Page 100 of To Professor, with Love
“Coach hung it on the board in the middle of the locker room.Everyonehas seen it.”
“What!”It was just hanging out in public for everyone to see Aspen in her moment of glory?No fucking way.I spun toward the doorway and charged.I knew Hamilton was still bracing the door shut, but that didn’t matter to me.I wasn’t on the team because I was afraid of being tackled.
His eyes widened, but he seemed to prepare himself for my attack.Damn fucking football player.I didn’t let him down, bowing my head and charging with my shoulder.
Ten shouted my name and crashed into me from behind as I rammed Hamilton hard, causing him to grunt out a whoosh of air.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?”Ten tried to ask between curses as he and Quinn wrestled me to the ground and pinned me down.
I bucked under them, flailing and roaring out my rage.“I’m getting that picture.”
My roommate sat on my back and Quinn contained my legs.“Are you insane?Coach put it up to get a reaction out of someone.Out ofyou.You can’t go tearing in there and—”
“I need it down,” I ground out.“Motherfucker, howdarehe?How dare he do that to her?I need that picture rippeddown.”
“Okay!Okay, buddy.”Ten patted my shoulder.“We’ll get it down.Just...breathe.”
I stopped fighting, but the guys kept sitting on me for another couple minutes before Ten nodded at Quinn.
Slowly, cautiously they let up pressure.When I didn’t try to break loose as soon as I had an ounce of wiggle room, they leapt off me and jumped back.I stayed sprawled on the floor, panting and trying to calm myself before I sat up and glanced at Ten.
“I want it down.”
“We’ll get it down,” he promised me, his eyes steady on mine with a look of pure assurance that I’d never seen him give anyone.“I swear to you, we’ll get that picture down.But you can’t go anywhere near it.If Coach finds out it’s you, you’ll be off the team and kicked out of school, bro.”
“I don’t care.”I pushed to my feet and brushed off my clothes.“She shouldn’t be put on display like that, like some kind of dirty whore.She’s not—”
“Iknow,” Ten said forcefully.He lifted his hands, back to placating me.“We both know that.But you going in there like this won’t help anyone.It won’t help you, it won’t help your brothers or sister.And it won’t help her.She’s already gone, man.”
“Gone?”I repeated stupidly.“What do you meangone?”
“Do you seriously think they’d let her stay on campus after something like this?Besides,” he glanced away and mumbled the last part, “there’s a sign above the picture.”
“A sign?”My heart sank.They’d labeled my woman, just like what had happened in that Hawthorne book.All her hard work to get a position at Ellamore had come down to a big scarlet A...because of me.This was definitely not the kind of A I’d always wanted from her.I tasted bile and wanted to get it out of me.“What’s it say?”
Ten blanched and shook his head.Hamilton looked away.
“What’s it say?”I roared.
“Jesus.It says, ‘Who wants to join Dr.Kavanagh in leaving Ellamore forever?’”
“Oh, God.”
I started for the door.This time, they trapped me against the damn sinks.
“Let me go, damn you.”
“What’re you going to do?Blow in there and confess, so you can go down with her?Man, you only have one year left of school.You’rethis closeto getting everything you’ve worked so hard for.And don’t forget your family.Jesus, Noel.Yourfamily.”
“So, what do you expect me to do?Take the coward’s way out and let her take the fall for both of us?Fuck that.”
“Think about this, Gamble.Think with your brain for a second.Nothing you can do will save her.”
A growl escaped my throat.I gritted my teeth and closed my eyes, trying to combat the agony, but it just followed me.
“But you can still save Caroline.And Colt, and Brandt.Theydidn’t do anything wrong and they’ll be the ones who suffer right along with you if you throw away your entire future and admit anything to Coach.”
His words penetrated my rage until it struck me what he’d just said.I squinted.“How the fuck do you know anything about them?”
