Page 17 of The Player

I can hear the eye roll from here. “Yes, I remember.”

“Well, I met a guy that night, and he rocked my world. He disappeared during the night, but I didn’t have any idea that he would stay. It’s just… Kaylee, I can’t stop thinking about how he touched me. I’m horny all the time, and I…”

Kaylee’s laughter is so loud she’s hurting my ear. “Girl, you are hot for a guy, and you don’t know who he is. It’s alright. I promise we have probably all been through this. Go find another dick to get on.”

A gasp leaves me at her thought. “I…I could never. You… I…” I’m sputtering so much that I can’t even form words properly.

“I’m kidding, Julie.” She sobers, and I tremble at the idea of another person touching me. I don’t think I could handle it. What if they didn’t measure up to James?

“Why don’t you come home during Thanksgiving, and we can have movie nights like we used to? Spend the entire week enjoying doing girly shit and forget everything. I think you just need a change of scenery for now.”

She has a good point. I’ve not been home in two years. Last year, Kaylee came here for my Christmas break because I was working full-time during the three weeks I was off.

“Sounds like a plan. Are you sure you’ll have time for me? I don’t want to cause you any problems with your mom or dad, for that matter.”

A snort comes from her, and she sarcastically replies to me. “Get your ass home for Thanksgiving, and we will have a good time. Now stop moping around like a love-sick fool.”

She hangs up on me before I can retort and I’m glad for it. It’s just like Kaylee telling someone what to do or insult them while she’s doing it.

My phone dings at me and I gasp. Dang it, I’m going to be late for work. I picked up a job for the weekend shifts at a local cafe. As I rush out of my room, I think about running into Aaron during Thanksgiving, but I push that thought out of my mind. He’s most likely not going to come home. Kaylee said he hasn’t been back in over a year.

* * *

Hours later, I turn off the light at the cafe, yawning. It’s been a long day of hard work, but I’m happy about it.

“Hello, Ms. Julie.”

I jump and crash into the side of the building as I yelp. Looking up, I see Mr. Lawerence standing there with a silly look on his face.

“I didn’t mean to startle you.” He steps closer to me, and I rearrange my purse from my shoulder to the front of my body.

“No worries, Mr. Lawerence. I should have been looking over my shoulder while I closed up shop.”

Ever since he caught me in the closet with James, he’s been acting weird and harsh toward me. I used to look forward to the lab work but now, he forces me to do my labs with him.

“I’d like to speak to you about your grade.”

My brow furrows. “My grade? I’ve already turned in all the required assignments. Was there a problem with them?”

“No. They were perfect as per usual, but this is about you not wanting to fail my class.”

My eyes widen, and I swear my eyebrows touch my hairline. “Fail? I’m making an A. How could I possibly fail, Mr. Lawerence?”

“Because if you don’t do what I want, I’m going to fail you. I saw you in that closet acting like a cheap whore. And since I know you are that type of girl, you doing extracurricular activities for me shouldn’t be an issue.”

My vision blurs as tears threaten to fall. The audacity of this man. “Mr. Lawerence, you can’t possibly think it’s alright to talk to me like this. I…I got caught up in the moment of the ball. I’m not going to do what you want.”

He chuckles and crowds me into the side of the building. “You little whore, you are going to do everything I fucking want, or I’m going to go to the academic committee and let them know you were having sex during a school-sponsored event.”

“Please, don’t. I… This is wrong. Blackmailing is wrong.” I’m not a law major, and I’ve never been good at defending myself, but I know I need to do something.

“Meet me after the lab tomorrow at my office. We will discuss it more.”

With that, he leaves me reeling and wondering what in the world I am going to do. There’s no way I will give in to him, but if I don’t, is my academic career over?

Driving home is a blur of tears and frantic thoughts. I could turn him in but I have to expose that I’m in the wrong too. Either way, I’m screwed. As I get to the dorm, I notice my door ajar, and I sigh.

How could anything else go wrong today? Turning on the light, I see nothing amiss, but there’s a note taped to the wall.

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