Page 13 of Wicked Dreams

Friday’s schedule is slightly different. It mirrors my Monday schedule, which I haven’t yet experienced, in that it swaps out a science lab third period for a gym class. One of the coaches gets me all set up with a locker in the girls’ locker room, and I change along with all the other girls.

I managed a rather quiet Thursday without incident. Caleb missed the first period; Ian called me a few choice names but otherwise didn’t bother me—what’s the point if there’s no ringleader to impress? I also avoided the lunch hall with Riley, which I plan on repeating every day for the rest of the year.

Even Friday’s first period is tame. But my luck runs out faster than I hoped regarding Caleb, however, when I spot him marching across the grass in my direction. It’s not fair that he looks perfect in a form-fitting t-shirt and shorts. He’s tall and broad-shouldered, with a tapered waist and thigh muscles that could crush someone. And his ass…

My body shape is more akin to a bag of marshmallows in comparison.

I’m with the other girls in my gym class, waiting for the coach to tell us what we’re doing. Something to do with running, I think.

Unfortunately.

He stops in front of me, making a show of looking me up and down.Again. His upper lip curls, and he points at my shoes. “Did they give you these as compensation?”

Huh?

He shakes his head and shoulders past me. I ignore that he flirts with other girls. I ignore that their glares burn the back of my neck and drag a blush to my cheeks.

We run as predicted. It rained overnight, and my new sneakers, courtesy of my foster parents, are uncomfortably wet by the time we make it back to school. Dismissed for the rest of the period, I head straight to my locker to change into my regular shoes and socks.

Except they’re gone.

I look everywhere, my stomach knotting. I can’t have lost them—my locker waslocked. That’s the whole freaking point.

But the longer I search, the more girls come into the room, and quiet laughter pours out of their hushed conversation. They’re watching me search, and they know it’s pointless.

Someone took them.

I’d bet anything Caleb is behind it.

When I fill in Riley on what happened, she gets angry on my behalf.

“We’ll go shopping tomorrow,” she promises. “Fuck him. Honestly.”

I agree.

Robert doesn’t seem to notice that I’m wearing the wrong shoes on the way home.

Does he hear the rumors about me?

He works in the art department. He teaches four different classes of various difficulty on both painting and film, and he likes to discuss what his students are doing over dinner. Sometimes he even pulls out his phone and flips through pictures of their art.

He’s proud. Passionate.

Lenora is the same with her job. She has an office in Rose Hill but occasionally makes the trek into New York City. From what I gather, she manages financial accounts.

I’ve only spent two nights with them, but I can see how good they are together. They genuinely enjoy hearing about each other’s work.

Several times, I’ve had to take a step back and evaluate how far I’ve come. I’m back in my hometown after seven years. I’m going to a fancy school that has classes like Renaissance Art Historyand Film in a Digital Age.

Rose Hill is unlike any other place I’ve lived.

It’s small and tight knit, but only an hour away from New York City.

Three streets over from the Bryans’ home, I used to live in the guest house of a mansion with my parents. My dad went to work like a normal person, and Mom was the family’s personal chef. I hung out with the other kids, got into the prep school on scholarship, had a solid group of friends.

And then things disintegrated.

What started as a dream childhood turned into a nightmare. One I couldn’t wake up from.

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