New Girl (Boys of tommen fanfic)

Twenty Three

Evie

The walk back to the car was tense, the silence only broken by the crunch of gravel under our shoes.

I could feel Owen's disapproval radiating off him, but now wasn't the time to hash out whatever issue he had with Masen. My main focus was on Ciara.

She sat quietly in the backseat, staring out the window as we drove home. I glanced at her through the rearview mirror, my stomach churning at the thought of what had just happened.

Who were those girls? Why did they target her?

"Evie?" Ciara's voice was soft, barely above a whisper. "You're not gonna tell Aunt Hellen, right?"

I sighed. "I don't know, Ciara. You were hurt."

"It wasn't that bad," she insisted, though the bruise forming on her cheek told a different story.

Owen snorted from the driver's seat. "Not bad? You were jumped by a bunch of kids. That's not normal, Ciara."

"Please," she said, her voice breaking slightly. "Just... not Aunt Hellen. She has enough to deal with already."

I bit my lip, torn between my instinct to protect her and respecting her wishes. "Fine," I relented after a moment. "But this can't happen again. If it does, I'm telling her."

Ciara nodded, but her eyes stayed glued to the window. The rest of the drive passed in uncomfortable silence.

___

When we got home, Ciara headed straight to her room, while Owen disappeared to his. The house was eerily quiet, save for the hum of the refrigerator in the kitchen.

I dropped my bag by the door and leaned against the counter, my head spinning.

I couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that this was only the beginning. I needed to find out what was really going on with Ciara—and fast. The last thing we needed was more trouble in our lives.

Just as I was lost in thought, my phone buzzed. A message from Shannon lit up the screen: Have you heard what Lizzie's been saying about you?

I frowned, typing back quickly: No. What?

Shannon's reply came almost instantly: She's spreading rumors about your family. Saying your parents were criminals.

My heart dropped. What the hell?! My fingers trembled as I typed. That's not true.

I know, Shannon replied. But people are talking.

I slumped against the counter, feeling like the ground had been ripped out from under me.

My parents were far from perfect—God knows that—but criminals? I never thought Lizzie could stoop this low, even though we didn't get along.

I gritted my teeth, trying to swallow the anger rising in my chest. It felt like everything was falling apart at once.

Later that night, I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. My mind was racing, between Ciara's fight, Lizzie's rumors, and everything else. How had things gone so wrong so quickly?

I grabbed my camera from the bedside table, turning it over in my hands. Photography was the one thing that still made sense to me, a way to capture the world without all the mess and chaos.

My phone buzzed again. This time, it was Masen: I hope Ciara's okay. Let me know if you need anything.

I hesitated for a moment, then typed back: She's fine. Thanks for stepping in.

His reply was almost immediate: Anytime. I mean it.

I stared at the screen for a while, unsure of what to make of him. Masen was hard to figure out.

Sometimes he seemed like just another guy from school, but there was something about him—something different. Something I wasn't sure how to feel about just yet.

With a sigh, I put my phone down and closed my eyes, hoping sleep would take away the weight of everything on my shoulders. But deep down, I knew it wouldn't be that easy.

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