In Omnia Paratus (AU) - Book 2

Trust?

By the time Richard had driven me home I had built up anger inside me so the next time he spoke to me I just burst out into a spit of half drunken and half damn annoyed jibberish.

"What hell do you think you're doing coming to a party at you're old school? Then come searching for me?" I grumbled angrily at him.

"I came to see you." He defended.

"No, you came to check up on me because you don't trust me." I rolled my eyes crossing my arms as I walked to the other side of my dorm room to get away from him.

"Well I was right to. You said you weren't going to drink anything and now you're plastered!" Richard said screaming across the room.

"Yeah but I didn't do anything stupid! You get drunk with your friends all the time and I don't get angry and come and rescue you." I yelled. "You embarrassed me tonight Richard. In front of my friends, you embarrassed me."

"Your friends! Pfft. You don't even know these people and only yesterday you were complaining about these new friends." Richard scoffed angrily

"So? I learnt to like them!" I sighed. "What are even doing here? Does our relationship mean nothing to you? What if Lily was here and finds out I've been lying to her for over a month. It isn't funny." I scowled at him.

"I wasn't laughing. Plus to everyone else I'm still your friend, she knows that. We both know that it wouldn't be a surprise to find me here." Richard scolded me.

"And if I had drunk a little too much and blurted it out to her?" I scoffed.

"Go to bed and talk to me when you have a head." He yelled at me.

"Oh fuck off Richard." I grumbled going to my room and slamming it shut on him, determined to have the last word.

- - - - -

The next morning was hideous. I luckily wasn't throwing up but Lily certainly was and that made me feel nauseous all morning. I didn't know where she was, or when she got in but I didn't care much either.

"Are you coming to assembly?" I asked Lily that Saturday morning as she laid in bed.

"Nope." She groaned turning over in bed.

"Alright then." I mumbled going to the door to leave and before I reached it there was a knocking and I frowned before opening it up.

Stood before me was Richard leaning in the doorway with his best smile on and looking down at me as if nothing had happened the previous night.

"I'm about to go out, you should come back another time." I sighed pushing past him and closing the door as he back away.

"You can skip assembly, it's the second week back, they have nothing useful to tell you." Richard scoffed.

"I have to go to the paper as well." I grunted trying to get away.

"I came to apologise." He stated.

"Right." I said quickly.

"I should of trusted you. I don't know what was going through my mind, I guess I thought I could control everything but I've got to realise you're not going to do anything." Richard smiled across at me.

"I love you, you know that? I wouldn't do anything to jeopardise what we have." I smiled up at him.

"I guess when I saw those guys teasing you at the bar yesterday, it reminds me of myself. Silly things I used to do to get your attention or other girls." He smirked.

"I can guarantee that Jack and Oliver don't like me and I certainly don't like them the way I like you." I hummed stepping closer to him.

"I'm glad you say that." Richard smiled.

"You gotta understand that I'm not going to let any guy but you near me. Even if this thing is a secret, I can deal with that. I'm tough. Right? I can deal with anything." I laughed joking about with him.

"Yeah you're tough." He laughed poking me. "You think anyone's around? Can I kiss you?" He asked.

"Probably not." I frowned looking around us as if we would be caught. Then suddenly I leant up and kissed him gently before turning my back and walking away leaving him a little shocked.

"Cheeky." He called after me as I disappeared down the corridor to go to my meeting to see whether I'd still be on the paper.

- - - - -

"This is just because she dated your son isn't it?" A guy in the year below me moaned at Richards parents rudely as I sat back in the little meeting we had in my office.

"Jenna, when was the last time you had contact with Richard?" His mother looked over at me as if to prove a point.

"Oh uh--" I stopped, I'd seen him all of 30 minutes ago. "A while yeah." I hummed raising my eyebrows at the boy on the other side of the room.

"See. Jenna knows this newsroom and next year someone else can run it but for now, we think it best that she continue to be editor in chief. Perhaps train a few people towards the end of the year." His dad said smiling across at me.

"That is, assuming that you want to come back?" His mum said.

"Oh yeah. I'd love to be editor again but only as long as you're happy about it." I smiled at his parents.

"That's it then. You're hired." They said making a big deal of it.

It was weird, it kind of happened really quickly because suddenly we were in this meeting and I was being told that I should be the editor of the newspaper again and I did not expect that.

"We still have the matter of Jenna's grades." Mr brown piped up all of sudden.

"Maybe something we should discuss in private." I coughed.

"What's the matter with Jenna's grades?" His parents piped up.

"Really nothing." I smiled.

"She wants to continue to do 5 a levels this year even though we only let exceptional students do that." Mr brown said looking over at his parents.

"Uh, sir. Really not the time, or place." I smiled politely.

"Let the girl do what she wants. She manages the paper fine, I imagine her school work is perfect." His mum said.

"Thank you, but my school work is fine." I mumbled looking over at the cocky kid at the end of the table who was trying to be the new editor

"I'm afraid you're going to need to drop a subject to be the editor." Mr Brown said suddenly.

"I'm doing 5 Alevels. My mother did 5 Alevels." I spat stopping my politeness.

"You shouldn't compare yourself to others Miss Coleman." Mr brown snapped back at me. I saw the kid getting excited in the corner because the more I stepped back from the paper the more he got his dream job.

"I have to do 5." I shouted.

"Then you're no longer the editor." He sighed. "It's a shame, miss Coleman. This paper needs you." He admitted standing up and heading to the door.

Richards parents looked at me disappointed. I felt everything slip away and I stood up quickly.

"Wait." I mumbled through gritted teeth. "I'll do it, I'll drop uh my weakest."

"Advanced maths, I think that is." He mumbled noting something down on his paper. I sat down in silence in my office chair and I thought it all over. I still had English lit and language, plus business and psychology. They were my best subjects and that was what I needed for my English course.