Page 52 of My Rules for Revenge
“Still long.”
“I’m sorry, honey. I know you want me to pick you up, but I have so many errands to run during that time. The exercise is good for you anyway. I used to walk home from school all the time, too. My mom never wanted to pick me up from school. She was a real bitch, your grandma,” she said.
“Yeah. At least she left you all that jewelry,” I pointed out.
“Oh, if she didn’t, I would’ve gotten it anyway. I’m her only living daughter; I would’ve sued,” she clarified.
“Right,” I answered.
I scurried away to my room, avoiding stepping on the dead roaches and empty bags of chips on the floor. Before I closed my door, my mother shouted out that she needed me to buy her cigarettes later. I often thought that she only wanted mearound to claim me for her taxes. Also, because she wanted me to continue to get the groceries, pills, cigarettes, and other annoying things she made me do.
I only told her what she wanted to hear, but I knew I was getting accepted into Bright Rock on a full scholarship. I’d be a complete moron if I gave that up. When the time came, I would let her know that I was leaving. I mentally prepared myself for that and knew there would be a massive, ugly argument. I would cross that bridge when I had to.
For now, my attention was focused on my worsening feud with Heather. I lay down on my pathetic excuse of a bed and wiped the sweat off my forehead. I whipped out my phone and searched for the “Brightwood High Scraps” social media video that had been uploaded recently. It was the one that showed the fight between Heather, Angelica, Erica, Eddy, and Vivian.
I rewatched the whole thing in awe. I couldn’t believe how much of a dumb brute Angelica turned out to be. Anyone who knew anything about digital photo editing could’ve figured out that I had forged those hilarious posts directed at her, although Manny helped me with them. He was on another level. They looked incredibly real, and I’m lucky that she didn’t bother to verify them before she went apeshit on Heather.
After I rewatched that, I noticed that Luna’s video about me was in my suggestions. I clicked on it and cringed hard when I heard her shrill voice. I squeezed my phone so hard I almost crushed the screen in anger. I couldn’t believe how much of a bitch she turned out to be. She was just like Heather. She was yet another insufferable, morally superior feminist idiot who deserved to be thrown in a maximum security prison.
I knew I had been nice to her, but I should’ve known this was coming. Before I left school, Carlos texted me that he saw both of them talking on the bleachers. That’s definitely when they plotted this stupid little video, trying to expose me again. It wasfine. I planned to kill two birds with one stone during Frank Jackson’s upcoming party.
I heard the rumors of the “banger” he was throwing, and I was definitely sneaking in. I would consensually hook up with a girl to dispel any vicious rumors of me being a “pervert,” and I would get back at Heather. I wasn’t sure how yet, but I knew I’d come up with something once I was there. I had to make sure I wasn’t seen by any of those idiot jocks or Heather, obviously.
I texted Manny to help me find Frank’s address, and I knew he’d deliver within the hour. Meanwhile, I began to pick out my wardrobe. Thankfully, I had a beanie that covered most of my face. I figured it was going to be dark inside the house, and there would be strobe lights. This was how last year’s party went anyway. I never went inside, but I drove by with the boys to see what all the hype was about. We didn’t miss much.
“Jacob, my cigarettes. I need them now. Go before you piss me off,” my mother shouted.
I quickly got up and loudly exited my room so she would calm down. It was going to be yet another shitty night as I walked to the corner store. Every time I went, I had to look over my shoulder to ensure I didn’t get jumped or stabbed. I thought about the upcoming party and what I had to do. I had to make sure I remained hidden. I imagined Eddy, Frank, Porter, and Marcus dunking my head into the swimming pool to drown me if they spotted me. I often thought of worst-case scenarios in my head so that they didn’t happen in real life. That was wishful thinking on my part.
I saw many people from my high school walking into Frank’s house. There was that new-age rap music I heard booming inside. It wasn’t particularly my taste, but I wasn’t there for that. I was there to slap the cheeks of a hot girl in a closed bedroom. And with the way some of the girls were dressed at that party, I figured at least a few of them were looking for some action that night.
Parties weren’t Manny’s thing, so he dropped us off. We wore darkly colored flannel shirts and dress pants. Carlos wore a hat, and I had my beanie to shield my face. Thankfully, none of those scumbags paid any attention to us. They only focused on drinking beer and chasing around the cheerleaders. We mentally prepared ourselves before heading in.
“Are you ready for this?” I asked.
“I’m ready to get some ass,” Carlos smirked.
“I have to hook up with a respectable girl of high social standing to dispel Luna’s bullshit lies.”
“I’m telling you, dude, if you do that, everyone will question Luna’s story. They might start going against Heather as well,” Carlos commented.
“I’ll do it right. I’ll hold her hand, I’ll take her home, and I’ll text her in the morning,” I said.
“You go do your thing. Rebuild your character or whatever it’s called,” Carlos said sarcastically.
“Let’s go.”
Carlos and I fist-bumped as we headed inside. It was considerably louder, and as I predicted, it was dark. There were a bunch of strobe lights shooting off in multiple directions. I wondered how the hell people talked at these parties. You couldn’t hear a damn thing.
We tried blending in with the sizable crowd in the living room and had trouble making our way out. Many of them were dancing, talking, and taking selfies right in the middle ofthe passageway. It was like going through a never-ending maze where you could barely make out what was two feet in front of you.
I made sure to turn my head whenever I saw Martin taking pictures of everyone. He was a student photographer and posted party pictures to his social media accounts. Everyone called him “Party Marty.” I hated him. He was a pretentious cock. These were the intellectual geniuses I went to high school with.
When I finally exited the crowd, I briefly saw the well-laid-out kitchen. It had multiple bottles of alcohol, a couple of beer kegs, and a few ice coolers stacked with even more drinks.
There weren’t many people there, but I was pulled back before I was able to make anyone out. Carlos whispered to me that Eddy Chavez was there. That was a definite red flag. We quickly went back towards the middle of the pack and found an opening. We squeezed out and almost bumped into a jock who closely resembled Porter. We would’ve been dead meat, and the whole plan would’ve gone kaput if he spotted us.
After a short while of standing around, we grew tired and found a place to sit in a far corner near the front door. There was a cooler there, and we used the opportunity to get our drink on. We only planned on having a few. I wanted to get a bit messed up, so I had the courage of a lion whenever I picked out a girl to sleep with.
