Page 78 of Wild Hearts

“Wren.” Ivy’s voice is pained. “We can’t–”

“Please!” I almost shout the word at her. I take a deep breath, forcing myself to lower my voice. “Just forget I said anything. It’s not his fault.” I lean forward, wrapping my hands around my stomach as I swallow a gulping breath of air. “He couldn’t have stopped Drew that night, even if he wanted to. They were both drunk. No one in the school would speak out against Drew Pembroke. It was social suicide.”

That’s what hurt the most. It was Drew’s word against mine, and with the exception of Airlie, the whole school turned against me. No one was going to challenge the most popular guy in school. Especially not his best friend. He was the captain of the rugby team and the vice school captain.

“I don’t like this, Wren.” A tear rolls down Ivy’s cheek and she swipes it away angrily. “You shouldn’t have to go through this.”

“It’s not his fault,” I whisper again, trying to convince myself that the words are true. “Drew made his own choices that night.”

Ivy pulls me in for a hug. This is everything I didn’t want. I didn’t want pity. I didn’t want anyone feeling sorry for me. I’m not weak. I can’t be. I’m a survivor.

Ivy’s phone rings, vibrating in her purse. She pulls away and takes out her phone, staring at the screen. “It’s Brady.”

“Don’t tell him!” My words come out harsher than I meant them to. “Promise me, Ivy. Don’t say a word.”

“I won’t,” she says, biting her lip as she answers her phone. “What’s up?” I’m praying he won’t notice how strained her voice is. She listens for a moment and then sighs and says, “Yep, I’m just fixing my makeup and we’ll be out in a second.”

She hangs up the phone, eyeing me warily as she puts it back in her bag. “Brady’s out there waiting with Dad and Tarshia. He’s spinning out.”

My stomach churns. Ivy doesn’t need my drama – she has enough going on. I climb to my feet and wipe under my eyes. “Okay, let’s get these photos taken and then I should go. I can’t be here.”

“Back to the hotel?” Ivy asks.

We rented a couple of rooms for the night so we wouldn’t have to drive all the way back to Blue Haven tonight.

I shake my head. “I need to go back to Blue Haven. I don’t want to risk running into Flynn again. Brady gave me his keys, I’ll just take his car. Do you mind getting a lift back with Jordan?”

“You can’t drive back by yourself,” Ivy says, but then I think she realises just how hard it is for me to be around Flynn. She lets out another sigh. “Fine,” she agrees. “But get Harley to go with you. I don’t want you driving on your own.”

I grimace. If I ask Harley to drive back with me, Brady’s going to want to know what’s going on. I was hoping I could just sneak out of here.

“Please, Wren,” Ivy implores me. “I don’t want to worry about you.”

“Fine.”

“Thank you.” She wipes under her own eyes, cursing at the black smudges on her fingers. “Does my makeup look okay for photos?”

I step forward and run a finger under her left eye, clearing a small smudge of mascara. “All good.”

Ivy forces a smile and opens the door to the bathroom, glancing round before stepping out and heading back out to the Baptism celebrations. Knowing that Harley won’t be far from Brady’s side, I follow, hoping to God I don’t bump into Flynn on the way.

I should have known luck wouldn’t be on my side. Ivy makes her way across the backyard to where a scowling Brady is standing awkwardly with Jeremy and Tarshia, who’s holding baby Theo. As I move to join them, someone grabs my arm.

“Wren, can we talk?”

I turn to face Flynn, yanking my arm out of his grip. “I’ve got nothing to say to you.”

“Please,” he begs, keeping his voice low so that we’re not overheard by anyone. “I just want to apologise for–”

“Stop.” I put my hand out in front of me, creating a barrier between us. “I don’t want...” I take a deep breath. “I don’tneedyour apology. Just drop it.”

Flynn rubs the back of his neck. “I didn’t know... I mean, I didn’t think he’d do something like that. Please, Wren. I feel terrible. We’re not even friends anymore. I couldn’t be around him after school finished. I felt–feel–so guilty. I should have–”

“Please stop.” My voice is barely a whisper. “Please, you need to forget it even happened. You can’t say anything to anyone.” I can feel my defences slipping. He’s bringing attention to us and I don’t want anyone else here to know something happened. I’m starting to feel dizzy.

“Wren, I’m so sorry, but I need to tell you something. You’re not the only–”

Flynn is cut off as he’s wrenched away from me and shoved against the house. I’m frozen.I’m not the only what? What does that even mean?

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