouldn't stop leaving my lips.

"Peach, don't freak out. We'll handle this."

Despite her words, I couldn't help but hear the sound of my own heartbeat.

"What's so wrong with me that this happens to me? What did I do to deserve this? I don't even really talk to her!"

Deep behind my eyelids, I could feel tears beginning to burn. I lifted my head to look up at the ceiling and will them away.

"This is not fucking happening." I whined. "I have a set, I don't have time for this. I can't be this upset when I have to go on stage, Ally, oh my god."

My pout was milliseconds away from turning into an ugly cry when she put her hand on my shoulder. Allyson began to rub circles on my back in an attempt to calm me down.

"I'm sorry. I didn't tell you because I wanted to overwhelm you. I understand if you need a minute or you don't feel comfortable doing your set after this. Whatever you need, I'm here."

I took a deep breath, allowing space for the tears to fall. I forcefully wiped them away.

"I just don't understand it."

"I know."

"I didn't do anything wrong... How just — how could she say those things about me?"

"I don't know. But I will get to the bottom of it. You just let me know what to do."

I stewed in silent madness for a few minutes, glaring at the ground. It was hard not to let my thoughts race. There was so much to ruminate and consider.

I took another deep breath and looked straight into Ally's eyes.

"I just need some time. Give me fifteen to think about it."

"Are you sure?"

I shook my head. "Yes and no. But time is the only way I'll know for sure."

"Okay. Okay, I can do that. Do you want to sit in here?"

I hummed in agreement, hanging my head down so my hair hung over my face. I felt the tears returning to me all over again.

"Okay." Allyson started to walk towards me when her phone started ringing. "Shit, I have to take this. Um... Okay, you stay here, I'll be right back, okay? If anyone knocks, just pretend the office is empty."

I nodded silently and listened for the pitter patter of feet and the door hinges before allowing my shoulders to slump. Being overwhelmed with emotions was hard. Having nowhere to place them was even harder.