Page 60 of The Handoff

Chapter 32

Lisa

Iwasboredsitting in the dorm room, after having a nap and deciding that there was no way I would concentrate in class. I should have been studying or doing something, but wherever Tanya was, she said that she was on her way and I had to sit and wait for her to come. I couldn’t accuse her of stealing my purse, but the problem was the real reason that I didn’t want to even sell the damn thing was that it had my name engraved on it.

If I could turn back time, I would not have left Dane’s apartment but come to the dorm and taken my damn things with me before heading to the farm.

I was bored, there was only so many games or flicking through Kindle trying to find something to read that I could do. I was just about to leave to get something to eat when the door swung open. I was shocked when not only Tanya, but Fiona entered the room with Penelope and a bunch of other guys that I didn’t recognize.

“Tanya?” I questioned as I could see that she was pissed about something, but I didn’t know if it was Fiona and the rest of them making her feel like that or if it was me?

“Lisa. Or should we say, Anna-Lisa?” she asked, raising her eyebrow at the same time.

Shit!

I turned a bright shade of red, she knew. I felt sick, the same way I’d done when I found out that not only had I slept with one Dane, but three of him.

“Yes, we all know about your dirty secret. About you and your family stealing from innocent people. Is that why you ran away? Not only did you steal money, but you came to campus to steal my boyfriend!” Fiona said, and I was tempted to ask her, did she mean boyfriend or boyfriends?

“You lying bitch!” Tanya grabbed my arm as I moved away from Fiona.

“I can’t believe that I treated you as a friend. I bet you and your family were laughing once you told them that your roommate was one of the many people that paid for the purse. You walked around campus, made me help you sell the damn thing knowing where the money came from.”

I tried to open my mouth to say something. Anything. But nothing would come out. That was the problem with secrets and lies, they always have a habit of coming out in the open and exposing the truth. The real truth.

All of a sudden the room filled with laughter, as Tanya took her frustration out on me. She started to rummage through my things, shouting out that her family paid for it. My laptop, my purse, my phone and then the room switched from laughter to chants.

“Thief!”

“Whore!”

Just like high school, it was happening all over again. The thing that I had run away from, was staring me in the face. Thanksgiving was around the corner, I couldn’t go back to the farm. I didn’t know if I could stay in college. I had to go somewhere, but I had nowhere to go.

“What the fuck? Look, everyone out!” Dane screamed as he came out of the crowd. I knew that this was the real Dane. The one I’d gone on a date with.

“This is my room. You can’t tell me to leave!”

Tanya said as she stopped tossing my things around, and then took a stand.

I agreed, she was right. I was the one that needed to go not her.

“Lisa, grab your things and then let’s get out of here.”

Fiona screamed, “You know who she is, and what she is, why are you defending her? And by the way for the record her name isn’t Lisa. It’s Anna-Lisa.”

Dane ignored her, as he motioned for me to leave. I did as he asked. Luckily, I hadn’t unpacked since I came back from Nan’s. I grabbed the same bag I’d come with, which contained a few things that Nan had brought for me. She’d said that I looked as if I needed new clothes, it was her polite way of telling me I’d put on weight. She was right, I did need new clothes and underwear. I grabbed the bag and tugged it under my arm as I left the dorm. There were roars of laughter, some of them were trying to take my bag, saying that they were stolen. I turned and saw Tanya no more throwing my things out, but slumped on the floor crying.

I was too, not because my secret had been revealed, but simply because I’d lost a friend. The first one that I had in forever. I had hurt her with my lie. Something that the boys had done to me, but now I knew exactly how she felt, and it hurt even more.

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