Chapter 37 The strange girl in the lobby

Chapter 37 The strange girl in the lobby

Stephanie

A few weeks ago, I was convinced I could never dislike anyone the way I disliked Kendrix. This weekend at the Vault proved me wrong.

It's been a few days since Sebastian cheated at the challenge and I was still fuming about it. I hated losing, but I hated being cheated even more.

I thought I would feel better after punching him in the face, but that clearly hadn't reduced the anger burning inside me. I didn't want to just punch him, I want to destroy him.

“If you clutch that bottle any harder, you will crush it.” Brooklyn said. I finally realized what I was doing and removed my death grip from the innocent water bottle.

“Seb still bothering you?” Brooklyn asked. She just seem to know what I'm thinking about even without saying anything.

I took a long swig of my water. “I can't stop thinking about it. It just gets me so mad.” I seethed. And the innocent water bottle got the brunt of my anger again.

Brooklyn and I are at Benny's. Since I didn't have anything scheduled after school today and I was too pissed to go home, I let her drag me here.

The boys were on an away game at a high school nearby. St Peters School. They would come here directly from their game. For now, it was just Brooklyn and me enjoying some Benny's burgers.

I wish I could enjoy it better. I can't seem to focus on anything aside from the boiling rage inside me.

“Okay first, you need to let go of this.” Brooklyn rescued the bottle from me. I let it go, reluctantly. “Second, you don't need to worry yourself about him. The tournament is in a few days. You can beat him then, fair and square.”

“The tournament is still so faraway.” I grumbled. “What if he tries to pull something else before then?”

“He's not going to try anything stupid. Ronnie is always edgy this close to the tournament. Many of his gangsters friends would come and a fight would inevitably ensure. He'll try to remove everything that could trigger a fight.” Brooklyn said.

I didn't trust the owner of the Vault. I haven't known for as long as the others, but after he allowed Sebastien pull that stunt, he had officially made it to my shit list.

“I don't trust Ronnie. What if he lets Sebastian pull the same trick on me?”

“He won't. Even if he tried it, the boys would be there. The tournament's rule had always been squad against squad. And you're obviously better than him. Let him have this win, you'll definitely get the next one.” Brooklyn smiled.

I nodded, even though anger still burned inside me. If I had my way, I would have challenged him to another race, but everyone made it clear that challenges weren't allowed this close to the big tournament. The underground world was preparing for it biggest event of the year.

“Okay, I'll have the next one.” I repeated to myself and nodded.

“Yes, girl!” Brooklyn cheered and took a sip of her apple cider.

Benny's didn't serve alcohol to underages. That was a little bit of a shocker to me, considering athletes from this side of the city come here a lot, you'd think it was because of easy access to alcohol.

“Now, are you ready to order some actual food or will you keep punishing your bottled water? The boys wouldn't be here for another few minutes. They won so they're doing match rituals in the locker room.” She says as she read her text.

I was certain she was reading Cisco's text. It was amazing how the two of them have been dating for so long but can't seem to get enough of each other. It was so rare to see that in high school relationships. The thought brought a smile to my face.

“Well, then. I'll place an order.” I called on the waiter and got French fries with my water.

Brooklyn and I talked about other things, but steered clear of any talks about the Vault. I suspect she was doing that so I wouldn't lose my mind again. And I appreciated it.

At least I had something to discuss with Dr Martins during our next session. The overwhelming urge to murder Sebastian.

“Have you heard about Sophie?” I asked.

I hadn't seen her in school since the rumours broke out. That was over two weeks ago. The rumours had died down now and I wasn't even angry at her anymore. But I still wanted to ask her why she pushed me into the pool that day.

“No. Why do you ask?” Brooklyn bit into the chocolate she fetched from her backpack. She had finished her burger a while ago.

“I haven't seen her since that party at Colin's house.” I popped a fry into my mouth.

“And?” Brooklyn arched an eyebrow.

I didn't know what answer to give her. I couldn't shake off the uneasy feeling that something was wrong.

“Nothing.” I said instead. I threw another fry into my mouth.

Brooklyn sighed, obviously not buying my answer. She sat straighter in her seat.

“Look, I know you want to confront Sophie and ask her why she did what she did, but I've known Sophie since middle school, and I'm sure she didn't have a reason at that moment. It just felt right to her. That's how mean girls behave. They don't have a reason for being mean, they just are.” Brooklyn said.

Her reasoning made sense, but I couldn't shake off that uneasy feeling. That strange calm you feel before a storm set in.

“You're probably right.” I muttered. We drifted to other topics before Brooklyn had to use the bathroom.

I picked up my phone then dropped it back. Nothing good ever came out anytime I go on social media. But when few minutes passed and Brooklyn hadn't returned, I picked my phone again and began reading the e-book I started few days ago.

“Oh my God, Jess!” I raised my head and a figure with bright red hair filled my vision. The girl was smiling widely.

“Oh hi… you.” I let out a small smile. The girl's face looked really familiar but I couldn't exactly place where I've seen her before. And I don't understand why she's calling me Jess.

“It's Linda. We met at the reception of Dr Martins office the other day. Don't you remember?”

It suddenly hit me then. She was the creepy girl in the waiting area that started narrating her life history unprovoked. I gave her a fake name because she creeped me out back then. I didn't really think I'd see her again.

“Of course, I remembered.” I forced my smile to become brighter. “What are you doing here?”

That seems like a stupid question when I could see the plastic bag containing her order, but .
Linda answered that anyway.

“I came to get some burgers.” She raised the plastic bag for emphasis. “I know it's weird since I don't live close to this place, but Benny's is important to all KSE products, students and alum.” She chuckled.

I simply nodded. I had no idea where she lived.

“Anyway, I saw you talking to the princess and thought to say hi. I'll get going now.” She squealed.

“Wait, princess? What princess?” I blurted before I could stop myself.

A gleam of satisfaction passed through a face before she looked alarmed, like she had revealed something she wasn't supposed to.

“Oh, you aren't very close with Brooklyn? I assume she told you. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything.” She said and rushed out.

I tried to call her back but she was already running out the door. I sat there, confused by what just happened. A part of me wanted to let go it. I was already creeped out by the girl. Maybe she's just spilling some bullshit. It could be some nickname of Brooklyn, just like Kendrix call me.

Why did he call me that anyway?

I tucked the piece of information away as Brooklyn got closer. Linda was already long gone.

“Sorry, I took so long. The water ran out at the bathroom and I had to stand there, holding my pee while they fixed it.” Brooklyn rolled her eyes.

I wanted to ask her if she knew Linda, but for some reasons, I held my question back. The boys soon arrived after that and our conversations drifted towards their victory.

Soon, I stop thinking about my weird encounter with Linda, but I couldn't shake off the feeling that danger was creeping close.