𝐷𝐴𝑌𝐿𝐼𝐺𝐻𝑇 - 𝑇𝐻𝐼𝑅𝑇𝐸𝐸𝑁 𝑅𝐸𝐴𝑆𝑂𝑁𝑆 𝑊𝐻𝑌

26. ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜʀᴛ

Mani walked towards her new class, scrolling through her phone, reading the newest gossip from around the world, when she saw Bryce, Scott and Thomas approaching Tyler who stood by his locker. She heard Tyler's testimony that day, and knew that Bryce probably wasn't happy.

„I saw other guys fucking with you, I told them to back off." she heard Bryce say as she slowly approached the group, avoiding looking at Thomas as she stopped behind Tyler. „So why are you talking about me in court?"

„Leave him alone, Bryce." Armani spoke up, earning the boys' attention. Bryce's eyes softened slightly as he met her gaze, his jaw clenched as he looked between the two.

„Stay out of this, Mani." the Walker boy said sharply, returning his glare to Tyler.

„Jesus, how do you know that already? Did Clay tell you?" Tyler asked, totally ignoring the girl who now stood by his side. Bryce shook his head.

„Doesn't matter how, just tell me why you talked." he said, not looking away from Tyler. Mani sighed and stepped between the two, glaring at Bryce. The boy took a step back, looking down at her.

„Cause your little darkroom threat doesn't scare me." Tyler said, causing both Bryce and Mani to frown in confusion.

„What „darkroom threat"?"' Bryce asked, visibly not knowing what the boy was talking about. Mani narrowed her eyes, feeling that something was off.

„Walk away." she repeated lowly, but froze when Thomas took a step closer to her. He leaned down do that he was at her level and smirked.

„Or what? I don't see Monty around to help you." he teased, making the girl clench her jaw. She felt something snap - and with the sudden rush of confidence, she pushed the boy back with all her force.

„You think I need Monty by my side to deal with you?" she hissed, and watched in satisfaction as Thomas' eyes widened in shock. „You back the fuck away, and leave us alone." she snapped, pointing her finger at him and Bryce.

„Mr. Walker?" a voice spoke up from behind them, making all teens look towards it, seeing Mr. Porter approaching them. Bryce clenched his jaw, turned away and motioned for his friends to follow him.

„You okay?" Mani asked Tyler, who shot her a dirty look, causing her to take a step back.

„Why do you care?" he snapped, making the girl raise her arms and scoff.

„You're right, I don't. Prick." she muttered and turned around, slowly walking away.

„Yo, Mani." a voice made her stop and wait for Zach to catch up. She sent him a small smile as the two continued walking. „So, uh. How are you feeling before today?"

The thing was, it was Armani's turn to testify later that day. She got a call from the school, informing her that she was to give her testimony in court a few hours after Tyler.

„I don't know." she muttered, looking to the ground with a sigh. „I'm scared about what they're gonna ask me, you know?" she added, looking up at Zach, only to find him looking at Clay.

She followed his eyes and saw the Jensen boy kneeling to pick something up. She tried to get a closer look - it seemed like a polaroid picture. She shrugged and looked back at Zach, who shook his head and returned his focus to her.

„I'm sure you'll be okay, Mani." he reassured, but he didn't sound so sure of his words. The girl sighed and rubbed her nose.

„I'm gonna go find Jess. I promised her I'll walk with her to the cheerleading training." she muttered and quickly walked away.