For Real? ✅

Chapter 35

GREYES

I absolutely panicked after Leah called me.

She sounded so out of control that I realised that I had been a fool.

What was I thinking, selling my drugs to an unstable girl like her?

On the other hand, Leah had begun to demand that I sell her drugs, so it's not really my fault.

I call Tess, hoping that she'd pick up.
Of course, she doesn't. Tess hates me.

I sit on a bench in the college campus, thinking of what I'd do if the police found out about me.

So far, in all these years, my business had been smooth. Minor police raids had been harmless. I'd been the queen of drug supply to the whole college.

Once Leah came into the picture, I had been apprehensive about selling her drugs. Andy had positively warned me against her, saying that she didn't have it in her to tolerate it.

I wish I had listened to him. Andy had been smart enough to see how it would end.
That Leah would eventually succumb to the drug, and fall into so much depression that she'd want to kill herself.

I really hope that it's as simple as that.

However, it's not. If Leah had been framed for drug abuse, it's not going to be her fault.
Since she's so rich and important, her parents will definitely make sure that the police are on my trail. I might even be caught within a week.

I try to calm myself down, hoping that Leah turns out to be okay.

That's when the phone rings. It's Andy.

"Hey Andy, you know Leah? She-", I start, but Andy cuts me off.

"I know. Give me an hour, I'll meet you at your place. Don't worry." He says before he ends the call.

I look at my phone wistfully.
Hopefully, Andy knew what he was doing.

*****

Andy's panting as he carries a large heavy sports bag.

I had switched off all the cameras in the apartment, so no one would know about this.

I help him into my apartment, and with a careful sweeping glance across the hallway, I shut the door.

Andy sighs, before wiping the sweat off his face.

"That's her?" I ask, pointing to the large sports bag.

Andy nods, still breathless. He gulps down the glass of water that I hand him. I glance at the sports bag and pray that Leah is fine.

"Is she-", I begin, but Andy cuts me off.

"Yeah, she's alive." He says, unzipping the bag, revealing the pale, soft face of Leah Sanders. Her smooth hair is bunched up around her face, and her eyes are closed, looking as though she was sleeping peacefully. She looks hardly older than sixteen.

I feel terrible for selling her drugs.

"Ahh... Thank God!" I say, relieved.

"She's under tranquillizers." He explains,
"She'll be asleep for another 6 hours."

I look at him, stunned.

"That's all the time you have..." I say, my voice is uncertain. I can't bring myself to complete the sentence.

He pulls me into a hug, his hand smoothing over my teal hair.

"Grace, they're fools, all of my dad's men." He whispers into my ear.
"They're stupid enough to believe that I poisoned Leah. They have no clue that I used this opportunity to fake her death. In fact, they cheered me on and sent me to dispose of her body."

He draws back and looks at me intensely. I stare back into his firm gaze, thinking of how much he was risking in this situation.
Of how much I admired him.

I could never give him up for the world.

"I'll take care of her. Go away, somewhere, anywhere, before your dad finds out." I reassure him.

Andy gives me a smile worth everything.
"I'll be back for you, Grace. I love you."

I suck in a breath. He can't really mean that.

"Yes, Grace. I love you. And I know that we will be together." He says, pulling me into the best kiss of my life.

I kiss him back, thinking of how this is the last time I see him before he goes into hiding.

His dad would murder him if he knew that Andy had saved Leah's life.

"Be careful," I say, running my fingers over his cheek.

"You too," He replies, nodding seriously at me.

If everything went according to the plan, all this ends here.

If not, I have a Plan B up my sleeve.

*****

It's nearly dusk when I decide to call Tess again.

"Hey, Teresa!" I say once she picks up her phone.

"Hi...", Tess sounds exhausted.

"Listen, Leah's lying on the doorstep of her apartment," I say.

"What? When did you find her? Is she hurt?" Tess asks rapidly.

"I came back to my apartment and I found her sleeping here. She looks fine." I hope my lies are convincing enough.

"She's just unconscious, isn't she? Like she's breathing, right?" Tess asks tentatively.

"Yeah, she's just unconscious," I affirm.

I realise that there are hardly two hours before Leah woke up. I guess I should act fast.

"But you'd better come quick. Her hands feel cold." I add.

"Okay, I'll be there. Thanks, Greyes." Tess replies, then speaks again, "You're a better person than what I thought of you to be."

I swallow the guilt as I answer, "Sure, no problem."

I really hope that no one finds out that I sold drugs to Leah. That the topic isn't even brought up.

During the past few hours, I'd destroyed all the evidence that showed that I had sold drugs to Leah. I'd even entered her apartment using her key, and took back the remaining pills that were left in her bedside cabinet. To be safe, I'd hidden all my drugs too, in case the police had decided to raid my place.

I've prepared for everything that could possibly ever happen.

I find myself smiling again.