Page 37 of A Vicious Rumor

"We're here," Tyson said. I lifted my head up from the back of the headrest and my eyes widened. I thought we had been traveling down a back road, but apparently we'd been on a very rich person's private driveway.

"Is this your school?" I asked, not convinced this could be a house for just one family.

Tyson laughed. "Nah, but it is the house of the shithead who runs it."

"Seems like he might be charging you all too much tuition."

Tyson cut the engine to his car and turned to look at me. "If you only knew the half of it."

He climbed out of his side and I unbuckled my seatbelt as well. I was about to jump down myself, but he stood in front of me, blocking my path. "Look, I really don't want to be here, and I didn't want to bring you here. But, I'm sort of in this club and I gotta show when they ask me to."

"Interesting rules for a high school club," I replied warily.

"Yeah," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "Anyways, I just want you to know that I don't like these people, and most of them don't like me."

I stopped him before he started to say something else. I put my hand against his chest. It was warm and unyielding. Just like him. "Tyson, it's okay. I don't judge who you are based on who you go to school with."

He looked down at my fingers and then up at me. He pressed his palm against my fingers, pushing them further into his chest. Butterflies raced through my body at his touch as we locked eyes. "I never show these people the real me," he said.

I looked into his brown eyes, trying to find further meaning in what he said.

"Do you ever show anyone the real you?" I asked.

He wrapped his fingers around my own. "I'm starting to," he said. "Come on." He pulled my hand down from his chest and kept his fingers wrapped around it.

"Need to Know" by Doja Cat was pouring out of the house and it made me wonder what sort of parents would allow something like this, let alone the headmaster of a private school.

The house sort of reminded me of pictures I'd seen of small European villages, in that the entire village felt like the house. There were open air corridors and covered passages that led to rooms. The walls were all stucco with intricate paintings as borders. The flooring beneath my feet looked like some sort of fancy cobblestone and there was a mix of marble at every turn. The entire place just screamed more money than I'd ever set eyes on.

My mother's words from earlier started swimming around in my head again.

"You're from two different worlds."

I tried to dismiss the thought. It wasn't serving me right now. Besides, Tyson told me that these were not his people, and I told him that I wasn't going to judge him for that. It's not his fault that his father lives where he lives and that Tyson has to go to school there.

"This way," Tyson said, pulling me up a set of stairs made of mosaic tiles. The song changed to "7 Rings" by Ariana Grande, and I thought it sort of fitting. I blushed as we walked past a couple who seemed rather into one another on the staircase. The guy had the girl pushed up against the wall, and she didn't seem shy about making noises that echoed through the space.

Tyson grabbed my hand harder and pulled me along a bit faster. We made it to the top of the stairs and then turned left down a corridor and finally through a door on the right. When we walked through the room, I was a little stunned. It's what I expected the place to be like on the inside, but it was still a shock seeing it.

Dark wooden floors contrasted against bright white crown molding on the highest of ceilings. The furniture in the spacious room was modern and sleek. Black leather sofas, shiny lacquer tables, chrome finishings. There was a lot to take in.

"What's up, Paper," Tyson said to the guy sitting on one of the sofas. Tyson's counterpart rose upon being addressed and made his way over to us. He was tall, taller than most. He had jet black hair slicked off to the side and a lithe, but strong looking build. His jawline was sharp, and I imagined his mind was, too.

"I'm surprised you actually showed," he said, turning his wrist up to look at his watch. "And on time."

"Can we just get this over with?" Tyson asked. I could tell he was slightly uncomfortable.

"Waiting on Scissors," he replied before turning to me. "My name is Luca, but around the school I'm known as Paper."

"Oh," I replied. "I'm Lily," I said, taking his hand. "And I'm generally just known as Lily," I added, and the corner of his mouth quirked up.

"Alright, that's enough," Tyson replied. "Glad introductions are done." He almost growled as Luca held on to my hand.

"Not quite," Luca said, before turning back to look at me. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lily. However, I'm afraid that our meeting is private. I'm going to have to ask you to wait outside."

I looked up at Tyson, who was literally growling at the man who was supposed to be his friend. "No fucking way, man. She stays here with me." In a move that surprised even me, Tyson wrapped his arm around my shoulder and pulled me closer to him. My hand slipped out of Luca’s, and Paper took a slow, deliberate breath before turning his gaze on Tyson.

"Rock, I don't think I need to remind you of the club rules. No outsiders, and that is for good reason. There doesn't need to be a discussion about this, so let's not turn it into one."

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