BAD REPUTATION [SCOTT REED]

TWENTY ONE

"TAPES ARE OUT!"
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[warning: mentions of sexual assault and violence]

Monday rolled in and Alona woke up to the feeling of someone shaking her shoulders violently. Her attacker didn't have enough time to react before her first shot up and came in contact with his face.

"Get up! We're running late. We were supposed to leave for school just fifteen minutes ago." Joaquin yelled, massaging the spot under his eye where her fist smacked on it with full force.

Alona groaned, cracking an eye open to peek on her alarm clock on the bedside table. But she was far more concerned on her phone vibrating periodically beside it and she frowned, straining from the mattress of her bed to see who the messages were from. Her eyebrows rose up in surprise when she saw a ton of left messages and missed calls on the screen of her phone.

Sheri
R u awake already?
The tapes r out!

Marcus
ALONA
DID YOU LEAK THE TAPES?
IS2G, IF THAT WAS YOU...

Zach
lons, pls call
call me back

Tony
What the actual fuckery
I just woke up
Did you know already? Here, check it out *attachment available*

Alona's eyes widened and immediately tapped on the link Tony sent and sure enough, fourteen thumbnails stared back at her mockingly. Above the anonymous post, it was posted ten hours ago which meant everyone had already listened to it overnight. She cussed lowly under her breath and scrambled up from her bed and got dressed, having no time left to take a shower.

She hurriedly drove to school, almost leaving her brother behind in the process. People were talking quietly to themselves and although she was neither mentioned nor included in Hannah's reasons why, she felt countless pairs of eyes boring holes in her back as she made her way inside. When she got to her locker, Sheri was there waiting for her with an uncomfortable expression, one leg tapping impatiently on the cold tiled floor. She releases a sigh of relief just when she sees the Hispanic girl walking towards her, "Thank God. I've been waiting for you since I got here. Have you seen the anonymous post online?"

"Yeah. Tony sent me the link." Alona responds distractedly, eyeing the passing teenagers staring at Sheri and whispering to themselves probably about her tape.

"Look, there's Clay and Justin." They wasted no time to approach the two boys who looked just as confused and uncomfortable under the judgemental gazes, except for Clay who looked off and nervous.

"It's good to see you back, Justin, but this is really a bad timing. I'm so sorry." Alona grimaced, patting Justin sympathetically on the back.

"What? What do you mean?" Justin asks confusedly, frowning at the crowd watching them everywhere.