Page 26 of I Despise You
When she starts speaking, the room finally goes silent, and I grip the armrests, dreading what’s coming.
“I believe you all know why we’re here,” the principal says with a grave face. “I must say I’m deeply disappointed.”
I feel someone’s gaze on me, and when I turn my head, I meet Chase’s eyes. He grins at me, and I quickly look away.
He’s won.
He’s fucking won.
I despise him so, so much.
“I’m going to make you an offer,” the principal says, and I focus back on her.
At least no one is looking at me yet, so I hope I didn’t miss anything important because I was too distracted by Chase’s stupid, handsome face.
“The name of the one who attacked Mr. Richards so callously, and this incident will be removed from your record, and you won’t get detention. And don’t think you can just say any name. Mr. Richards provided us with some details that you’ll have to know about the attacker. If you’re caught in a lie, your detention will be doubled. If you’re one of the rare responsible students who weren’t a part of this, don’t think this doesn’t involve you. If you know the information we seek, report it, and you’ll get rewarded. No anonymous reports. This is too important for any games or tricks.”
My lips part in surprise.
They don’t know.
They don’t know it was me.
Sure, it was dark, and everything happened really quickly, so maybe the guard didn’t get a good look at my face.
It’s not like he knows me, but I suppose he knows the attacker is a girl with dark hair and eyes. Most of the girls here fit that description. The guard must’ve looked at all our photos, but he wasn’t able to narrow it down.
I can get away with it.
A part of me feels guilty, but the other part sees the opportunity. I just don’t know what Chase will do.
He saw me.
But will he use it against me or not? I’m not quite free yet.
I avoid looking in his direction while the principal talks about responsibility, character, and about her disappointment in all of us. When she’s done, we all flock to the exit.
Vanessa loudly complains about the whole situation, and some of the students around her agree. While she’s busy talking to them, I head out because I need some air. The auditorium seems like a mousetrap.
I don’t get far because Chase gets in my way.
“Where are you going, princess?” The corners of his lips lift up.
“None of your business,” I snap.
“Ah, but you see, it is. I have a proposition for you.”
I don’t like the look in his eyes. It’s strangely detached. Cold. Like, deep down, he doesn’t really care about anything at all. Any lives he plays with mean nothing to him.
“What do you want?” I suspect it has something to do with last night.
“We both know what happened yesterday. The principal’s office is very close, and I could just walk over there and tell her everything. She’s really pissed. Never seen her like that before. She hides it well, but her eyes tell a different story. If I tell her the truth, you’re so done for.”
But since he hasn’t told her, he clearly wants something. Do I even want to know what it is?
I just raise an eyebrow at him.
“But I don’t have to tell her anything,” Chase says. “All you have to do is drop out of the race for the scholarship. It’s that simple.”
