Page 54 of Battling the Enemy
One week, and life would cut me some slack or it would ruin me further.
I already knew I’d never get an abortion if I did turn up pregnant, and so that fuckening was akin to Armageddon, because my life would be altered forever.
And there’s no way Deke Marlow would ever know about it.
Chapter 33
Deke~
It was Thursday after third period and Delaney still hadn’t made an appearance at school. I’d seen Winston, but I kept my distance. I didn’t want Delaney, or anyone, thinking I still gave a fuck.
But I did.
I cared because, after Delaney had run from me, Emerson and Roselyn had looked at me with so much disgust, things were still tense between us, five days later.
I also cared because, regardless of the show I put on Friday, my love for Delaney hadn’t been fleeting. I truly loved her and still did.
Luckily for me, betrayal trumped love.
The only other issue I had was that I had become worrisome at Delaney’s absence. Being the kind of student she was, I couldn’t see her risking graduation, and that’s how I found myself at Ava’s locker knowing she wanted my balls on a skewer.
“Ava,” I called out, approaching her.
She shut her locker and turned to face me. “Deke,” she acknowledged, and her…emotionless voice had the hairs on the back of my neck standing up.
“So, she’s willing to risk graduating?” I hedged.
The tip of Ava’s lip lifted, and she looked like the Mob boss I always likened her to. “Delaney’s already graduated, Deke,” she said, dropping that little bomb.
“What?”
Ava’s face was pure satisfaction when she said, “What do you want, Deke? My good graces are the only thing keeping you on your feet, so say what you want to and then leave me the fuck alone.”
Her good graces?
Yeah, right.
I stepped to her. “And what exactly is it you think you can do to me, Ava?” I dared.
Her eyes never faltered as she reached into the breast pocket of her uniform and produced her phone. “I’ll tell you exactly what I’m going to do to you, Deke,” she mocked before she looked down at her phone, her fingers flying everywhere, and then bringing it up to my face.
My eyes darted to the picture on her phone, and it was that fucking picture of Delaney with Winston and their parents. I looked back at Ava. “What?” I snapped. “I’ve already seen that fucking picture.”
Her smile was positively lethal when she said, “Look closer, Deke.”
I didn’t want to, but I looked back at the picture on her phone, and that’s when I saw it. The caption was missing. “There’s no caption,” I said.
“Look closer to the post, Deke,” she said, her voice villainous. “Like…maybe check thedateof this post.” I snatched her phone from her hand, and studying the photo, I saw what she was referring to.
The date of the picture and post was last year in March.
Last fucking year.
Reynolds fucking played me.
Ava could tell the second it registered because she plucked her phone from my hand and smiled before saying, “That’swhat I’m going to do to you, Deke Marlow.” She put her phone back in her pocket and wrapped her arms around her book, hugging it to her chest, looking positively giddy. “Delaney didn’t want me to say anything, but since she’s move on, why not?” She said, shrugging her shoulder. “Delaney’s parents ambushed her with the Reynolds in New Hampshire and when she realized it, she decided to finish the tour, but was going to come home. She tried to call you, but she lost her phone. After the tour, she went and bought a new phone, only to answer a call from me telling her what was going one. She jumped on the first flight out of New Hampshire to get to you so she could explain.” Ava cocked her head. “And what did you do? You fucked Melissa Randall after telling Delaney to get an abortion if there ends up being a little bit of residue from your relationship.”
“I never fucked Mel-”
