Page 49 of Wallflower in Bloom

He nodded toward the windows on either side of their table. “Reflection. You get used to it after a while.”

Violet caught her reflection in the window. Her hair looked weird from having messed with it so much from nerves in the car. “I’m going to run to the bathroom super fast.”

“We can leave if you need to,” Jack said, suddenly concerned.

“No. I can do this. I’ll be right back.” All eyes were on her as she walked to the bathroom, her heart pounding with each step.

She walked through the restaurant with her head held high and felt a small burst of pride when she finally pushed the women’s restroom door open.

“Can you believe he’s here with her?” a disembodied voice said from inside a stall.

“I know,” a giggly voice sounded from the other one. “She’s such a mouse.”

Why did that voice sound familiar? Are they talking about me?

No, don’t be silly. They could be talking about anybody. Violet stood in front of the mirror to fix her hair and tried to ignore all the warning signs she felt.

“I mean, he’s all over the internet. I follow at least one of his fan accounts where it’s all photos of his shirt off.”

Uh oh.

“She’s so weird. She’s way too, like, into plants.” That sounded like Jennifer.

“Every time I see her, she asks me about one I bought from them months ago,” the other one said, through a giggle.

“Plus, her ass looks like a mozzarella ball in that skirt.”

Violet glanced down at her skirt as she heard both toilets flush and the doors unlock. She stood stock-still with fear, not sure what to do. Flee? Fight? A woman she didn’t know walked out of the first stall, and the second one emerged.

Of course, it was Jennifer. The friend she could never count on.

And if you couldn’t count on a friend, what were they? Just a person who didn’t care about you.

The women went to the sinks to wash their hands, eyes downcast.

“Hi, Violet,” Jennifer said with a tight smile.

The other woman perked up, pretending Violet hadn’t just caught her. “Your date is so handsome. Did you win, like, a charity thing?”

Violet’s heart wanted to leap out of her chest in anger. Channel Shay and slay them with a witty comeback. But her tongue was tied; she wanted to burst into tears and scream simultaneously. She hated that she cried when she got mad.

Instead, she threw her bag under her arm, angry tears in her eyes, and immediately walked out of the bathroom.

She wished she had a million comebacks for all the mean girls who’d taunted her in bathrooms over the years.

She walked quickly with her head down to the table. “I’m sorry, I can’t,” she muttered to Jack. She escaped outside and swore she heard giggling behind her as the door closed.

She made it to the end of the sidewalk before he caught up with her.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ruin it,” she said, trying to catch her breath as she fought back tears.

She was just so mad. Mad at not standing up for herself. Mad at trying to be friends with terrible people.

Crap, she was ruining her makeup. Now the photos people would take of them would look terrible.

“Nothing to be sorry about. What’s the matter? Do you need help with your skirt?”

“No, it’s not these stupid clothes.” She tugged at her skirt.

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