Page 96 of In the Danger Zone
“They were taken on the day I was attacked. M-My parents wanted to document every last b-bit of evidence. They tried to file the report with the police. Of course, n-nothing came of that.” I rolled my eyes. “A-Asher’s parents b-basically controlled the entire town thanks to his dad. They still do. B-But I had n-no idea who would send his coach those photos. The whole thing is exhausting to think about.”
“Somebody leaked them then. Maybe the cops?”
I shook my head. “I doubt it. They didn’t care at all that I n-nearly died. Some of them probably thought it was hilarious. We tried to get some reporters to talk about it. Only one was willing to cover the story and accept the photos and stuff from the doctors. But A-Asher’s family shut that down quick.”
“That’s disgusting. And now Evan’s begging for your forgiveness?” Leena scoffed. “What a loser. I hope you told him to fuck off.”
“I did. Well, n-not in those words,” I said with a soft laugh before the reality dawned on me. “He looked and sounded so sorry. B-But I can’t forgive him. N-Not yet. M-Maybe n-not ever.”
Wrapping an arm around me, Leena pulled me towards her. “You don’t have to forgive him. Not after what he did to you. I know you miss him, and I’m sure he misses you. Especially now. But you don’t have to bring him back into your life until you’re ready.”
“I don’t know if I’ll ever b-be ready…” I shook my head, letting Leena guide me down the stairs so we could get to our first class. The cold air hit my skin, and I moved in closer to Leena, taking comfort in the warm form right up next to mine.
“And that’s okay too. Forgiveness is overrated.”
“When m-me and Evan first started talking, he told m-me something that I still remember. He told m-me to n-never let people disrespect m-me…”
Leena let out a little laugh. “For an idiot, he gives good advice. Broken clock I guess.”
“And I know A-Asher lied to him. And trust me: A-Asher is a good liar. I’ve known that since we were kids. He knows exactly what to say, how to say it, and who to say it to.”
“Like I said the other day: sociopath,” muttered Leena. “At least he’s off the team now.”
“Yeah. B-But that’s just gonna be another reason for him to n-never, ever leave m-me alone. I wouldn’t b-be surprised if he tries something else… M-Maybe even worse than what he did to m-me that day…” Fear took over my body for a second. At least I had my parents back then. They had always done their best to protect me. But at college? At college I was all on my own.
“This is different to high school,” said Leena. “He might have had connections back there, but it’s different here. There’s a reason why he’s left you alone. He’s scared.”
I appreciated her kind words. But it was hard to get over that terror I always felt when I saw Asher. His face alone was enough to make me fear for my life. All I did was give her a little nod. The thoughts stayed there in the back of my mind. Asher could pounce whenever he wanted. He had no issue pouncing before back in school – when I hadn’t even hurt him or looked his way. But now he had a reason to make sure he caused me pain.
Me and Leena were just about to enter the Art History building on the other side of campus when I saw Evan. He was walking slowly, a sullen look on his face. He well and truly looked miserable – so different to how he had looked at me in that locker room. He stopped in his tracks when he saw me, when we were close enough to one another. I said nothing. Evan said nothing. There was nothing to say.
“Let’s go.” Leena gave me a firm yet gentle pull, guiding me away from Evan.
I heard the distinct sound of him sighing loudly behind me, but I didn’t let that get to me. Evan wasn’t mine anymore. And I wasn’t his. We’d both had to accept that and move on. No matter how much it hurt.
***
EVAN
Daisy looked right at me and walked away. I stared after her: desperate and willing to do fucking anything just to get her to make eye contact with me one more time. Daisy had been so close. She wasright there. I could have reached out to her, got on my knees and begged her to take me back while blurting out just how stupid I was. I would have done it, even with half the people on campus watching. I’d do it a million times over if it meant Daisy giving me nothing but a smile. I’d be happy with that.
The space she had been standing in was empty now. But I still couldn’t move.
“Saw that, man,” I heard Tanner say behind me. “Brutal.”
“That’s helpful,” I muttered.
“Look, it’s only been a few days since you said sorry and told her that you know the whole story. Do you want her to magically fall into your arms?”
“Yes. That’s exactly what I want.” That, plus her smile, her pretty eyes, her soft lips. I wanted everything all at once and I knew it was entirely my fault for fucking it up, but Christ, I still wanted her. Nothing was going to change that.
Tanner clapped a hand to my shoulder. “Not gonna happen. Not yet, anyway. Come on, we’re gonna be late for class.”
“I don’t give a fuck.” But I let Tanner give me a little shove forward. Class was the last place I wanted to be. I didn’t even know what class I had. Whatever it was, I wasn’t planning on paying attention.
“Well, some of us do. Kinda. You’re not gonna get her back by failing your classes, so come on.”
“There’s no way I’m gonna be able to concentrate. What class do we even have?”
