I groan in answer. “I have to finish dealing with the house shit. I’m trying to work out what we need to replace to take some of the pressure from Smithy. At the same time, I haveso muchhomework to catch up on. How can we only be like two weeks in, and I’m this behind already?”
“Same! It’s like the teachers want to torture us or something. Want to have a study date? I could use a few hours where Mom isn’t trying to talk to me every two minutes so I can work. Plus, I can help with the house stuff. Or try at least.”
“Sounds good, I’ll let Smithy know you’re coming over. Just remember the house is a disaster. I mean, the cleaners came in, and I’m sure Smithy didn’t rest today, but still.” I shrug a little, and once I reach my locker, I drop the man in question a quick message to let him know my plans. I get a smile emoji back, which, considering he didn’t text before I showed him how to last night, is a definite win.
I go to drop my phone back in my bag before I head to the showers. It buzzes before I put it away, and it’s like a surround sound of pings goes off. My stomach drops. Everyone getting the same notification from ReachMe is never a good thing.
Indi’s eyes go wide as she looks at her phone before looking back up at me. Her discomfort is instantly obvious as she bites down on her lower lip.
“What?” I ask, and she shakes her head, so I pick up my phone and open the app. The post just has a link in it. So I click on it, and immediately really wish I fucking hadn’t.
My screen fills with something from a porn movie… Except that’s my face… And my voice—did they record me in the pool house?
I close my eyes as the breathy sounds fill the locker room.
This can not be happening.
I know I’ve sure as shit never fucked the guy in this video, and I sure as hell never videoed myself having sex… That would require me having had sex, which I haven’t. Fuck my actual life. Whoever made this is a fucking pro.
Even though I know that it isn’t me in the video, shame and humiliation floods my system, and I want to fucking cry. My hands shake as I shut down my phone, shoving it into my pocket. I can usually keep my head held high, but despair filters through me. I haven’t even been here three fucking weeks. How is this my life?
“What a whore.”
“Nice tits, Octavia. Why don’t you show us since you don’t seem to mind baring all to the world.”
“Of course she made a sex tape. She’s nothing but trash.”
Their words hit their mark, and I struggle to breathe around the pressure that’s sitting squarely in the center of my chest. Why is this happening to me? There’s a buzzing in my ears, and my blood runs cold as my skin goes prickly. I need to get out of here. “Let’s shower at my house?”
Indi nods, bundling her shit into her bag almost as quickly as I am. I’m not usually one to run from bullshit, but this… This is too much. “Let’s go.” She wraps her arm around me, squeezing me quickly once, while everyone around us laughs and watches the stupid clip on repeat. I try to keep my head high as we rush from the school.
“Want to ride on me, Octavia?” someone leers, and Indi flips them the bird as she tries to get me out of here as quickly as she can. The taunts and jibes follow us all the way through the school, each one like another dagger to the heart.
These people don’t know me. If they did, they’d know I’d never do anything like that; but that doesn’t matter to them. It doesn’t make their words hurt or fill me with shame any less.
We leave the building and head toward Indi’s car. The shouts and catcalls follow us the entire way. I nearly manage to keep my tears at bay, until I catch Finley’s eye as he stands by his car. He wasn’t at school today, so why is he even here?
The smug look on his face tells me everything I need to know.
He did this.
I bite down on my lower lip to stop myself from crying harder. Why would he do this? Indi has her car unlocked before we even reach it. I climb in, blinking back my tears. She starts the car up and peels away from the school. We’re out of the parking lot before the first one falls.
What did I ever do to deserve any of this?
Indi says nothing the entire drive back to my house, and I whisper the code to her so she can go straight to the house. Once she pulls to a stop out front, her hands clench around the steering wheel. She takes a few deep breaths before turning to face me. “Do you know who made that bullshit video?”
“You don’t think it’s real?” I ask, shock coloring my voice. I might not be answering her question, but the fact that she didn’t even ask me if it was me has me shook.
She shakes her head and squeezes my hand. “I may not have known you long, V, but I’m pretty sure you’re not the type of girl who fucks on camera, even with the wild rockstar shit that happens. So no, I don’t think it’s you in the video.”
“I think… No, I know… It was Finley,” I say quietly, picking at the skin beside my thumbnail. I swallow what little of my pride I have left and finally tell her what happened with the three of them. Telling her every little thing that I’ve been withholding. It’s like a weight has been lifted from my shoulders, but she looks horrified.
“What a fucking dick stain! The fucking lot of them. I am so sorry, V. About all of this, I wish there was something I could do… say… to make it better for you.”
“You’re here, and you’re my friend, in spite of everything. That’s what I need.”
“Then I’ve got you.” She clasps my hand and squeezes before she climbs from the car. I follow suit, finding a worried looking Smithy waiting for us.