Chapter 4

"You heard what she said, we should be halfway done with our project" Aurelia states with an irritated tone of voice as she trails after me We just got out of science class where our teacher made an announcement saying that we should be halfway done with our projects. Our projects are due in two days. She's irritated with me because I refuse to work with her for reasons I will not discuss. "Okay, and?" I reply with an annoyed tone as I continue to walk away from her Where are Bailey and Faith when you need them? I haven't seen them all morning but it is only second period. After this class I'll check the cafeteria to see if I can spot them. "We are lab partners, we're supposed to work together" she states matter of factly as I stop outside of my next class I sigh and turn around to face her, fixing my backpack straps in the process. "Listen, I've been thinking about that. I'm going to ask her if I can work on a similar project by myself" I inform her Aurelia gives me an incredulous look which makes me shift awkwardly in my spot as some onlookers glance at us. "Hanna" she says with a gentler tone but I cut her off "Look, I have to go, the bell's about to ring" I say as I go to turn around only to be stopped by her hand on my wrist Shit. Those goddamn tingles. "Hanna, please just think about this" she begs lowly "Goodbye, Aurelia" is all I say before walking into my second period classroom I don't think my heart has ever hurt this bad. If I'm being honest my heart hurts more now than it did when I broke up with Chadley. This is for the best. I'm not only protecting her heart but mine too. - I have good news and bad news. The good news is that I was able to easily locate Bailey and Faith. The bad news is that they won't stop asking me questions. "Hanna, what happened?" Bailey asks as Faith shoves a meatball sub down her mouth "What do you mean?" I question back as I continue to play with my stale school pizza "You look upset. Did Chadley say something to you again?" She adds, already getting into a protective mode "No, he nor Ava have been at school the past two days" I say matter of factly "Then who, Aurelia?" She questions causing me to straighten up and furrow my brows "I'm not upset, I'm just mourning" I say calmly Faith pauses in the middle of eating her second meatball sub to give me a look of confusion. "Mourning?" She questions "Yes" I say not up for discussing this subject and further Bailey is about to say something only to be interrupted by the devil in disguise. "Can we talk?" She asks, her light grey eyes never fleeting from mine "Sorry, I have to go finish some math homework" I say as I grab my backpack and walk out of the cafeteria I hear her sigh as I walk away before sitting in my previously occupied bench. I basically speed walk through the hallway so that I can get to my destination quicker. During my freshman year I did some exploring and found an abandoned hallway. It wasn't dusty nor were there bugs. Plus it was quieter than the library. I take a few right hand turns before arriving at my location. As I slide down the wall and begin to settle myself I hear footsteps coming from the same path that I took to get here. When I look up I'm met with the neutral face of Aurelia. I choose to ignore her as I unzip my backpack and take my school supplies out. "I know that you do not want to talk to me, but just answer one thing for me?" She requests with a genuine tone I look up at her so that I can gauge her facial expression. "Okay" I decide as I lean back against the brick wall She takes this chance to sit across from me so that we're in each other's line of sight. "Did I do something to upset you?" She asks "No" I inform her "What about your ex?" She questions causing my breath to hitch from surprise but I ignore it "I don't hate, Chadley, while yes, he did cheat on me, I can't hate him" I say She moves closer to me so that she can place a hand on my upper arm. I awkwardly shift away from her touch. "Hanna, you deserve better than him" she says with a genuine tone of voice We look up simultaneously, our gazes connecting in an intense stare. I awkwardly clear my throat before breaking the gaze. "It doesn't matter, I'm close with his family therefore I have to pretend like nothing happened" I say as I begin to start on my math homework "You shouldn't have to deal with that" she replies "Look, I appreciate your concern but you don't understand the full story. If you'll excuse me I would like to do my homework in peace" I say calmly but it comes out a little snarky She nods her head and stands up before retreating away from me, but not before saying something that catches my attention. "Don't ask to work alone on the science project" she says with a gentle tone of voice before walking away, leaving me confused What the heck just happened? - The bell rings knocking me out of my daydream. I look over to the board only to notice that it is now full of assignments that are due tomorrow. Great. I sigh as I put my notebook in my backpack as well as my pen. "Hanna, we need to talk" I hear Bailey say causing me to look up at her "Okay, so talk" I say before going back to my backpack and continuing to place my stuff in it "Our whole grade level knows that you and Aurelia are either dating or sleeping together" she says causing me to pause and look up at her with horrified eyes "Are you serious?" I ask her, hoping that she would pass this off as a harmless joke "No, I'm not. Why didn't you tell us first?" She asks pointing between herself and Faith "I'm going to kill her" I say with an angered tone as I stand up from my desk and storm out of the classroom I hear Bailey and Faith's feet behind me but I ignore them as my eyes lock in on Aurelia. As I reach her I roughly yank her arm causing her to spin around and face me with a confused facial expression. "Hanna, what do you-" she begins to say but I cut her off "Did you tell our grade level that you and I were dating?" I ask her with angered look in my eyes She continues to look at me with a confused facial expression as she adjusts her backpack. "No, What are you talking about, Hanna?" She asks with a tired tone of voice Before I can respond I'm suddenly being pushed out the way so that Faith is standing where I previously stood. "Bailey and I heard a bunch of people from our grade level talking about how you and Hanna are either dating or having sexual relations" she explains "Oh, well I never spread any rumors. This is the first of me hearing them in fact" Aurelia responds Faith turns to me with a curious facial expression. I don't respond as I walk away from them and out of the school doors. Quickly finding my mothers car. This is a sign. I need to distance myself from her. - "Hanna, there's someone at the door for you" my mom says before walking away, leaving my bedroom door open I literally just got home from school. I walk out of my room and jog down the stairs before walking the rest of the way to the door. When the figure turns around I'm met with the image of Bailey's face. "Hey, you forgot your backpack" she says holding it out for me I smile with relief. "Thank you" I reply gratefully She quickly walks off saying a quick 'see you tomorrow'. I glance at her moms car and see Faith in the backseat, I guess they're sleeping at one of their houses. As I close my front door I notice Haley running up to me. "Come here my little, Haley Bear" I say as I hold my arms open for her She runs into them just as I put my backpack down. I wrap my arms around her just as tight. "When did you get back?" I ask her genuinely "This morning" she replies as she pulls away from me with a smile "You're lucky, you didn't have to go to school today" I congratulate her "She would've went if Carolina didn't live five hours away" my mom says with an eye roll causing me to laugh "How does a family movie night sound now that Haley is here?" My mother says as she exits the den "Sounds nice" I respond as Haley gives them a tiny thumbs up I missed my little sister. I'll give myself two weeks max before I get annoyed with her snooping. We are sisters after all. - I just arrived at school and I'm dead set on demanding to work by myself in science. I quickly grab my science and math textbooks from my locker before slamming it shut and scurrying off to class. There's barely any students here at the moment. They're either in the cafeteria or they come to class five seconds before the bell rings. When I arrive to class I internally do a happy dance to the fact that 'you know who' is not in class at the moment. I make my way towards the teachers desk. "Hanna, what do you need?" She asks me obviously not excited to see me this early in the morning "I would like to work by myself on a different project" I request desperately She gives me an amused facial expression as she rests her chin on her closed fist. "Why are you requesting to work by yourself a day before the project is due?" She asks with obvious fascination "My partner is incredibly distracting to the point where I cannot do my work without wanting to attack her" I say and clench my hand into a fist thinking about Aurelia's smart mouth remarks "Well, Miss Wilder, this is strictly a partner based project" she says taking delight in upsetting me This woman has some seriously messed up problems. What middle aged woman takes enjoyment in making a fifteen year old girl's life a nightmare?! "Yes, I understand that, but since I have an 'A' in your class I was hoping that you would agree to it" I continue She takes a deep breath before leaning back in her seat. "And why would I do that?" She questions "I'm the only person in this class that is passing, at least give me a chance before completely knocking the idea out of the park" I beg She's about to respond only to get interrupted by Aurelia. "That won't be necessary, Hanna and I just had a little disagreement. She said that she would come and talk to you about 'working alone' but I truly thought that she was kidding" Aurelia lies without missing a beat Is she serious right now?! Why does she have to ruin my life? My life was perfectly normal before she came into it and made me question everything. "I promise that this will not happen again" she finishes with a smile before turning to face me I glare at her smirking facial expression before turning around and walking out of the classroom in search of Bailey and Faith. I need an Aurelia detox. Wherever I go she always seems to appear.