Page 167 of Withered

I make a quick stop at the restroom just before lunch ends. I come out of the stall and wash my hands when the door flings open and Olivia saunters in.

“Oh, cool,” she squeaks in delight. “I got to meet you here. I’ve been trying to reach you, but you seem to be busy.”

“What is it, Olivia?” I ask, uninterested. I don’t even know why I asked; I should have just avoided her and gone my own way.

Her eyes scan me. “Not happy to see me?”

I roll my eyes at her, and this time I start walking toward the door.

“How’s Jake?” She asks, and I halt in my steps.

Why is she so obsessed with him?“None of your business,” I say, but she blocks my path. “What do you want?” I ask. With her heels, she is a few inches taller and is hence towering over me.

“Straight to the point, huh?” she snorts. “Okay, break up with Jake.”

“Excuse me?”Is she out of her mind?

“You heard me,” she says, folding her arms. “Break up with Jake.”

My eyes widen. “And why will I do that?”

“Because he is too dangerous for you,” she says, playing with her hair.

I try to hold in my laugh, but it flows out. “Sure enough, you’d know. You must’ve spent a lot of time with him.” I mock her. “Since when do you care about me?”

“I don’t.” She smirks at me and says, “But now that I know about Jake, it is best if you break up with him. I’m saving you from your misery.”

At this point, I’m convinced she is trying to feed me her crap. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She speaks, “Of course, you-” Another voice cuts her off. “What is taking you so long?” Kristy walks into the restroom.

Her gaze shifts from me to Olivia. “It’s you.” Her tone is filled with anger and venom directed at Olivia.

“Let’s go,” Kristy grabs my hand and drags me out of there before Olivia can say anything else. Once we are out, Kristy says, “Whatever she said, don’t listen to her.”

“What bullshit did she feed you?” Kristy asks.

“She kind of told me to break up with Jake,” I tell her.

Kristy throws her hands up in the air, all the while glaring at the washroom door. “See, that’s nonsense. Doesn’t she have anything better to do than break people up?”

The bell rings, and we make our way to our respective classes. I have physics, which goes by in a flash. My mind keeps going back to what Olivia said, and I’m getting frustrated and annoyed with myself for letting her in. I should have just left when she got in.

Next is English. I take my seat and wait for Tyler, who strolls in after a minute with Professor Caleb behind him.

Halfway through the class, I nudge him and say, “Hey, Tyler.”

He nods in response, and I ask, “Jake is okay, right?”

He gives me a confused look. “Gotta be more specific, boo.” I chuckle at the name.

I pause for a beat, considering whether or not to ask him. Jake is his best buddy, and he’s my friend as well. I’d rather believe him than someone who is infatuated with my boyfriend. I’m still not used to hearing that word.

“He isn’t dodgy, right?” I can’t believe I’m accusing Jake of being dodgy.How do I say dangerous in a good way?

“Why do you ask?” Tyler’s attention is on me. We’d both forgotten we’re in the middle of a class, but I couldn’t care less.

I sigh and say, “It’s just something Olivia said. I swear I’m not trusting her; that is why I’m asking you.”

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