Chapter 110 My life is such a disaster
Liam's POV
She is shaking underneath me, and it definitely is not because she likes it. It is because she is terrified.
I know exactly what scares her right now. But instead of stopping, I drag this out on purpose. She bites down on my tongue and the second she does, I taste blood in my mouth. I do not give a single fuck.
I do not let her go until I hear the footsteps getting closer, almost right around the corner.
The moment I loosen my grip, she pulls away from me like she can not get far enough fast enough. She looks at me with so much hate in her eyes, like I just committed some crime. Okay, fine, maybe I did. But she is the one who pushed me to it.
A bunch of students walk past us. Not one of them notices anything off.
To them, we are just two people standing here, having a normal conversation.
She finally catches her breath and forces the words out low and rough.
"You are so fucking messed up."
I laugh on the inside. She probably wants to slap me for real right now. But we are out in the open, and she is way too worried about people finding out about us to actually do anything.
"Save your energy for later, babe." I smile because I know exactly what that will do to her.
And yeah, there it is. Her eyes go bright with anger.
She has such a temper. I love it.
Right when I am about to push her a little more and see what other reaction I can get out of her, someone calls my name from behind.
It is James. And a few other guys I hang out with.
"Hey man." He walks up and then notices her. "Sophie. What is up? Haven't seen you around in a few days."
"We are in different classes." Her voice comes out harsh.
She does not like James. That is pretty obvious. Not just because he made her play that stupid game at the party, but because she is not into guys like him.
Guys like me. The ones who sleep around. She likes the type who get straight As and join student government. Guys who act all polite and good all the time. Like that Alex guy and her trash ex Jordan.
Just thinking about Alex makes my mind go somewhere dark for a second.
James keeps talking to her anyway. "We are heading to the café. You want to come?"
"Um, thanks. But I will pass. I am not really hungry."
Obviously she says no.
"You are coming." I say it like it is already decided.
She shoots me a look that could kill. I just raise my eyebrows and stare back.
If she wants to start something in front of everyone, that is fine with me.
We stand there looking at each other for what feels like forever. She gives up first.
"Fine." She says it quiet and annoyed.
She walks with us but speeds up so she is ahead, putting space between herself and the rest of us. She can be so difficult sometimes.
James walks next to me and nudges my side. Lowers his voice. "You two were making out earlier, were not you?"
I am still watching her walk ahead. "That obvious?"
He laughs under his breath. "Man, you should have seen her face when I called you over. It is so obvious. She wears everything right there."
I laugh a little too because he is not wrong.
"You would not believe what she just said to me." I tell him about the whole thing. About her proposal.
He almost loses it right there. "Wait, for real? She actually said that? Damn. But is not this exactly what you wanted? Is not this going perfectly?"
"I wanted her to actually fall for me. Not just sleep with me. That would be too simple."
"Yeah, but still. You are getting there. It will not be long before she is grabbing your arm and begging you to stay. Especially now that you handled that Alex situation. You took care of him, right?"
"Yeah." His ex is going to keep him occupied for a while.
We get to the café and grab trays. James is still grinning behind me while we pick out food. "Shit, I can not wait. When are you going to do the big reveal? I need to see that look on her face when it all falls apart."
"Be patient. And keep your voice down."
I notice Sophie looking back at us, all suspicious. She is probably trying to figure out what we are talking about.
She will never guess what is coming for her.
I leave James and walk up to her with a smile. "Come on, let us find a table, little sister."
Sophie's POV
When Liam is not being completely awful, he can actually be decent. I sit with him and his friends during lunch, and it is not as terrible as I thought it would be. They probably know I am not exactly their biggest fan, so they do not try to make me talk.
What surprises me is that they are talking about college stuff. Applications and internships.
I always figured their whole world revolved around girls and cars and hooking up. So it actually catches me off guard that they think about their futures at all.
But then again, these guys were born with everything handed to them. Their parents probably went to Ivy League schools and now their kids get the same shot without even trying.
I would be lying if I said I was not a little jealous. It gets me thinking.
Where am I even going to go after this?
My dad bailed on me. Mr. Thorne would probably help with college money if I asked, but I can not do that to him.
Back when I was with Jordan, I had this whole plan. I wanted to go to Northwood, be in the same city as him. I have been saving up, and if I get a scholarship, I might have enough for a public school there.
But now that we are done, maybe I should pick some other place. Start over somewhere new. Somewhere cheaper than Northwood.
"What are you thinking about?"
Liam's voice pulls me back.
"Nothing." I say it quick and start gathering my stuff. "I should go. See you guys later."
I get up and leave fast. Liam says something behind me but I do not even hear it.
My head is stuck on this sudden panic about my future.
I spend the rest of my afternoon classes just thinking about it. I used to have everything planned out. Every step. But then everything fell apart and now I have nothing. No plan at all. That is not like me.
Plus I went and made everything worse with this whole messed up situation with Liam.
What is wrong with me?
My life is such a disaster.
When the final bell rings, I walk to the front gate slow, feeling heavy. I am so lost in my head that I literally walk right into someone.
"Alex." I say his name before I even realize it. "Sorry, I was not paying attention."
"Oh, no, you are fine." He stands there looking at me, getting all nervous and stumbling over his words. "Are you heading home? I could give you a ride?"
"No thanks. I will just take the bus."
Better to keep my distance after the whole thing with his ex.
I try to walk away but he steps in front of me. He looks really nervous.
"Sophie, I have been wanting to talk to you. About the ball and everything. Can I just drive you home so we can…"
A loud horn cuts him off.
I turn my head and see this flashy Porsche parked right in front of the school gates.
The door opens and my mom gets out.
"Ma'am, you can not park here. This is a tow zone." The security guard runs over but she just waves him off like it is nothing.
"I will be quick. My daughter is right there." She hurries over to me while everyone stares. "Hey Soph, ready to go? Oh my god, is this Alex?"
I can not even process what is happening. What is she doing here?
Alex smiles and says hi all polite. "Nice to see you again, Mrs. Thorne."
"Oh, it is so nice to see you too. Soph has told me so much about you since that night. Thank you for taking care of her during.."
And that is when my brain catches up.
I lied to her about who I slept with that night. And she is about to blow my whole story right in front of Alex.
I cut her off fast. "What are you even doing here, Mom?"
"Picking you up for dinner. Did Liam not tell you?"
"No."
My head is spinning so bad I feel sick. Okay. Stay calm. I just need to get her out of here right now.
"Okay, well, let us go. You can not park there." I am talking too fast.
"What is the rush? I am supposed to get you and Liam both. Oh, here he comes."
My stomach drops even lower. I turn around slow and see Liam walking toward us.
The second he notices Alex, his whole face goes cold.
This can not get worse. The air around me feels thin.
I grab my mom's bag and force the words out. "Liam is here. Let us just go."
Maybe I can still fix this. I will explain everything to Alex later.
"Oh, honey, do not be rude. We should invite your boyfriend to come with us. I would love to get to know him better. What do you say, Alex? Are you free for dinner tonight?"
Liam's eyes go wide. Alex just stands there with his mouth open. And I am completely screwed.