Stained

Chapter 25

After trying and failing to fix my tear-stained face in the bathroom, I scrub my face clean of any makeup but end up regretting it because without it my red nose and cheeks stand out more than ever.

Thankfully no one notices when I go to class after my free period is over, and neither do any of my friends at break.

I thought it was because I was shocked, but just like my first lesson, I struggle to concentrate in class — and I'm sure shock doesn't last this long. Damien seems to constantly evade my thoughts, preventing me from getting even the slightest work done.

I can't concentrate when the teacher asks me which two things go together to make god knows what. And when Maddison and Katie ask me about the work, I make them repeat the question at least five times before answering.

"Hazel." I feel someone shake my shoulder and it jolts me out of my panic, my body twisting toward a worried-looking Maddison.

"Hazel, are you okay?" She asks.

I force myself to relax in the seat and plaster on a fake smile. "I'm fine. Just really tired."

She cocks a brow. "Are you sure? Because I called your name more than ten times to get your attention."

"I was up late last night revising," I lie, but when she gives me a disbelieving look, I try diverting her attention from the topic at hand, "Why were you calling me?"

She tucks her lips in, suddenly seeming nervous. "I erm... I saw you with Damien earlier..."

I unconsciously straighten in my seat. Did she see me barge out of the library and him run after me?

"Where did you see us?" I realise how stupid that sounded so I quickly add, " because we have a class together." I mentally slap myself for speaking without thinking. Why would she point out seeing us in class together? Also, she said she saw us earlier. I had a class with Damien yesterday.

"I saw you in the corridor outside the library." She doesn't add seeing Damien with me. "You seemed upset and I know Damien has a... reputation. And you've been out of it in class and I-." She stops talking and shakes her head at herself. "I'm not good at this. I just wanted to know if you were okay."

"It's that time of the month," I whisper. "We bumped into each other and he asked if I was okay because I didn't look it and you know what happens when you're already on the verge of crying and someone asks you that. Well, I mortifyingly broke down in front of him, when all he came to ask about in the first place was homework," another lie, I stutter out so fast I'm not even sure if anything I said made sense or not.

It's not that I'm ashamed of what we did but the fact I was stupid enough to give in to him despite everything I've been through. Despite all the rules I've set for myself...

Katie's head pops out over Maddison's shoulder. "Is she talking about Damien again?" She groans.

My eyes widen. What?

"I swear she needs to get over this obsession, like now before she gets her heart broken."

My head swivels toward Maddison.

"Can you blame me?" Maddison whines. "He's really fucking cute?"

"A...are you... do you... you like Damien?" I stammer out. Why is it so difficult for me to speak?

"What?" Maddison laughs, shocked, though her expression a second later morphs into shyness. "I have a crush on his little brother."

Damien has a little brother.

"Yeah, and she won't stop talking about him when all he does is fuck girls left right and centre."

Just like his brother, I guess.