Chapter 12: Another Post
Alex’s POV
“didn’t do it.”
The words left my mouth steady and controlled, but the way she looked at me made it feel like I had just said something meaningless. Like it didn’t matter what I said anymore.
Sloane’s eyes searched mine for a reason to believe me, but whatever she was looking for, she didn’t find it.
Her lips trembled, her chest rising unevenly as if she was holding back too much at once.
Then she laughed.
“You didn’t do it?” she repeated, shaking her head slowly. “You expect me to believe that?”
Before I could answer, her hands hit me again,each hit was uncoordinated, fueled by something deeper than anger.
“You brought me home on purpose!” she cried, her voice cracking as she pushed against me. “You’re the only one who knows that place would be the perfect spot for Lana to see us leave the school, Alex! The only one!”
I didn’t move, I let her hit me because I could see it now. This wasn’t about logic to her anymore. It wasn’t about connecting facts.
It was about how it felt, and right now, it felt like I had set her up.
“You think I would do that to you?” I asked quietly, my voice lower than before.
“Yes!” she snapped instantly, her eyes flashing with hurt. “Right now? Yes, I do!”
That hit harder than anything else.
My jaw tightened, but I kept my voice even. “Then you don’t know me at all.”
“I don’t want to know you,” she said, her voice dropping colder now. “Not if this is who you are.”
She shoved me one last time before stepping back, her hands shaking at her sides like she didn’t know what to do with them anymore.
I exhaled slowly, running a hand through my hair.
So I reached for my phone and dialled Lana. The moment her name appeared on the screen, Sloane’s expression shifted again.
A quiet kind of realization like everything was falling into place for her in the worst way possible.
The call connected.
“Alex?” Lana’s voice came through, soft, almost careful. “I wasn’t expecting..”
“Where did you get the pictures from?”
“I… I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, but the hesitation was obvious.
“Don’t lie to me,” I said, my voice tightening.
“I’m not lying, I just—”
“Lana.”
Her name came out sharper this time,but enough to cut through whatever excuse she was trying to form.
“I saw everything. The pictures. The posts. Where did you get them from?”
A pause.
Behind me, I could hear Sloane’s breathing, like every second was pulling her further apart.
“I just… people are talking,” Lana said finally, her tone shifting, trying to sound casual. “I didn’t think it was a big deal…”
“A big deal?” I repeated, disbelief creeping into my voice.
I took a step forward without realizing it, my grip tightening around my phone.
“You took pictures of my house,” I continued, my voice rising despite myself. “You posted them. You dragged her name through the mud, and you think it’s not a big deal?”
“Alex, calm down. She is a nobody, a fat pig. That's what you've always called her. Why acting like you care about her”
“No. Right now, you're going too extreme with the defence, Alex”
The word came out sharp.
“You don’t get to tell me to calm down after doing something like this,” I said, my tone colder now. “Answer the question. Where did you get the pictures?”
“I went there,” Lana admitted, her voice smaller now. “I just wanted to see if it was true.”
My jaw clenched.
“You went where?”
“To your house,” she said quickly. “I saw her get into your car, and I just… I followed. I needed to know what was going on.”
I shut my eyes for a brief second.
Unbelievable.
“You followed us home?,” I repeated, my voice low.
“I was trying to protect you!” she snapped suddenly, her tone shifting from defensive to desperate. “You don’t know what kind of girl she is, Alex! She’s been pretending this whole time….”
“Stop.”
I didn’t raise my voice loud enough. My chest was aching, and my brain was almost shutting down because if the principal gets to hear about it, everyone, including me, will be in a big mess.
“Don’t talk about her like that.”
“You’re defending her?” Lana asked slowly.
“I’m correcting you,” I replied.
“That’s the same thing.”
“No, it’s not.”
A pause.
Then her voice dropped.
“You like her.”
The words hung in the air, I didn’t respond immediately, I just walked away from Sloane. My focus was on the window, I reached there and leaned out.
I didn't even realize I had gone quiet until I felt Sloane walking behind me.
I exhaled slowly. “This isn’t about that.”
But it didn’t sound convincing.
Lana let out a quiet, bitter laugh. “Wow,” she murmured. “So it’s true.”
“It’s not—”
“I can’t believe this,” she cut in. “You’re yelling at me over her? After everything I’ve done for you?”
“You should have known better than to do something like this,” I said, my patience thinning.
“I’m not taking it down.”
My grip tightened around the phone.
“What?”
“I said I’m not taking it down,” she repeated, her tone firmer now. “If she has nothing to hide, then why does it matter?”
Something in me snapped.
“You’re taking it down, Lana.”
“No.”
I ended the call.
I lowered my phone slowly, my jaw tight, my mind already running through what to do next.
Then I turned, Sloane was staring at me, I didn't know the uncomfortability her presence brought to me. Do I like her? I can never like her. Her eyes dropped briefly to my phone, then back to me.
“You didn’t know,” she said quietly.
I shook my head.
“No.”
For a moment, something in her expression softened.
“You still brought me home,” she said.
My brows pulled together. “Sloane…”
“You still gave her a reason,” she cut in, her voice rising again. “You still made me a target!”
“I didn’t know she was following us, try to understand”
“But she was!” she snapped, her voice breaking. “And now everyone thinks I’m….”
She stopped.
Her lips pressed together, like she refused to say it out loud.
That hurt more.
My chest tightened.
“I’ll fix it,” I said quickly. “I’ll handle it. Just give me a little time and don't tell my uncle.”
“Fix it?” she repeated, her voice hollow.
Something about the way she said it made something twist inside me.
“You think this is something you can just fix, Alex?” she asked, shaking her head slowly.
Her phone rang.
She looked down at the screen, her expression shifting instantly, confusion clouding her gaze, slowly… she turned the phone toward me.
“Another post.”