Page 249 of As the Rain Falls
My gaze flies to the back of the class, instinctively checking to see if their faces are around, even if I’m sure I won’t find them. Anxiety is making me too jittery and paranoid. I’m sick of always feeling like this.
Forcing myself to push the ugly thoughts away, I notice how Antony’s chair is still empty. Not even his red backpack is lying around.
Where is he?
I turn to Angelina, whispering quietly.
“Where’s Tony?”
“Getting stitches from the nurse. Didn’t you get the texts? He sent them to our group chat a few minutes ago,” she whispers back. Her eyes flicker from her nails to me hastily before she adds. “I can’t believe Toninho of all people keeps getting intofights because of you. What’s that saying again? About tables turning?”
“Wait, hold on. No way.” I swallow hard, feeling a twinge of unease. “Is it really because of me?”
“Yes.” Her expression is grim at first, but her eyes soften when she notices how uncomfortable I feel. “Don’t feel bad about it; he’d do the same for me.”
I say with a wince, “Easier said than done, Angie.”
“I know. It’s just that he doesn’t like the way they’re all talking about you, you see.”
“I get that.” I swallow hard. “But I don’t want Antony to keep getting in trouble because of me.”
“I disagree.” Angelina shakes her head, a solemn look on her face. “I’m glad he’s fighting back.”
“You’re glad he’s going to get suspended over nothing?” I frown, feeling so confused about her reaction.
I think I’m programmed to think about the consequences of every action first. It’s what comes naturally to me. These other kids never had to worry.
“So what?” She pouts. “Someone needs to, just like you did for me that one time. The girls really backed off after you told them to.”
My eyes widen. “They did?”
She grins. “Yes! And besides, Cassie, isn’t it kind of cool? You have three boys fighting for your honor now!”
“But that’s not what I was aiming for!” I blush from head to toe, remembering now that Mateo and Beckett are also on my side.
It feels weird to feel this protected, especially considering I never had many friends defending me before. Now, if I send a single text to a group chat, I have an entire group answering me back in a matter of seconds.
Take that, Laura.
You can’t hurt me anymore.
“Lucia would have done the same thing,” Angelina tells me, placing her hand over mine. “God, she would’ve killed anyone who ever touched one of her friends or died trying to.”
I freeze momentarily but try really hard not to let it show.
She keeps going, “They’re so alike, Antony and her. Talking to him is like talking to her sometimes, don’t you think?”
“I don’t know,” I brush it off. “You really think so?”
“Yeah, duh! He cares about you, even though sometimes it comes across a little differently,” Angelina insists, as if hearing my inner thoughts. “None of us agreed with what happened, but he’s, like, your biggest advocate right now. Antony is a gentleman, like, deep down. He was the one to look for Beckett that day. I think Lucia would’ve done the same thing.”
“Really?”
“Really.” She stops filing her nails, and I flip the page, pretending to read what’s in it. “You’ve got good people in your corner, okay? We won’t leave you alone in this.”
“Okay.” I nod, trying to calm all my nerves down. “What about Maria, though? I still haven’t talked to her, and she’ll definitely kill me for what happened.”
Angelina rolls her eyes then. She seems really annoyed.
