Office Hours

16 | the d o u b t

| G R A C E |

GRACE TRIED NOT TO LET HER ANGER SHOW while Emily showed her the phone.

Who's this?, she thought. Is this why he broke up with me yesterday?

"She's ugly," Emily nastily spat, looking at the screen with a disgusted sneer.

Grace didn't agree. As much as she didn't like what she saw, she had to admit that this girl was beautiful.

Grace looked away, having seen enough. It was bad enough that she was nursing a broken heart, now she had to deal with pictures and videos of him dancing on some girl? They looked like they were truly enjoying themselves while being in-sync with each other, as if it was a dance they'd been practicing all their lives for that exact amount. Grace had to admit it painted her the brightest shade of envy.

"Ugly like Lizbeth," said Lindsey, making the small group of cheerleaders giggle.

Grace scowled at the statement. "What do you have against Lizbeth? She's dead and was our teammate."

"So?" asked Emily with a nonchalant shrug. "She was ugly. I don't know how she even made it on the team."

We had so many sleepovers where Emily said Lizbeth's the prettiest of the group but I always thought that's Phaydra.

"I know how Lizbeth made the team, but Phaydra?" said another cheerleader, making Grace stiffen. "That was shocking."

"Right!" Emily agreed with a quick nod of her head. "She always gave. . . hoodrat. What kind of name is Phaydra?" she asked, making everyone except Grace laugh in agreement.

The bell rang and everyone gathered their books, leaving behind Grace who had a free period. She buried her head in an American Government textbook, struggling to focus on words that were a big, blurry blob.

All she could think about was the girl dancing on Caden.

Grace took her latest iPhone out and found the GreySlate homepage. The first post was the one from last night: her ex-boyfriend dancing with the girl.

Zoya.

Grace wanted to be bitter and think, 'What kind of name is Zoya?', but hatred had never been a part of her being.

Though if she were to put aside that trait for once. . . she would have to admit that she hated how happy Caden looked. There was no visible tension marring his face and he had this aura of happiness shrouding him like an impenetrable shield. He was obviously happier than he ever was during all the months they'd been together.

You weren't exactly a couple, her subconscious gently reminded her.

Sighing, Grace put away her phone. She couldn't bare to look at the picture any longer.

Gathering her books, she made to leave the library when the librarian called her over.

"Yes, Miss Justice?" Grace greeted with the fake smile she'd mastered through years of public appearances with her dad.

"Grace, you don't have to call me Miss," Justice said with a laugh. "We went to school together, remember?"

"Yes, you were a sophomore or senior when I started. I can't remember, but I still have to give you respect."

Justice smiled. "This is what sets you aside from those other cheerleaders, Grace. You have a bright soul but you're making those girls dim your light. I've been in the position you were in and I'm telling you it's not worth it."

"They're my friends," Grace defended.

"Friends? You hear how they talk about Lizbeth and Phaydra, God rest their beautiful souls. I bet you can imagine all the things I hear on a daily in this quiet library. . . I'm telling you, Grace, they aren't your friends. You need to drop them."