Page 40 of I Hate You More

Shane shook his head. “It wasn’t just a prank. I spent the whole morning tearing down those posters and spent the rest of the day telling people to forget about it. Then you had to deal with detention on top of all that. I’m worried about you.”

“You took those posters down and told people to stop talking about it?” I struggled not to sound shocked. It was one thing to help me with the principal, but to be actively backing me up with other students was something else entirely. There was always such a distance between us at school, and I often felt like he wasn’t my twin brother at all when we walked the corridors of Fairview High. He’d never had to look out for me at school before, and the fact he’d protected me today filled my heart with warmth.

“Ally, no one harasses my little sister except me.”

I rolled my eyes at him. “You’re fifteen minutes older than me.”

“Maybe, but you’re forgetting I was born on the thirteenth of March while you were born on the fourteenth.”

“So I’ve heard,” I muttered with another eye roll.

“Look, just let me know if anyone else gives you any trouble.”

“I will,” I said, forcing a smile. His words comforted me, but I knew I wouldn’t take him up on his offer. Only one person truly troubled me in life, and it wouldn’t be fair for me to try to turn Shane on his best friend.

“You hungry?” Shane asked. “Dad’s picking up some Indian on his way home from work tonight. I’ve already got Chase’s order, I’m just waiting on yours.”

“Yeah, I’m starving. I was too busy to eat at lunch,” I said, causing a dark look to cross my brother’s face. “I’ll have the usual plus a garlic naan.”

“Garlic naan?” Chase’s voice sounded from behind me. “I hope you plan to brush your teeth.”

My neck prickled in agitation at his proximity, but I refused to turn and look him in the eyes. “Yes, well I wouldn’t want to upset my customers, would I?” I snapped in return.

Shane groaned and shook his head at me. “Please don’t say shit like that. We’re trying to stop that rumor, not give it wings.” He shook his head once more before heading to the kitchen to call Dad with our dinner requests.

I slowly turned to look my nemesis in the eyes. He was leaning against the doorway and staring at me intently. He didn’t even seem slightly remorseful for what he’d done today.

I huffed out an agitated breath as I stared back at him. “Are you even a little sorry for putting those posters up?”

His expression changed, and a flicker of guilt flashed across his eyes. “Ally, I’m sorry about what happened today, but I didn’t take that picture, and I didn’t put those posters up. I might have—”

“Stop lying to me.” I didn’t want to hear another false story fall from his lips.

His gaze hardened, and he shook his head. “You won’t even give me a chance to explain? Why would I bother lying to you?”

His question ruffled me for the briefest moment. Chase was right. Normally, he wouldn’t hesitate to tease me about something like this. Deep down, I knew he’d done it though. He’d been standing right where the picture was taken on Saturday night and was the only person I knew with a vendetta against me. Who else could it be?

“Yeah, I think you would,” I replied.

Chase scoffed. “I give up. It doesn’t matter what I say. You’ll just believe whatever you want to when it comes to me.”

“That’s not true.”

“Really?” he said. “Because this isn’t the first time you’ve jumped to the wrong conclusion about me. There was a dance involved back then as well.”

My face paled, and I started to frown, my anger ebbing a little as my mind clouded with confusion. “What are you talking about?”

“Nothing,” he snapped. “It doesn’t matter now. It’s ancient history.”

He turned and stalked from the room without another word and I was left standing in the corridor feeling completely baffled. Was Chase telling the truth? Had someone else been the one to put those posters up? It was a question I’d been so certain I knew the answer to, but I wasn’t so sure.

I was even more confused about the other incident he’d mentioned. I knew exactly what dance he was talking about. It was the one he’d gone out of his way to sabotage my chances with Declan. But what conclusion had I jumped to?

Chase was definitely wrong about one thing: the dance wasn’t ancient history to me. His actions at the dance had inflicted wounds on me that had taken years to heal over, and even now, I could feel the ache of those old scars.

I shook my head, trying to push the rampant thoughts from my mind. Even if there was some unknown truth about Chase from the past, it didn’t change the pain he’d put me through then, and continued to cause now.

The smell of Indian food pulled me back to reality as my dad walked through the door with our takeaway. My stomach growled in response and Dad chuckled when he heard the sound.

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