Code Name

XXI

School seems to have that faint murmur as it did a few weeks ago. Most just talk about the party itself while the few that saw what happened at the shed assumed it was just some party crashers.

When lunch comes around, I meet the others on the black pyramid as always. However, there's one minor difference. Becca is once again applying makeup on Nate's face. It's hard not to notice the bruise along his jaw and a cut on top of his right temple.

"What happened this time?" I ask.

Becca just continues to brush makeup on him as he answers. "Wess happened. He got a few good swings in before eliminating me at the party." Becca brushes over the cut as he winces. "Ah! That stings!"

"Oh, boo-hoo. Be a man and maybe you would have gotten your ass kicked." She continues as she keeps brushing away. "What were you doing that got you separated from us anyway?"

Nate's disappointed look just got much more brighter as he pulls out his phone. "Take a look for yourself." He points it at Becca.

Her eyes widen in shock as she swats it out of Nate's hand and faced down on one of the pyramid's steps. "Ew! What the hell Nathan?! I don't want to see that!"

I begin to reach for the phone. "What is it?" Becca then slaps the back of my hand just before I pick it up.

"No! You're not looking at that if you still want to be together."

"Can you at least tell me what it is?"
Becca just sighs as Nate taps my shoulder from behind her. "Harley wanted to 'make amends' during the part. I'm gonna send it out when I get home. Wess came in and caught us. He then threw me around a bit before throwing me out in front of everyone."

I look over and see Wess and Harley on the auditorium steps. They both seem upset but show it in different ways. Wess is looking around with a firm jaw and looks around the courtyard with his eyebrows low. Harley, on the other hand, looks downwards and seems to have a look of regret on her face. Although they are very close to each other, it's obvious from the look of them that they are not on the same page. Eventually, Wess turns his head just enough to spot me from across the way. His expression doesn't change but the look in his eyes give off an agitated and vengeful vibe.

I look away and ask Becca while she puts the finishing touches on Nate's bruise. "Hey, who did we eliminate at the party anyway?"
Becca doesn't turn her head but answers nonetheless."I got one of the guitar players out on my way. He didn't have many bets on him though." She pauses for a second as I become disappointed that that's all we accomplished after putting so much planning into it. "But then you got Wess when the rest weren't looking."

"I got him?" I'm genuinely surprised. I didn't think I hit anyone. The shed was dark and the blinding lights behind them didn't exactly make it easier to see. "Are you sure it was me?"

"That's what the website said. I didn't hit him and I had the first shot. Tracy stumbled around and couldn't get a clear shot at anything."

"Sorry about that," Tracy says as she and Trent walk up behind us. "Congrats on getting Wess out, Daniel."

"Thanks," I say softly.

Trent begins to speak as he sits down. "I have to admit, I thought all of you guys would end up like Nate. But at least you got a big competitor like Wess out and I still get to see Nate all beat up."

"Hey!" Nate says only to have Becca pluck a strand of hair from between his brows. "Why'd you have to do that?"

"Just to get you to shut up for a bit," Becca laughs while flicking the small hair onto the ground. "You're all good. Now, that'll be ten bucks."

"Ha, good one."

"I wasn't joking," Becca says with a confident smile. She puts her stuff back in her bag before continuing. "So, Danny-Boy, we have the second most bets now that Wess and Harley are both out."

"Is that a good thing?" I ask. "Wouldn't that just make things harder for us now that we have a target on our backs?"

"Be proud of yourself," Tracy says. "Just keep pressing on and you guys might win that big gold belt."

"Which will be hung in my place," Becca says in a joking manner. We all laugh along as I turn to see if Wess is still eyeing me down. Becca soon catches onto this. "Whatcha looking at, Daniel?"

I pause for a seconds. "I was... I was just looking out for Wess but... he isn't there anymore." All I see on the steps is Harley with her arms covering her face and her head still pointed to the ground.

"Poor, Harley," Tracy says with pity and empathy. "Nate, you should go help her out." Nate looks in Harley's direction but show no signs that he'll approach her. "Nate?"

"She kinda deserves it if you think about it. She cheated on me, on Wess, and now expects sympathy from either of us. Why should we help her out when she played us both?"

"Cause she's a human being! You went along with it for crying out loud."

He just looks at her again before responding. "Some people just aren't good human beings." I think it over and, as sad as it may be, it's actually pretty true.