Life's Unexpected Turn

Chapter 17: Hopefulness

*Bailey's POV*

Even though time was passing rather rapidly since Parker left the restroom, it felt as if it actually stood still. While Victoria blew my phone up, I changed my ring settings to silent instead of on vibrate. There's no point in being physically notified by her constant texts and calls if I don't plan on responding anyway. I then put myself in a more comfortable position and leaned against the wall. I set a thirty-minute alarm, closed my eyes, and took a little nap, drifting off quite quickly.

The second my alarm went off, I was startled awake. I don't always get naps or a good night's sleep, so this felt good. I slowly stretched and stood, ready to leave the restroom and head to class. I'm surprised no one came in. I tentatively proceeded to my destination and began feeling so many emotions as soon as I reached the door; anxiousness was the most vital. How is Victoria going to react when she sees me? I hope she doesn't make a scene or harm me further...

It didn't matter how uneasy I felt, I needed to walk inside, and though my heart hammered in my chest, I realized that no amount of breathing seemed to help. Upon entering, I knew I had disrupted a lecture and was curious about what lesson I was missing. In the back of my mind, I hoped the classroom would be colder than the bathroom, but it wasn't, and I sighed. Why is coming late to class so nerve-wracking? Parker and some of my classmates looked my way, most likely wondering who had entered, bothering them. I was glad when half of the class didn't focus on me, but I made the mistake of looking at Victoria.

Instantly, evil eyes were searing through my body, ripping my soul apart solely for her amusement. Fuck, she's furious... this won't go well... Sitting down was the hardest; not only did it hurt, but Victoria also leaned close enough to mutter, "How dare you make a fucking fool of me like this?! So, what? You can't tell the time now? I really hope for your sake that she makes you pay, you fucking useless piece of shit. If she doesn't do anything about your disobedience, I will."

I lowered my head in defeat.

In my peripheral vision, Professor Avery rose from where she sat and walked over to our table. She lowered her voice to a point where I believe only myself and Victoria could hear and said, "Bailey, it's not very wise to come to class late when your grades are steadily declining. Not to mention you've missed the pop quiz and half of our new lesson. I'm sorry, but this is unacceptable; you will have to stay after class. I'm assigning additional projects and classwork to you in the hope that you can actually pass."

Even though it was a ruse, hearing those words made me never want to hear such things from Parker again.

My head lifted just enough to maintain eye contact with my teacher as I replied, "Y-yes, ma'am. I'm sorry... It won't happen again..."

Parker nodded without saying anything else and walked back to her desk. While the class waited for their next instruction, Victoria snickered at what transpired between Professor Avery and me, and I prayed the plan worked. God, I hope everything Parker just said makes my girlfriend happy enough so she can leave me alone when I get home. At that moment, I truly realized just how wrong it felt to refer to Victoria as my girlfriend.

~

The last hour passed rather quickly, and after we were given our assignments, about ten minutes of the class remained. I knew I couldn't observe her as much as I wanted because Victoria always watched me. Not only that, but for my teacher's plan to work, I also needed to sell my part, so I just looked at nothing in particular. I hope Parker knows I wasn't ignoring her lesson; I heard everything, as I always do. The calming voice of Professor Avery then spoke as she dismissed my class by saying, "You guys are free to leave. Bailey, take out your notebook and prepare yourself for the pop quiz you missed."