When The Rain Stops (BXB)

Chapter 15

Jackson: But how did he graduate?

Rory: i don't know
Rory: maybe the teachers felt bad for him? idk
Rory: he's pretty dumb.

I'm glaring at my phone. Not because of a normal reason or something. Like, I turned off notifications from Facebook because everyone's talking about how I beat up Mason. Turned off notifications from Snapchat and Instagram because of that, too. But, okay, the actual reason is because, I'm not sure how, or why, but Rory decided to start bitching to me about his lab partner from, like, 2 years ago who's smart but not smart at the same time. Rory thinks he's "probably confused by the road signs outside a Denny's". That's his theory and he's sticking to it.

He says he had nothing better to do. So he messaged me first. By telling me to go fuck myself and then asking about what kind of science class I'm taking.

I don't get it.

Jackson: Wanna know how beating up that guy with cleats went?

Rory: nah

I lick my lips. He didn't flat out say "no", so I'm guessing he actually means "why not?" because he seems suuuuuuuuuuuper busy right now, anyways.

Jackson: I think I've been grounded for a century

Rory: Wow
Rory: dramatic much?

I tell him about how I was grounded twice in the car. Being suspended. And how Mason's been let off the hook better than I have.

Rory: okay wow i knew you lived in fuckwoods nowhere but that's a serious offense.
Rory: I feel like that's grounds for revenge.

Jackson: What do you think I've been planning?

Rory: can't believe im saying this but good boy
Rory: what u got?

Nothing. Honestly, between not sleeping and the club's group texts, I haven't been thinking about Mason. I'm thinking about everything I'm missing in my classes. Because, weirdly enough, I do wanna graduate this year. I'm thinking about the chicken nuggets in the cafeteria. Harper and his bouncy hair. Taylor begging me to know what happened and if "they" helped me.

"They" being the guys from the club, for clarification. But I guess there's no difference at this point for people.

Jackson: i was thinking something like what you did

Rory: ive done a lot of shit, princess.
Rory: try again

Jackson: No, i was literally asking if i could do something you've done.

He doesn't answer. I go get lunch while I wait. Because I must've hit some kind of sore spot with him or something because he just never replies back to me.

So I check the club's group chat. Nothing's really happened since I broke the news that I got suspended. Harrison and Paige don't say much, but everyone else does. They seem to care more about this – the fact that Mason didn't get suspended from school, too – than everyone else I know. It's nice.

Julia texts me a few times asking if I'm okay. Which is nice. But then reminds me to leave the club.

Monday comes. Everyone spams me with pictures – Natalie, Julia, Paige, Wesley, Owen (but his is mostly just Mason's hand and a look that says he's going to kill me) – of Mason's ugly bruised face. It makes me so happy. Especially because none of them are red bruises. They're purple. Dark purple. They're the ones that're so purple that parts of it look black. That take weeks to get better.