Page 68 of Withered

I’m still curious how he found out about her. He seemed to be interested in her before the first party he threw. We’ll both have English next, and that’ll be my chance to know everything.

Kristy stops talking and turns to Tyler, asking, “Where is your friend Jake?”

I halt, and Kristy says, “Never mind.”

Tyler stares at us both, puzzled, before returning his focus to Kristy.

We complete our lunch and dump our trays in the trash can as we leave. The entire cafeteria is staring at us: Kristy and I, followed by Tyler behind us. It will never grow on me.

Kristy and I quickly use the restroom before meeting Tyler outside. A girl is attempting to touch Tyler, and he is slowly backing away. He removes her hand, but she is not buying it.

In a flash, Kristy marches toward the scene, and I follow her. This should be interesting.

“Ready to go, Ty?” Kristy says, faking a smile.

I stand behind her, enjoying the show silently. So, Tyler is now Ty.

“Yes, babe,” he answers, snaking his arm around her waist. I roll my eyes.

The other girl looks hurt and asks, “I thought you were single?”

Kristy turns to him and fakes a gasp. “Ty. You never told me you were single.”

I chuckle, and he replies instantly, “I am not.”

I put my palm over my mouth to keep from laughing.

Kristy smirks. “That’s what I thought.” She flips her hair and turns to the girl, saying, “Sorry. You lost your chance.”

The girl glares at her and walks away. There’s no way she could have nearly competed with Kristina Jones. Laughter sputters out of my mouth, and Kristy joins in.

Tyler spins her around and kisses her right on the lips. The students going by stop and gaze at them. There aren’t many people out here, but enough to spread the word.

I clear my throat to break them but fail. I clap my hands and whistle, but they won’t stop.

An idea pops into my mind, and I shout, “Hello, Mr. Jones.”

Tyler quickly moves back, and Kristy searches for her father. Laughter splutters out again, and this time I have to lean over as my stomach hurts. The expressions on both their faces are priceless.

“You’re mean.” They both say it at the same time, and I laugh harder.

We drop Kristy off at her class, then make our way to English. On our way, the hallway split into a straight path and a right turn.

Tyler halts and asks, “Do you hear that?”

“Hear what?” I ask and pay attention to what he is saying.

The bell just rang, so the hallway is desolate. We can hear moaning and grunting coming from a janitor’s closet nearby. When I hear her speak, I scrunch up my face.

“Olivia,” I say, “Let’s go. We are getting late.”

Tyler nods but stops after two steps.

“What is it?”

“Jake,” he says.

Hearing his name is enough to trigger yesterday’s event and send shivers down my spine.

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