Page 11 of Girl Violence

“Gee, thanks.” Josette continues walking, but her head is all over the place. He didn’t see a point? Did she imagine them being that close when they were younger? She’s starting to feel like she did. God, she feels like an idiot. She just wants to go home and forget tonight ever happened with him.

“You haven’t changed, have you?” he says mockingly. “You’re still an annoying brat.”

“You don’t know shit about me now, Vince,” she snaps, which shuts him up.

They eventually leave the park, walking down the street they live on. It’s too familiar, and Josette hates it because it’s not meant to be like this.

They get to his house first, and she doesn’t turn around to say goodbye. She’s too annoyed by how much he’s changed and how he’s acting.

Josette walks to her house, intending to ignore him, until he says, “Aren’t you going to give me a goodbye kiss?” She stops dead in her tracks. “Like last time?”

Heat burns her face, but she turns to him, seeing his lips tug upwards. He’s teasing her, and she hates it.

“You wish you had my lips on you, Vincent.” She blows him a kiss and then flips him her middle finger. His eyes expand with shock as she walks away, but she swears that after pushing open her door, she can hear a deep chuckle of laughter behind her.

CHAPTERFOUR

“Austin wants you to call him,” Josette says to Jenna that night. Jenna stole her cousin’s phone to call after Josette messaged to tell her she took her advice and went to a party she regrets going to. It’s almost midnight, and Josette can’t sleep, so she’s thankful Jenna called to take her mind off everything, especially Vince.

“Yeah, right. Like I can,” Jenna scoffs. “I’m hiding out in a bathroom just to talk to you, so I’m not caught. I don’t want to speak to him anyway.”

“He didn’t know you were in Germany until I told him. Why?”

“We haven’t spoken in a month, so him asking about me is weird since the last time we talked, he told me we were done. But having this much space from him has made me realise how unhealthy he is for me anyway. I don’t think I’ve ever cried as much about anyone. And I never cry over anyone.”

She’s right. Josette’s never seen Jenna cry until the drama with Austin started. Since last summer, they’ve been hooking up, but their relationship has been rocky. Hot and then super cold. Josette’s convinced she doesn’t know half of it.

Jenna grew up privileged in a world far different from the likes of Austin’s or even hers. Josette can only imagine how it played a part in driving a wedge between them. Lately, whenever Josette mentions him, Jenna doesn’t say much, making her think something happened before the crash. Still, Jenna won’t tell her what. “What are you going to do? You know how persistent he is.”

“I don’t know.” There’s sadness in her tone. “Can we talk about something else? When I hear his name, I want to eat a whole tub of Ben and Jerry’s chocolate fudge brownie, and my aunt and uncle don’t have a granule of sugar in the house.”

“My neighbour is pissing me off,” Josette blurts out and slaps herself on the forehead.

“The woman your dad fancies?”

“No—her son.”

“Oh, I thought you said he wasn’t your type?” Josette rolls onto her back and puts her arm over her face. She hasn’t been able to get Vince out of her head. Not even once. He’s consumed her, and she needs to let it out to someone before she implodes.

“He isn’t,” Josette replies through gritted teeth. “I’ve never told you about him. But we used to be friends. We grew up together. He was the boy next door who I followed everywhere.”

“Okay, so why is he making you angry now? Do you like him?”

Maybe she shouldn’t have brought him up. “No.”

“What’s his name? Do I know him?”

“Vince, and no. We met after he left.”

“Oookay. You’re giving me nothing here, Josette. Tell me.”

“My dad made me take him to the party tonight. I didn’t want to. I thought he’d say no because it’s weird going out with someone you haven’t seen in five years, right?”

“I guess?”

“But he came, and Austin took an interest in him. They have history and got into a fight because Vince was rude to Alyssa.” Jenna snorts at the mention of Alyssa. “Vince pushed him to the floor, and I thought Austin would go mad the way he usually does, but he didn’t. Now, he’s okay with having Vince around the group, and he’s popular already. Then there was this girl all over him.”

“Jo—”

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