Page 99 of Reflections of Peonies
I hardly spoke to him, so I shouldn’t care about him missing class. Yet I couldn’t get past the gross feeling crawling across my skin.
However, it wasn’t until I’d left Miles after lunch that the proverbial hammer finally fell.
I saw them as I walked through the small courtyard between the Science and English buildings. A group of students hid behind the shrubbery beside the red-bricked pathway. They were familiar, and when I approached them, I knew why.
It was Heather—my lunchroom foe—and her gang. Their backs were to me, though, and their attention was focused on someone else entirely.
I moved behind them and looked across the way. There, sitting on a park bench—as she read a book in the center of the courtyard—was Jiayi.
She didn’t seem to have noticed Heather and her cronies.
Were they making fun of her? I thought she intimidated them. Or were they the sort to hide and gossip?
In either case, I didn’t like this.
I stepped past the groups and closed the distance between the dark-haired girl and myself. “Jiayi…”
She glanced up, her ruby lips turning down. “Hi, Bianca.”
“Can I sit with you?” I glanced back, but the group had already run away.
She shot me a strange look but moved over. “Is there something the matter?” she asked as I settled beside her.
“No.” I tucked my bag behind my legs. “Why would you think that?”
Jiayi spoke as if she was weighing her words. “Your assignment as my roommate ended rather abruptly.”
My face heated, and I covered my cheeks. I didn’t even consider how she might feel about Bryce showing up to our room in the middle of the night.
Bryce wasn’t the most sensitive person. The conversationbetween them was probably short and abrupt. He might have even made hercry.
I could imagine the whole scene now.
“I’m sorry.” I couldn’t even look at her. “It wasn’t anything you did.”
“I know,” she said. “Bryce explained everything.”
Dear Lord. I squeezed my eyes shut in horror.
“He told me the jig was up, that he was angry with me, and,most hilariously, that you two were married. He’s quite amusing when he’s in a fluster,” she said, touching her chin. “My favorite part, though, was him asking for your stuffed animal.”
My head was starting to pound. But then her words registered, and I peeked at her through my fingers. “Why would it be hilarious for us to be married?” Not that it was legal or that I would ever—even in my wildest nightmares—want to make it real.
But that wasn’t the point. People were supposed to believe in our love.
“You two do share a familial connection.” She smoothed the pages of her book down. “But not by marriage. You’re brother and sister. Besides, your fate isn’t connected to Bryce Dubois.”
“What?” How did she know?
Jiayi shot me a patient look. “I’m Damen’s Tongjun.”
“What?” I repeated, leaning back. “Wait, so you knew about me?”
“Yes, I knew.” She flipped her hair over her shoulder. “I was briefed before you became my roommate.”
“Oh.” I looked at the ground. She was almost as short as me, and our feet were roughly the same size. My light shoes and ruffled-lace socks starkly contrasted her dark black tights and shiny black ankle boots.
Why did I ever think that we might be friends?
