“I’ll help you study,” I tell Vic. I glance at Cassidy, who’s walking in front of us swaying her hips, probably to get his attention. I urge him to come closer as I whisper in his ear, “Or I’m sure Cassidy would love to tutor you.”
He doesn’t even look in her direction. “Don’t go there.”
When she turns the corner, I say, “I don’t know why you don’t give her another chance, Vic. She’s obviously still in love with you… when she’s not referring to you as a jerk.”
“I am a jerk.”
“No you’re not,” I tell him. Ever since freshman year Vic has been in my group of friends. I know him well, even though he has a wall up a mile wide. There are times when his true self shines through that tough-guy façade. “Sometimes you’re…”
“An asshole.”
“No. I was going to say moody or intense. Passionate.” When he starts to walk down the hall, I grab his arm and pull him back. “You’re real. And protective of the people you care about. I love that about you.”
He looks away, seemingly uncomfortable with the compliment.
He’s not as bad as his father has made him believe he is. In fact, I rely on Vic for a lot of things. Trey does too. Vic’s loyal to the core, and that means a lot to me.
He’s also very charismatic. The funny thing is that he’s clueless about the fact that he’s popular and girls talk about him all the time. He’s even got his own cheering section in the stands during football games.
Vic has the attention of most of the student body whether he wants it or not. I look down the hall and see one freshman girl point at him and giggle excitedly, then take a picture of him while his back is turned.
“What’re you looking at?” Trey asks, coming up behind me and kissing my neck.
I turn around and hug him, erasing the image of Vic’s body from my mind.
“Nothing. Hey, how was your first period?” I ask.
“To be honest, I’m already stressed out,” he says, pulling back. “It’s gonna be arduous being in all AP classes with no study hall, and on top of that I have college apps and essays. Not to mention football. I’m so overwhelmed and it’s the first day of school.”
“You don’t need to take all those super hard classes,” I tell him as we walk down the hall. It doesn’t escape my attention that Trey isn’t holding my hand. In the past, he would hold my hand whenever we were walking through the halls. He’s too agitated now, like his stress level is so high that he can’t focus on our relationship. I get it though. You don’t get to be valedictorian by being a good boyfriend. You get it by earning As in AP classes. “Lighten your load if you’re that stressed out.”
“I can’t,” he says. “So much rides on this year for me. You’re aware of that.”
“I know.”
He shifts his books and a clear baggie with a bunch of pills inside falls from between the pages of one of the books. He quickly picks it up.
“What are those?” I ask him.
“Anxiety meds my doc prescribed,” Trey says. “They calm me.”
That’s weird. He never told me he was on medication. “Why are they in a baggie?”
“Because I didn’t want to bring the entire bottle to school. It’s not a big deal.”
I say in a hushed tone, “I don’t want anyone thinking you’re taking illegal drugs, Trey. Baggies are what drug dealers use. Have your parents fill out one of those prescription forms at the nurse’s office and—”
“That’s a waste of time, Monika,” he says, cutting me off. “Besides, I don’t need the nurse or random people knowing my business.” He almost looks pissed that I’ve given him the suggestion.
My stomach does these little flips. “Okay.”
“The late bell is about to ring. I’ll see you later,” he says hurriedly.
I get a sinking feeling that something’s not right with Trey. I tell myself it’s first-day-of-school nerves because he wants to succeed and be the best in school and football.
But what if it’s something else?
Chapter Five
VICTOR
Football practices with Coach Dieter are brutal, especially in the summer when it’s hot as hell outside. The official start of football season is on Friday, so Dieter is working us hard.
After school, we’re required to be in the workout room for an hour. I’m about to join my teammates when I see Heather Graves standing next to the entrance. She’s wearing sunglasses and looks nervous.
“Hi Vic,” she says. “Can I talk to you?”
“Sure,” I say. “What’s up?”
She takes off her sunglasses, revealing a nasty bruise under her eye. Not surprising considering the way her boyfriend clocked her. “I, um, just wanted to talk to you about last night. Joe gets riled up easily¸ but I swear that was the first time he was rough with me. Anyways, I came here to thank you.”
She says it like I’m some superhero, but I don’t go around looking for people to rescue. I did what anyone would do if they saw a girl get hit. “No guy should hit a girl,” I tell her. “Ever.”
She looks at the ground. “I know. I just… he just gets like that when he drinks. He’s got a dad who treats him like crap.”
“My old man treats me like crap, and I never hit a girl,” I tell her.