Page 89 of They're Watching You

It was difficult to weed out the society members from innocent faculty. We only had two names, but we knew there were more. Detectives eventually made a deal with the headmistress: a reduced prison sentence in exchange for the complete list.

We all know it’s not a complete list. Just the Torrey-Wells members. And maybe not even that. Because I’m standing over an envelope exactly like the ones I used to receive. Like the one I found in Polly’s chess set that started this whole mess.

When I bend down to pick it up, my phone buzzes on my desk, causing me to kick my already leaking shampoo bottle.

I take a deep breath, right the bottle, and pick up the envelope. I plod over to my desk to find a text from Remington.Get my anniversary card?

Growling, I slam the envelope down on the desk. But I can’t resist for long. I tear it open and read the handwritten note:

Roses are red

Or are they green?

Would you care to join me for dining hall pizza,

Oh fair, ferocious queen?

Love,

R

I set the card down on the desk and grab my phone, dialing his number. It rings once, and he picks up. But I already heard his ringtone echoing out in the hall.

I rush over, slipping in the puddle of shampoo I never cleaned up before wrenching open the door to find Remington in the doorway, cringing.

“What are you doing?” I whisper. “Get in here.” I pull him inside, dragging him past the fallen shower caddy to the bottom bunk. Then I push him onto the bed and stand over him. “We’re not in the society anymore, Remington Cruz. You can’t sneak into the girls’ dormitory and expect to get away with it. How am I going to get you out? And also, what anniversary?”

Remington only grins up at me. “After everything we’ve been through, you’re scared of breaking theno boys in the girls’ dormsrule?”

I cross my arms and glare down at him.

“Okay, fine. Five months ago today, I realized there wouldn’t be much water in my future.”

“Because there’s a drought coming?”

“No, because you hate water. And I love you. So now I hate water.” I refuse to smile because of the card prank, but he adds, “Also, five months ago today was the day I realized your eyes weren’t red like a demon’s; they were green.”

My mouth threatens to curl, so I smash my lips together. “The card was bad form, dude.”

“Oh, come on, you loved it. That burst of adrenaline followed by the world’s cutest poem. How did you ever manage to score a guy who knows you so completely and perfectly?”

“Guess you learned from knowing nothing about your last girlfriend—namely, her very peculiar religious beliefs.”

“No more peculiar than your bestie’s.”

When the school board replaced the headmistress along with the bad faculty seeds, it also notified my dad that my tuition through Form IV was paid in full due to my trauma (read: to avoid further litigation). Polly and Jane, along with most of the other society members, were able to use their newfound wealth and connections to blame the headmistress and get off with counseling.

I haven’t spoken to Polly since the day she came by to clear out the rest of her things. She was, understandably, moved to a dormitory across campus, far away from me. “You can keep the coat,” she said, gaze on her cardboard box.

“Thanks.” Part of me was grateful because I still didn’t own a nice coat; part of me wanted to take her offering and stomp it right in front of her. I haven’t touched the coat since that day. I’m not sure I ever will.

Before she left, Polly stopped in front of the door, large box in her arms. I thought she needed help, so I brushed past her to get the door. But she didn’t pass through it. Instead, she continued to stand there, breath heavy as she faced the hallway.

My heart hitched as I waited for her words. There wasn’t hope for us; I knew that. I would never be able to trust her again. It didn’t stop the memories from tumbling through my head, though. I was still stuck, my brain half-trapped in our fantasy of a friendship. I’d left the photo collage up on the wall, for heaven’s sake. It was like I couldn’t move on until we’d hadthis—whatever this was.

She turned to look at me then, mascara starting to smudge as her eyes teared up. Her chest rose and fell, and my throat tightened. I was about to invite her to sit down when she hefted the box of belongings higher. Without so much as a glance back, she strode out of the room.

I still pass her on campus, see her in the dining hall, sit beside her in classes.

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