Page 17 of Depraved Favors

I shove my phone in my back pocket as nerves course through me. My heart pounds after what I asked him and a blush burns on my cheeks. It’s bold, but the thought of him actually doing it has my pussy getting wet. I wash my hands and then gather my stuff as I leave. My next class still isn’t for another hour and I’ll just linger by the building till then, getting a head start on assignments.

“Peyton.”

I jolt at the voice coming from behind me and turn to face Brit. Glancing around to ensure she’s alone, I shift my bag to the opposite shoulder and raise my eyebrows. I wonder how long she’s been waiting for me to exit the bathroom, and if she followed me there to begin with.

“Can I help you?”

Her eyes shift between mine, studying my expression as she swallows. “I’ve been trying to reach out to you.”

“I blocked you.”

She flinches. “Why?”

Sighing, I roll my eyes and stare at the ceiling for a second. “You know why. Please don’t act like you don’t. I blocked you because I don’t want to have this conversation.”

When I look back at her, her eyes are watering and my shoulders slump in annoyance. Her lips tremble. “Please let me explain. I didn’t mean?—”

“Shut up.” I hold up my hand to her face and shake my head. “I don’t want to know how you accidentally slept with my boyfriend or whatever bullshit you’re going to tell me.”

“Peyton, please. We’ve been friends?—”

“Exactly,” I snap. Emotion claws at my throat, and I swallow to bury it down. “And I would have never done to you what you’ve done to me. It’s one thing for your boyfriend to betray you, but I should have been able to trust you. You were my best friend. We came to this college together.” I wipe the tears that have fallen and Brit sniffles, using the sleeve of her shirt to get rid of the snot dripping from her nose.

“I’m sorry,” she cries harder.

I grind down on my teeth, looking over her sobs and my heart aches in my chest. My nose tingles as I try not to cry with her, and I tighten my jaw to hold them at bay.

“Please don’t talk to me again.” I walk around her, ignoring her sobs and make eye contact with Jacob as I turn the corner. His sullen face makes me scowl, and I flip him off. “Fuck you too. Both of you leave me the fuck alone.”

“Peyton, we just?—”

I grab his shirt, pulling him close. “I fucked someone else, the entire week in Big Bear. He fucked me over and over. And every time he came inside me, a piece of me that still loved you died. Believe me, there’s nothing left in me but his cum.”

When I let go of him, his chest is rising and falling as his wide eyes and slack mouth stare at me. I smirk, patting his cheek. “Goodbye, Jacob. Thanks for wasting so much of my time.”

As I walk away, I pull out my phone and barely skim over Owen’s dirty text, no longer in the mood to play. The two behind me have ruined that for now, but I still feel lighter after the confrontation. Like the last little string tying all of us together has snapped.

Chapter Nine

Peyton

Spring Break

Tying my hair up in a ponytail, I lean over the toilet and dry heave for the fourth time. I’ve already thrown up my breakfast, but I still feel super nauseous. I wipe the drool escaping my mouth, and use the counter to push myself to stand and take a sip of the tap water from the sink’s faucet.

“That’s the second morning in a row,” my mom’s gentle voice says behind me.

I glance at her in the mirror. “It could be a stomach bug.”

“Or it could be a baby? When’s the last time you got your shot?”

Shaking my head, I wash my hands and grab my phone. “I’m not due till…” I count the months on the calendar and bile rises again when I realize how far out I am from when I was due for a booster shot. I briefly remember a voicemail from my doctor, but my mom had been in the middle of her last treatment and I forgot to call them back. “Oh my god.”

My hand drops to my stomach and tears line my vision. “But I never had my period.”

“You know that thing is fickle,” she teases.

Our gazes lock, my fear reflecting with her concerned ones.

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