THE OXFORD BET *VirginityGames*

Chapter 26 A Lonely Christmas.

Francesca

One phone call to Victoria and she picked me up within the hour, weirdly enough I couldn't stop crying and thankfully she never asked me why. I pushed down on the button and turned the radio on. After a long while of sniffling and awkward glances, we both sang along to different 80's tunes songs that played. I had turned in my seat, my body facing my best friend as I leaned on my side against the seat. The next half an hour contained Vicky's awful singing voice, as she tried reaching the high notes, and to my surprise, a few times she actually nailed them. Along with that, we shared a long conversation about our favourite places on earth and our dream places to visit together. Good distractions to take my mind off him. I loved those conversations with her. 

 In my room it was hard to take the resounding silence. I watched endless comedy specials on Netflix, stuffed my face with sweets and watched pointless Youtube videos attempting to fill the void. My body wracked with sobs every few hours, and I fought the shadows in my heart to tamp them down; was I even worthy enough to grieve so much? To feel so much loss? I needed to ghost everyone in order to get my mental health straight. I was stuck in my room. The box room to some might seem like a prison, but to me it was a sanctuary. Being inside was better than being outside, where people would see me. See the state of me. I was trying to rebuild myself, before I entered the real world again. I needed to hide. I pulled down my blinds, worried I might spot someone I knew. Someone from the Bet. I saw Amee strutting along the dorm's paved pathway with a group of friends a few times. Their bodies were glazed with glitter and their scantily clad festival wear looked fantastic. Like someone had poured a rainbow over them. I was sure I saw Rufus and Adam. I was close to breaking my dorm window and jumping out from it in order to hit them in the face with my guitar. I hoped never to see Daniel or Brandon again, but unfortunately, I did exactly that. 

I felt my throat burn, my eyelashes wet. 

The two were walking at a quick pace down the university courtyard, before soon disappearing inside one of the building. Daniel's expressionless face was just the same, and I hated it. I hated him. I hated what he had done and I hated that I couldn't do anything about it. I hated feeling this way. I kept telling myself what could I do really? It would be over soon, I just had to wait...

With a deep sigh, I turned away from the window and instead looked down at the book Daniel had placed on my bookshelf in my dorm room. He'd spent hours helping me as I moved my things back into my room. I reminisced over the time I'd commanded him put it down and rewarded him with a kiss. It hadn't been enough. It never was...I felt my lips and remembered the tingling feeling his kisses left. I hadn't seen him for weeks, and I hoped that he would show up the day after our break up to beg for forgiveness. To make some grand gesture to win me back, heck even a text to see how I was. How could I have fallen in love with someone so heartless. Life was shitty, to say the least.

Would he call?

I guess the question was could he call me? The answer was yes.

 But in the end, he never did.

Through the grapevine, I'd been informed the Bet Society had taken their targets on a recently weekend away to France. Another attempt to dazzle Amee and the otherProbably due to the gorgeous Rufus being french and owning a Chateau or two.

Victoria had told me they had returned back home late Sunday night, and I was desperate to see Daniel again. I did hope it was only a feeling of what I had lost that made me feel like I needed to see him again. Just because a person can have good qualities, doesn't meant they can't be toxic.

Another two weeks had passed since then and I'd spent more and more time alone in my room and travelling back to my parents house than any other student. I didn't want to see Daniel or Brandon or Adam. Or my friends either, Vicky, Belle, Maria and Charlie all seemed better off when I distanced myself from them. I was in such a bad mood all the time I felt it only fair. I could imagine this little purple monster inside my ribcage and if anything didn't go to plan or I was reminded of the Bet, it raged. That was something I didn't want my friends around. I wanted to think of anything else but the Bet and about him. So I played video games with my brother Joshua and played my guitar, until I was thoroughly bored. It helped until I got a few missed calls from Victoria.