Staying Under

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

Four more minutes. I closed my eyes and tried not to think about how slow time seemed to be. Four more minutes, and I would pass Luke's thirty-four-minute record. I let myself sway to the gentle rocking of the water, imagining myself as a dangling leaf from a tree blown by the wind yet still trying to stay sticking to my branch. Three more minutes.

The water above me bubbled and my eyes sprang open. A girl and guy sank into the edge of the pool and began making out. Disgusted, I glared and them through the water and determined to hold on for another three minutes. I wouldn't let some people destroy what was to be my new record. Granted, no one was witnessing my greatness, but it would still feel good to know I was capable of more.

When the giggling and smacking noises got louder, though, I couldn't stand it anymore. I swam to the other edge and drew myself up. The PDA couple must have known the swimming pool was the only place guarded from the outside rather than the inside and they were taking full advantage of it. I dragged my towel from the chair and covered myself. October was getting colder. I murmured a warming spell and felt much better.

I hurried off to grab my other things from the other side of the pool, but something caught my eye.

The girl making out noisily on the pool was the Dewitt girl who had gotten me into detention in PE class, who then continued by spreading my slut-shaming rumors. For a second, I thought about calling her a hypocrite, but I decided against it. PDA was people's business. Who she kissed and slept with was her business. I grabbed my bag and left for the changing room.

I used the shower quickly before I dried myself. The warming spell hadn't lasted long. I murmured it again while I slipped on a tee and a pair of short pants that fell mid-thigh. With no other classes for the rest of the day, I was going back straight to the dorm, which meant I didn't have to wear a uniform.

I brushed my tangled hair several times while I walked out of the stadium building. Maybe it was the cold, or maybe it had to do with the recent events, but everything in the academy seemed much gloomier. The leaves in the garden looked darker than usual. It had also begun to rain lightly—and I had never liked rain. I could pass through the rain and stay dry if I spell myself every few seconds, since I didn't know a more advanced drying spell. But I wasn't in the mood to even look at the rain. So I sat down on the floor on the corner of the building where I was hidden away. Small spaces never bothered me. It actually gave me comfort.

And the comfort stayed, until I began to hear low voices speaking. Really, couldn't a girl get some time alone for a day? I guess not, when you live in a boarding school.

"...think I'm scared of you, Island? You're just a freak."

Wait. Luke? I inched closer to the edge and kept myself pressed on wall as I peered out. Two guys were talking to Luke. They didn't seem friendly. I recognized them from some of my classes, but I didn't know their names.

"For your own sake, get your hand off me, Clyde."

Clyde. Where had I hear that name again? Jack Clyde. The guy everyone rumored me to be sleeping with. So it was him. At the present, with that nasty look on his face, he wasn't going to win any awards for his looks. He had a muscular built, tall and broad—it reminded me of the bigger kids who used to bully me back in the foster homes.

"I'm telling you this one last time, freak. Stay out of my business. I'll fuck who I want to fuck. You know she's going to want it in the end." Yuck. "Get your own chick. Or are you jealous? Do you want her sweet mouth wrapped around your—"